Nicholas Said of Borno

 

We have been thinking about Nicholas Said again. This short video on his life does a nice job explaining who he was, but we're thinking about Said's autobiographical writings and legacy as part of a larger story of Borno natives abroad through the slave trade. This would take us to Brazil, Saint-Domingue (Haiti), possibly Cuba, Sierra Leone (as well as other parts of West Africa), Tripoli, Turkey, and the US. We are still unsure of James Albert actually being a Bornoan, but we'd like to include him alongside Ali Eisami and Nicholas Said as among our most usable sources. 

Tentative Timeline for the Colonial French Caribbean

A preliminary work started for another project but something we hope to continue, like our "Tentative Timeline for Kanem-Borno" on this site. We plan to add additional events and dates for Saint-Domingue (Haiti), Guadeloupe, Martinique, and other French colonial possessions in the Antilles but we have been too distracted by our Kanem-Borno and African historical "research" lately.

-1500s-1540s: French often plundered Spanish treasure fleets (according to Gad Heuman)

-1523: Jean Fleury, French corsair, sacked Spanish fleet carrying part of Aztec treasure

-1530-1570: French pirates were main scourge of Spanish possessions

-1559: Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis (Spain and France)

-1620s: Early French occupation of western Hispaniola in 1620s

-1620s-1667: frontier era in French Antilles, tobacco was first cash crop and remained important in Saint Domingue until 1690s, boucaniers and piracy in Tortuga, western Hispaniola

-1624-1625: English and French share Saint-Christophe (Saint Kitts), the French settlement led by Pierre Belain d’Esnambuc in 1625

-1626: Cardinal Richelieu invested in plans to colonize Saint Christophe (St. Kitts)

-1635: French colonization of Martinique, Guadeloupe (but French colonization proceeded at slow pace due to significant Carib population) and some of the smaller islands of the eastern Caribbean; also the year the Compagnie des Isles de l’Amerique was founded to consolidate French interests in Caribbean

-1640: Before 1640, French colonies relied on engages (indentured laborers who usually worked 3 year contracts), then increasingly depended on slave labor

-1642 Regulation of Compagnie des Indies declared all Indians of French islands equals of whites

-c. 1650: matelotage partnerships of newly freed servants common in Saint Domingue by mid-1600s, engaging in hunting cattle, processing hides, curing meat, and trade at Tortuga

-1650-1660: French Caribbean around 19% black in 1650, but grew to 36% by 1660; important role of Dutch and Jewish settlers from Brazil in sparking commercial sugarcane production in French Caribbean in 1650s (and Barbados, English colony)

-1654-1659/1660: French wars with the Caribs in the Lesser Antilles, lasting five years

1658: Caribs slaughtered French colonists at Marie Galante

-1660: Settlement reached between French and Caribs, restricting Caribs to St. Vincent and Dominica

-1664: Formation of Compagnie des Indes Occidentales, supported by Colbert

-1665-1675: Bertrand d’Ogeron governor of Tortue (Tortuga) for most of this period, promoting settlement and development of Saint Domingue

-1666: Alexandre Olivier Exquemelin joined French Compagnie des Indes Occidentales, sailing to Tortuga

-1667-1720: Colonial Conflicts and Economic Transition in French Antilles

-1669-1670: French Company of the West Indies opens slave trade with Allada and the “Slave Coast”; Mateo Lopes, ambassador of Allada king received at the court of Louis XIV

-1670-1700: enslaved Africans in Martinique grew in numbers from 7,000 in 1670 to 15,000 while the entire French Antilles had around 30,000 slaves by 1700

-1670s: French missionaries and fur traders at Fort St. Louis (Peoria, Illinois) and later other spots on Illinois River, Mississippi River, Missouri River

-1670-1672: troubles of period in Saint Domingue due to French attempts to halt contact between Dutch traders and French colonists in the Caribbean

-1670: Foundation of Cap Francais (modern Cap-Haitien)

-1671: French Lesser Antilles has population of just under 30,000

-1672-1678: French and Dutch wars in Indies

-1680: Troubles in Cap Francais following collapse of French market for colonial tobacco and enforcement of Senegal Company’s slave trade monopoly

