The 16th century was one hundred years that set the tone for Atlantic world formation and mankind has never looked back. During this time frame, kingdoms of Portugal and Spain were looking for alternative trade routes — after being choked off of Asia by the Ottoman Empire. Voyages to Africa, Asia as well as the settling of the “New World” was the planting of the seeds that would set the tone for many centuries to come. Shoot, it led to the digital age, allowing me to type this blog post up right now. Atlantic Africa was of course not a listless bystander in these processes and life was going on there too with their own political brouhaha. Below are ten kingdoms/city-states that were of particular significance.
1. Songhay Empire
The big dog we all know. It was the largest ancient kingdom of West Africa (probably in the whole of Africa). After the collapse of the Mali Empire in the 1460’s, the baby Songhay was able to gain control of trans-Saharan trade routes controlled by the former. The kingdom expanded from the Senegalese coast all the way to the Nigerian/Niger border. That is around twice as large as France. The empire flourished for around 150 years, using Gao as their capital and Timbuktu as their industry base. Unfortunately, they lost part of the coveted gold trade in southern present-day Ghanaian/Ivorian forests to Portuguese ships. Preoccupied by civil war, Morrocan invasions eventually led to their demise in 1591.
2. Bini Kingdom
The 16th century superpower east of the Niger Delta(today’s Nigeria). They dominated most of their Yoruba neighbors as well as other Niger Delta peoples. The Portuguese were their main trading partners during this time period, and they marveled at the expansive earth walls that surrounded the capital city of Edo, or Bini City. It was one of the largest in the world. The palace of the king occupied around a third of the entire city. The kingdom also held a monopoly on the trade with Europeans until about 1650, when neighboring Allada took over.
3. Bonoman Nation
A collection of Akan states in present-day Bono region of Ghana and adjacent Ivory Coast. It was made up of Bonukro(Ivory Coast), Bono Manso(Ghana) and Begho(Ivory Coast). The region produced most of the gold to Timbuktu caravans traveling via trans-Saharan routes. They would bring much needed salt and luxuries like glassware/fine cloth. This allowed the area to boom and become the first large Akan state of the 16th century until they were cut out from the gold trade by Akan peoples further south to the Atlantic Ocean.
4. Kongo Kingdom
Another popular bad boy further down in West-Central Africa. It was hands down the most powerful kingdom of the area during the 16th century. They were one of the first kingdoms to make contact with the Portuguese, like Bini. The only difference was that in the 16th century, the manikongo(king) Afonso I converted the state religion to Christianity. Metropolitan Kongo was huge with it’s capital city, Mbanza Kongo, having around 100,000 persons– dotted with multiple churches and chapels. They also had a centralized cowry currency, named the nzimbu– one of the first kingdoms to do so.
5. Kanem-Bornu Empire
The powerhouse that centered itself around Lake Chad. The area encompassed today’s northeastern Nigeria and much of today’s Chad. Due to Islam being a huge part of their culture, they had strong ties to the Trans-Saharan trade to Fezzan. It served them well during the collapse of both the Mali and Songhay empire days. During the 16th century, they also developed ties to the Ottoman Turks, bringing in new markets all the way from Constantinople!
6. Cayor Kingdom
One of the many small states that broke off from the large Wolof empire in the 16th century. They were the most powerful of the five mini Wolof/Serer states that broke off, enriching themselves through trade in gold and persons. Their trade with the Portuguese helped Wolof areas produce about a third of all Atlantic African slaves before 1600. Their society also consisted of a strict caste system with nobles on top, free men second, skilled workers(carpenters/griots) third, and lastly, slaves.
7. Nri Kingdom
The only centralized kingdom east of the Niger Delta, Nigeria. It was dominated by the Igbo people and it lasted up until the 18th century. It was mainly a peace-based kingdom that was led by a priest king called the Eze Nri. People were incorporated through diplomatic means. Unfortunately, they also implemented the system of throwing twins into the evil forest. The introduction of the slave trade led to their demise as most people wanted the economic benefits of European wares.
8. Denanke Kingdom
Great Fuloo! This was an expansive kingdom based in present-day Senegambia and Mali. It was the largest, united Fula Empire in the 16th century before the Sokoto caliphate during the 19th century. Securing access to the Atlantic coast helped their cause and they expanded throughout the years. Dominating their Wolof neighbors through cavalry, they even came close to threatening the Songhay and Mali empires.
9. Loango Kingdom
Established by the Bavili in the 13th century, they are a branch of the Bankongo. They are northern neighbors to the Kongo empire. As people who share matrileneal lineage links, they had good relations with the Kongo and requested priests daily to come and convert people to Christianity. They usually decided on royal power by rotating different provinces over a period of time and even then, the administration was very decentrilized. They, as well as the Kongo kingdom, participated in the slave trade fairly early in the 16th century.
10. Allada Kingdom
Founded by the Aja people in present-day Benin, they are the first of the three powerful states that emerged to the west of Yorubaland. The vodun practiced in parts of the Western Hemisphere, especially Haiti, derived from the kingdom. The language spoken in the kingdom was Ayizo, one of the first Atlantic African languages written in Latin text. They also were heavily involved in the trade of persons, with Touissant Louverture’s father coming from this kingdom as an enslaved royal. He even rode on the slave ship in a hammock!