Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Jackson Ward(Harlem of the South) Black Wall St, Boley

jacksonward aka the Harlem he south ,Black Wall st also Known as the Black Mecca of commerce of trade this historic part of richmond virginia was one of the most prolific black economic independent part of a town in the u.s. at the time tjis area had over a period of 1888 to 1930 five black owned Banks one by William Browne , Maggie L Walker, also it was the place of entertainment and wralth clubs,grocery stores,insurance companies, barber shops, residents didnt have to leave this district four resources all black district of former slaves and free blacks...

Monday, April 14, 2014

11 black super heros that use electricity (Shango)

Its a well known fact that greek gods/Roman gods all the way to comic heros that are usually european derivie and originate from the Afrikan gods of west afrika and north afrika and several other parts of afrika mainly YORUBA LAND in Nigeria " The orishas" and in KEMET(egypt) "The neterus" , being that the word HERO derives from the word HERU the falcon/sun god neteru of kemet.. heres a example of black comic/heros=Herus and one female whos concepted after the orisha OYA , The rest originate from the great orisha SHANGO of yoruba and the ifa 11 black super heros that use electricity - Rebuild Haki kweli shakur










Black Lightning, Source: IGN
When it comes to black superheroes, electricity goes a long way. Quite a few of them have electrical powers. Possibly it's because of one of the major black heroes, Black Lightning. It's also a good generic power, like super-strength and flight. Here's a rundown of eleven superheroes of color who send sparks flying.


1. Black Lightning


Black Lightning is one of the first major African American superheroes to appear in DC Comics. He also set the trend of black electrical heroes. He had the power to generate electricity and shoot lightning bolts. His powers originally came from a belt, but this was later retconned to make him a metahuman.


2. Black Vulcan


Black Vulcan first appeared on the Super Friends TV show instead of the comics. He was created to replace Black Lightning, because of a rights dispute with BL's creator, Tony Isabella. Vulcan's powers differed from Lightning in that he could wrap people up with his lightning bolts instead of electrocute them. He also could turn himself into pure energy.


3. Static

Static was created for the DC imprint, Milestone, and later became part of the DC comics universe. After being doused with a radioactive chemical by police, Static gained the power to create electric shocks and move metal objects. With his witty comments and science background, he was the black Spiderman. At least, he was until the actual black Spiderman.


4. Soul Power

When Static got an animated series called Static Shock, it also introduced this new electrically charged hero. Soul Power was a funky seventies hero whose powers worked much like Static's. But Soul Power is unique because of his groovy victory dance.


5. Juice

In Justice League Unlimited, the League encountered a group of genetically engineered superheroes called the Ultimen. The Ultimen had analogues of all the original characters created for the Super Friends, including Black Vulcan. So if you're keeping score, Black Lightning led to Black Vulcan, who led to Juice. Everybody got that?


6. Lightning

When Black Lightning has two daughters, the kids inherit superpowers. After graduation from school, the daughters become Thunder and Lightning. Lightning has similar powers as her father, using electricity. The circle continues...


7. Storm


Storm is a mutant member of the X-Men with the power to control the weather. One of her favorite uses of her power is to summon bolts of lightning. Electricity, always the electricity.


8. Ultimate Spider-Man

When Miles Morales took on the mantle of Ultimate Spiderman after the death of Peter Parker, he also gained new abilities. One ability is what he calls his "venom strike," an electric shock that can stun or incapacitate his enemies. It goes well with his spider-sense, both powers real spiders don't have.


9. Volt

Boom Comics' series Irredeemable had a superhero who could throw electricity. In one comic, Volt complained about being the stereotypical "black man with electric powers." In some ways, that made him a parody of Black Lightning and Static, but also his own.


10. Shango The Thunderer

Marvel has Thor, the god of thunder. DC has Shango. The ancient African people worshiped a group of beings as gods, and their god of thunder was Shango. Firestorm has tangled with him a number of times, and Shango always breaks out the lightning.


11. Thunder Fall

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, a group of super-powered beings called the Kingdom led a revolution before disappearing. One of them was known as Thunder Fall. He could fire electrical blasts from his hands. That, and even teaming up with Batwing, wasn't enough to save him.













