Battles and Events That Saved Europe

[RedStar]

Had the Achaemenids won the Greco-Persian wars, there would have never been an 'Alexander the Great' and the Hellenistic Greek era, Ptolemaic Egypt, and much more. The Persians probably would have marched on towards mainland Europe and the Roman empire (the mother of western civilisation) would not have existed either.

 

[AceofSom]

Pretty sure Islam entered Somalia very early on but it might have taken a while for Islam to fullt manifest itself in Somalia because in game peacefully rather than through a big offensive Islamic conquestView attachment 8326View attachment 8328View attachment 8327
Im not an Expert though so I refer to these aswell as other sources

These are highly inaccurate. Islam entered Somalia very early, how and when is not recorded in any historical documents
secondly, the ummayad Empire never extended to Somalia or the surrounding regions, their expansion into Africa limited to North Africa.
The name for Somalia was Bilad al Barbara while Al zanj was know as the swahili kindoms.

Ali jimales book the Invention of Somalia, is one of the worst books on Somali history, full of historical inaccuracies. Actually I haven't seen a good book on the history of Somalia, which is a shame.

 

[AceofSom]

I think the Mongols were the closest to conquering Europe, it was faith that saved Europe.

 

[Grant]

These are highly inaccurate. Islam entered Somalia very early, how and when is not recorded in any historical documents
secondly, the ummayad Empire never extended to Somalia or the surrounding regions, their expansion into Africa limited to North Africa.
The name for Somalia was Bilad al Barbara while Al zanj was know as the swahili kindoms.

Ali jimales book the Invention of Somalia, is one of the worst books on Somali history, full of historical inaccuracies. Actually I haven't seen a good book on the history of Somalia, which is a shame.

The Invention of Somalia is a collection of 12 essays by authors Mohamed Haji Mukhtar, Mohamed M Kassim, Catherine Besteman, Irving Leonard Markovitz, Ahmed Qassim Ali, Abdi M Kusow, Abdalla Omar Mansur, Christine Choi Ahmed, Francesca Declich, Edward Alpers, and Christopher Ehret, who are all regarded as experts in their areas. A 13th essay was written by editor Ali Jimale Ahmed. Printed in 1995, it did not have the advantage of the most recent research. Still, it corrects many of the myths created in the 1960's to promote a unitary state, and notes that Somalia has multiple linguistic and ethnic stocks. In particular, it points out that the South also had a history, which had previously been largely ignored.

You need to read the previous pages in order to understand the quotes above that you say are inaccurate. During the Caliphate of Abdulmalik Ibn Marwan (685-705) a Muslim army conquered both Mogadisho and Kilwa and continued to control parts of Somalia until their downfall. "During the early stages of the Abbasid Caliphate, Somalia showed loyalty to the new administration. Yahya Ibn 'Umar al-'Anzi, the messenger of the second Abbasid Caliph Abu Ja'farr al-Mansur reported that the Sultan of Mogadishu and the people of his country were "on their oath to the Caliphate and paid the taxes regularly." However, in the year 189 A.H., during the Caliphate of Haroun al-Rashid, Mogadishu rebelled against Baghdad and refused to pay taxes to the Abbasids. Although al-Rashid sent a punitive mission to the region, the Sultanate of Mogadishu remained in constant rebellion."

 

[Mudug-Madman]

I think the Mongols were the closest to conquering Europe, it was faith that saved Europe.

No, it was the Mongol custom of electing their leaders that saved them. Ogedei died after they murked the combined armies of several eastern European kingdoms so they had to go back to their capital. Had that not happened, it's almost guaranteed they would have made it to Germany/France.

 

[Mckenzie]

Your rather cryptic suggestion that where Arabs "conquer" they apparently don't share is irrelevant, as Arabs never conquered the Somali territories. They came as individual merchants, proselytizers and settlers (not en masse), and they never managed or indeed even attempted to subjugate the local Somalis

https://books.google.ca/books?id=LR8A4tEYZUAC&q=enslaved&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false


Where as Zanj history in Abbasid Caliphate is very well known, on the contrary to Southern Somalis relationship with the Abbasid which is practically non-existent in the History books.

