Songhai Empire

The Songhai Empire was a West African state centered on Gao that became one of the region’s largest empires during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Gao: A historic city on the Niger River in present-day Mali and the Songhai Empire’s capital. Gao was Songhai’s political center and the base from which its rulers expanded.
Niger River: A major West African river that flows through present-day Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. Its navigable middle course connected Songhai’s capital, farming lands, and trading cities.
Sonni dynasty: The ruling house that governed Songhai before the Askia dynasty took power in 1493. Sunni Ali and his successors built the empire before the dynastic transition.
Battle of Tondibi: The 1591 battle in which a Moroccan force defeated Songhai’s army near Gao. The defeat opened the way for the invasion that shattered central imperial authority.
Songhai people: A West African people whose language and societies developed along the middle Niger River. Songhai rulers drew their state from communities of the same name along the Niger.
Songhai military: The forces used by Songhai rulers to conquer territory and defend the empire. Sunni Ali’s campaigns relied on cavalry and river fleets to control the Niger bend.
Askia dynasty: The dynasty that ruled Songhai after Askia Muhammad I seized power in 1493. It institutionalized the imperial order associated with Songhai’s greatest extent.
Moroccan invasion of the Songhai Empire: The Saadi Moroccan campaign of 1591 that crossed the Sahara and conquered Songhai’s core cities. Its firearms and victory at Tondibi broke Songhai’s control of its heartland.
Mali Empire: A medieval West African empire that controlled major trans-Saharan trade routes and much of the upper Niger region. Songhai grew as Mali’s authority over the Niger bend weakened.
Songhai administration: The provincial and central governing institutions through which Songhai rulers managed their empire. Provincial officials helped the court govern territories far beyond Gao.

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