Ghana:A West African Trading Empire 13. 1 I ntr o d u c t i o n ln t hc lls t c h rp tc r. \()u l c l rrn c tlh o rr \\'cst.\l l i can soci cl i csti cre-l opcdi nto l i n-gdor t r sunLlen rp i l e s .(i l ra n l . N { i i l i . rn ri So rr-uhlul i l cl eul ctl crnpi rcsthut g:ri nednrtrch ol t lr c il lc alt h l l o rr l l a d c . In tl ri s c h rrp tc r'tou . rr i l l l carn rrorc l boul the rol e ol tl acl c as r ou c r plo rc G h l rrl L .th c Ii r\l o l \\' c \1 .\lri ca r cnrpi l c' s. ' l' he k ir t g tl rrrtto l (i h u rri rl a s tc rll h rrrr s onrcti nrchel i rl e 500 ( .r . unl i l i ts l i ni tl c olllps c il t h c l l 0 0 s . I1 a ro s c i l th c s c n r i tl rr S i rl teI i rrti lcrcntul rl l r sprcaclorer t hc r ullc r bc tu c c n l l rc S c n c g a l rrn d N i g c l l l i rcl s. T o lhc s oulh u a s ti rre s t. l i ) th c n o [l ]r l i l ) ll )c S l h ri r Dc s c r t . ' lir da r th i s rc l i o n i \ p i l ft o J l h e n l Ll i onsol ' Nllr ulit lnilrln tl N Ia l i . (T h e rn o tl c l n c o L rnl rrol (i hl rl r t iLk c sit s r lt r r c l ro rrr l h c o l ti l i n 1 .:c l o n r. h u l i l i s l ()cal c(l f in t o t hc \ ou l h . ) l' he c ar li e s trrri l i rtg s a b o L rll h e k i n i :d o rr ol (i hani r conte lrortt Arab scltolltrs.-fl'tcscscltolats rccolrlcd inlium lt ion th c r h a rl u l th c l c tl l r' o rl rl ri t\cl dr\ 1() G huna.B y t h c l i rn e l l rc r b c rrr u ri ti n g u bout (i l l rni r in t he ninlh c c n l u rr. i l u l r: .rl re rrthl i l l o L r l i shi n! enr pir e. W c don' t k l o rl l i rr c c rl i ri r l ro u (j h a n i r i l ercl opcLl inlo lut !'nlpirc. Possiblr .Lgr0rrp ol ri lrrri0rs r.rscd ir on ueapor rsl o d c l c l L tth c i I rc i g h b o l s . In l i l ct. the uor t l q/ r lr r r n tc l l rl \ " \\l l r e h i e l . \\' c tl r k n ou l hal r c ont r olol lr a d c . p l rrti c L rl l rr' il rr
n L i d c thc l i n-g -g o l d . p c o p l c re rv u c rl l h r. \\t st A l l i crns ol( ihanr r r nd h i s r lill s ing r on -l r l rb o trtth c n l rj c s l r o l i i n c i cnl Gl l rnl . lt t t hi\ c h x p tc r.ro tr \i l l gov er nm en t
l i rs t l c a rn l rh o ul Ghi rrta' s
rn L l m i l i ta ry .
l h c n Io tr' l l l crrl l hon G hlr t a s p c o p l c a c q L ri l c du c a l th l .rr s erri n! l i s m iddlem en
i n tra n s -Sa h a ra n
tra d e. Y ou' l l
lc x r Lat hot r 1 n r(l c r\(l i (l b L rs i n c s u r i tl r o n c i rrtotl rct. F iniLllr .r oLr ' l l l i n d o u t h o rr C l l rn l L l c c l i ncdl rrrrll L nc w c r t t pir c .\,1 l rl i .a l o s e i l \\' c s t,,\l i i c a . tti
Thekingof Ghana usually wore beautiful clothes andfinejewelry whenhe heldcourt.