How did the Abbasids completely bypass Mogadishu/Merca/Brava and head straight to the Swahili Coast? I'm shocked that a town like Mogadishu would not have been part of a Caliphate whilst Berbera was an Ottoman town just over 150 years ago.

 

[Dhabaal]

How did the Abbasids completely bypass Mogadishu/Merca/Brava and head straight to the Swahili Coast? I'm shocked that a town like Mogadishu would not have been part of a Caliphate whilst Berbera was an Ottoman town just over 150 years ago.

First of all Southern Somalia was ruled by Ajuran Sultanate and Mogadishu Sultanate. We had strong self governed polities that prevented us from being occupied and remained independent.

Berbera was definitely not an Ottoman Town. It was part of Awdal Sultanate and after Awdal was weakened due to the Oromo invasion. It became a protectorate.

They only lent us military power to protect ourselves from Gaalos, They rarely administrated anything and it was ruled by Somali Sultans/Garaads.

 

[Mckenzie]

First of all Southern Somalia was ruled by Ajuran Sultanate and Mogadishu Sultanate. We had strong self governed polities that prevented us from being occupied and remained independent.

Berbera was definitely not an Ottoman Town. It was part of Awdal Sultanate and after Awdal was weakened due to the Oromo invasion. It became a protectorate.

They only lent us military power to protect ourselves from Gaalos, They rarely administrated anything and it was ruled by Somali Sultans/Garaads.

Well why didn't the Ajuran declare allegiance to the caliphate? The majority of the Muslim World from Spain to Central Asia were part of this empire.

Berbera has Ottoman history, this is common knowledge, the architecture is still there

 

[Dhabaal]

Well why didn't the Ajuran declare allegiance to the caliphate? The majority of the Muslim World from Spain to Central Asia were part of this empire.

Not sure. but it's an interesting thing to discuss.

Some Muslim countries, including Somalia, Indonesia and Malaysia, were never subject to the authority of a Caliphate with the exception of Aceh, which briefly acknowledged Ottoman suzerainty.[7] Consequently, these countries had their own, local, sultans or rulers who did not fully accept the authority of the Caliph.

https://books.google.ca/books?id=OXACBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA248&dq=including+Somalia+were+never+subject+to+the+authority+of+a+Caliphate&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiko-SBx6TQAhUKzGMKHfdFDa0Q6AEIGzAA#v=onepage&q=including Somalia were never subject to the authority of a Caliphate&f=false

We can speculate on the fact that Somalis have a philosophy of not being ruled by outsiders. We all know this too well.

Berbera has Ottoman history, this is common knowledge, the architecture is still there

I know about the architecture left. Berbera was part of Awdal sultunate and after the sultunate was weakened by the oromo's it became a protectorate of Ottoman, ruled by local Somali Garads and Sultans.

 

[Mckenzie]

Not sure. but it's an interesting to discuss.

https://books.google.ca/books?id=OXACBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA248&dq=including+Somalia+were+never+subject+to+the+authority+of+a+Caliphate&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiko-SBx6TQAhUKzGMKHfdFDa0Q6AEIGzAA#v=onepage&q=including Somalia were never subject to the authority of a Caliphate&f=false

We can speculate on the fact that Somalis have a philosophy of not being ruled by outsiders.



I know about the architecture left. Berbera was part of Awdal sultunate and after the sultunate was weakened by the oromo's it became a protectorate of Ottoman, ruled by local Somali Garads and Sultans.

