Ghana begin to rise after 300 AD when the Soninke (some of the earliest people in West Africa) started to band together for protection. The people of Ghana gradually grew in strength, learning how to work with iron, and how to use iron tools for farming. Because Ghana’s farmers and herders were able to yield a sufficient amount of food, their population increased. Ghana’s location was also in a good position for the people to trade which played a major role in their rise to power. The people of Ghana were able to trade the region’s two main resources: gold and salt. They would sometimes follow a specific process called silent barter, which made sure that trade was done peacefully and kept the position of the gold mines a secret. As trade in …show more content…
By 800 Ghana was securely in control of West Africa’s trade routes, and nearly all trade between northern and southern Africa passed through Ghana. Trade begin to increase, and along with it, Ghana’s wealth. Some of the wealth the gold mines brought in wasn’t traded, and Ghana’s kings kept huge stores of the valuable metal for themselves. The rulers of Ghana banned everyone else in Ghana from owning gold nuggets, and in doing so ensured that the king would be richer than his subjects. Another part of Ghana’s wealth went to its powerful army, which Ghana’s kings used to conquer many adjacent areas. The empire of Ghana later reached its peak under Tunka Manin. In the mid 1000s, Ghana was rich and powerful, but by the early 1200s, the empire collapsed because of three major factors. The first thing that impacted Ghana’s decline was invasion. A group of North African Muslims called the Almoravids attacked Ghana in the 1060s and after fourteen years of fighting, finally defeated the people of Ghana. The second was overgrazing, and the third was internal rebellion. In about 1200 the people of a country Ghana had conquered rebelled. The empire fell apart into pieces, the once lavish court in
In documents one and two they explain and evaluate the trading system and routes of the African empires, kingdoms, and cities. Document one shows the layout of the Aksum trade center and the routes which lead to and from it. Aksum is an empire located right by the Red Sea, its location made it an important international trading center. African trade centers mainly focused on the exchanges of salt and gold. Since the red sea ports are controlled by the rea sea and Aksum was located right by it, its locations made it the center of the trade center. However, in document two it describes the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade. The trans-Saharan gold and salt trade was controlled by the rich and powerful Ghana kingdom. The king had shields
...e, unlike the surrounding nations which were powerful, rich empires, Africa consisted of small tribes and kingdoms. These kingdoms’ greatest exports would consist of gold, salt, and slaves, in exchange for the goods imported from the surrounding empires.
African society used bodies of water such as the Nile, the Red Sea, and many more to transport goods across the continent and generate profit. For example, the city of “Aksum reached its height between 325-360. Aksum’s location made it an important international trading center.” After analyzing the map of trade routes in Document 1, it is clear Aksum was strategically built to have ties to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. These two bodies of water give the city the freedom to import and export goods. Additionally, this work of trade did not come without reward. Cities who succeeded in the business became overly wealthy and had surpluses of gold and other riches. A king, Mansa Mansa, who expanded the Mali kingdom to be twice the size of Ghana, was not afraid to show his wealth as he showered other cities in riches out of generosity. In Cairo, Egypt, “there was no person, officer of the court, or holder of any office of the Sultanate who did not receive a sum of gold from him.” This is just one of the many examples of wealth in african cities and empires. What is impressive is the fact that before European trade became an influence, African people had already created a successful and very profitable system of
The empire of Ghana had a lasting impact of many of its surrounding empires. When it would take over these empires it would change that empire for ever. Not only would it not exist anymore but also, it was taken over. Which means that these empires were weak and not powerful enough to overtake Ghana's kingdom. Ghana also had an impact of the Silk road and the merchants who traded on it. As the empire grew bigger and richer, tensions with merchants along the Silk road grew too. Meanwhile, trading became dangerous and hostile. In the end, most of the other merchants and traders hated Ghana's power.
As the world of trade developed over time, goods were not the only things that were traded throughout these routes. With the merchants that traveled the world, were the ideals and religions that had learned from foreign lands, and the major religions of Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism, spread like wildfire throughout the regions of Eurasia and Africa because of this. The spread of Islam throughout the continent of Africa acted as a major influence both politically and socially. After 1600, Islam began to make its mark on the newly centralized states in Africa and was spread through western land trade, and through merchants on the Swahili coast. The major gold trading center of the Kingdom of Ghana, attracted merchants, and was a center for the Muslim community . By the 10th century, the kings of Ghana had converted to Islam in order to improve the relation between the kings and merchants. The early converts of Central and West Africa did not e...