-1680s-1690s: French privateering important for bringing slaves to Caribbean colonies

-1685: first sugarcane plantation in French Saint Domingue; also, Louis XIV revoked Edict of Nantes, leading to some migration of Huguenots to Caribbean and North American mainland

-First sovereign council of Saint Domingue established at Petit Goave by the marquis de Seignelay

1690: French raid Spanish colony of Santo Domingo

1690s: slaves carried to French colonies by privateers in late 1600s pivotal for rise of sugar production in Saint Domingue

1691: Spanish attack Cap-Francais

-1694: St. Domingue raid on Jamaica brings 1600-2000 slaves to Saint Domingue

-1695: Anglo-Spanish attack on Saint Domingue; French evacuate Sainte-Croix largely due to governor of St. Domingue, Du Casse; most of the 460 whites, 712 slaves, 52 free colored ended up in northern Saint Domingue

-1697: Treaty of Ryswick, ceding western Hispaniola to France (officially recognized by Spain)

-1698: planters and slaves from St. Croix displaced en masse to French Saint Domingue; Compagnie de Saint-Domingue (financial/military arm of French government) formed to promote sugar; foundation of Saint-Domingue Company, founded by DuCasse and financiers Bernard, Crozat, Mayon, Thome (to promote settlement of southern Saint Domingue)

-1701-1713: War of Spanish Succession

-1703: 1,369 people, including 409 whites and 908 slaves, lived in South of Saint Domingue

-1704: Andre Deslandes, former director of French East India and Asiento Companies, arrived to be first ordonnateur and established  a Superior Council at Cap-Francais the next year

-1706-1730: large number of Indian slaves , especially Panis or Pawnee in Missouri Valley

-1710: Recall of Governor Choiseul-Beaupre from Saint Domingue

1713: By this year, Saint Domingue’s population surpassed Martinique

1713-1735: French conflict with Fox Indians, Fox attack French allies in Illinois Country and French do not finally defeat the Fox until 1735

1715-1744: Years of Peace for French Antilles

1715: French Saint Domingue had a population of 7,000 white colonists, 30,000 slaves

1715-1717: Spanish pirates captured or pillaged 20 French ships along coast of Saint Domingue

1717-1723: temporarily successful rebellions of planters in Martinique and Saint Domingue against royal authority/colonial authority (the French king appointed colonial governors and officials; intendants were in charge of civil/judicial affairs

1720-1790: Plantations, slavery, Revolutions (French, Haitian, Guadeloupe)

1720: Revocation of Saint Domingue Company’s privileges

1720s: increase in coffee plantations after 1720

1726: French near Natchez villages tied to tobacco-growing concessions, 2 large grants for tobacco made in 1726

1729: 28 Nov 1729 Natchez warriors killed 237 French, captured nearly 300 slaves and 50 white women and children

1730-1731: Natchez defeated, some 500 sold into slavery (an unknown number sold in Saint Domingue, where their chief Grand-Soleil also went)

1756-1763: British successfully attack Guadeloupe and Martinique, bringing in more slaves

1758: Mackandal conspiracy in Saint Domingue

1788: Lejeune case of Saint Domingue slaves who unsuccessfully sued their master for his torture and murder 

1791: August 1791 beginning of slave uprising in the north of Saint Domingue 

Sources 

Gibson, Carrie. Empire's Crossroads: A History of the Caribbean From Columbus to the Present Day. London: Macmillan, 2014.

Heuman, Gad J. The Caribbean: A Brief History. Second edition. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2014.

Palmié, Stephan, and Francisco A. (Francisco Antonio) Scarano (editors). The Caribbean: A History of the Region and Its Peoples. Chicago ; London: The University of Chicago Press, 2011.

Pritchard, James S. In Search of Empire: The French in the Americas, 1670-1730. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

Fruits Basket

Although we usually don't consume shojo anime or manga, we've had a soft spot for Fruits Basket since 2018. Perhaps because Tohru Honda is an orphan, we feel a strong attachment to her character and her development over the course of the manga. The original anime series was not great, despite this amazing opening song, but that got us to eventually read the manga series. Perhaps in a few years, we shall revisit Fruits Basket by watching the recent anime adaptation that is far more faithful to the manga...