Some serious historical research needs to be done to understand the history of the Ajurans. It's not enough to rely on oral traditions because even that is dying out. Excavations of ruins, digging up collections like pottery and coins and manuscripts etc the Ministry of hidaha iyo dhaqanka should assign a taskforce for this. It's disgraceful that an entire 500 years of Somali history is buried away like that

 

[Dhabaal]

@Mckenzie Here is an interesting side piece history. I was reading a thesis from 1977 written for the uni of California by a Somali student i think for the government. But found some really interesting info written there

Even tho we never were ruled by the caliph or paid allegiance to it. Somalis had deep involvement in other Islamic empires as well as the caliph and had Islamic contributions. Zayla Scholars were the top Scholars in Yemen and used to teach & spread deen to Yemenis

Also Zaylici students having reserve spots at the Mosque of Ummayds in DAMASCUS,SYRIA and
Somalis perusing a life of study in North Africa.

 

[Dhabaal]

Some serious historical research needs to be done to understand the history of the Ajurans. It's not enough to rely on oral traditions because even that is dying out. Excavations of ruins, digging up collections like pottery and coins and manuscripts etc the Ministry of hidaha iyo dhaqanka should assign a taskforce for this. It's disgraceful that an entire 500 years of Somali history is buried away like that

I agree, i'm sure there is much potential for us to reconstruct Somali history. There should be institutions set up dedicated to researching and preserving Somali history and traditions.

 

[Canuck]

How did the Abbasids completely bypass Mogadishu/Merca/Brava and head straight to the Swahili Coast? I'm shocked that a town like Mogadishu would not have been part of a Caliphate whilst Berbera was an Ottoman town just over 150 years ago.

Only for two years

 

[Canuck]

Well why didn't the Ajuran declare allegiance to the caliphate? The majority of the Muslim World from Spain to Central Asia were part of this empire.

Berbera has Ottoman history, this is common knowledge, the architecture is still there

The weak state that declared allegiance(which means ruled by them and pay tax to them) we were strong people

 

[Grant]

These aren't a substitute for additional research or archaeological work, but do provide a framework for what is known about the Ajuuraan.

https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/04/29/the-ajuuraan-dynasty-of-the-hawiyya/
https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/the-ajuran-a-theocratic-polity/

The Ajuuraan domination lasted about 150 years and appears to have been internally oriented. Known external trade and contacts were through the Mogadisho Sultanate.

"Determining whether there were any links between the Ajuraan and the wider Islamic world is problematic. There is no evidence to date that the Ajuran state was known to Muslims outside of SomaliaAt the same time, the muskets and luxury goods associated with the governing elite were almost certainly imported from the Ottoman Empire or its neighbors. The Gareen alliance with the Muzaffar dynasty of Muqdisho must have given the former access to engineers and architects from abroad. If the Muslim advisers of the of the imams corresponded with statesmen elsewhere in the Islamic world, no record of their contact has come to light. On the basis of the evidence presently available, we must assume that the Ajuraan state was essentially Somali-oriented, more concerned with domestic developments than with international politics."

 

[Canuck]

These aren't a substitute for additional research or archaeological work, but do provide a framework for what is known about the Ajuuraan.

https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/04/29/the-ajuuraan-dynasty-of-the-hawiyya/
https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/the-ajuran-a-theocratic-polity/

The Ajuuraan domination lasted about 150 years and appears to have been internally oriented. Known external trade and contacts were through the Mogadisho Sultanate.

"Determining whether there were any links between the Ajuraan and the wider Islamic world is problematic. There is no evidence to date that the Ajuran state was known to Muslims outside of SomaliaAt the same time, the muskets and luxury goods associated with the governing elite were almost certainly imported from the Ottoman Empire or its neighbors. The Gareen alliance with the Muzaffar dynasty of Muqdisho must have given the former access to engineers and architects from abroad. If the Muslim advisers of the of the imams corresponded with statesmen elsewhere in the Islamic world, no record of their contact has come to light. On the basis of the evidence presently available, we must assume that the Ajuraan state was essentially Somali-oriented, more concerned with domestic developments than with international politics."

These aren't a substitute for additional research or archaeological work, but do provide a framework for what is known about the Ajuuraan.

https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/04/29/the-ajuuraan-dynasty-of-the-hawiyya/
https://operationoverload.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/the-ajuran-a-theocratic-polity/

The Ajuuraan domination lasted about 150 years and appears to have been internally oriented. Known external trade and contacts were through the Mogadisho Sultanate.

