CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE HISTORY OF SONGHAY. 617 Songhay. A.D. A.H. Neighbouring Kingdoms. Mahmud left Timbúktu with the cannon which the Portuguese had 999 This is not certain, although further on A'hmed Bábá mentions by “Geschütz;” but the common musket being called quite certain whether the author means field pieces or matchlocks. Songhay. A.D. A.H. Neighbouring Kingdoms. fact, which I shall soon bring forward, shows how this remarkable tribe, which we have seen stirring in these regions already several years previously, as soon as they saw the established government endangered, broke out in order to make use of circumstances for establishing themselves firmly in the country. A'skíá I's-hák wanted the Barakoy to imprison the royal princes who were in his company at the time, in order to prevent their joining the enemy, but they escaped; and he also endeavoured, in vain, to cause a diversion in his rear, by raising a revolt in Timbúktu, but his messenger was killed. The Basha Mahmúd ben Zarkúb pursued the king, and did not halt till he reached Kúkíá, having, with him, according to A'hmed Bábá, 174 divisions of musketeers, each of twenty men*; so that, if the ranks were all filled, he had 3480 men, or, including the officers, about 3600; and these being all armed with matchlocks, there was certainly no army in Negroland able to resist them. Seeing that a numerous undisciplined army against a well disciplined and compact band, armed with such a destructive weapon, was only a burthen, the Songhay king seems to have thought that a band of choice men, even if small in numbers, was preferable, and he therefore sent Híki Serkía, an officer of acknowledged bravery, with a body of 1200 of the best horsemen of his army, who had never fled before an enemy, to attack the Bashá. In order to make out the whole numbers of the army of the Basha, we must add the garrison of Timbúktu, which could certainly not be less than a couple of hundred men. It would be highly absurd to conclude, from what A'hmed Bábá says of the strength of this army, that its numbers made it so; for in numbers it was certainly a very small army for Negroland, where armies of from 30,000 to 50,000 men are a common occurrence, and the Imám e' Tekrúri says that the Songhay king had an army of 140,000 men. Revue Africaine, 1. c. Balma Mohammed Kágho, in the be- 1591-2 1000 ginning of the last year of the tenth century of the Hejra, and made him A'skíá, I's-hák seeing that all was lost, (from Dendi, where he staid at the time?) took the direction of Kebbi.* He was, however, obliged to retrace his steps, as the Kanta, the ruler of that kingdom, which at that period was still enjoying very great power,-afraid probably of drawing upon himself the revenge of the dreaded foreign foe, who with the thunder of his musketry was disturbing the repose of Negroland; or, moved by that ancient hatred which, since the expedition to A'gades, existed between the Songhay and the inhabitants of Kebbi, refused him admission into his dominions. I ́s-hák thereforere crossed the river, and went to Térat, where his last friends took leave of him. Even the inhabitants of this very place, who have preserved their independence till the present day, were not able, or were not inclined, to defend their liege lord. "There they separated, and bade each other farewell. The king wept, and they (the courtiers) wept, and it was the last time that they saw each other." There was certainly a strong reason for weeping over the fate of Songhay. * Bábá A'hmed writes this name exactly as it is pronounced, The tribe of the Erhámena becomes powerful in the west. The Zoghorán or Jawámbe conquer great portions of the former Songhay country. while the name Kábi is never used, but must have been formerly used, as is evident, from the form Kábáwa. See page 201. +(p. 553.), not Tara. There is no doubt that the well-known Songhay town of that name (Vol. IV. Ap. V.) is meant. Songhay. That splendid empire, which a few years back had extended from the middle of Hausa as far as the ocean, and from Mósi as far as Tawát, was gone, its king an exile and fugitive from his native land, deserted by his friends and nearest relations, had to seek refuge with his very enemies. Driven back from the Mohammedans in Kebbi, he now turned towards the pagans of Gurma, and those very inhabitants of Tínfiri upon whom he had made war two years before; and, indeed, the pagans were more merciful than the Mohammedans, and forgot their recent wrong sooner than the latter their old one; but probably the ex-king excited their fear; and, after having resided there some time, he was slain, together with his son and all his followers, in the month of Jumáda the second. Meanwhile there seemed to be still a slight prospect for the pretender Mohammed Kágho to save at least part of the empire, as all that remained of wealth and authority in Songhay gathered round him to do him homage; but even now the ancient family discord prevailed; and while he strengthened himself by some of his brothers, whom he liberated from prison, especially Núh, the former governor of Bantal, others among his brothers, sons of Dáúd, fled to the enemy, and, being well received, dragged after them a great many of the most influential men of the army. After this, Mohammed Kágho was induced by treachery to throw himself upon the mercy of the Bashá, from whom he received the assurance that he had nothing to fear; but he was laid in chains, and soon after executed. The Bashá Mahmúd, although he evidently governed the country with a strong hand, nevertheless, in the beginning at least, thought it more prudent to keep up a certain national form, and conferred the dignity of A'skíá upon the Barakoy Bultu; but the latter soon found it better to provide for his own safety by a speedy flight, and the Basha then gave the hollow title of A'skíá to Slímán ben A'skíá Dáúd, who had been the first to put himself under his protection. The Basha then went to pursue Núh, formerly governor of Bantal, who, having been liberated from his prison by Mohammed Kágho, returned to Dendi, that outlying and important province of Songhay, as soon as he saw his protector fail, and declared himself A'skíá in Dendi; but even beyond the Niger he seemed not to be safe; such was the remarkable vigour of this small Moroccain army, and the energy of its leader, under the auspices of that aspiring genius Múláy Hámed. On the frontier of Dendi, the Moroccain musketeers, within hearing of the subjects of Kanta, fought a battle with this last germ of Songhay independence, and vanquished A'skíá Núh even there; and the Bashá pursued the fugitive prince without relaxation from place to place for full two years, fighting repeated battles with him. Nay, he even built a fortress or kasbah in Kalna (?*), and placed there a garrison of 200 musketeers under the Káíd 'Omár, as if he intended According to the writer, whose interesting account Macguckin de Slane has published in the "Revue Africaine," i. n. 4. p. 296., the authority of Mansúr extended as far as Kanó: nay, even the ruler of Bórnu is said to have made his subjection; but the latter assertion is very improbable, the then ruler of B6rnu being none else than the warlike and energetic Edris A'lawóma. It is remarkable, however, that that author mentions Kanó without saying anything about Kebbi, which was the neighbouring kingdom, intervening between Songhay and Kanó, and at that time very powerful. |