God was female for the first 200,000 years of human life on Earth

Wiccas are amongst the wise ones who participate in the work of creation in order to nourish the people and protect the EARTH. Magic belongs to no one culture, society or tribe -- it is a part in every culture. Whether they were called Wiccas, shaman, priests, priestesses, sages, medicine people, or mystics they knew how to heal the sick, summon the herds, grow crops, assist at births, track the influences of the stars and planets, build the temples and sacred mounds, they knew the secrets of the earth the powers of the moon, and the longings of the human heart. They created language, writing, metallurgy, agriculture, and the arts. Their rituals and ceremonies, their spells and incantations, their prayers and sacrifices were expressions of their oneness with the source of all life, the Great Mother of all living things.

If you study Akkadian, Assyrian and Sumerian ancient history you will discover that most of the stories in the Bible come from far more ancient stories. Ancient cuniforms have been found to prove this. The Bible is a recounting of these stories. Wiccas have always been able to interpret omens. Long before written word the wise ones were master storytellers. They knew all the ancient myths and they passed the word down from generation to generation. Many truths come from a subconscious level. Wiccas have always believed all things are filled with gods and goddesses. The Druidic leaders of the Celts stood as shining models for the Wiccas. A Wiccas knowledge is ancient, as is her worldview. The craft has always thrived both in the past and in highly developed cultures. In ancient Egypt nothing was decided until a sooth sayer was consulted. Numerous presidents of the United States had their own personal astrologists. There is no where one can go and not see the influence of the craft.

Wiccas have never forgotten the basic truth about creation. The Earth and all living things share the same life force and are composed of Divine Intelligence. All life is a web of interconnected beings, and we are woven into it as sisters and brothers of the All. Wiccas believe the ageless wisdom of the soul will survive. For we are the embodiment of the gods and the goddesses... again we go back to the Genesis story: We created man in our image and our likeness.

The craft deals with natural rhythms. As women are biologically more engaged than men, it makes more sense that the Goddess would be the creator of life, more so than the God; however, his fertilization was indeed needed, of course. The ancient tablets tell of a creation story that challenges every major religion: When the Gods came to earth, and every ancient civilization speaks of this, man was still pretty much an ape. The Gods decided to create man and woman in their image and likeness. The Gods and Goddess, this is on Sumerian tablets, decided to genetically produce a race more like themselves. They took the egg of the apewoman, fertilized it with a male God and a surrogate Goddess carried the child to term and called his name Adam....sound familiar?

Deeper inner knowledge from the unconscious cannot always be expressed in words, it often requires poetry, song or ritual. Guarded in the centre of your being is the secret of who you are and how you personally connect to the rest of the universe. To a Wicca life's mysteries have created great wonder and worship came from understanding and from that understanding came meaning. All religion is about creation, not simply the tales and legends but of how a creator or creators brought forth the universe. Therefore religion is about creation and for that reason religion should be about the earth. The pagans believed that biological processes are spiritual processes and there is divine meaning in every natural event.

To our ancient ancestors, the great mysteries of life were the mysteries of transformation: how things turn into other things, how things grow, die, and are reborn. Nowhere are these events more personal than the transformation of a woman. The ability to conceive a new life, give birth, produce milk, and bleed with the phases of the moon. These cycles did not go unnoticed by early man that woman and nature shared the great role of motherhood. Men were awestruck... no wonder they took so much from us, including our lives, when they felt threatened.

Venus figurines dating back to 35,000 BCE have been found depicting the Great Mother. Oddly, there are no male depictions dating back that far. To ancient man, woman was the source of life. God was female for at least the first 200,000 years of human life on earth! The Old Religion was a religion of ecstasy. Archaeological evidence of primal religious experiences show in cave drawings: women with awestruck eyes dancing with wild animals, flying with birds and sharing the watery realms with the fishes. Religion should be ecstatic, dancing, drumming, chanting reenacting primal creation stories. Followers of the Old Religion believe the universe was created in ecstasy out of the body and mind of the Great Mother of all living things. Around the world stories recount the many ways that humans have perceived the original birth of the Earth, sky, plants, animals and humans, but they all recount how the Great Mother created the world.

Hebrew legends tell of the all powerful Yahweh was originally the Goddess Iahu-'Anat, a Sumerian Goddess. Actually the word God is a plural noun translated as creative nature spirits. Around the world the Great Goddess is referred to as the Great Moon Goddess. She is the great female trinity of the Maiden, Mother, and Crone. A Wicca's spells and rituals are always performed in conjunction with the phases of the moon. We discover the special powers and mysteries of the moon and the unique wisdom it teaches us about the Divine Mother of the universe.