13-2 Ghana'sGovernment and Military Arab scholarsdcscribedGhanaas a tabled"land of gold." Their accountspainta pictureof a rich kingdomwith a stronggovernment and a lar-ceand powerfularmy. The King and His Government Ghanawas ruled by a powerlul king. The king was the headof the arrry and had the final say in nrlttersofjustice. He also led the peoplein religiousworship. Ghana'sking acquiredgreatwealththroughcontrolof the gold trade.Gold was especiallyplcntiful in areasto the southof Ghanu. As you will see.Ghanacollectedtaxeson gold that passedthrough the kingdom. To prcservehis wealth.thc king tightly controlledthe supply()1' gold.All o1'thegoltl nuggets.or chunks.tbund in the kingdom had to be given to the king. Othcr peoplccould haveonly gold dust.One of the king's gold nuggetsis saidto havc wei-ehcdalmost.l0 pounds. Accordingto legcnd.ilnothcrwas largeenoughto be usedas a hitching nostfor his horse. E.rchday.the king held coun with his people.The king arrived llt court to the berting of myll drums.He was splendidlydressedin colortul robes.gold.je*elry.lnd a cap decoratcdwith gold. His people showedthcir respccttbr him by kneclingand throwingdust on thelr headsas he approached. Oncc at court.the king conductcdthe busincssof his empirband heardthe people'sconcerns.One Arab historiandescribedthe sceneat the courtlike this: Rehinl tlrc king sttuttltut pdgeslyoung servantsllutldirtgshiclds tuul stvtrclsdcutntted xlth gultl tutd tnt hi,sright urc the sonsof the
146 Chapterl3
vassalkings of his empire wearing splendidgarmentsand their hair plaited [braided] with gold. The govemor of the ciry sitson the ground before the king and around are ministers seatedlikewise.At the door...aredogs of excellentpedigree [ancestry]who hardly ever leave the place where the king is, guarding him. Round their necks, they wear collars of gold and silver.
matdtinoal based ona woman's familyline hoaddress a decorative covering wornonthehead, often asa signof rank
A large group of officials were paid from the kingdom's wealrh to help the king govem. Theseofficials were probably in chargeof different parts of Ghana'ssociety,such as the armed forces, industry,taxes, andforeigners.The king appointedgovemors to rule some parts of his empire,such as the capital city and some conqueredareas. When the king died, his son did not inherir the throne.The royal inheritancewas matrilineal, which meansthat it was tracedthrough women'sbloodlines rather than men's. In Ghana,the son of the king's sistertook over the throne. Ghana's Military Ghana'smilitary included a regular army, reserveforces, and elite soldiers.The regular army was made up of severalthousandcareersoldiers.They kept the borders secure,put down minor revolts, andmaintainedpeaceand order.Thesesoldiers wore
ATLANTIC OCEAN
Medi terranean
S ea
knee-lengthcotton pants, sleeveless tunics (long shirts), sandals,and headdresses decoratedwith feathers.The colorof a soldier'stunic and thenumberof feathersin his headdress indicatedhis rank. The soldiersused weapons suchas spears,daggers, swords,battle clubs, and bows andarrows.They were well paidand well respected. During wartime, the king calledup additional reserveforces and the troops of other governors underhis rule. Every man in the empire was required to complete militarytraining so that he would be ready to serve when called. Storiestell ofa king who could call up an army of 200,000wariors. This number no doubtgrew as storieswere passedon, but the king certainly could summona sizablearmy. An elite group of soldierswere selectedfor their courage,honesty, andintelligence.Thesesoldiersservedthe king as bodyguards,escorts, andmilitary advisors.
Ghana:A WestAfricanTradingEmpire 147
1 3 .3 T r a d e :T h e So u r ce o f Gh a n a ' s Weal th (ilrlna $ lrs locatcd bcl$ ccn [\\ (, urers thlit rr unted t(] trude-Nortll Allicl and lhe southcln lirlcsts ol \Vest Africu. Trldcrs ll1)m the nolth c lo:setl thc S l i hnl a ui th sl l t. copyrcr'l .rnd cosri c shel l s (thc shells u c'r crrscdas rnoner ). TI]!'\ trldcd thcsc and othcl gooclslbr kola nuts. hides. l cl rthelgrxxl s. i rol r' . sl rrrcs.and gol d l ronr thc southernl i rrcst s.Thcn tl)r'\ returncd to \0nh..\l[ica.
brinr]in!t the grxrclsfrom thc south 1()
rncrcl'tllnt\tllcre. Cihanl's loclrtion rllorr cil it to control this lrilns-Sahllln tradc.
