The Sudan Handbook

eaRly states on the nile 67

Axum on the Ethiopian plateau. Although Kushite culture survived to

an extent, the territorial integrity of the state was lost.

The Christian Kingdoms of Nubia

Historical sources record that by the mid sixth century CE there were

three successor states, Nobadia in the north with its capital at Faras,

Makuria in the centre with its capital at Old Dongola, and Alwa (Alodia)

in the south with its capital at Soba East. It was these three states which

were converted to Christianity by missionaries sent from Byzantine

Egypt and Constantinople. This marked a pivotal moment in the cultural

history of the Middle Nile Valley; the arrival and possibly rapid adoption

of the new religion wiped away millennia of Egyptian and indigenous

religious traditions, signalling, notably, the end of the 5000-year old

practice of human sacrifice.

The adoption of Christianity doubtless brought important political

benefits, allying the Nubian states with Byzantium, the regional super-

power. However, the balance of power in the region was shattered in

the early seventh century by the Persian conquest of Egypt. Although

the Byzantines re-established their control, the armies of Islam dealt

a crushing blow both to Byzantium and the Sassanian Empire in the

630s; and the Arab invasion of Egypt in     639  produced a permanent

change in the politics of the region. The highly aggressive new masters

of Egypt immediately advanced into Nubia under Abdullahi bin el-Sarh.

Here, though, they met both a hostile landscape and a bellicose enemy

whose prowess with the bow made a deep impression on the would-be

conquerors. One Arab source reports ‘the Muslims had never suffered a

loss like the one they had in Nubia.’ Returning a decade later and laying

siege to Old Dongola, hostilities were brought to a close with the signing

of a peace accord, the Baqt, which guaranteed the territorial integrity

of Nubia. Over the following centuries the Nubian kingdoms Makuria,

Alwa and Nobadia developed a vibrant culture.

The Sudan Handbook, edited by John Ryle, Justin Willis, Suliman Baldo and Jok Madut Jok. © 2011 Rift Valley Institute and contributors

(www.riftvalley.net).