The Great African kingdoms and civilizations

Africa is known as the cradle of human civilization and it was in Africa that the early humans originated and later, they spread out through the whole world. From her fertile soils’ civilizations originated in Africa and later they developed kingdoms and empires including the Egyptian civilization, Aksumite empire, The kingdom of Ghana, The Mali empire, The Songhai Empire, the Ethiopian kingdom, the kingdom of Kongo, and the Benin empire. Each of these civilizations and empires developed independently of each other and they influenced the history of the African continent. There were many African kingdoms and empires spread out through the whole of Africa before its colonization by Europe. Below is a list of the African kingdoms and civilizations.

The Egyptian civilization

Egyptian civilization was the world’s most advanced civilization and it existed in Egypt as an independent civilization. During the height of the Egyptian civilization the Pyramids were built and they developed an advanced trade network with excellence in art, architecture, and religion. Kings and queens such as Akhenaton, Nefertiti, Hatshepsut and Tutankhamun wielded royal power and they patronized the construction of the Great pyramids. The pharaohs of the Old Kingdom(2686-2181BCE) built the Great Pyramid of Giza and they waged successful military campaigns against their rivals. The economy of the Egyptian civilization was sustained by the Nile river as it provided fertile soil and contributed to an agricultural economy. Egypt traded with its neighboring kingdoms such as the land of Punt, Canaan, and Byblos.

The social stratification of the Egyptian civilization consisted of farmers making up the bulk of the population. Artists and craftsmen belonged to a higher status than the farmers and the nobility and the king constituted the highest class in Egyptian society. In writing the Egyptian hieroglyphs dating from 3000BCE consists of hundreds of symbols and it was used as a formal script on stone monuments and tombs. In day to day writing the Egyptian scribes developed a cursive form of writing called hieratic. In architecture, the Egyptians built the Great pyramids of Giza and the temples at Thebes. Building projects were patronized by the state and it carried a religious and commemorative meaning but also symbolized the power of the Pharaoh. The ancient Egyptians were great builders and the architects' employed slaves in the construction of their buildings. In art the Narmer palette is the most striking specimen of Egyptian art and the ancient Egyptian artists and craftsmen used stone for carving statues and reliefs. Pharaohs used reliefs for the purpose of recording victories in battle, religious scenes, and royal decrees.

The Aksumite empire(3^rd century-7^th century)

The kingdom of Aksum or Axum is one of the oldest kingdoms in the African continent and it was spread across Ethiopia, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Somalia, Egypt, and Djibouti. The Aksumite empire played an important role in the trade routes between India and Rome and they constructed several stelae. One of them the Obelisk of Axum is approximately 1700 years old and is found in present-day Ethiopia. The Aksumite empire followed a polytheistic religion before its conversion to Christianity. The Aksumite Empire began to decline in the mid-6^th century and by the early 7^th century the empire came to an end with the arrival of Islam in Africa.

The Ghana Empire(300AD-1100AD)

The Ghana empire also known as Wagadou was located in West Africa which today comprises the countries of Mauritania, Mali, and Senegal. The empire thrived on the trans-Saharan trade in salt and gold. Koumbi Saleh was the biggest city of the Ghana empire and it is estimated that the city had a population of between 15000 and 20000 people. The empire specialized in the trade of gold and kola nuts. The economy of the Ghana empire was based on farming and trade. The trans-Saharan trade contributed to the economy of the Ghana empire. Ghana empire became a vassal of the Mali Empire and was eventually conquered by it.

The Mali empire (1235-1670)

The largest empire in West Africa the Mali empire was established by Sundiata Keita and was famous for the wealth of its rulers. The Mali empire greatly influenced the laws, customs, and languages of West Africa. In the 13^th century, the Mali empire came to incorporate Ghana empire and the conquest of Sosso gave it access to the trans-Saharan trade. After the death of Sundiata Keita in 1255 the Mali kings assumed the title Mansa.Mansa Musa was the greatest ruler of the Mali empire, The empire prospered in the 14^th, and 15^th century but in the 16^th  and the17^th century the Songhai empire brought the Mali empire to an end after which it disintegrated and ceased to exist.

The Songhai Empire(14^th-16^th century)

The Songhai empire of Songhay was an empire that came to rule the western Sahel region in the 15^th and 16^th centuries. Sonni Ali established Gao as the capital of the Songhai empire. Other important cities were Timbuktu and Djenne.In the beginning, the empire was ruled by the Sonni dynasty and later it came to be ruled by the Askia dynasty. The empire went in to decline in the 16^th century and later in the battle of Tondibi the Moroccans destroyed the Songhai empire. The economy of the Songhai empire was centered on the clan system and the most important occupations were metalworking, fishery, and carpenters. The state religion was Islam and Timbuktu was the most prosperous city in the Songhai kingdom.

