From 7th century
Dongola and the Egypt–Nubia frontier
The Bakt of Dongola was a treaty between Arab Egypt and Nubia that functioned as a truce and pact of non-aggression. It regulated travel, extradition, the protection of foreign subjects, the maintenance of a mosque at Old Dongola, and an annual Nubian tribute. The arrangement combined diplomatic, security, and commercial provisions and was said to remain in force through much of Christian Nubia’s subsequent history.
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The Story
The agreement concluded at Dongola was described as a special form of treaty without precedent in the Muslim world. Rather than establishing direct conquest or ordinary subordination, it created a truce between Arab Egypt and Nubia. Its central principle was that Arab forces would not attack Nubia, allowing the Nubian kingdom to preserve political space for its own development.
The bakt also established rules for movement across the frontier. Citizens of both countries could pass through the other country as travellers, but they were not permitted to settle there. Authorities were responsible for the safety of foreign visitors, and fugitives were to be returned from one country to the other. Nubia additionally undertook to maintain the mosque built at Old Dongola for Muslim visitors.
The treaty imposed an annual payment of 360 slaves on Nubia to the governor of Aswan. A further account presents the exchange in more commercial terms, associating the slaves with deliveries of wheat, wine, linen, and cloth by the Arabs. The arrangement therefore combined non-aggression, regulated mobility, tribute, and exchange. Its principles were reportedly upheld for five centuries of Christian civilization in Nubia, although the excerpt does not provide a complete chronology of its application.
From 7th century
Dongola and the Egypt–Nubia frontier
The Bakt of Dongola was a treaty between Arab Egypt and Nubia that functioned as a truce and pact of non-aggression. It regulated travel, extradition, the protection of foreign subjects, the maintenance of a mosque at Old Dongola, and an annual Nubian tribute. The arrangement combined diplomatic, security, and commercial provisions and was said to remain in force through much of Christian Nubia’s subsequent history.
Continue exploring
The Story
The agreement concluded at Dongola was described as a special form of treaty without precedent in the Muslim world. Rather than establishing direct conquest or ordinary subordination, it created a truce between Arab Egypt and Nubia. Its central principle was that Arab forces would not attack Nubia, allowing the Nubian kingdom to preserve political space for its own development.
The bakt also established rules for movement across the frontier. Citizens of both countries could pass through the other country as travellers, but they were not permitted to settle there. Authorities were responsible for the safety of foreign visitors, and fugitives were to be returned from one country to the other. Nubia additionally undertook to maintain the mosque built at Old Dongola for Muslim visitors.
The treaty imposed an annual payment of 360 slaves on Nubia to the governor of Aswan. A further account presents the exchange in more commercial terms, associating the slaves with deliveries of wheat, wine, linen, and cloth by the Arabs. The arrangement therefore combined non-aggression, regulated mobility, tribute, and exchange. Its principles were reportedly upheld for five centuries of Christian civilization in Nubia, although the excerpt does not provide a complete chronology of its application.
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