15th century – 16th century
Morocco, Maghrib, and Western Sudan
The Saʿdid dynasty was a Moroccan ruling house that pushed Portuguese forces from most of their Atlantic strongholds during the sixteenth century. Its southward policy culminated in the conquest of Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire in 1591, after which substantial gold dust reached Morocco. Saʿdid expansion temporarily restored northern termini of trans-Saharan commerce to Muslim control, although gold flows later declined.
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The Story
During the sixteenth century, the Saʿdid dynasty succeeded in removing the Portuguese from most of their strongholds along Morocco’s Atlantic coast. This reversal restored the northern termini of the trans-Saharan trade to Muslim control and strengthened Morocco’s position in the commercial geography linking the Maghrib to the Western Sudan.
The Saʿdids pursued a southward-oriented policy that culminated in the conquest of Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire in 1591. The military victory had immediate commercial consequences: much gold dust reached Morocco afterward. The Moroccan sultan Mawlay Aḥmad al-Manṣūr consequently received the honorific al-Dhahabī, “the Golden.”
The Saʿdid success did not permanently restore the earlier dominance of the Western Sudanese gold economy. A few decades later, the flow of gold to Morocco decreased, while the collapse of political systems maintained by the successive empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay disturbed established patterns of trade. The rise of American gold further reduced the region’s position as a principal supplier to the Muslim world and Europe.
15th century – 16th century
Morocco, Maghrib, and Western Sudan
The Saʿdid dynasty was a Moroccan ruling house that pushed Portuguese forces from most of their Atlantic strongholds during the sixteenth century. Its southward policy culminated in the conquest of Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire in 1591, after which substantial gold dust reached Morocco. Saʿdid expansion temporarily restored northern termini of trans-Saharan commerce to Muslim control, although gold flows later declined.
Continue exploring
The Story
During the sixteenth century, the Saʿdid dynasty succeeded in removing the Portuguese from most of their strongholds along Morocco’s Atlantic coast. This reversal restored the northern termini of the trans-Saharan trade to Muslim control and strengthened Morocco’s position in the commercial geography linking the Maghrib to the Western Sudan.
The Saʿdids pursued a southward-oriented policy that culminated in the conquest of Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire in 1591. The military victory had immediate commercial consequences: much gold dust reached Morocco afterward. The Moroccan sultan Mawlay Aḥmad al-Manṣūr consequently received the honorific al-Dhahabī, “the Golden.”
The Saʿdid success did not permanently restore the earlier dominance of the Western Sudanese gold economy. A few decades later, the flow of gold to Morocco decreased, while the collapse of political systems maintained by the successive empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay disturbed established patterns of trade. The rise of American gold further reduced the region’s position as a principal supplier to the Muslim world and Europe.
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