I
T l l i l cl s goi ng l o i l ncl l i )rrr l he soLrthhad to passthl oush Ghana. Each 1 i r)rc.thc) pai clhc' arr 1i r\c5on thei r gtncl s. Tl rcse taxcs hcl ped n) lr kc (i h ana r-i ch. The History
Camels wereespeca ly suited to goodsacross transport theSahara
of Trans-Saharan
Trade
Trlns-Saharan tradc
h l rsa l ong hi storr. A rchcol ogi stshar e l bund er i dence tl l rt Nor t h ;\liicans brought back goltl fionr thc soutlrcrrrlilrests lrs lon-l ago ls -100to 5(X ) ri .r.r,.Tftrrcl rcr oss t lr r S .rharl . horrcrcr. rrrs r e' r r dit f icult . Ccntu|ics l tcr. t$o lilctors spur'[cd thc th (}l trans-Sahnlantladc. -!ro\\ Thc l i l sl rr as thc i ntroduct ion ol t hc clrrrrclkr thc Sahara.Thc second u as thc spl eaclol Isl am. Cln.rcls u cre lirst brou-ghtto tlrc' S aharaal oLrntl-100c.t .' l ' hcse aninr als al c l el l sui l ctl fi rr desel t t r avel. A carrrelcl n th i nk up to l 5
ol' - glllons \\ tcl i l t l r l i ntc. A s l t rcsrrlt .it cln lllr r -
cl scvcral rla1,sin the (lcscrt without \tol )pi n-r..,\l so.cantr' l shar e douhlc tors o1 r' tcl ashesl nd hai rv er r opr 'ni ngs that hcl p kccp oLrtbl or vinr sant l. ' fhc i ntnrtl ucti onol camels alloucd tnlL['rs to cstatrlishcrtlar an routc:, lcr'oss thc Sahara.By thc tour-thccntuf\. l i u.j c i Ir(rl l rl \ r' l l r' l Ll rr clc hcir r r rni n(cd i nl o R onrancoi ns in Nor t h r\l l ' i cr. It i s l i kel y that the gold canlc l rrrrrrW cst A l r.i ca. Traclccrpanded ctcrt rt'rorebc'cuuse ol 1hcspl cl tl of l sl anr. In the se\ cnt h !crl ur\. \l u\l Il l .
i rrrl rrl erlchr r r lr '.
cnrpi l e. B csi tl es\\anl i rrg l o con\ cr t \\tst A l l i cans to Isl ant. N {uslim s hrpcd to control tradc in Wcst AInca.
I
Ghanaturnedback the invaders. but rrany Muslirrrsscttlctlin \\tst Al]'ican1o\\r)sund becanrcrncrchants. Clontrolol thc trans-Saharan trndenltdc Ghirna$calthyand powcrlirl.By thc year l(XX). th!Ghanas empircdoIrrinrited lraderoutesbctwccnNorth and \\'estA.lrica. The Journey South The tratlcrswho lr vclc(llo \\'estr\liica luccd a lonr:.ditl'i cultjourncy.Thc trans-Saharan caravlnroutcsbeganin North Afiicn alongllte north\\cslcrn borderol thc Slrhrra.Florn Ghana.and conthcrcthc)'strclchcdacrossthe dcscrl.cr()\\e(lthroLrgh day ('had. linucds{)uthto thc Gull ol Guincrrundcasllo presertt In 1352.a MLrslimhistorilnaltl lravelclnarrcdIbn Baltutrcrosscd theSrhura*ith u tradcctril\an. llittlutas accttuntttl his trip shorn. whitlthc tradcrs.iourncyswerc likc. on the norlh Bilttt|tr'sclr \iln bcgilnat thc oasiscilr of Si.iilttlirsa. N'lttuntains. Donkcvs cm cdgcof the Saharain the lirrthillsol thc Atlas lion the carricdgoodslnrm Europc.Arabia.rnd llgypt to Si.iilnrasa coast.Thcrtcantc]cataransl(x)k the g(x)ds\outh. llleditclranean lirr a lcrv nronths.w;ril Battutaand his caraVanstaycdin Si.iilnrasa ing tirr the rainy'seasonto cnd. Whcn thc u aterin!:plitceswcrc full rtnd there\\ s grussli'r thc aninralsto eat.thc traderssct out. Thc carilvatr travelcdliom oasisto ousis.Eachday.thc trildcrswrlked until thc atiernoon.$hcn thc sun rras high in the sk1,.Thcn thcl reslcduntrl thcsunwentdown. Citravans Wrlking acnrssthc Saharawas ditficult and dangcrous. somctinres lost their $ay. and sorttctratlcrstlicd in lhe desert.During onestretchof Ilattuta's1[ip.thc travelerscou]d not lirtd wiLlcr.so thcy slaughtcred sorDcof thcir camclsand drankthe \\ atcr storedin thc nrmals stolnachs. On its way throughthe deserl.thc carlvan stoppcdat Taghlza.a r illagewheresalt mincss cre localcd.-l'hcrcit trxrkon a loudof sall. Whenthc tradcrsreachctlthc towrtol Wulutl at the cdgeof thc desert. theytransterred their saltrnd othcr goodslKrm thc camelsto donk!'vs 'fhcn andporters. they continuedsouth.l)irssingthrough(jl,anaon
porter a person whois hiredto carryloads
theirway to rnarkctsorr thc Gull ol Guinca.nearthc southcrnfbrcsts. Theentircjourncy took irboutt\\,orronths.
