Gobir

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Gobir in 16th century Nigeria The States of the Nigerian Region in the 16th century.png
Gobir in 16th century Nigeria

Gobir (Demonym: Gobirawa) was a city-state in what is now Nigeria. Founded by the Hausa in the 11th century, Gobir was one of the seven original kingdoms of Hausaland, and continued under Hausa rule for nearly 700 years. Its capital was the city of Alkalawa. In the early 19th century elements of the ruling dynasty fled north to what is today Niger from which a rival dynasty developed ruling as Sarkin Gobir (Sultan of Gobir) at Tibiri. In 1975 a reunited traditional sultanate took up residence in Sabon Birni, Nigeria.

Contents

History

Early history

Gobir was one of the seven original kingdoms of Hausaland, tracing a lineage back to the 11th century. The seat of the dynasty was at Alkalawa, in northwestern Hausaland.

During the 15th century Gobir controlled the Air mountains, but its control over the area was broken by the Tuareg who founded the Sultanate of Agadez. Gobir retreated southward. [1]

Fulani jihad

Gobir is particularly remembered as the chief opponent of Fulani Islamic reformer Usman dan Fodio. [2] Bawa, a ruler of Gobir, appears to have invited dan Fodio to the area in 1774; dan Fodio made his home in the small town of Degel, and began preaching. Dan Fodio was given some role in the education of Bawa's nephew and later successor, Yunfa (r. 1803–8), but also publicly attacked what he saw as the abuses of the Hausa elite, [2] particularly the burden they placed on the poor. Sarki Nafata (r. 1797–98) reversed Bawa's tolerant policy, and feared the increase of arms amongst dan Fodio's followers. The next two rulers vacillated between repressive and liberal measures.

When Yunfa took the throne in 1803, he soon found himself in conflict with dan Fodio, and after failing to assassinate him, exiled dan Fodio and his followers from Degel. Dan Fodio responded by assembling the nomadic Fulani clans into a jihadist army, beginning the Fulani War and eventually establishing the Sokoto Caliphate. Despite some initial successes by the forces of Gobir and the other Hausaland states (most notably at the Battle of Tsuntua), dan Fodio managed to conquer the surrounding territory. His forces seized the Gobir capital, Alkalawa, in October 1808, killing Sarki Yunfa. The state was then partially absorbed into Sokoto.

Flight

Resistance against the Jihadists was continued in the north-east by Sarkin Ali dan Yakubu and Sarki Mayaki. With the help of the Hausa ruler of Katsina the latter built a new capital of Gobir in Tibiri, 10 km north of Maradi in 1836. When the Gobir Sultan revolted against the Sokoto Caliphate that same year, Sokoto Sultan Muhammed Bello crushed the rebellion at the Battle of Gawakuke. [3] Here in present Niger the old dynasty of the Hausa rulers of Gobir is still continued today. A rival branch of the dynasty has its seat in Sabon Birni north of Sokoto in Nigeria.

The former Sarkin Gobir Muhammadu Bawa ruled in Sabon Birni from 1975 to 2004.

Related Research Articles

Shehu Usman ɗan Fodio was a Fulani scholar, Islamic religious teacher, revolutionary and a philosopher who founded the Sokoto Caliphate and ruled as its first caliph. After the successful revolution, the "Jama'a" gave him the title Amir al-Mu'minin. He rejected the throne and continued calling to Islam.

Hausa–Fulani are people of mixed Hausa and Fulani origin. They are primarily found in the Northern region of Nigeria, most of whom speak a variant of Hausa or Fula or both as their first language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sokoto</span> Capital city of Sokoto State, Nigeria

Sokoto is a major city located in extreme north-western Nigeria, near the confluence of the Sokoto River and the Rima River. As of 2006, it has a population of over 427,760. Sokoto is the modern-day capital of Sokoto State and was previously the capital of the north-western states. Modern Sokoto is known for trading sheepskins, cattle hides, leather crafts, kola nuts and goatskins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jihad of Usman dan Fodio</span> Military conflict in Nigeria and Cameroon (1804–1808)

The Jihad of Usman dan Fodio was a religio-military conflict in present-day Nigeria and Cameroon. The war began when Usman dan Fodio, a prominent Islamic scholar and teacher, was exiled from Gobir by King Yunfa, one of his former students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sokoto Caliphate</span> Islamic state in West Africa (1804–1903)