In mythologies and sacred literature written around 2500 to 1500 BCE, there is a noticeable change in sensibilities. The strong Goddess who dominated thought and feeling for several thousand years was slowly replaced by the powerful male Sky Gods. The Son/Hunter/Lover who as a child and consort to the Great Mother always had a subordinate position now became the primary deity. Sky Gods reigning with the power of the sun challenge the older Goddesses of earth and moon. The Goddesses became villains and many old tales were rewritten. Among the revisions was the Old Assyrian story of Adam and Eve. It was rewritten so that Eve is born of Adam's rib -- rather than the reverse, as it appeared in the older versions. In Mesopotamian legend, Eve creates a male, Adam, and makes him her mate, following the usual Goddess/Son myth.

A point of great interest here is that the Gods and Goddesses had sexual relations within their family members to keep their genes pure. Mothers with sons and brothers, fathers with daughters and even with sisters and granddaughters. It is quite interesting.

In a Gnostic text, Eve is the Mother of All Living and actually creates Jehovah. One of Christianity's best-kept secrets says the Mother of All Living was the Creatress who chastised God. Jehovah is formed by the four Hebrew letters Yod-He-vau-He. The first Yod means I and the next three, He-Vau-He means both life and woman. In other words the name of Jehovah is feminine and it means: I am woman; I am life.

As the mythologies drifted further and further away from the original religious view of the Great Goddess, the dualism that has come to dominate so much of Western thinking grew stronger and stronger. Life was seen primarily as a struggle between the forces of good and evil, rather than a dynamic dance of all things working together for the Good. Life on earth became less important than the life to come. The old saying that "Cleanliness is next to Godliness" sums it up pretty well: everything associated with this life, Earth, the body, sex, women became suspect, if not down right evil. Woman was to be rejected as a spiritual leader who reflected the image of the divine Feminine, dirty and impure. Then a curious thing happened to the male Gods: as they consolidated their hold over the human imagination, they lost their animal identities.

God became completely human and completely male. The arrival of monotheistic thinking with it's rigid and inflexible form was the mark of advancing civilization. With the arrival of the Father Gods came the degradation of the earth, woman, the body, sex and the most natural tasks in which earlier people found joy and happiness. Actually the Goddess cultures of the southern more warmer climates were invaded by the Sky Gods or Thunder God cultures of the less hospitable climates from the north.

Survival depended on stockpiling food and resources. They gave way to the warrior classes which simply took what they wanted by force. Curiously this coincides with the smelting of iron around 2500 BCE when the patriarchal technology began to fashion weapons. Matriarchal cultures were relatively peaceful. During these times women and children were amongst the spoils of war, raped and held prisoner. Later in time the status of women and children fell to that of slaves. A woman became subservient to her husband who legally owned her life, she was merely property. Men emerged socially, economically and politically dominate and eventually patriarchal institutions, laws and values reflected the myth of male superiority. Patriarchal societies organized around warfare were based on violent, militaristic values and coincide with written history.

Patriarchy is a rather recent development over the last four thousand years and is still a new experiment when it comes to the hundreds of thousands of years that human beings lived in matriarchal societies. It is certainly a mere drop in the bucket when compared to the 3.5 billion years that other forms of life have existed on the planet known as Earth. With the dawn of the New Age, women are regaining their lost stature. The earth and its creatures are in deep peril because we have lost touch with the old ways which were built around worship of the life on earth. If we are to have any hope, we must set our paths in new directions. We must incorporate the old with the new. For only through knowledge can we make the necessary changes. Each and every one of us can make a change like the ripples in a pond. Nothing goes unnoticed and nothing is forgotten. Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Take hold of that, respect all life in its great diversity and remember that the Earth is not inherited from our ancestors, but borrowed from our children.