Borno's Borders

Although Hiribarren's A History of Borno: Trans-Saharan African Empire to Failing Nigerian State was not what we expected, it was an engaging analysis of how the territoriality and spatiality of 19th century Borno was adopted, recycled, adapted, and maintained by Rabih and the subsequent European colonial powers who "scrambled" for the Lake Chad Region (Britain, Germany, and France). The colonial and postcolonial borders of Borno, despite deviating from the actual borders of the 19th century state, were nonetheless the basis for how the British, Germans, and French carved up the region and, in the case of British Borno, implemented indirect rule through the institutions of the al-Kanemi Shehu government that they restored. Intriguingly, Hiribarren proposes some theories for why Borno played an important role in Nigeria's borders and internal states, possibly due to the Kanuri being an ethnic minority and having a recognized ancient history that could both be factors supporting the Nigerian state. 

However, the most interesting chapter is actually the fifth, which contextualizes the production of knowledge in colonial Borno through the essays and publications of British officials  and their local informants/collaborators. Due to the paucity of sources on the indigenous co-producers of knowledge, the chapter is speculative yet undoubtedly illustrates how colonial rule in Borno was aided and abetted by historical and anthropological knowledge on the Kanuri people and the sense in which Borno, as an ancient state in the region, could be appropriated by the British who saw themselves as the next great empire in the region. Our dear friend Palmer emerges here, and he clearly benefited professionally or politically from his outdated research on Borno's past through promotions up the ranks of colonial administration. 

What would be interesting for a fuller picture of colonial/colonialist historians of Borno and their reliance on local informants is a look at French scholars in Chad or Niger who also collected oral sources and data on Kanem-Borno's long history. We're thinking of Yves Urvoy for the most part, but a look at how Kanuri, Kanembu and other groups in today's Chad and Niger were also shaping Urvoy or other French scholarship on Kanem-Borno would be interesting for ways in which they too created a feedback loop or were in turn used for political legitimizing. From reading Yves Urvoy, one gets the impression that the French colonial-era scholars were also influenced by the legacy of ancient Rome, medieval Europe, and the ubiquitous Hamitic Hypothesis.

Borno Under the Shehus

It is always pleasant to find serious material on Kanem-Borno via the internet. This short video offers a decent overview of the rise of the al-Kanemi dynasty of Borno in the 19th century. For more information, one should consult Louis Brenner's work for a detailed analysis of the rise of Shaykh Muhammad al-Amin al-Kanemi as the effective ruler of Borno. Brenner's study, although weaker in the second half on the decline of the Shehus, uses an effective combination of oral and textual sources to chronicle the political ascent of al-Kanemi from village mallam to founder of a new dynasty. One cannot understand Borno today without learning of the impact of the 19th century jihad of Uthman Dan Fodio, the demise of the Sayfawa, and the al-Kanemi dynasty "saving" Borno until its eventual conquest by Rabih in the 1890s. 

Maison Ikkoku

 

While we usually do not consume romantic comedies, a rekindled interest in anime and manga drew us back to Maison Ikkoku. We adored the soundtrack, slice of life aspects and slow pace of this 1980s show, but it was excessively long. There was no reason to extend it to 96 episodes. Nor did we need that pointless film with the different character designs (although we liked the Michael Jackson poster). As the series began to run too long and certain characters disappear for long stretches, it seemed like the story was just grasping for any plot device to prevent Godai and Kyoko from confessing their feelings. To their credit, the animation improved and some of the antics of the Maison Ikkoku tenants continued to entertain. Nonetheless, this is a very endearing tale of widow and her tenant falling in love with a colorful ensemble of characters (who can forget Mitaka or Yotsuya?). If only it could have been condensed into 52 episodes or perhaps even fewer so I would have watched it 2 or 3 years ago...

