Dbq Africa Before The 15th And 16th Centuries

Africa Before European Domination DBQ

Before the 15th and 16th centuries, when the Europeans arrived, Africans developed several advanced civilizations. For instance during the early 300s, kingdoms, empires, and cities in East Africa arose and declined. More specifically, in West Africa, 3 empires: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai took control of the gold and salt trade. Cities on the east coast gained power and wealth through trade as well. Many advanced civilizations, such as Aksum, Ghana, Mali, and Timbuktu formed, and expanded in Africa between 300 and the 14th century.

According to Document 1, the Kingdom of Aksum peaked its existence in Eastern Africa during 325 and 360, and became an important international trade route. Unlike many other kingdoms,

According to Document 4, Mansa Musa, the emperor of the Mali empire, expanded the Mali empire to twice the size of the Ghana empire. On his hajj to Mecca, Mansa Musa stopped in Cairo, Egypt, and impressed many Egyptians. One specific Egyptian official was blown away by his generosity. “This man Mansa Musa, spread upon Cairo the flood of his generosity: 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 quote explains that people of Mali were considered to be very generous because they were willing to give away their gold, sometimes in trade for nothing. It is said that on Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage to Mecca, he brought along 60,000 people, and camels loaded with gold. With this entourage and massive display of wealth, Mansa Musa made quite the impression on the foreigners. On this journey, Mansa Musa gave away a significant amount of gold, however he also brought back a lot of new ideas that would improve his empire. Unfortunately, soon after Mansa Musa’s improvements, he passed away from natural causes, and his rule ended. Shortly after, the Mali Empire began to grow weak, and in the 1400s, the empire began to lose control of its borders. Then, the Songhai Empire rose to power in the 1500s, and the Mali Empire officially came to an end in 1610 with the death of the last Mansa, Mahmud IV. After the

It was located where the Niger River flows northward into the southern edge of the Sahara desert. As a result of its unique geographical location, Timbuktu was a convenient meeting point for the Songhai, Wangara, Fulani, Tuareg and Arabs. It was also considered to be a “melting pot” and center for knowledge and commerce. In fact, Timbuktu was the first city to have its own university with three main renown departments and 180 Quranic schools. According to Document 5, “Here are many doctors, judges, priest, and other learned men that are well maintained at the King’s costs. Various manuscripts and written books are brought here… and sold for more money than other merchandise.” This quote shows that Timbuktu was the home of many advanced careers, and was an extremely resourceful place, which attracted many scholars and merchants. It was the most developed, and prestigious city of the era, and was considered to have been the golden age of Africa due to all of its accomplishments. Timbuktu was the city of knowledge, the city of trade, and the city of