Kong Empire
Encyclopedia
The Kong Empire also known as the Wattara Empire or Ouattara Empire for its founder, was a pre-colonial African Muslim
state centered in north eastern Cote d'Ivoire
that also encompassed much of present-day Burkina Faso
.
who combined Jula and Senufo
traditions to extend their authority over the surrounding region. Thanks to their Islamic literate tradition and trading experience, they turned Kong into an international market for the exchange of northern desert goods (salt and cloth) and southern forest exports (kola nut
s, and gold).
three hundred years earlier. The empire spread northward with the help of Maghan (prince) Famara Wattara, brother of Seku Wattara, in 1714. He captured the city of Bobo Dioulasso and much of present day Burkina Faso. Famara made Bobo Dioulasso capital of the Gwiriko region, which would become its own kingdom later on.
. It stretched hundreds of miles west and north and included large numbers of different Islamic and non-Islamic ethnic groups. Sekou Wattara died in 1745 and was succeeded by capable famas, the first being Koumbi Wattara. Under their rule, Kong remained a commercial center and also became a center of Islamic study. The Kong Friday Mosque, which predated the Wattara dynasty in Kong by a century, drew Islamic scholars from all over the Sahel. Mori Maghari was crowned fama after Koumbi and also governed with success.
Kong traded with other states in Cote d'Ivoire, most notably the Abron
kingdom of Gyaaman
. Their merchants were able to trade without any taxes on their products. Kong also supplied troops to Gyamman to fend off the Asante Confederacy to the east but, Eventually the Asante Confedercy was successful.
. After Samory's defeat, Kong was once again reclaimed by the French. Kong was divided between two colonies - Côte d'Ivoire and Upper Volta
(now Burkina Faso). The city of Kong became merely a small town after the French government routed the nearest rail line 70 km (45 mil) to the west.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
state centered in north eastern Cote d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
that also encompassed much of present-day Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...
.
Early Period
The first semblance of a true centralized state emerged under the Taraweré clan or jamuu of JulaJula
Jula refers to:* Dioula language spoken in western Africa* Jula people of western Africa* Jula AB, mail order and store*Jula, Afghanistan...
who combined Jula and Senufo
Senufo
The Senufo are an ethnolinguistic group composed of diverse subgroups of Gur-speaking people living in an area spanning from southern Mali and the extreme western corner of Burkina Faso to Katiola in Côte d'Ivoire. One group, the Nafana, is found in north-western Ghana...
traditions to extend their authority over the surrounding region. Thanks to their Islamic literate tradition and trading experience, they turned Kong into an international market for the exchange of northern desert goods (salt and cloth) and southern forest exports (kola nut
Kola nut
Kola Nut is the nut of the kola tree, a genus of trees native to the tropical rainforests of Africa, classified in the family Malvaceae, subfamily Sterculioideae . It is related to the South American genus Theobroma, or cocoa...
s, and gold).
Wattara Period
Kong's attractiveness invited invaders. In around 1710 a Jula warrior known as Sekou Umar of the Ouattara or Wattara jammu invaded the area and conquered the city using cavalry. He established himself as fama (king) and turned Kong into the center of an empire with regional influence. He imposed Jula as the official language and Islam as the state religion. He utilized slaves to work in the manufacture of cloth and cultivation of rice, millet, sorghum, and cotton. He also improved security along trading routes with the same cavalry methods used by the Mali EmpireMali Empire
The Mali Empire or Mandingo Empire or Manden Kurufa was a West African empire of the Mandinka from c. 1230 to c. 1600. The empire was founded by Sundiata Keita and became renowned for the wealth of its rulers, especially Mansa Musa I...
three hundred years earlier. The empire spread northward with the help of Maghan (prince) Famara Wattara, brother of Seku Wattara, in 1714. He captured the city of Bobo Dioulasso and much of present day Burkina Faso. Famara made Bobo Dioulasso capital of the Gwiriko region, which would become its own kingdom later on.
Height of Power
By the 1730s, the Kong Empire was the among the largest state in West Africa south of the Niger RiverNiger River
The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...
. It stretched hundreds of miles west and north and included large numbers of different Islamic and non-Islamic ethnic groups. Sekou Wattara died in 1745 and was succeeded by capable famas, the first being Koumbi Wattara. Under their rule, Kong remained a commercial center and also became a center of Islamic study. The Kong Friday Mosque, which predated the Wattara dynasty in Kong by a century, drew Islamic scholars from all over the Sahel. Mori Maghari was crowned fama after Koumbi and also governed with success.
Kong traded with other states in Cote d'Ivoire, most notably the Abron
Abron
The Abron or Bono are an Akan people of West Africa. They speak the Abron language.In the late sixteenth century, the Abron founded the Gyaaman kingdom as extension of Bono state in what is now Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire.-References:...
kingdom of Gyaaman
Gyaaman
Gyaman also spelled Jamang was a medieval African state of the Akan people, located in what is now Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. Gyaman was founded by the Abron, a branch of the Akan, in the late 15th century...
. Their merchants were able to trade without any taxes on their products. Kong also supplied troops to Gyamman to fend off the Asante Confederacy to the east but, Eventually the Asante Confedercy was successful.
Decline and Downfall
After the death of Fama Maghari in 1800, successive famas would struggle with growing resistance from the empire's diverse ethnic and religious groups. On the eve of colonialism, the emergence of an organized French military presence promised a new sense of security for local rulers and in 1889, Capt. Louis Binger secured a treaty with Kong, establishing it as a French protectorate. In 1895, Samory Touré invaded and destroyed the city of Kong after its rulers resisted his rule and refused to aid him in his campaign against the FrenchFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. After Samory's defeat, Kong was once again reclaimed by the French. Kong was divided between two colonies - Côte d'Ivoire and Upper Volta
French Upper Volta
Upper Volta was a colony of French West Africaestablished on March 1, 1919, from territories that had been part of the colonies of Upper Senegal and Niger and the Côte d'Ivoire...
(now Burkina Faso). The city of Kong became merely a small town after the French government routed the nearest rail line 70 km (45 mil) to the west.