The Black Death is also called the Pestilence, the Great Mortality, or the Plague. The Black Death was the most lethal pandemic in the history of humankind. The Plague made more than 150 million people in Eurasia and the northern region of Africa to lose their lives. The Black Death reached its climax in the European continent in the 14th century (from 1347 to 1351). The bacterium Yersinia pestis caused the Plague. The Yersinia pestis infection results in bubonic plague and can also result in pneumonic plagues.
The Black Death was the start of the 2nd plague pandemic, a major series of epidemics of plagues that began with the Great Mortality. The Pestilence formed social, religious, and economic uprisings with effects on the course of the history of Europe. Several scholars, researchers, and historians dispute the origins of the Black Death. The epidemic came from either Central or East Asia. However, its 1st appearance was in Crimea in the mid-14th century (1347).
From there, the fleas living on the black rats that moved on Genoese traders’ vessels carried the epidemic. The disease spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin and reaching the African region, the Western part of Asia, and Europe through Constantinople and the Italian Peninsula. The Black Death was the 2nd disaster affecting the European continent during the Late Middle Ages. According to estimates, it killed over 50% of Europe’s population and the plague may have decreased the global population from over 470m to 350 million in the 14th century. It took until 1500 for the population in Europe to recover the levels of 1300.
For a moment, take a pause and picture the chaotic and rough moment that the Black Death created in the world. The number of people who lost their lives to the pandemic and the time the European region took to say that it was just in a better state and not a perfect one. No wonder it is the deadliest pandemic in human history. Besides, the ravages of the disease did not stop there. There were outbreaks of the plague that recurred at several places around the globe until the 19th century.
In this article, we will not go deeper into discussing the Black Death Pandemic. The main purpose of this piece of work is to compare what Africans were doing in the African continent during this dark period in Europe. Some regions or parts of Africa were experiencing the Golden Age during the Black Death Era in Europe. We will highlight some African regions that were undergoing the Golden Period. But before we mention these African regions, it is important to understand what the Golden Age of Africa means.
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology. By extension, the Golden Era means an age of peace, stability, harmony, and flourishment or prosperity. The Golden Age may also refer to a mythological era of primordial human existence that people perceive as a perfect state when humanity was pure and free from pain and suffering. The term Golden Age may also mean an era in a field of endeavor when people achieved or accomplished colossal tasks. I might say that the Golden Age is simply a time or period when everything is perfect or fine.
When we talk about the Golden Age of Africa, we try to look at that period when the entire African continent or parts of Africa were experiencing prosperity. We attempt to highlight the works that Africans have accomplished over a period. Without further ado, let us look at these African regions that were experiencing a Golden Age during the Black Death Era.
The North African Region
We can look at the Golden Age of the northern region of Africa by starting with when the Mamluk Sultanate made Cairo its capital. Under the Mamluk rule, the city of Cairo flourished. The Mamluk Sultanate was a medieval realm covering the Egyptian land, the Levant, and Hejaz that formed itself as a caliphate. It lasted from the defeat of the Ayyubid family until the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in the 16th century (1517). Historians have broken the era of Mamluk reign into 2 eras. The 1st one covers from 1250 to 1382, while the 2nd period covers from 1382 to 1517.
The Western historians call the former the Bahri era and the latter as the Burjī. Modern-day Muslim historians refer to the same divisions as the Turkic and Circassian eras to emphasize the transition in the ethnic origins of the overwhelming majority of the Mamluks. The Mamluk nation reached its peak under the Turkic reign and then declined under the Circassian.
Apart from Cairo prospering during the Mamluk rule, in 1340 we see Cairo’s inhabitance growing to about 500,000 people. It was one of the cities with an enormous population. The city also became a seat of learning in the Islamic world. Cairo positioned itself to profit from the spice trade from Asia to the Mediterranean region, becoming an important economic gem in the region.
People built Cairo’s architectural masterpieces during the Golden Age of North Africa. This shows the aspect of prosperity or flourishment in the Golden Era. However, despite Cairo prospering in the period, it was a victim of the pandemic. The deadly plague affected the city because of its proximity to the southern region of Europe and Eurasia.
The Central African Region
Here, the Bakongo ethnic group was establishing their Empire (the Empire of Kongo). Kongo was one of the mightiest kingdoms in the region of Central Africa. The Empire comprised various prime territories or provinces that the Manikongo ruled. From 1390 to 1857, the Kingdom was a self-governing nation or state. Afterward, as from 1857 to the 20th century (1914) it operated as a vassal state of the Portugal Empire.
The East African Region
Another instance we see Africa’s Golden Age is in the Eastern region of the African continent through the Tanzanian city of Kilwa. As the Black Death continued to destroy Europe, the residents or people in the Kilwa city-state became more prosperous. They built structures of coral, produced cloves to trade with other people, and even minted their coins.
The city enjoyed its Golden time and reached its greatest flourishment during the mid-14th century. Also, in the East African region, we see Ethiopia trying to solidify its religious identity. During the Black Death, the Muslim Ethiopians started an enormous power struggle with Christian Ethiopia. The struggle would determine the dominant religious identity for the generations to come.
The West African Region
West Africa has several events in connection to its Golden Era, such as the Yoruba city of Ife reaching its climax during the Black Death. Besides, the Mali Empire was still in its Golden Age and the Mandinka became a political and economic powerhouse in Western Sudan. For brevity, we will look at the Mali Empire solely.
The Mali Kingdom was one of the powerful kingdoms of West Africa, reaching its climax in the 14th century. Sundiata Keita is the founder of the Mali Empire in the 13th century after conquering the Sosso at the battle of Krina. Its capital was at Niani. After the death of Sundiata, the kingship remained in the Keita Dynasty until the late 13th century (1285). In 1285, a freed slave called Sakura took the throne.
In 1312, Mansa Musa stepped onto the throne. Mansa Musa’s rule marks the Golden Age of the Mali Kingdom, spreading its colonies and popularity far. Under Mansa Musa, the Kingdom reached as far as the Atlantic Ocean and past the trading towns of Gao and Timbuktu. Mansa Musa’s global fame came because of his Hajj in 1324. He set out with many followers across the desert of Sahara toward Mecca. According to Al-Umari, an Islamic writer, Mansa Musa brought with him 100 camels, 60000 people in silk, and over 10000 servants.
On his return trip back to Mali, the king brought with him scholars, artisans, architects, and other intellectual men. They established fascinating structures. Mansa Musa had a dedication to education and sent young men to get an education at the University in Fez. The reign of Mansa Musa ushered in a period of peace, harmony, and prosperity in Mali.
Mansa Suleyman Keita, Mansa Musa’s brother, was a skilled leader but his rule was not as peaceful as his brother’s Mansa Musa. Despite the unrest in the area, Mali still enjoyed political stability and security as Ibn Battuta, a popular Islamic explorer and writer who visited Mali in the mid-14th century, notes.
Ibn Battuta says:
“The negroes possess some admirable qualities. They are seldom unjust and have a greater abhorrence of injustice than any other people. Their sultan shows no mercy to anyone guilty of the least act of it. There is complete security in their state. Neither traveler nor inhabitant has anything to fear from robbers or men of trouble.”
The demise of Mansa Suleyman marked the start of the era of collapse in the Kingdom of Mali.
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