“Caravans of Gold”, a video by Basil Davison discovers and highlights numerous assets about gold and its prominent role in Africa. Additionally, the video examines some of the past and influential empires and their achievements. Davison discusses the history of Africa before the arrival of Europeans to demonstrate how Africa was already a well-flourished continent. “Caravans of Gold” also discusses many topics such as the Mali Empire, trading systems, and the use of gold which shows the audience of the video of how Africa was. In the long run, the aim of the video is to give the audience of the video an understanding of how the empires in Africa used its resource of gold to flourish.
The civilizations in Africa were able to advance due to their complex governments and law codes. Africa was populated mostly with tribes that controlled certain areas of land that became trading centers. Africa’s government was based on bureaucracy. Bureaucracy is a government that functions on multiple levels. The political structure in Ghana, described by Al- Bakri in document 2, was that there was a ruler, a king, with subordinate kings of the ruler’s country. The government in East Africa had made a set of laws that were effective,
The first West African state of record was Ghana which had been ruled by over forty kings by the year 300 A.D. The early Ghanaians were a peaceful and prosperous people who developed an economy based on agriculture and...
In the great empires of Africa they developed many things. In the Axum (Aksum) Empire (Ethiopia, in present time) they developed a trade route that stretched of Asia to Africa and back. Document one, states that people in the trade route traveled along the Red Sea. This affected the Axum Empire in many ways. They (Axum people) had gained wealth because it was a great trade point and from it, it was introduced to religions, Christianity and Islam. Another empire is called the Kingdom of Ghana in Western Africa. They became one of the richest civilizations due to commerce. In document two, it states that the amount of wealth was visible because of what the pages were wearing. They had on gold. Even the dogs guarding had on silver and gold.
Between the 9th and 11th centuries, the kingdom of Ghana, established by the Soninke people in the 4th century, prospered in Northwest Africa. The kingdom became very rich because its location was in the middle of the trading routes of northwest Africa and it had many resources. Ghana traded salt for gold with its Northern neighbor. Also Ghana taxed every trader who went through Ghana to fund their army. The kings of Ghana ruled from their capital of Kumbi Saleh. The country had a rich cultural tradition that was reflected in religion. The kingdom of Ghana fell because of droughts, attacks, and lack of gold.
In this paper I ask, how did slavery begin in Ghana? What impact did it have on Ghana? How badly is Ghana underdeveloped due to this enslavement that took place? Lovejoy, Northrup, and Rodney argue that the transatlantic slave trade did in fact contribute to the underdevelopment of Africa. I support their arguments and believe the trade didn’t exactly “destroy” Ghana, but it did affect it by not letting the country improve faster, although eventually Ghana was able to depart from that “underdeveloped” category.
Accra, the capital of the beautiful and welcoming nation Ghana, is located in West Africa, West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea. It is known for its wildlife, beauteous attractions, and richness in gold and secluded beaches. Ghana also known as the “Gold Coast,” gained their independence on March 6th 1957 from the British. The nation was led to independence by the first president Kwame Nkrumah, who altered the country to a republic. Ghana continues to grow each day as a nation, Though Ghana is growing each day they face many economic and social problems, such as poverty, health issues, education, corruption, and economic challenges.
The craftiness of colonialism on Africa changed its history forever but there were good and bad effects because they built schools and improved medical care but they also had segregated benefits and resource drainage.
An overwhelming majority of African nations has reclaimed their independence from their European mother countries. This did not stop the Europeans from leaving a permanent mark on the continent however. European colonialism has shaped modern-day Africa, a considerable amount for the worse, but also some for the better. Including these positive and negative effects, colonialism has also touched much of Africa’s history and culture especially in recent years.
Ghana: The Gold Coast of Africa The Gold Coast, now known as Ghana, is one of many civilizations of Africa. It was a British Colony until March 6, 1957, when it became independent as the State of Ghana. In 1471, the Portuguese invaded this area and became involved in gold trade, giving the region the name, The Gold Coast.