A kingdom is a state with a king or queen as its head.[1] An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant centre and subordinate peripheries".[2]
There were many kingdoms and empires in all regions of the continent of Africa throughout history, despite popular understanding often being that the continent lacked large states or meaningful complex political organisation. Whether rooted in ignorance, Eurocentrism, or racism, famous historians such as Hugh Trevor-Roper have argued that African history is not characterised by state formation or hierarchical structures. In fact, the nature of political organisation varied greatly across the continent, from the immensely hierarchical kingdoms of the Great Lakes, to the sacral Congolese empires and expansive West Sudanic empires.[3]
The vast majority of states included in this list existed prior to the Scramble for Africa (c. 1880–1914) when, driven by the Second Industrial Revolution, almost all of the continent came under the control of European powers. Traditional power structures were often utilised by the colonial authorities.
Some kingdoms still exist today as non–sovereign monarchies. The roles, powers, and influence of non–sovereign monarchs throughout Africa vary greatly depending on the state. In some states, such as Angola, the local monarch may play an integral role in the local governing council of a region.[4][5] They are often regarded as custodians of tradition and culture, and in some cases, play an important role in local religious activities.[6][7] On the flipside their powers may be curtailed, as happened in 2022 with Wadai in Chad,[8] or had their positions abolished, as happened in Tanzania in 1962,[9] and in 1966 in Uganda with Buganda, which was later restored in 1993. In this list they are labelled (NSM).
Only kingdoms and tribal kingdoms as per Elman Service's classifications that were once independent are included, excluding bands, tribes, and most chiefdoms. Dates have [one date for loss of independence] / [one date for loss of nominal rule]. Additional information such as notable articles may accompany entries.
The intercontinental Islamic empires that covered parts of North and Northeast Africa are not included, and should be discussed as part of the Muslim world, however the residual fragments that had their capital on the continent of Africa are.
Sub–Saharan African societies have broadly been labelled "oral civilisations", contrasted with "literate civilisations", due to the emphasis placed on oral tradition and the important place it has in their cultures. As such, most of African history predating the colonial period has been preserved orally, passed down from generation to generation, and served a different function to the academic discipline of history. Perhaps the most famous examples of this is the Griots of West Africa, such as Balla Fasséké in the Mali Empire, who held largely hereditary positions. One of their roles was to study and memorise their people's history and serve in the king's court as an advisor, to represent the past, and to identify lessons. Whilst many oral traditions refer to this particular time period, they often take a mythological and parabolic form, and are over time condensed until eventually crystallising into a cliché, limiting but not eradicating their usefulness to modern historians, as displayed in the oral traditions about the Empire of Kitara, an empire in the Great Lakes region that existed from around the 10th century to 15th century AD.
There is a wealth of oral traditions referring to the modern period that offer important and often crucial information for modern historians. There were high levels of scepticism regarding oral histories among historians of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries leading to their obscurity, and whilst valid criticisms remain about their limitations, modern attitudes towards oral traditions as historical sources continue to improve.[15]
Increased trade with Europe and an influx of Catholic missions from the 16th century onwards produced more written information which supplemented the Arabic literature, however African historiography as we view it today didn't take off until the 19th century under increased European interest in the region. These histories have been invaluable to modern historians, however they were often written from the colonial perspective under the pretence of Western superiority, occasionally for the purpose of disseminating colonial narratives. This has provided the fuel for anti–African bias, particularly regarding their history, which still persists in many countries today.[16][17]
Historian Jan Vansina (1962) discusses the classification of Sub–Saharan African Kingdoms, mostly of Central, South and East Africa, with some additional data on West African (Sahelian) Kingdoms distinguishing five types, by decreasing centralization of power:[18]
Despotic Kingdoms (D): Kingdoms where the king controlled the internal and external affairs directly and personally appointed overseers. The king kept a monopoly on the use of force. Examples include Rwanda, Nkore/Ankole, and Kongo of the 16th century.
Regal Kingdoms (R): Kingdoms where the king controlled the external affairs directly, and the internal affairs via a system of overseers where most local chiefs kept their positions but not their autonomy after conquest. The king and most of his administration belonged to the same religion, group and/or family.
Incorporative Kingdoms (I): Kingdoms where the king only controlled the external affairs and the nucleus with no permanent administrative links between him and the chiefs of the provinces. The local chiefs of the provinces were left largely undisturbed after conquest. Examples are the Bamileke, Luba and the Lozi.
Aristocratic Kingdoms (A): The only link between central authority and the provinces was payment of tribute which symbolised subordination. These kingdoms were kept together by the superior military strength of the nucleus. This type is rather common in Africa, examples include Kongo of the 17th century, Kazembe, Kuba, the Ha, and Chagga states of the 18th century.
Almost all sultanates embody (R) due to the nature of the Islamic version of kingship.[19] For this reason, and in the interest of highlighting differences, classifications for sultanates will only reference the relationship between the sultan and their administration.
Classifications not given as examples by Vansina are open to scrutiny (here). Ones where two classifications are given and joined by an "and" mean that the kingdom had elements from both present; [a] refers to the king's place and power, particularly in the nucleus, whilst [b] refers to the relationship between king and administration.
Kingdom of Kongo ((D) in the 16th century)[18]: 332–333 ((A) in the 17th century)[18]: 332–333 (1390–1678 AD, 1691–1857/1914 AD, 1915–1975/present AD) (NSM in Angola)
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