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The Birth and Rise of Ali
Sonni Ali was raised in Ali Kolon and acted as a West African emperor who founded the monarchial enlargement of Songhai sovereignty from the western Sudanese. His conquest of the key Sudanese commerce centers provided the groundwork for Songhai’s future wealth and growth (Streit, n.d). Madogo, an influential army boss and the Gao’s Tenth si (headman), protected and supervised the growth of Ali and showcased to him how to use the incantation power when he attained an age to be referred to as si upon mastering the sorcery and combat competence and capability.
After being well prepared, Ali was now capable of taking the leadership mantle from his predecessor. He assumed the duties and responsibilities of Sulaiman Dama, who in 1464 served as the fourteenth commander when Gao was a territorial zone of Mali (Cartwright and Carsten n.p). When Tuareg and Mossi excessively significant attacks from southern and northern regions, there sprouted high insecurities in the western Sudan state. At the same time, Niger Basin encountered leadership and authority vacancy. Ali emerged and occupied it, progressing against the Mossi before guiding and directing an insurgent opposing Mali’s command (Bovill n.p). He was able to liberate Gao from the once-powerful Mali dynasty and establish the groundwork for the much bigger Songhay empire (Cartwright and Carsten n.p). Nevertheless, Ali had the sole capability of battling Mossi on the war field, and he not at all fathomed challenging such forceful non-Muslim enemies.
Wars of Conquest
Niger River towns were the focus of most of Ali’s military career. In his first year in power, he initiated a seven-year siege of Djenné, which, according to literature, had defied Mali’s 99 previous attacks (Cartwright and Carsten n.p). Despite that, he progressed toward the west regions, subduing the Bandiagara Fulani communities and their counterparts, the Dogon. In nearly 1467, Ali had acquired the southern Hombori territory, advancing his powers (Benjamin 145). In 1433, the Tuareg conquered and acquired the Timbuktu after vigorously and authoritatively taking it from Mali (Nomishan 117). The regional commander Umar solicited Ali’s assistance to rescue his town from the Turkish annexation in 1467. When Ali’s militia became highly influential in 1468, the Tuareg and Umar were forced to flee, after which the Songhai dynasty secured and ravaged the municipality (Bovill n.p). Ali continued conquering the weaker sides by killing their leaders.
The Islam historians claimed to have drafted the Tarikhs, which embedded the key archive information of Ali’s escapade. They were indisputable concerning their contempt and fault-finding for his brutal killings of the Muslim ulema (guardians). After a prolonged period, Ali started mobilization and creating awareness against the assault on other groups despite him waging war on the Tuareg, Fulani, and Mossi. It goes without noticing that in 1471 that there was the destruction of the Djenné municipality (Benjamin 145). On the other hand, Ali showcased a welcoming and courteous heart to the Muslim interpreters despite him before subjecting adverse damnation to the Timbuktu Islamist groups.
Ali’s subdues enlarged across entire territorial areas for the next ten years. However, he developed an extensive enmity with Akil, the Tuareg leader, despite fleeing from Timbuktu during wartime. Walata served as the ideal hiding place for Akil until 1480 (Benjamin 145). At the same time, Walata being a plateau, encountered substantial obstacles, particularly concerning the fear of Ali’s soldier prowess. As a result, there was an implemented strategic layout of building a watercourse much larger than the Suez Canal between Walata and Lake Faguibine for invasion. The plan was terminated after Songay victoriously assaulted Mossi and defeated them mercilessly (Bovill n.p). Ali deserted the initiated waterway initiative, even though some parts of it became unearthed in Mali. In 1486, he stripped Timbuktu’s Muslims of their faith (Nomishan 118). In that case, the habit of Ali mistrusting the Moslems continued during his tenure as the ruler.
Ali and Islam
Sudan’s emperors often struggled to strike a balance between the interests of the mostly Muslim urban population and the interests of the country’s rural, non-Muslim majority. Despite having several Muslim leaders, they were obligated to give respect to other faiths that significantly had deeper roots in the territory. Although he was a devout Muslim who observed all the prescribed observances, Ali saw Islam as a possible danger to his political authority (Nomishan 117). It would be challenging for Ali to aid upcountry people if he bestowed massive merits to the city Islamists.
Ali’s life accomplishments and success were mostly centered on his army career. Although Ali was deemed a successful warrior commander at his young age of leadership, before his death, his army was countlessly defeated. His replacement, Askia Muhammad, was given the duty of consolidating the administrative structure. A network of regional administrators conceived and supervised by Ali continued to live. Still, it was never fully implemented, and as a result, Gao’s grip on its newly acquired lands was highly precarious (Benjamin 144). In order to ease the burden of Songhai’s levies on his crops, he began to use a growing number of war captives in his armies.
Since Ali had a harsh and cold-blooded personality as an emperor, he significantly counted on his authority and as an influential supernatural prowess compared to acquiring endearment and devotion from the citizens. Sometimes, he even executed trusted staff members, only to regret his decision subsequently (Streit, n.d). The rumors showcase that Ali’s life was terminated after drowning in a river after reoccurring from an odyssey challenging the Gurma community in 1492 (Bovill n.p). After the demise of Ali, there was an Islam-approved rebellion that oversaw the ousting of his son Baru from the throne.
Works Cited
Benjamin, Jody A. “African Dominion: A New History of Empire in Early and Medieval West Africa.” (2020): 142-146.
Bovill, Edward William. “Caravans of the Old Sahara: An Introduction to the History of Western Sudan.” Routledge, 2018.
Cartwright, Mark, and Carsten, Brink. “Mali Empire.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. Ancient History Encyclopedia (2020).
Nomishan, Terngu S. “The Essentiality of Early Urbanism in Understanding African Prehistory: A Focus on West African.” Nomishan, TS, Gubam, DS, & Owoseni, BJ (2022). The Essentiality of Early Urbanism in Understanding African Prehistory: A Focus on West Africa. Sapientia Global Journal of Arts, Humanities & Development Studies 5.1 (2022): 113-122.
Streit, K. “Sonni Ali, Founder of the Songhai Empire: Biography & Accomplishments.” (n.d). Web.
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