Friday, April 4, 2014

A.T.C. Political Prisoner Support Unit (Donate 5 dollars or anything)

This is a platform to raise money to support political prisoners with there education,books,personal needs and Resources etc, this fund me is to go directly to helping our political prisoners you can donate a dollar and up and i hope to reach this goal thank you haki shakur.... click link and donate anything atleast 5 dollars http://www.gofundme.com/819fy0

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Egypt: The Nile Inundation origins of myth stories

Egypt: The Nile Inundation


The Inundation


 
papyrus-covered land determinativekht

The beautiful Nile river

Until the Aswan High Dam was built, Egypt received a yearly inundation - an annual flood - of the Nile. The ancient Egyptians did not realise this, but the flood came due to the heavy summer rains in the Ethiopian highlands, swelling the different tributaries and other rivers that joined and became the Nile. This happened yearly, between June and September, in a season the Egyptians called akhet - the inundation. This was seen by the Egyptians as a yearly coming of the god Hapi, bringing fertility to the land.

The first signs of the inundation were seen at Aswan by the end of June, reaching its swelling to its fullest at Cairo by September. The flood would then decrease in size around two weeks later, leaving behind a deposit of rich, black silt. The amount of silt left behind due to the height of the Nile determined the amount of crops that the Egyptians could grow - if the inundation was too low, it would be a year of famine.

The Egyptians learned a method of measuring the height of the Nile known as the Nilometre.

Although all Nilometres used by the Egyptians had a single obvious purpose, to mark the highest point of Inundation, they were constructed in one of three different formats -- a slab or pillar, a well or a series of steps. All three were calibrated using the same unit of measurement, the cubit; the Egyptians broke the cubit into smaller units, which allowed them to keep remarkably accurate records, perhaps more accurate than would have been warranted for the purposes of merely agriculture and taxation.

    nile2x2



        nile3x2

          The Nilometre on Elephantine Island near the First Cataract deep in southern Egypt always held supreme importance. It was the first outpost where the floods exerted themselves and the first to know when they were over, but the religious significance of the might might have overshadowed its strategic location. It was the home-place of Khnum, the ram-headed god of Inundation. During the Eleventh Dynasty a sanctuary was built on the island specifically to celebrate Inundations. A new Nilometre replaced a much older one at the edge of Khnum's Temple during the Twenty-Sixth Dynasty; somewhat later, in Dynasty Thirty, a riverside terrace and another Nilometre was added to the nearby Temple of Satet, one of Khnum's celestial consorts. When Egypt fell to Rome, that did not mean an end to Nilometres on Elephantine Island, for Khnum's Nilometre received a new calibrated staircase and a granite roof from the Romans.

          -- Ralph Vaughan, Nilometers: Measuring the Universe

          The Nilometres were usually a series of steps by the Nile, where the water level against the steps would show how high the Nile would rise and records of the maximum height of the inundation could be taken. There are Nilometres at the temples at ElephantinePhilaeEdfu, Esna, Kom Ombo and Dendera. These were build through pharaonic times up until Roman times. There was even a Nilometre built during early Islamic times at el-Rhoda in Cairo, which was possibly the site of an ancient Nilometre, though it used a pillar rather than the usual steps.

          The ancient Egyptians viewed Sirius as the bringer of new life. This was because Sirius was newly visible in the sky at the time of the flooding of the Nile River, the life-giving inundation which yearly fertilised their crops.

          The inundation was also around the time that the Egyptians noticed the rising of the 'dog star' Sirius. The goddess Sopdet (Sothis) was the personification of this star, represented as a woman with a star as her headdress, or as a seated cow with a plant between her horns (just as Seshat's hieroglyph might have been a flower or a star.) Her star was the most important of the stars to the ancient Egyptians, and the rising of this star came at the time of inundation and the start of the Egyptian new year. She was linked closely with Isis, just as her husband Sah (the star Orion) and son Soped were linked with Osiris and Horus.

          Isis' sister Nephthys is also somewhat linked to the inundation - in one particular tale, she represents the desert while Osiris represents the inundation itself. When the Nile flood is high enough to reach the desert, flowers bloom in the barren red land. In the story, Osiris and Nephthys have a drunken union, where Osiris leaves behind his garland of melilot flowers. As the inundation was a sign of fertility, Osiris and Nephthys were thought to have had a child - Anubis, god of mummification.
           


          An accurate map of the Nile from Ptolemaic times


          Now because the Ancient Egyptian calendar was slightly out of step with the solar and lunar year - the Egyptian calendar was out by 6 hours. As time went on, the inundation came occasionally during the season of akhet, so the Egyptians relied on the star, rather than the season, as the herald of both the new year and the yearly flood.