"Determining whether there were any links between the Ajuraan and the wider Islamic world is problematic. There is no evidence to date that the Ajuran state was known to Muslims outside of SomaliaAt the same time, the muskets and luxury goods associated with the governing elite were almost certainly imported from the Ottoman Empire or its neighbors. The Gareen alliance with the Muzaffar dynasty of Muqdisho must have given the former access to engineers and architects from abroad. If the Muslim advisers of the of the imams corresponded with statesmen elsewhere in the Islamic world, no record of their contact has come to light. On the basis of the evidence presently available, we must assume that the Ajuraan state was essentially Somali-oriented, more concerned with domestic developments than with international politics."

Ajuran sultanate was famous and known for their trades with china and their wars with Portuguese. https://dailyscribbling.com/forgotten-empires/the-ajuran-empire/

 

[Canuck]

Main articles: Ottoman–Portuguese conflicts (1538–57) and Ottoman–Portuguese conflicts (1580–89)

The Ottomans regularly aided the Ajurans in their struggles with the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean.

During the Battle of Barawa, Tristão da Cunha was wounded and requested to be knighted by Albuquerque.[40]
The European Age of discovery brought Europe's then superpower the Portuguese empire to the coast of East Africa, which at the time enjoyed a flourishing trade with foreign nations. The wealthy southeastern city-states of Kilwa, Mombasa, Malindi, Pate and Lamu were all systematically sacked and plundered by the Portuguese. Tristão da Cunha then set his eyes on Ajuran territory, where the battle of Barawa was fought. After a long period of engagement, the Portuguese soldiers burned the city and looted it. However, fierce resistance by the local population and soldiers resulted in the failure of the Portuguese to permanently occupy the city, and the inhabitants who had fled to the interior would eventually return and rebuild the city. After Barawa, Tristão would set sail for Mogadishu, which was the richest city on the East African coast. But word had spread of what had happened in Barawa, and a large troop mobilization had taken place. Many horsemen, soldiers and battleships in defense positions were now guarding the city. Nevertheless, Tristão still opted to storm and attempt to conquer the city, although every officer and soldier in his army opposed this, fearing certain defeat if they were to engage their opponents in battle. Tristão heeded their advice and sailed for Socotra instead.[41] After the battle the city of Barawa quickly recovered from the attack.[42]


In 1660, the Portuguese in Mombasa surrendered to a joint Somali-Omani force.[43]
Over the next several decades Somali-Portuguese tensions would remain high and the increased contact between Somali sailors and Ottoman corsairs worried the Portuguese who sent a punitive expedition against Mogadishu under João de Sepúlveda, which was unsuccessful.[44] Ottoman-Somali cooperation against the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean reached a high point in the 1580s when Ajuran clients of the Somali coastal cities began to sympathize with the Arabs and Swahilisunder Portuguese rule and sent an envoy to the Turkish corsair Mir Ali Bey for a joint expedition against the Portuguese. He agreed and was joined by a Somali fleet, which began attacking Portuguese colonies in Southeast Africa.[39]

The Somali-Ottoman offensive managed to drive out the Portuguese from several important cities such as Pate, Mombasa and Kilwa. However, the Portuguese governor sent envoys to Portuguese India requesting a large Portuguese fleet. This request was answered and it reversed the previous offensive of the Muslims into one of defense. The Portuguese armada managed to re-take most of the lost cities and began punishing their leaders, but they refrained from attacking Mogadishu, securing the city's autonomy in the Indian Ocean.[17][45]Ajuran's Somali forces would eventually militarily defeat the Portuguese. The Ottoman Empire would also remain an economic partner of the Somalis.[6] Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries successive Somali Sultans defied the Portuguese economic monopoly in the Indian Ocean by employing a new coinage which followed the Ottoman pattern, thus proclaiming an attitude of economic independence in regard to the Portuguese.[46]

 

[Grant]

Ajuran sultanate was famous and known for their trades with china and their wars with Portuguese. https://dailyscribbling.com/forgotten-empires/the-ajuran-empire/

The Ajuuraan Imams were not Sultans and they did not trade directly with China. That was the Mogadisho Sultanate, through it's port.

