History: Decline of Songhai Empire in Africa

In 1528 the sun began setting on the Songhai Empire when the rapidly aging Askia Muhammed was ousted from power by his eldest son, Musa. The dynastic rivalries that ensued gave birth to chaos and consequently led to the weakening of the military might of the empire.

The inept Askia Musa himself was overthrown in 1531 by Muhammed Bengan, a worse ruler who was equally deposed in 1537 by Askia Muhammed’s son, Ismail. The latter was succeeded by Ishak I in 1539. Ishak I was succeeded by Askia Daud who later died in 1582.

Between them the two men attempted to restore Songhai to its days of glory by putting down insurrections from tributary states like Mali, the Tuaregs, reasserting control over the caravan trans-Saharan trade routes and even launching an attack against southern Morocco in 1546.

Unfortunately the death of Askia Daud produced another civil war which continued until the ascension to power of Ishak II in 1588.

Although Ishak tried to restore the greatness of Songhai, his efforts proved abortive in the face of the last stroke that broke the back of the Songhai Empire—the Moroccan invasion of 1591.

Covetous of the wealth stemming from the salt mines of Taghaza and the gold mines of Gao, the new Sultan Muley Ahmad el Mansur of Morocco, dispatched his able general, Judar Pasha to Songhai in October 1591.

At the battle of Tondibi, the 4, 000 men strong and disciplined force of Judar Pasha employed firearms and mowed down the Songhai cavalry and routed the remaining infantry. Ishak II fled and the Moroccans subsequently occupied Timbuktu and Gao.

Feeble guerrilla movements later rose against the Moroccan occupation and at length the Moroccans themselves, having plundered the area and grown weary of the incessant guerilla attacks against them, were obliged to withdraw from the area in large numbers. The power, pomp, and prestige of the Songhai Empire, however, could never be restored.

The once mighty empire had fallen into a deep slumber, never to rise again.