          The other two seasons were peret (growing) and shemu (harvest). During the growing season (after the inundation had receded, if not exactly in the season according to the calendar) the Egyptians planted their crops - around October and November - and tended to the fields. The Egyptians watered their crops using an irrigation system of canals or by bringing water to the fields in basins or by using the shaduf, which is still in use in Egypt today, to raise water from the river to the bank of the Nile. By the time the Nile reached its lowest level, some time around March or April, the crops would be ready for the harvest.

          During the inundation, though, there was nothing to do for the Egyptian farmer. Rather than doing nothing for a whole season, the Egyptians would do other tasks rather than paying tax. (Tax was usually taken out of the crops that the farmers grew, and during inundation, the farmland was covered by water!) During the Old Kingdom, this work took on the form of working on building pyramids.

          This was not done, as originally and incorrectly thought, by slave labour. In fact, it was done by Egyptian citizens who had little else to do for one season a year. These men were also 'paid' for their work - workmen at the pyramids of the Giza Plateau were given beer, thrice daily - five kinds of beer and four kinds of wine!

          If Egypt had a drought or a year of plenty, it was the will of the Nile god Hapi. The Egyptians gave him offerings and worship to hopefully bring a good flood that wasn't too high or too low. They celebrated the 'Arrival of Hapi', hoping that their houses wouldn't be washed away, or that the Nile would rise enough to provide both water and silt for the farmland. But the Egyptians, despite being able to measure the flood, couldn't change the situation if the Nile's waters weren't at the required level. To them, the inundation was truly in the hands' of the gods.


          Read more: http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/nile.htm#ixzz2x0yLYill

          Monday, March 10, 2014

          Unique Harris Still Missing plea for information and her return -Haki Kweli Shakur

          Unique Harris Missing Since: October 9, 2010 from Washington D.C. Classification: Endangered Missing Date of Birth: January 31, 1986 Age: 24 years old Height and Weight: 5'7 - 5'10, 130 pounds Distinguishing Characteristics: African-American female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Harris has auburn highlights in her hair. She has a tattoo of the names "Richard & U'Andre" on her lower back and a tattoo of her name "Unique" on her upper right arm. She has a mole on her upper lip and her ears are pierced. Clothing/Jewelry Description: A white shirt, gray pants, a sterling silver necklace with a safety pin clasp, and a matching necklace and earrings set with garnet beads.

          Details of Disappearance

          Harris was last seen at her apartment in the 2400 block of Hartford Street southeast in Washington D.C. on October 9, 2010. Her cousin and her cousin's children were visiting at the time, and they spent the night in the apartment with Harris and Harris's two sons. Sometime during the night, Harris disappeared, leaving her children asleep in another room. She has never been heard from again.

          There no indications of forced entry to her residence, but Harris left her purse, money, identification and eyeglasses behind at her apartment. She had very poor vision and wore her glasses everywhere. Harris didn't own a vehicle at the time of her disappearance. Her cellular phone disappeared with her; the last time the phone received a call was at 3:00 a.m. on October 10.

          Harris was raised in Richmond, Virginia and graduated high school there. She moved to Washington D.C. in 2010 to be closer to her mother, and enrolled in a massage therapy program at a vocational school... contact these numbers if you have information on her where abouts at (202) 724-2436 or the Department's Command Information Center at (202) 727-9099.http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifesty...

          Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at (202) 727-9099. Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department's TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411.

          To learn more about the MPD Rewards program, please visit www.mpdc.dc.gov/rewards.

          Thursday, February 27, 2014

          SELF DETERMINATION (INTERNATIONAL LAW)

          SELF DETERMINATION (INTERNATIONAL LAW)


          Self-determination denotes the legal right of people to decide their own destiny in the international order.  Self-determination is a core principle of international law, arising from customary international law, but also recognized as a general principle of law, and enshrined in a number of international treaties.  For instance, self-determination is protected in the United Nations Charter and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as a right of “all peoples.” 
          The scope and purpose of the principle of self-determination has evolved significantly in the 20th century.  In the early 1900’s, international support grew for the right of all people to self-determination.  This led to successful secessionist movements during and after WWI, WWII and laid the groundwork for decolonization in the 1960s. 
          Contemporary notions of self-determination usually distinguish between “internal” and “external” self-determination, suggesting that "self-determination" exists on a spectrum. Internal self-determination may refer to various political and social rights; by contrast,external self-determination refers to full legal independence/secession for the given 'people' from the larger politico-legal state.   http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/self_determination_international_law

          SEE, E.G.:

          SEE ALSO:

          • uti possidetis juris, requiring the maintenance of the territorial status quo to preserve stability, order and traditional legal boundaries (and hence possibly conflicting with principle of self-determination) (Burkina Faso/Mali, ¶¶25-26, pp.16-17 ("At first sight this principle [UPJ] conflicts outright with another one, the right of peoples to self-determination.")   


