Historic Black Rulers
February 7, 2023
Kandake Amanirenas
Kandake Amanirenas was the queen of Kush, an Ancient Kingdom in modern day Sudan [1]. But that wasn’t the only name she went by. After losing an eye in battle, some referred to the queen as “One Eye Kandace”, but that didn’t stop her [2].
Amanirenas conquered Syene during her rule resulting of the raiding and vandalization of the Roman Emperor Agustus’s statues [1]. The queen even went as far as placing the broken off head of one of these statues underneath the feet of her throne as a constant reminder of her victory [2].
Mansa Musa
Mansa Musa is credited as the world’s richest person [3]. National Geographic states how “…his work in expanding trade made Mali the wealthiest kingdom in Africa.” In one instance, Musa led a religious pilgrimage with 100 camels carrying pure gold [4]!
He didn’t just care about money though, he yearned for knowledge throughout his reign. At the height of his reign he could accommodate up to twenty-five thousand people [4].
Amina of Zaria
Amia of Zaria was a great warrior queen of her time who did great things for her people. For starters, she was the first woman to become the Sarauniya or queen in a patriarchal society [5].
Amina was also cavalry-trained and led an army of one thousand cavalry troops [6]]! She also introduced metal armor in her army including chain mail and iron helmets [7]. Not only was she powerful on the battlefield, she also brought great wealth to her kingdoms. In one instance receiving 40 eunuchs and 10,000 kola nuts [5].
1. https://www.history.com/news/nubian-queen-amanirenas-roman-army
3. https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/mansa-musa-musa-i-mali
5. https://www.africanfeministforum.com/queen-amina-of-zaria-nigeria/
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amina