The Ethiopian kingdom (1137-1975)

The Ethiopian kingdom or the Abyssinian kingdom which began in the Middle Ages and existed through the Cold war is the longest-lasting kingdom in Africa. It successfully resisted attempts by the Europeans to encroach on its territory. In the first Italo-Ethiopian war the Ethiopian empire defeated the Italian empire but in the second Italo Ethiopian war in 1935 it was conquered by the Italian empire. It existed till 1974 when a military junta abolished the monarchy.

The Kingdom of Kongo (1390-1914)

Located in central Africa comprising the countries of present-day Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo and Gabon the Kingdom of Kongo existed from 1390 to 1859. However from 1859 following the Scramble for Africa by European powers the country became a vassal of Portugal. Its military and political power dominated central Africa for many centuries. The society of the kingdom of Kongo was a quasi-feudal society and its economy was driven by textiles, pottery, copper, and ivory.

The kingdom of Benin (1180-1897)

The kingdom of Benin in modern Nigeria was the oldest and the most advanced state in West Africa until it was conquered by the British Empire. The artisans and craftsmen sculpted statues from ivory, iron, and bronze. Its trading partners were Portugal with which they traded palm oil, pepper, and ivory. The Benin empire existed through the 16th and 17^th centuries but in the late 18^th and 19^th century the British came to know of the wealth and fame of Benin through its explorers and finally in the 19^th century the Benin empire was eventually annexed by the British empire.

The Maravi empire

The Maravi empire centered in present-day Malawi were ironworkers and the name of the empire is possibly derived from the sight of many brick kilns lighting up the night sky. The Maravi empire was founded by the Amaravi people in the late 15^th century and they migrated to Malawi from the Republic of Congo. The economy of the Maravi empire was based on agriculture and in the 16^th century the Maravis came in to contact with the Europeans. Initially the Portuguese and later the British annexed the Maravi empire.

The beginning of European colonization in India

The fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 blocked the passage of Europe to Asia. The European powers began to find alternative routes to reach Asia from Europe. The four major European powers were the Portuguese, Dutch, British and French which subsequently held colonial possessions in India. The European powers initially were only concerned in trade with India but in the 18^th century with the disintegration of the Mughal Empire the Portuguese, French and British fought among themselves for the control of India. In the end the British became the masters of the whole of India by defeating the Portuguese, Dutch and the French.

The Portuguese were the first to come to India for trade and established factories and colonial posts in India. The Portuguese under the command of Vasco da Gama arrived at Calicut in May 1498. Having arrived there he obtained permission from the Zamorin of Calicut to trade with India. Subsequently the Portuguese established settlements at Quilon, Daman, Diu, Goa and Mumbai. Goa was their chief possession and it was ultimately taken over by India. From Portugal in 1961.The Portuguese promoted Catholicism and the Jesuit missionaries played an active role in the conversion of Indians to Christianity.

The Dutch East India Company was established on 20^th March 1602 to trade with Mughal India. By the end of the 16^th century and the beginning of the 17^th century  the Mughal empire under Akbar had ushered in a period of rapid economic growth and the Bengal subah was the most developed  province of Mughal India from which 50% of textiles and 80% of silk were imported. The Dutch controlled the Malabar Coast of India and established trading posts at Pallipuram, Cochin, Quilon, Cannanore and Surat.They conquered Ceylon (Srilanka) from the Portuguese. The Dutch did not play a major role and later they were expelled from India by the Mughals in the 17^th century.

It was finally the British and the French who competed for dominance over India. The East India Company (EIC) was started in 1600 in England by a charter given by Queen Elizabeth I to trade with India. In 1608 the Company sent its representative Captain William Hawkins to the Mughal emperor Jahangir to set up settlement at Surat .They were initially refused by Jahangir but later in 1609 Jahangir gave a Farman (royal order) to establish a factory at Surat. Factories were established at Surat and Masulipatnam. In 1615, Sir Thomas Roe visited Jahangir and received a farman to carry free trade and got exemption from inland toll. During the rule of Aurangzeb royal farman was issued which exempted the EIC to pay custom duties in Bengal. In 1700, the EIC built a fort called Fort Williams in Calcutta. In 1717, the Mughal emperor Farruksiyar gave a royal farman giving trade concessions to the British.

