Information About

Amadou Lobbo




An Imam by training, Seku Amadu preached for years against what he saw as the corruption of the Islam ic elites governing Tomboctou and Djenné . Inspired by the recent uprising of Usman Dan Fodio in neighboring Hausaland , Seku Amadu led his followers in a Jihad against the then-dominant Animist Bambara Empire in 1818. By 1819, he had decisively defeated the Bambara in battle, seizing Djenné and much of the territory around Mopti . He founded a capital for his new Massina Empire at Hamdullahi , not far from the city of Mopti.

At the height of the Empire's power, a 10,000 man army was stationed in the city, and Seku Amadu ordered the construction of six hundred Madrasa s to further the spread of Islam. He also ordered alcohol, tobacco, music and dancing banned in accordance with Islamic law, and constructed a Social Welfare system to provide for widows, orphans, and the poor.

In 1845, Seku Amadu conquered Tomboctou . However, he died within the year, leaving control of the Massina Empire to his son, Amadu Seku . Seku Amadu's Empire outlived him by only seventeen years, falling to Toucouleur conqueror El Hajj Umar Tall in 1862 .


REFERENCE

  • Davidson, Basil. ''Africa in History''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995.



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