A \\r.rt Alrir.urtTrrding hr:rpirc llq Ghirnrr:
Peoplein ltalyandin Muslimlandsused WestAfricangold to makecoins.
doposit a layeror massof a materialfound in rockorinthe ground
150 Chapterl3
13.4 The Gold-Salt Trade Many items weretradedbetweenNorth Africa andthe southemforests,but the two that weremostin demandweregold and salt.The NorthAfricanswantedgold, which camefrom the forest region south of Ghana.The peoplein the forestswanted salt, which camefrom the Sahara. Ghanamademostof its moneyfrom the taxesit chargedon the gold-salttrade thatpassedthough its lands. Wangara: The Secrot Source of Gold Gold haslong beena symbolof wealth in muchof the wo d. In the time of Ghana'semoire. peoplein Muslim landsandItaly madecoinsfrom gold. Muslimsalsoneededgold to purchasesilk andporcelain from China,whichwould acceptonly gold in exchange. In an areaknownasWangara, gold wasplentiful. Wangarawas locatednearthe forestssouthof Ghana, but no oneexceptthepeopleof Wangaraknewexactly where.TheWangarans keptthe locationsof their gold mines secret.Accordinsto ancientstories.merchants occasionallv captureda gold miner and tried to force him to revealthe location of Wangara. The minerswouldgive up their livesratherthanreveal the secret. In one story after the captureof a miner,the Wangaransstopped tradingfor threeyears.They wantedto makesureno one had discoveredwhereWangarawas.To this day,no oneklows for certainexactly whereWangara's mineswerelocated. Taghaza: A Village Built with Salt To WestAfricans,salt wasmorepreciousthangold.Theirculturehadlittle usefor gold, exceptas an item for trade.But they cravedsalt, and for good reason. Saltis an importantpartofa person'sdiet.Whenpeopleandanimals perspire(sweat),theylosesaltin their perspiration. Peoplewho live in areaswith hot climates,like WestAfrica, perspirea lot and must rcplace the salt they lose.WestAfricans also neededsalt to keeptheir food from spoilingandto give to theircattle.In addition,theyliked the taste. WestAfricanshadno localsourceof salt.Theyhadto obtainit from Taghazaandotherplacesin the SaharaDesert. Saltwasproducedin two waysin the Sahara.Onemethodwas throughevaporation. Waterwaspouredinto holesin the saltyearth. The water slowly drew out the salt and then evaporatedin the sun.The saltthatrdmainedwasscoopedout andpackedinto blocks.The second way to get saltwasthroughmining.At Taghaza, saltdeposits were
found about three feet below the surfaceof the earth. Miners. who wcre slavesowned by Arab merchants,reachedthe salt by digging trenches and tunnels.Then they dug it out in largeblocks. lf it weren't for salt, Taghazawould not have existed.It was a dismal place, withoui crops or vegetation.Peoplelived there fbr one purpose: to mine and sell salt.Even the housesand mosquewerebuilt with salt blocks. Trade caravanspassedthrough Taghazaon their way through the Sahara.There they picked up salt to sell in Ghanaand the southem forests.Becauseno food was producedin Taghaza,the miners had to rely on caravansto bring food, such as millet, camel steaks,and dates. If the caravansdidn't come, the miners starved. Ghana's System ofTaxes Traderspaid taxesto Ghanaon all the goods they carried through the empire. Goods were taxed both whentradersenteredGhanaand when they left. Ghanachargedonesixthof an ounceof gold for eachload of saltthat cameinto the kingdom from the north. It then chargedonethird of an ounce of gold for eachload the traderstook out of the kingdom to the south.The traders alsopaid taxes for carrying other types of goods.For every load of copper,they were chargedfive-eighths of an ounce of gold. They paid a little more than one ounce of gold per load of generalmerchandise. The taxesenrichedGhana'streasury.They also helpedpay for armiesthat protectedLhekingdom and allowed the king to conquer otherterritories.Tradersbenetitedas well becauseGhanaprotected thetraderoutesfrom bandits who misht rob the caravans.
In WestAfrica,saltis madebythe evaporation ol waterin areascalled saltflats.The saltis minedby digging it outin largeblocks.
Eventoday,saltis an important trade
13.5The Exchange of Goods
itemin WestAIrica.