From your link:

"There are more stories told of the defeat of the Ajurans than of their rule, and even tales of a child born wearing a golden ring destined to overthrow them. If it were not for the tangible evidence of their constructions left behind, and the memories of the Portugese who fought them, they might be considered legends. As it is, in the end we know little more than nothing about what must have been one of the most powerful confederations in African history."

There were four Ottoman-Portuguese wars. "Clients of the Ajuuraan" were involved, as support and cannon fodder, only in the last one. No Somali Imam or Sultan is mentioned in any of them. The Ottoman's kept Somalia north of Barawe but the Portuguese regained everything south of there.

"In 30 January 1589, a Portuguese fleet sent from Goa in Portuguese India, with two galleass, five galleys, six galliots, seven other ships and with 900 soldiers,[2] was able to recapture the lost cities and capture the Turkish admiral, Mir Ali Bey." After that, the Portuguese had control of the trade in the Indian Ocean and did not need the ports further north. The Dutch took over from the Portuguese after 1595.

 

[maestro]

Al-zanj was an earlier broader term for the east African coast I believe.

Bilad-al Barbara came later

Barbara was the Northern coast of Somalia and Djibouti. The first people to call it that were Greeks/Romans and that was waaaay before Arabs were anything. The Arabs infact got this name from the Greeks.

The source is correct though. Mogadishu was always part of Al Zanj before Somalis conquered it from the Cad cads.

 

[Canuck]

Barbara was the Northern coast of Somalia and Djibouti. The first people to call it that were Greeks/Romans and that was waaaay before Arabs were anything. The Arabs infact got this name from the Greeks.

The source is correct though. Mogadishu was always part of Al Zanj before Somalis conquered it from the Cad cads.

No Mogadishu was never belonged to zanj, the old name of Mogadishu was Sarapion read this book Periplus of the erthraean sea.


Edit

The most prominent cities of the Old World from the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea.

• Botiala – In ancient times, the port city of Botiala transported goods such as aromatic woods, gum and incense to Indian, Persian and Arab merchants
• Bulhar – Old town in the northwestern Awdal province. It is likely the commercial Port of Isis of antiquity, which was a center for myrrh commerce.
• Cape Guardafui – Known in ancient times as the Cape of Spices, it was an important place for the ancient cinnamon and Indian spice trade.
• Damo – Ancient port town in northern Somalia. It likely corresponded with the Periplus"Market and Cape of Spices". Holds many historical artefacts and structures, including ancient coins, Roman pottery, drystone buildings, cairns, mosques, walled enclosures, standing stones and platform monuments.[26]
• Essina – Ancient emporium possibly located between the southern ports of Barawa and Merca, based on Ptolemy's work.
• Gondal – Ancient town in southern Somalia. It is considered a predecessor of the port city Kismayo.[27]
• Malao – Ancient port city known for its commerce in frankincense and myrrh in exchange for cloaks, copper and gold from Arsinoe and India.
• Mosylon – The most important ancient port city of the Somali Peninsula, it handled a considerable amount of the Indian Ocean trade through its large ships and extensive harbor.
• Mundus – Ancient port engaged in the fragrant gum and cinnamon trade with the Hellenic world.
• Opone – In ancient times, the port city of Opone traded with merchants from Phoenicia, Egypt, Greece, Persia and the Roman Empire, and connected with traders from as far afield as Indonesia and Malaysia, exchanging spices, silks and other goods.
• Sarapion – Ancient port city in Somalia. It is the possible predecessor of Mogadishu.
• Sesea – Ancient city-state in northern Somalia.
• Tabae – Ancient port where sailors on their way to India could take refuge from the storms of the Indian Ocean.