In sub-Saharan Africa there are few if any chronological structures or monuments and the cause is simple; The Europeans ruined most of them, leaving only the skeletons and reports of explorers who explored these sites before they were ruined. This is always a concern for globetrotters who visit places in Africa and keep wondering why there aren’t many historical statues or buildings. This European destruction is more noticeable in some parts of Africa. Many cities in Africa were left in ruins when foreign diseases like smallpox and influenza, brought by Europeans, began to spread and kill Africans. So these cities became ghost towns. To make it clearer, the history of Africa before the coming of the Europeans is divided, although a substantial part of Africa’s history is still latent. Even more, the extent of this European destruction is still underground, buried deep and no one can really say how and where to dig it up, but I will uncover and shed more light on most of the destroyed cities and the knowledge we could gain as Africans , will be of great use in the coming period.
This is based on information gathered about the state of African cities before their demise, as written by Robin Walker, an influential historian, author of the book When We Ruled, and PD Lawton (another major Pan-Africanist recognized among the great Africans). just a book called “African Agenda”. All quotes are from the books by Robin Walker and PD Lawton, they also quoted an eminent African Walter Rodney who wrote the book How Europe Africa Underdeveloped. Many sketches are from the 1976 book “African Cities and Towns Before the Conquest of Europe” by Richard W. Hull. This book shows the typically white perspective of Africans living in a way little or no life difficulties similar metropolitan areas, scattered, with no understanding of planning and design. However, Africans believed in life before the coming of Europeans. They think their life may not have been challenging, but it suits them well.
Below are the cities of Africa destroyed by the Europeans
Timbuktu In Mali:
One of the cities destroyed by Europeans is the city of Timbuktu in West Africa, which in the 14th century was an incredible five times the size of the city of London and the wealthiest city in the world, yet many Africans are unaware of this fact. But lately Timbuktu is about 236 times smaller than London and surprisingly has no attributes of a modern city. The number of people living in it is double what it was five centuries ago, with beggars, homeless people and filthy street vendors making up most of that number. The city itself is unable to preserve its destroyed monuments or buildings and archives. In the 14th century, the three richest places on earth were China, Iran or Iraq, and the Mali Empire in West Africa. Out of these three places, the Mali Empire was the only place that was still independent and prosperous, while the other two, China and the entire Middle East, were defeated by Genghis Kan’s Mongol troops, who severely damaged, plundered and defiled the places had. Mansa Musa was the richest man in the history of Mali and also the emperor of the 14th-century Mali Empire, which encompasses present-day Mali, Senegal, Gambia and Guinea. When he died in 1331 his fortune was estimated at $400 billion and at that time the Mali Empire was the largest salt and gold producer. You could see how rich he was. plundered and defiled. Mansa Musa was the richest man in the history of Mali and also the emperor of the 14th-century Mali Empire, which encompasses present-day Mali, Senegal, Gambia and Guinea. When he died in 1331 his fortune was estimated at $400 billion and at that time the Mali Empire was the largest salt and gold producer. You could see how rich he was. plundered and defiled. Mansa Musa was the richest man in the history of Mali and also the emperor of the 14th-century Mali Empire, which encompasses present-day Mali, Senegal, Gambia and Guinea. When he died in 1331 his fortune was estimated at $400 billion and at that time the Mali Empire was the largest salt and gold producer. You could see how rich he was.
Take a look at the image of Emperor Mansa Musa, the richest man in human history.
According to records, Mansa Musa carried a lot of gold on his journey to Mecca for pilgrimage in 1324 and spent it lavishly, causing the price of gold to plummet for ten years. He discovered the Library of Timbuktu, and the popular Timbuktu Manuscripts, covering all areas of world information and skill, were written during his reign. During this period, Mali had at least 400 cities and the interior of the Niger Delta was densely populated. The city of Mali in Timbuktu at that time had a population of 115,000, five times more than medieval London. Timbuktu at that time has intelligent culture and wonderful life style. There are old books from a hundred years ago owned by many old West African houses, who have private libraries. Even the Mauritanian cities of Chinguetti and Oudane have around 3450 medieval handwritten books. It is also possible that there are still 6000 books in the city of Walata, some of which date back to the 8th century AD. In addition, according to records, there are 11000 books in private library holdings in Niger. According to Professor Henry Louis Gates, around 25,000 university students studied there. More recently, National Geography defined Timbuktu as the Paris of the medieval world. In summary, Timbuktu itself has approximately 70,000 books written in Mande, Suqi, Fulani, Timbuctu and Sudani. The books cover mathematics, medicine, poetry, law and astronomy and were the first encyclopedia in the 14th century before the time, when Europeans knew about them in the 18th century was four centuries later. For a 16th-century West African student, a man named Professor Ahmed Baba of Timbuktu, a total of 1,600 books was surprisingly classified as an insignificant library. According to records, Professor Ahmed Baba had 1600 volumes and was considered by his friends to be the owner of the smallest library. This proves that the students of Timbuktu knew more than the Europeans. The mathematicians in Timbuktu in the 15th century were aware of the rotation of the planets and the details of the eclipse, and for these realizations the Africans waited almost 200 years after Galileo and Copernicus made the same calculations, which made it very difficult for them to have time for it in Europe.