          Wednesday, January 15, 2014

          Central Africa Empires (Congo,Sao,Kanem,Bornu,Shilluk,Baguirmi,Wadai,Lunda)

          Archeological finds in Central Africa have been discovered dating back over 100,000 years.[6] According to Zangato and Holl, there is evidence of iron-smelting in the Central African Republic and Cameroon that may date back to 3000 to 2500 BCE.[7] Extensive walled sites and settlements have recently been found in Zilum, Chad approximately 60 km southwest of Lake Chad dating to the first millennium BCE.[8][9]
          Trade and improved agricultural techniques supported more sophisticated societies, leading to the early civilizations of Sao,KanemBornuShillukBaguirmi, and Wadai.[10]
          Around 1000 BCE, Bantu migrants had reached the Great Lakes Region in Central Africa. Halfway through the first millennium BCE, the Bantu had also settled as far south as what is now AngolaCentral Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African RepublicChad, theDemocratic Republic of the Congo, and RwandaMiddle Africa (as used by the United Nations when categorising geographic subregions) is an analogous term that includes AngolaCameroon, the Central African RepublicChad, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the CongoEquatorial GuineaGabon, and São Tomé and Príncipe. 





          Sao Civilization[edit]

          The Sao civilization flourished from ca. the sixth century BCE to as late as the sixteenth century CE in northern Central Africa. The Sao lived by the Chari River south of Lake Chad in territory that later became part of Cameroon and Chad. They are the earliest people to have left clear traces of their presence in the territory of modern Cameroon. Today, several ethnic groups of northern Cameroon and southern Chad but particularly the Sara people claim descent from the civilization of the Sao. Sao artifacts show that they were skilled workers in bronzecopper, and iron.[11] Finds include bronze sculptures and terra cotta statues of human and animal figures, coins, funerary urns, household utensils, jewelry, highly decorated pottery, and spears.[12] The largest Sao archaeological finds have been made south of Lake Chad.

          Kanem Empire[edit]


          The Kanem and Bornu Empires in 1810
          The Kanem-Bornu Empire was centered in the Chad Basin. It was known as the Kanem Empire from the 9th century CE onward and lasted as the independent kingdom of Bornu until 1900. At its height it encompassed an area covering not only much of Chad, but also parts of modern southern Libya, eastern Niger, northeastern Nigeria, northern Cameroon, parts of South Sudanand the Central African Republic. The history of the Empire is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle or Girgam discovered in 1851 by the German travellerHeinrich Barth.[13] Kanem rose in the 8th century in the region to the north and east of Lake Chad. The Kanem empire went into decline, shrank, and in the 14th century was defeated by Bilala invaders from the Lake Fitri region.[14]

          Bornu Empire[edit]

          The Kanuri people led by the Sayfuwa migrated to the west and south of the lake, where they established the Bornu Empire. By the late 16th century the Bornu empire had expanded and recaptured the parts of Kanem that had been conquered by the Bulala.[15] Satellite states of Bornu included the Damagaram in the west and Baguirmi to the southeast of Lake Chad.

          Shilluk Kingdom[edit]


          The Shilluk Kingdom was centered in South Sudan from the 15th century from along a strip of land along the western bank of White Nile, from Lake No to about 12° north latitude. The capital and royal residence was in the town of Fashoda. The kingdom was founded during the mid-fifteenth century CE by its first ruler, Nyikang. During the nineteenth century, the Shilluk Kingdom faced decline following military assaults from the Ottoman Empire and later British and Sudanese colonization inAnglo-Egyptian Sudan.

          Baguirmi Kingdom[edit]
          Main article: Baguirmi Kingdom
          The Kingdom of Baguirmi existed as an independent state during the 16th and 17th centuries southeast of Lake Chad in what is now the country of Chad. Baguirmi emerged to the southeast of the Kanem-Bornu Empire. The kingdom's first ruler was Mbang Birni Besse. Later in his reign, the Bornu Empire conquered and made the state a tributary.