A Sudanic Chronicle

Lange's A Sudanic Chronicle: The Borno Expeditions of Idrīs Alauma (1564–1576) is an indispensable work. A scholarly, modern translation of one of the chronicles of imam Ahmad b. Furtu, it is one of the earliest extant West African chronicles, written in 1576. It is also one of the most detailed primary sources from Borno on the Sayfawa dynasty and the reign of Idris b. Ali. Indeed, when paired with the 1578 chronicle on the Kanem campaigns of Idris b. Ali against the Bulala on the opposite shore of Lake Chad, Ahmad b. Furtu is probably our most important written source on Kanem-Borno from the precolonial era. Unfortunately, the chronicler only covers the first twelve years of his ruler's reign, but he provides an intimate look at some of the social, political, demographic, military, diplomatic, religious and economic dynamics in 16th century Borno. Moreover, Lange's scholarly translation is more accurate and usable than the 19th century Redhouse translations or the Palmer ones with their egregious errors. For that reason alone, plus the detailed footnotes by an academic who specializes in the region, Lange's translation is required reading. 

What stands out more clearly in this translation than that of Redhouse is the literary allusions, Quranic references, and the role of military tactics. For instance, the expertise in which Idris, the brother of Vizier Kursu organizes the musketeers, shieldsmen, and cavalry to effectively defeat Ngizim towns was far more explicit here. The greater precision and contextual knowledge of the translator vividly brings to life some of the combat, military strategies, and long-term goals of Idris Alooma to wear down, defeat, displace, destroy, and starve rebels, external enemies, and nomadic foes (like the Tuareg of Air). Snippets of the population movements and displacements, such as the construction of ribats to end "pagan" incursions, are additional evidence of large-scale movements across Borno which reveal the long-term strategy of the Sayfawa to consolidate their power. Furthermore, Ahmad b. Furtu's individuality and background as the chief imam of Birni Gazargamo are more readily discernible here, perhaps due to useful footnotes of Lange.

Unfortunately, Lange never followed this with a similar scholarly translation of the second chronicle of Ahmad b. Furtu. It's a shame since the two chronicles, both panegyric in tone and clearly meant to flatter the sultan, nonetheless constitute hugely significant sources on events in Kanem and Borno during the late 16th century. The Kanem campaigns described by Ahmad b. Furtu are essential for highlighting the larger regional ambitions, influence, and extent of Sayfawa power across the Central Sudan. It also would have been interesting to read a similar gazetteer of towns and settlements in Kanem as well as Lange's commentary to shed light on the Quranic, literary, or linguistic peculiarities of the text. 

Borno in the Rabih Years

Although our primary area of interest in Kanem-Borno lies in the Sayfawa dynasty, one cannot ignore the tumultuous late 19th century in Borno history. The Sudanese military leader Rabih was able to conquer a weakened Borno under Shehu Hashimi and pave the way for European colonial conquest of the region, thereby depriving Borno of a possible third dynasty and dividing the region into spheres of British, French, and German imperialism. Kyari Mohammad's Borno in the Rabih years, 1893-1901: The Rise and Crash of a Predatory State remains an important study of the conquest and short-lived state established by Rabih. 

The reign of Shehu Umar and his successors proved to be an unstable era in Borno. The al-Kanemi dynasty proved itself unable to adapt or bridge the gap between the aristocracy and the rest of the population. Divisions within the ruling class, excessive tax burdens on the peasantry, and unpopular leaders who were easily defeated by Rabih's disciplined, modern forces reveal how weak Borno was by the end of the 1800s. This decline and economic downtown was inherited by Rabih's brutal conquest, with its negative demographic impact, scorched earth tactics, and repressive measures. Rabih's "military dictatorship" further weakened the economy, agriculture, trans-Saharan and regional trade, and almost appears to have been doomed to fail. That the Shehus were unable to mount a real resistance and were only restored by European colonial support exhibits how weak and ineffective the al-Kanemi dynasty had become. And the fact that Rabih failed to establish a state but recycled the old fief system and had failed in nearly all his major diplomatic and economic initiatives illustrates the decline of Borno as a major power in the region. 

One is almost tempted to think back to the Sayfawa dynasty in the beginning of the century, who had to rely on al-Kanemi to drive the Fulani jihadists out. Yet the decline of the Sayfawa in the early 19th century does not appear to have been as severe as that of the Shehus of Kukawa. Nonetheless, it would be interesting to further explore the dynastic changes in 19th century Borno to trace the possible antecedence of the political turmoil, social dislocation and political decline that caused the kingdom to lose its position as the preeminent power of the Central Sudan. For instance, to what extent was the "peasant revolt" of the Manga in the 1820s similar to the failed movement of Mallam Abu Gantur's resistance to Rabih in the 1890s? Or peasant resistance to the excessive taxation of Shehu Bukar in 1883? Was the "contract" between rulers and ruled already so weak from the early 19th century conflicts or Sayfawa decline in the 18th century?