Kilwa in Tanzania:
Ibn Battouta defined the Tanzanian city of Kilwa of the Zanj, Swahili-speaking people in 1331 as “one of the most beautiful and best-built cities in the world. The whole thing is beautifully built. ‘ The destruction is extreme considering the Gothic arches and stonework, a typical example of extremely fine architecture. The aforesaid city arose historically in the 9th century and reached its peak in the 13th and 14th centuries. Also the international African port has in 11.-14. Century created its own currency. The remaining artifacts currently link it to Spain, China, Arabia and India. The people who lived in this city, even the architects and everyone who discovered them, were not Arabs, and the only help that the Europeans could give in the form of the Portuguese,
A depiction of the Ghana Empire:
Merchants visited the Ghana Empire in the 11th century and had this to say about the king: that he sits in the assembly of the people to hear their grievances against officials in a covered pavilion, around which stand ten horses covered in gold-embroidered materials . On the back of the king are ten sides with shields and swords decorated with gold. On his right, the sons of the kings of his country wear impressive robes and their hair braided with gold. The governor of the city sits on the floor in front of the king, and ministers also sit around him. At the door of the pavilion are dogs of outstanding purity, which hardly leave the place where the king is, guarding him. Around their necks they wear collars of gold and silver, supplemented with a series of balls made of the same metals. “(The source of the quote is given on Wikipedia as p. 80 of the Corpus of Early Arabic Sources for West Africa by Nehemiah Levtzion and John FP Hopkins)
Ghana Emperor:
Benin City In Nigeria
Rodney wrote at the end of the 13th century: Before a European traveler became acquainted with the great city of Benin in West Africa (now Nigeria, Edo State), he said: “The city seems very great. As you set off you will see a large wide street, which is unpaved and appears to be seven or eight times wider than Warmoes Street in Amsterdam, in the city of Harlem, and which is surrounded by walls. There are quite a number of apartments for the Prince’s ministers and fine galleries, most of which are as large as those on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange. They are supported by copper-clad wooden pillars depicting their victories, which are carefully kept clean. The city consists of thirty main streets, which are very straight and 120 feet wide, apart from a plethora of little roads crossing each other. The houses are close to each other and arranged in good order. These people are in no way inferior to the Dutch when it comes to cleanliness; they wash and scrub their houses so well that they are polished and shine like a mirror. (Source: Walter Rodney, “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa”, p. 69) Benin City was destroyed, stolen, badly damaged and burned to ashes by British forces under Admiral Harry Rawson in 1897. A group of the popular Benin Bronzes is located currently in the British Museum in London. Some of the 700 bronzes looted by British troops were sold back to Nigeria in 1972. Such grief that comes after being exploited by ignorance. The second description of the great city of Benin in relation to the city walls is as follows: “They extend for a total of about 16,000 kilometers in a mosaic of more than 500 interconnected settlement boundaries. They cover 6500 square kilometers and were all excavated by the Edo people. In total, they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and use a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Cheops. It took an estimated 150 million hours to build and is possibly the greatest single archaeological phenomenon on the planet. ” In total, they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and use a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Cheops. It took an estimated 150 million hours to build and is possibly the greatest single archaeological phenomenon on the planet. ” In total, they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and use a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Cheops. It took an estimated 150 million hours to build and is possibly the greatest single archaeological phenomenon on the planet. “
Source: Wikipedia, Architecture of Africa. ”Fred Pearce, the new scientist 11/09/99.
Look down for a clear view of the city of Benin, located in Nigeria’s Edo state as early as 1891.