          Wadai Empire[edit]


          Abéché, capital of Wadai, in 1918 after the French had taken over
          The Wadai Empire was centered on Chad and the Central African Republic from the 17th century. The Tunjur people founded the Wadai Kingdom to the east of Bornu in the 16th century. In the 17th century there was a revolt of theMaba people who established a Muslim dynasty. At first Wadai paid tribute to Bornu and Durfur, but by the 18th century Wadai was fully independent and had become an aggressor against its neighbors.[10]






          Lunda Empire[edit]


          Lunda town and dwelling
          Following the Bantu Migration from West Africa, Bantu states began to develop in southern Central Africa. In the 1450s, a Luba from the royal family Ilunga Tshibinda married Lunda queen Rweej and united all Lunda peoples. Their sonmulopwe Luseeng expanded the kingdom. His son Naweej expanded the empire further and is known as the first Lunda emperor, with the title mwato yamvo (mwaant yaav,mwant yav), the Lord of Vipers. The Luba political system was retained, and conquered peoples were integrated into the system. The mwato yamvo assigned a cilool or kilolo (royal adviser) and tax collector to each state conquered.[16][17]
          Numerous states claimed descent from the Lunda. The Imbangala of inland Angola claimed descent from a founder, Kinguri, brother of Queen Rweej, who could not tolerate the rule of mulopweTshibunda. Kinguri became the title of kings of states founded by Queen Rweej's brother. The Luena(Lwena) and Lozi (Luyani) in Zambia also claim descent from Kinguri. During the 17th century, a Lunda chief and warrior called Mwata Kazembe set up an Eastern Lunda kingdom in the valley of the Luapula River. The Lunda's western expansion also saw claims of descent by the Yaka and thePende. The Lunda linked central Africa with the western coast trade. The kingdom of Lunda came to an end in the 19th century when it was invaded by the Chokwe, who were armed with guns.[17][18]

          Congo Empire[edit]



          Congo Empire[edit]


          Kongo in 1711
          By the 15th century CE, the farming Bakongo people (ba being the plural prefix) were unified as the Kingdom of Kongo under a ruler called the manikongo, residing in the fertile Pool Malebo area on the lower Congo River. The capital was M'banza-Kongo. With superior organization, they were able to conquer their neighbors and extract tribute. They were experts in metalwork, pottery, and weaving raffia cloth. They stimulated interregional trade via a tribute system controlled by themanikongo. Later, maize (corn) and cassava (manioc) would be introduced to the region via trade with the Portuguese at their ports at Luanda and Benguela. The maize and cassava would result in population growth in the region and other parts of Africa, replacing millet as a main staple.
          By the 16th century, the manikongo held authority from the Atlantic in the west to the Kwango River in the east. Each territory was assigned a mani-mpembe (provincial governor) by the manikongo. In 1506,Afonso I (1506–1542), a Christian, took over the throne. Slave trading increased with Afonso's wars of conquest. About 1568 to 1569, the Jaga invaded Kongo, laying waste to the kingdom and forcing the manikongo into exile. In 1574, ManikongoÁlvaro I was reinstated with the help of Portuguese mercenaries. During the latter part of the 1660s, the Portuguese tried to gain control of Kongo. Manikongo António I (1661–1665), with a Kongolese army of 5,000, was destroyed by an army of Afro-Portuguese at the Battle of Mbwila. The empire dissolved into petty polities, fighting among each other for war captives to sell into slavery.[19][20][21]
          Kongo gained captives from the Kingdom of Ndongo in wars of conquest. Ndongo was ruled by the ngola. Ndongo would also engage in slave trading with the Portuguese, with São Tomé being a transit point to Brazil. The kingdom was not as welcoming as Kongo; it viewed the Portuguese with great suspicion and as an enemy. The Portuguese in the latter part of the 16th century tried to gain control of Ndongo but were defeated by the Mbundu. Ndongo experienced depopulation from slave raiding. The leaders established another state at Matamba, affiliated with Queen Nzinga, who put up a strong resistance to the Portuguese until coming to terms with them. The Portuguese settled along the coast as trade dealers, not venturing on conquest of the interior. Slavery wreaked havoc in the interior, with states initiating wars of conquest for captives. TheImbangala formed the slave-raiding state of Kasanje, a major source of slaves during the 17th and 18th centuries.[22][23]