The French East India Company was set up in 1664 during the reign of Louis XIV.The first French settlement was established at Surat (1668) and second at Masulipatnam (1669).Other settlements were Chandranagar and Pondicherry. The French intensified their territorial conquests in India in the mid 18^th century.

After the death of Aurangzeb in 1707 and the defeat of the Maratha empire at the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761 the British and the French changed their motives  from commercial to territorial expansion .They began to meddle in the internal politics of India. In the later 18^th century Great Britain and France struggled for dominance in India. In 1757 Siraj ud Daulah was the Nawab of Bengal and Mir Jafar  his commander in chief. The British wanted to seize control of Bengal .Hence they bribed Mir Jafar in the Battle of Plassey fought on 23^rd June 1757 in which Robert Clive and the British East India Company defeated Siraj ud Daulah and installed Mir Jafar as the Nawab of Bengal. After Mir  Jafar became the new  Nawab of  Bengal the British made him a puppet ruler. Mir Qasim(son in law of Mir Jafar) got the support of the British  to become the new Nawab and under the pressure of the British Mir Jafar decided to resign in favour of Mir Qasim. An alliance of Mir Qasim, Shah Alam II and Shuja ud Daula fought the battle of Buxar in 1764 with the British under Robert Clive as they believed that the British were misusing the farmans issued to them by Mir Qasim..With this the province of Bengal was conquered by the British.

After this the British turned their attention towards the Marathas. After the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761 the Maratha Empire was in decline which gave an opportunity to the British to interfere in the internal politics of the Marathas leading to the First and Second Anglo Maratha wars. In the Third Anglo Maratha war the British defeated the Marathas in 1818.

The Kingdom of Mysore existed in south India. The French allied themselves with the rulers of Mysore and later Hyder Ali and  his son Tipu Sultan fought four wars with the British which came to be known a s the Anglo Mysore wars. In the Fourth Anglo Mysore War Tipu Sultan was killed in 1799 at the siege of Seringapatam and the Kingdom of Mysore was annexed by the British.

Finally in the 19^th century the British defeated the Sikhs in the Second Anglo Sikh war. In the First Anglo Sikh war the Sikh Empire defeated the British and the treaty of Lahore was signed in 1846.However, the British continued to interfere in the internal matters of the Sikh empire which led to the outbreak of the Second Anglo Sikh war in 1848.The Sikh empire was defeated and subsequently Punjab was annexed by the British. 

The British started as traders in the Mughal Empire but they took advantage of the weakness and disunity of the Indian rulers in the 18^th century to fulfill their territorial ambitions in India and ruled the country for over 200 years.

Slavery in the British Empire

The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century the foremost global power in the world. Its influence extended in the political, cultural, legal and linguistic domain. The Age of Discovery led to the European exploration of the globe and in the process the establishment of large overseas colonies.

At the end of the 14^th century Europeans began to take people from Africa against their will. In 1672 Charles II gave the Royal African Company (RAC) the monopoly to supply African slaves to the British colonies. These slaves were mainly transported to the Carribean and American colonies to work as indentured labourers. At times the slaves resisted and there were frequent rebellions by slaves against their masters. The slaves lived in inhuman conditions and many of them died of disease, starvation and misery. The white colonists claimed racial superiority over the enslaved black Africans. Between 1698 and 1797, 75,000 slaves were transported from Africa to the Carribeans through the Atlantic slave trade. It was estimated in 1796 that every year about 72,000 slaves were transported from Africa to the West Indies.

Over the next 20 years the Royal African Company (RAC) carried over 90,000 slaves to the Americas. In the beginning of the 18^th century the RAC lost its monopoly to supply slaves to the British colonies. Between the 16^th and the 19^th centuries up to 15 million Africans were carried as slaves to the Americas. The Church of England encouraged the British slave trade and owned a large number of slaves. However, many church members condemned slavery and opposed it. Two of them, Granville Sharp and Thomas Clarkson established the society for the abolition of the slave trade in 1787. In the beginning of the 19^th century there were various efforts made for the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. The British Parliament finally abolished slavery in 1833 but it was not until 1838 that slavery was officially abolished in the British Empire. After the abolition of the slave trade new societies emerged in America and many Africans were displaced from their homelands. Britain used racial superiority to justify the enslavement of Africans.

Thus, it can be said that the slave trade in the British Empire was an outcome of the European colonization of the Americas, Africa and Asia. It was a profit for the slave owners to own slaves and engage in the enslavement of Africans. However, in the present context with the advancement of human rights and democracy slavery no longer exists since all nations of the world have recognized the natural rights of human beings.