Vaida in Guinea:
The city of Vaida in Guinea is no exception. The first Europeans, who were Portuguese in the 15th century, sailed across the Atlantic coast of Africa, boarding the coast of Guinea and stopping at Vaida in West Africa. The sailors were greatly surprised to see roads strewn with two rows of trees for several miles on each side. During the days they explored a land of beautiful fields where men lived in impressively colorful garments of their own brand. As they continued south in the Kingdom of Kongo, they saw a crowd wearing rich silks and velvets. Wonderful states, well organized to the last, with powerful leaders and booming industries. In fact, they were civilized to the core and the state of the countries on the east coast, such as Mozambique,
Congo:
The Kingdom of Kongo was the perfect example of thispolitical society. The Congo was in a booming and busy state in the 15th century. It was in the region of northern Angola and western Congo and the number of people residing in it was reported to be around 2 or 3 million. The Congo of that time was divided into 6 administrative provinces and a number of dependencies, of which the provinces were Mbamba, Mbata, Mpangu, Mpemba, Nsundi and Soyo and the dependencies were Matari, Wamdo, Wembo and Mbundu province. Together they formed the subject of the power of the Mani Kongo king named Mani Kongo. Referred to as Mbanza Kongo, the Congolese capital was located in Mpemba province in Mbamba province (military sanctuary) and could accommodate 400,000 troops in PD Lawton’s ‘African Agenda’ field source
See depiction of ancient Congo
Africa was far ahead in development than Europe in terms of political organization, science, technology and culture until the late 16th century and success continued despite the ill effects of European slavery. Up until the 17th and 18th centuries, Africa was ahead of Europe. Africa was filled with tens of thousands of prosperous cities, kingdoms and empires. All those great men and women who were the kings, queens, etc. slept on banana trees since they always consider us “black monkeys”? Remember we are referring to the richest men in the world. Were they clothed in tree leaves? definitely not! since they did not sleep on banana trees, where should their palaces serve at least as a memory and also their works of art? No matter how much attention the Europeans may cause,
Loango City Congo:
The Loango city in the Congo/Angola region is also shown in a different sketch from the mid-17th century. The sketch shows that the city of Kongo was a large, well-ordered city with orderly or well-delineated floor plans, stretching for several kilometers and surrounded by city walls, and boomed with commerce. The building where the king lives was covered by courtyards and gardens for a mile and a half. People who lived in Loango used mathematics for arithmetic purposes and also for astrological calculations. Surprisingly, they used simple math and advanced math like linear algebra etc. They used the “Ishango Bone” calculator from Congo, which is 25,000 years old. Take a quick look below to see the image of Loango as it was then
The town of Loango, formerly known as the beautiful town, was destroyed by European treasure hunters, pseudo-missionaries and other types of privateers.
Regarding their clothing and textiles, the Congolese textiles were also unique, as written by various European writers of the 16th and 17th centuries. They wrote about the fine crafts of the people of eastern Congo and adjacent regions, who made distinctive garments such as damask, sarsenet, satin, taffeta, handkerchief cloth, and velvet. According to Professor DeGraft-Johnson, their brocade (high and low) is more expensive than that of the Italians.
A modern scholar wrote that there is an expert in metallurgical art in ancient Congo. The Bakongo were well informed about lead fume poisoning. They invented a means of preventing and curing disease, pharmacological (administering enormous doses of papaya and palm oil) and mechanical (applying pressure so as not to obstruct the digestive tract) to combat lead toxicity.
The town of Kano in Nigeria
The royal palace in the city of Kano in Nigeria dates back to the fifteenth century when it was ruled by Muhammad Rumfa in the years 1463-99. The Royal Palace has grown into a very large and impressive complex over the generations. An account of the city during colonialism from 1902 gave an overview of the city as a network of buildings covering an area of 33 acres, surrounded by a wall that is 20 to 30 feet high on the outside and 15 feet on the inside.
The Nigerian city of Kano produced about 10 million pairs of shoes (sandals) and 5 million skins for international trade annually in 1851
City of Kanem-Borno, known as Ngazargamu:
The capital of Kanem-Borno known as Ngazargamu grew into one of the largest cities in the world in the 17th century. In 1658, according to an architectural scholar, the metropolis had about a quarter of a million inhabitants. Ngazargamu had about 660 streets and many of the streets were wide and reserved, reflecting effective urban planning.
An explorer who explored the Central AfricanThe civilization of Kanem-Borno in the 16th century made a remark about the ruler’s mounted troops. According to him, they had gold stirrups, spurs, bits and buckles. Even the Emperor’s dogs wore chains of the finest gold.