Studies in the History of Pre-Colonial Borno

Studies in the History of Pre-Colonial Borno is one of those must-read texts on the history of Borno worthy of a new edition and a subsequent collection of essays that reflect the new scholarship on the history of Kanem-Borno. For instance, newer insights from archaeological excavations in Kanem and Borno, as well as the use of more local textual sources from the precolonial era for the study of Kanembu and Kanuri Ajami texts and linguistic analysis should be incorporated. Newer scholarship on Islam, Sufism, Ulama-State relations, the Kanuri Diaspora or Borno's connections with the lands further west and east are all topics of interest that recent scholarship has covered to varying extents. Or the topic of, perhaps, Kanem-Borno's social history, gender relations, oral literature, slavery as a local institution, or land tenure are also deserving of deeper scrutiny. 

Nevertheless, this collection of essays from the 1980s, despite the uneven nature of the contributions, is a must-read for everyone interested in Kanem-Borno. Connah's survey of the data from archaeological work in Borno and the Chad Basin provide a useful prehistoric background to human settlement and the development of metallurgy, towns, and trade. Abdullahi Smith's essay, for instance, offers a plausible theory for why claiming descent from Sayf may have appealed to the ulama of Kanem by the 12th or 13th centuries. Smith draws on the larger history and discourse of early Islamic history and genealogy, which would have been known to Kanem's ulama through their study of Arabic texts and travels to Egypt, Mecca, and the Maghreb. Of course, the actual chances of the Sayfawa dynasty being descendants of Sayf are very slim, but the more interesting question of the intellectual history behind it is fascinating. 

Muhammad Nur Alkali's contributions, on the other hand, appear to be based on his dissertation, which gives the reader a greater sense of the administrative organization of the Sayfawa state during their Borno period. Again, much of our knowledge of the details of administration and political office in pre-19th century Borno is scanty, but Alkali's contributions elucidate why the Sayfawa state was able to prosper for centuries as the dominant power in the Central Sudan through agriculture, trade, fishing, learning, cattle, textiles, leatherworks, salt, and the administrative apparatus that directed or promoted the aforementioned aspects of Borno's hegemony or cultural influence. Since our sources are still somewhat limited on the intricacies of the political system of the Sayfawa state, one should approach Alkali's interpretations with caution.

Additional contributors appear to have recycled past work or dissertations, but shed light on fiscal policy under the Shehus of the 19th century, Borno's relationship with Fombina before the colonial period, constitutional changes introduced by al-Kanemi, the decline of the office of galadima in the 1800s, Borno's relations with other powers (Morocco, Ottoman Empire, Mamluk Egypt) and Borno-Hausaland relations. Yusufu Bala Usman's essay on Borno relations with Hausaland before 1804 is worth reading for pointing to the lack of sources used by past historians (like Yves Urvoy) to depict Hausaland as a conquered region of Borno. Instead, Usman's chapter demonstrates that Borno's political and cultural influence in Hausaland was likely mediated through other means besides military conquest, and that the continuous plain running through the Hausa states and Borno favored trade, migration, contact, and relations which were not, based on our current sources, of a military nature. 

Thus, one cannot deny the central importance of Studies in the History of Pre-Colonial Borno for all students of Kanem-Borno. It suffers from several typos and more than a few chapters are speculative or rely on limited evidence, yet it reflects the importance of mostly local, Nigerian scholars for advancing scholarship. Unlike some of the external and colonial-era historians of Borno, the Kanuri, Nigerian, and African contributors to this volume evince a care for incorporating oral traditions and written sources in a balanced manner that avoids the diffusionism of Urvoy or Palmer while reflecting far greater immersion into the cultural and language milieus of Borno and its neighbors. This is not to say only Kanuri or Nigerian scholars should be allowed to study Borno, but their familiarity with the scene and desire to challenge or balance colonial-era narratives is refreshing.