istoryworld
Events relating to africa
With the entire middle east under their control, the Arabs make Damascus the capital of the Umayyad caliphate
Carthage is captured from the Byzantines by the Arabs and is finally destroyed, though Tunis will later rise nearby
The African slave trade through the Sahara is so extensive that a new town, Zawila, is established as a trading station
The ancient kingdom of Ghana is the first to be established at the southern end of the Saharan trade routes
Muslim Arabs cross from north Africa into Spain and drive the Visigoths from Toledo
Islam reaches Shanga, off the east coast of Africa, with the building of a tiny wooden mosque
The Venetians, acquiring from Alexandria some bones believed to be those of St Mark, build St Mark's to house the valuable relic
During refurbishment of the mosque at Kairouan, in north Africa, a high fluted dome is added
Ahmad ibn Tulun, a Mameluke, seizes power in Egypt - establishing his own Tulunid dynasty
The Fatimids establish a new capital city on the Nile, calling it Al Kahira ('the victorious'), which becomes reduced to Cairo
A Muslim dynasty is established at Gao, on the Niger
The salt mines of the Sahara provide a staple commodity in the African caravan trade
A trading centre at Mapungubwe, on the Limpopo, evolves into a state ruled by a king in a zimbabwe
Islam reaches Kanem-Bornu, a joint kingdom encompassing the eastern and western shores of Lake Chad
A Muslim dynasty is established at Kilwa, on the east African coast
Ife emerges as a powerful kingdom in the equatorial forest of the lower Niger
Berber tribesmen, the Almoravids, establish a base at Marrakech from which they conquer northwest Africa and move into Spain
Greek texts, translated by Arabic scholars in Baghdad, gradually make their way through the Muslim world to Christian Europe
Rival Berber tribesmen, the Almohads, evict the Almoravids from Marrakech and soon conquer the whole north African coast
Seville falls to the Almohads, from north Africa, who make it their Spanish capital
Saladin deposes the Fatimid caliph and brings Egypt back to orthodoxy, acknowledging the rule of the Sunni caliph in Baghdad
In Cairo the Jewish philosoper Moses Maimonides writes, in Arabic, a much translated text with the endearing title Guide to the Perplexed
Terracotta heads and figures are buried in graves in the region of Djenné in modern Mali
St Francis of Assisi joins a crusading army in Egypt and attempts to convert the sultan Melek-el-Kamel and his followers to Christianity
A warlord, Sundiata, conquers Ghana and establishes the kingdom of Mali