Surame in Nigeria
surams; A city in Nigeria that was booming in theSixteenth century. Even in destruction it still conjured up a beautiful sight. The Walls of Surame are about 10 miles (16 km) in circumference and consist of many large walled settlements extending perpendicularly to the main wall. According to a modern scholar, the large compound of Kanta in the center is easy to see as many buildings have been destroyed, one of which is said to be two-story. The obvious feature of the walls is the extensive use of stone and tsokuwa (laterite gravel), or very hard red construction mud brought in from afar, making the overall destruction even more unsettling.
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa:
There are about 600 stone buildings destroyed in the areas of Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa all in southern Africa. These demolitions are known in Shona, the Bantu language of the builders, as Mazimbabwe, meaning the house is greatly cherished and admired, and symbolizes the courtyard.
Great Zimbabwe includes 12 collections of buildings spread over 3 square miles, the outer walls of which are made of 100,000 tons of granite stones. Zimbabwe had a population of 18,000, which equaled the number of people living in London at the time. The largest of these ruins was Zimbabwe.
The culture of great Zimbabwe at that time was rich; Residents donned expensive jewelry and clothing. The Horniman Museum in London had a headrest on public display in an art gallery entitled “Headrests have been used in Africa since the time of the Egyptian pharaohs”. The relics of some headrests, once covered in gold foil, have been found in remains from Greater Zimbabwe and burial sites such as Mapungubwe, dating from the twelfth century AD. You can clearly say that Great Zimbabwe was the greatest of these destructions.
Monomotapa in South Africa:
Speaking of conspicuous culture, a seventeenth-century man exploring the South African Monomotapa Empire that ruled over this large region wrote: “The inhabitants were dressed in a variety of ways: the grandees at the king’s court wore shawls of rich silk, damask , satin, gold and silk. these are satin of 3 widths, each width has four covados measuring 8 ft. each sewn to the next, occasionally with a gold lace in between, cut on either side like a rug, with a gold and silk edging sewn in place with a two finger wide ribbon woven with golden roses on silk.
Also the Monomotapan royal palace is located inMount Fura has decorative hanging lamps with branches for the bulb hanging from the ceiling based on an 18th century geography book. According to the book, the interior of the palace consists of a wide range of sumptuous and expensive-looking apartments, spacious and high halls decorated with extremely beautiful cotton carpets made by the country. The building elements, which include floors, ceilings, etc., are thinly covered with gold. The metals are specially shaped and designed (beams and rafters) and also gilded with silver or gold. In addition, the chairs, tables, benches, beams and rafters belonging to the state are overlaid with silver or golden gold, and candlesticks and branches inlaid with gold are of ivory,
Invasion of the Portuguese forces in Monomotapa1571 began the destruction of the place and also in 1629 the then ruler Mavhura became puppet ruler of Munhumutapa in the interests of the Portuguese.
According to Chinese reports from the 15th century AD, Mogadishu had houses “four or five stories high”.
Gedi In Kenya:
Another destroyed town is Gedi near the coast of Kenya which is one of the East African ghost towns. Destroyed in the 14th or 15th century, Gedi consists of the city walls, the palace, private houses, the Great Mosque, seven smaller mosques and three pillar tombs. The Gedi Mosque in Kenya, which was destroyed by Europeans among others, featured a limestone water purifier to convert waste water into reusable water, and the Gedi Palace in Kenya contained a reference to tap-controlled tap water. Not only that, the destroyed city had bathrooms and internal toilets.
Many islands were acquired in this way because it was possible to slaughter the small population and easily prove that the land was empty before the arrival of the colonial powers. They killed our brave and courageous warriors or soldiers, our world traders are gone too, pyramids, kingdoms, queens and empire builders are gone too. Unfortunately, today’s generation doesn’t have to worry about inventing the same thing yet, which is why Africa no longer has the same version of brave and courageous fighters and civilized builders. This has led to European blueprints and a host of others being copied.