The Sokoto Caliphate, also known as the Sultanate of Sokoto, was a Sunni Muslim caliphate in West Africa. It was founded by Usman dan Fodio in 1804 during the Fulani jihads after defeating the Hausa Kingdoms in the Fulani War. The boundaries of the caliphate are part of present-day Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Nigeria. By 1837, the Sokoto state had a population of around 10-20 plus million people, becoming the most populous empire in West Africa. It was dissolved when the British, French and Germans conquered the area in 1903 and annexed it into the newly established Northern Nigeria Protectorate, Senegambia and Niger and Kamerun respectively.

Muhammadu Yunfa was a king of Gobir, a city-state in Hausaland in what is now Nigeria. He was the son of a Sultan of Gobir Nafata. He is particularly remembered for his conflict with Islamic reformer Shaikh Usman dan Fodio.

The Battle of Tsuntua, fought in December 1804, was one of the largest battles of the Fulani War.

Degel is a town in northern Nigeria.

Alkalawa was the capital of the Hausa city-state of Gobir, in what is now northern Nigeria.

Abdullahi ɗan Fodio, was a prominent Islamic scholar, jurist, poet and theologian, and the first Amir of Gwandu and first Grand Vizier of Sokoto. His brother, Usman dan Fodio (1754–1817) was the founder of the Sokoto Caliphate. Usman, being more of a scholar than politician, delegated the practical regency of the western part of his empire to Abdullahi and the eastern part to his son Muhammed Bello, who later became the Sultan of Sokoto after his father.

Ummarun Dallaje was the 39th Islamic Leader of Katsina, the first Fulani emir, as well as the patriarch of the Dallazawa dynasty. He became Amirul Muminin after the Jihad of Shehu Usman dan Fodiyo, succeeding Magajin Haladu, the last ruler of the centuries-old Habe dynasty, which founded by founded by Muhammadu Korau. Ummaru was succeeded by his son Saddiku.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Katsina</span>

The history of Katsina stretches over a millennium. It is part of the Hausa Bakwai states, believed to be founded by the descendants of Bayajidda according to legend. Throughout its history, Katsina has been governed by various dynasties, including the Wangarawa and the Dallazawa, and was a vassal to neighboring empires such as Songhai and Bornu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dambazawa</span> Fulani clan mainly in Kano State, Nigeria

The Dambazawa are a Fulani clan residing mainly in Kano State, Nigeria. They were among the key promoters, planners and executors of the Fulani Jihad in Kano, which took place between 1804 and 1807 under the leadership of Shehu Usuman dan Fodiyo. The clan was said to be the top financier of the jihad because it was said to be extremely wealthy at the time of the jihad. Other Fulani Clans that participated in the Jihad included: the Jobawa, the Yolawa, the Sullubawa, the Danejawa and others, as well as a contingent of the native Hausa people led by Malam Usuman bahaushe. Together they formed a formidable force and toppled the 158 year Kutumbawa dynasty led by its last ruler Muhammad Alwali dan Yaji dan Dadi bakutumbe who ruled between 1781 and 1806.

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Ali Jedo, was the first Amir al-jaish al-Islam of the Sokoto Caliphate. Prior to the jihad, he was the leader of the Fulbe of Konni in modern-day Sokoto State.

The Revolt of Abd al-Salam was a rebellion against the Sokoto Caliphate, driven by perceived bias against the Hausawa. The revolt was led by Mallam Abd al-Salam, a Hausa scholar who had been among the leaders of the Sokoto Revolution that led to the establishment of the caliphate. As time went on, he grew disillusioned with the rewards he received compared to other leaders, many of whom were of Fulbe ethnicity.

References

Citation

  1. Lovejoy, Paul E. “The Role of the Wangara in the Economic Transformation of the Central Sudan in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries.” The Journal of African History, vol. 19, no. 2, 1978, pp. 187. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/181597. Accessed 21 May 2024.
  2. 1 2 Meredith, Martin (2014). The fortunes of Africa : a 5000-year history of wealth, greed, and endeavour. Internet Archive. New York : Public Affairs. p. 164. ISBN   978-1-61039-459-8.
  3. Last, Murray. The Sokoto Caliphate. pp. 74–5.

Bibliography