When trade caravansenteredGhana,they brought their goods to the great marketplacein the capital city of Kumbi. From there, they headed to the southernforeststo trade with the Wangarans. Kumbi had the busiestmarket in WestAfrica. Many local craftspeople sold their goods there. Ironsmiths sold weaponsand tools. Goldsmiths and coppersmithssold jewelry. Weaverssold cloth, and leatherworkerssold leathergoods.There were blue blousesfrom Spain and robesliom Morocco. Peoplecould also buy cattle, sheep,honey, wheat,raisins,dried fruit, ivory,pearls,and slaves.All goods,including slaves,were paid for with gold dust. Kumbi had one of the largestslave markets in West Africa. The slavescame from the southernborder of Ghana.They were captured by raidersand brought to Kumbi to be sold. Many were bought by Arab merchants.who took them acrossthe Saharaand sold them to North Africans or Europeans. Trade with the Wangaranstook place along a river in the southem forests.The traderscarried out their businessusing a systemof silent barter,or trade.The caravansanived bringing wool, silk, cotton, dates, figs, grains, leatheqand salt. They spreadout their goods along the river. The tradersbeat on a drum to announcethat they were making an offer to trade.Then they walked severalmiles away from the site. When the Wangaransheard the drum, they traveledto the site by boat. They put some gold dust next to the goods,beat a drum, and left. Later, the tradersreturned.If the amount of gold dust was acceptable, they took it and left. Ifnot, they went away again and waited for the Wangaransto retum and leavemore gold dust. The groups bargained back and fonh this way without ever meeting in person until the trade was complete. This systemof silent barter had two advantages.First, it allowed people who spokedifferent languagesto conduct trades.Second,it allowed the Wangaransto guard the secretof where their gold mines were located.
152 Chapter l3
13.6The Decline of Ghana and the Rise of Mali Ghana'scrrpire reachedils heightalounil 1000c.c. War and thc lossof nrtural lesuulcesled to its tlownlall. In the secondhalfofthe I lth centurv.N,lr.rslinr rvalriorscalleclAlmoravidsbegrn attlcking Ghrnl s cmpire.In 1076.the)'capturedthe capitll cit), tl1' Kumbi.Ghanr'sking regained pou'erin 1087.bLrt theold empirchad bloken aplrt. The losso1'naturllresourccsturthel u'cakcncd Ghana.A grou ing populationhaclpLrtgreatstress or'rscarceresources likc trccsand $'rter.Treeswere
'L, { 1?
:
'- tG- '
f! ,
:J.*'f.,1 t
r - - i'
.tt t.- \.:i o
.ql',]!u ll*"c',\ '-'''t i-+ t nr i l!.::*h-_jii
cut down to plovide charcoalfbr irun-smeltinslirr naces. Wrter becanreso scarccthlt tlrrrre-rs could no Iongcr clops. Peoplewele lirlced to learc irr -trorv .eJr\h,,l hettcr(,r Jrtir\n\.The . rrrPi|i'(iltc trritIl endin 1203u'hena rival kingrkrrntfirk ovcr Kurrbi. The disappcarance of Chanaopencdthe \\'a) to theriseof a ncw po\\'cl.Mali. AroLrnd12.10. a uloup ol WestAtlicanscalledthc MandcconqueredKumbi. Theirhomeland ol Mali u'assouthof Kunrbi.closcr 10theNigcr Ri|cr. Thc Mandebuilt rn cmpi[e that rcachecl llom thc Atlantic Occank) bcvondthe Niger River.lnd ll'ornthe southcrnti)rcstto tl'tcsiilt dnd coppcrnines ol the Sahala. LikeGhana.MaJigaincdmuchol its uealththrrr thecontfolol trircle.palticr.rlar-lf in gold. Its lcadcrs hadaccepted lslam.and undertheil rLrlethe i\luslirntaith bccarne evenmoreinlluentialin WcstAfiica. Vru u'ill lealn utorc lboul thr: impactol lslanron WestAfrican culturein the next chaptel.
Natural resources suchaswater andtreesarescarcein areaslike theSahel.
13.7Ghapter Summary Tradeplayed a key role in the growth of kingdoms and empires in WestAfrica. The first of thesewas Ghana. Ghanahad a powerful govemmentand a strong army. It was ideallylocatedto control the trans-Saharantrade betweenNonh Africaandthe southernforestsof WestAfrica. Ghanabecamewealthy by chargingtaxeson the goodsthat passed tlroughits lands,especiallygold and salt.Yearsof war and the loss of naturalresourcesled to Ghana'sdowntall in the l3th centurv. greatWestAfrican empire,Mali, also built its wealthon \next trade.ln the next chapter,you will learn about the impact of Islam onMali andthe rest of WestAfrica. Chlnrr:A \\(\r Al-ncunTrrding Enrpire I5.l