The manuscripts:
More importantly, Africa as a continent was never a land belonging to no one (Terra Nullius); This formed the basis for proving that a land should be officially settled or taken over. It is a Latin expression derived from the Roman laws used in international law, and defines regions that have never been subject to the authority of a state, or over which a prior authority has clearly or implicitly relinquished authority. Authority over regions that are terra nullius or belong to no one can be gained by inhabiting them. As a result, the terra nullius law was amended to include lands occupied by savages and uncivilized people. For me, Africa was not occupied by savages and uncivilized, rather the Africans discovered as revealed above, queens and kingdoms with large palaces and highly developed political and social norms. However, the colonial power by this time destroyed every sign of civilization and burned the entire African Chronicle in Paris. The “Musée d’Histoire Naturelle de Paris” has about 18,000 human heads slaughtered by French colonial soldiers and missionaries, including the heads of African kings, royal families, African engineers, writers, army officers, spiritual leaders, but also ordinary men, women , ecological buildings and structures killed the African scientists, engineers, craftsmen, philosophers, writers etc. Obviously a museum for children that the French found fascinating , conspicuous or attractive to slaughter to improve the quality of their natural history museum in which they mainly displayed animal skulls. The valorization of museums with mostly African human heads has not only been carried out by France but can also be seen in museums across Europe. The most significant effect of this law, which described Africans as savages, in turn resulted in Africans being captured to demonstrate African inferiority and barbarism in zoos and public events such as amusement parks across Europe under local conditions. Even now, most Europeans regard Africans as wild and unintelligent people, and the more an African exhibits characteristics consistent with this disgrace, the happier they become, and the more favored will Africans be found to be agreeable, pleasant, and satisfying. Oh yeah! This is one of the many reasons a black person treats white people differently and treats other black people differently. One of the qualities that Europeans don’t like to take on in an African is brightness, smartness and confidence. This proves why many Africans in European countries knowingly show serious humility and act submissive and docile in order to be accepted by them, but rarely act in the same way towards other black people. An obvious example is the guy the Soninke people from Mali often play in Paris, where they usually go to the French public administration and present themselves as the most ignorant of Africans, conversing in French, showing a great sign of incomprehension and inability to speak immediately The civil servant would find a dormant humanitarian mission to help a primitive African organize his papers. Most depressing of all is the painful fact that there are no remnants of our ancestors to carry us to Europe all the honor of Africa and invariably impoverish us. Now they call us a poor continent… so sad. Upon arrival in Africa, the Europeans established a strategy and agreed to slaughter the strong-willed valuables stolen from the palace, develop the weak, banish the bright and assertive, and enforce compliance with colonial rule. As a result, all became kings, Philosophers and their heirs slaughtered and sold. About 12 million African beauties (women) were involved, and also the best men of Americans, a significant number of whom died in the name of slavery, which lasted about three centuries.
The fact is that they broke the connection that an ordinary person can learn, since they killed our philosophers and no one could transfer knowledge and skills to others during that period of slavery. Based on a story told about Africa before this time, Europeans began slaughtering the philosophers, craftsmen and engineers of Africa upon their arrival, resulting in a group of young Africans finding a place to hide the manuscripts ( a book that was hand-printed rather than typed or written). Some of the great African men fled during this time, later the manuscripts were given to two brothers. According to the same story, the two brothers hid the books and sent them in different couriers, before they too were killed by the Europeans. Certainly the manuscripts will reveal many mysteries that will make Africa great once again if found. Many Africans had unsuccessfully searched in the past. The search continues as many Africans have yet to give up. The content of the books will surely make Africa the most powerful continent in the world again. Americas, Asia and Europe will ask for their help and knowledge and even bow to the African kings. Don’t be surprised, it was like that in the past. Africa was a typical replica of what Christopher Columbus wrote about the Indians. He described them as “artless and generous with what they have to a degree that no one would believe except who saw it.” Of anything they have, they never say no when asked, but encourage the person to accept it and show as much love as if they were giving their heart. ‘ Then he wrote things he would do to the good Indians saying: ‘We will come into your land powerfully and make war against you in every way that we can and make you subject to the yoke and obedience of the church and her submit to sovereignty. We will take you and your wives and your children and make them slaves, and as such we will sell and alienate them as their highnesses may command. and we shall take away thy goods, and do thee all mischief and harm that we can, as for vassals who disobey, and refuse to receive their lord, and resist him and contradict him; and we protest that the deaths and casualties that will result are your fault and not yours, or our Highnesses, or those cavaliers who come with us…” Surprised? isn’t it, it’s so obvious that Africans have been exploited and no one is doing anything to take advantage of the situation. We must work hard and invest everything (both time and resources) to revive Africa’s lost glory, thousands of which (objects of art, artifacts of civilization) lie in European public and private museums. We must grow from strength to strength to regain all the lost glory and save our generation and generations to come. Africans are great people to begin with,
Featured image Credit: George Steinmetz