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Degunbenese River Conquest (1600-1610)
Topic Started: Aug 26 2011, 02:44 AM (211 Views)
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The sun rising over the mosque of Koumbi Saleh glistened through a window in the main chamber of the war room of the royal palace. Mansa Mouhammad Dankolize stood at the head of the table, stroking his beard thoughtfully. Before him was a map of the North-Western portion of Africa, his own kingdom dwarfing any of the others that had come before him in this region. With this shipment of firearms and gunsmiths from his new allies in the Mamluk Empire, he knew it was time for his mighty kingdom to expand.

"We now have the manpower and weaponry to assimilate all of these barbarians who surround us," he began. "But our first goal is the city of Gao."

"But my King," replied General Adeh Bundou, "That is the last stronghold of the Kingdom of Mali. It will be heavily fortified."

"That is not an issue. Our cavalry are the finest in the region, and our archers are well trained. We have enough manpower to starve them out, and we now have guns. Gao will fall swiftly. From there, we will move north across the river to Tombouctu."

"That will bring the Malinese tumbling to their knees, my king. And you will be the only King for miles. But what shall we do about the tribes that surround us?"

"From Tombouctu, we will send our river ships South-East down the Niger River, and we will assimilate every tribe we find. Within the next decade, I believe we can safely hold these regions..." The King began to draw on the map with ink.

General Bundou smiled and nodded. "Allah will surely smile upon us, my king."


((Here are the regions Degunbe hopes to control by 1610:))
Spoiler: click to toggle


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The Invasion of Gao

The Degunbenese forces emarked from their boats a mile south of Goa - 25,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry, 7,000 of which were armed with muskets. Also in their employ were two dozen catapults. They made their way up the Savannah along the bank of the Niger, not one of them making a sound. When they reached the city around 11 AM, it was obvious that their arrival was not expected.

"General Bundou," began Lieutenant Akun Ndemu, "our enemies are unaware of our presence. Shall we launch a surprise attack?"

Bundou raised his hand to silence him. "No, Ndemu. We are a civilized people. We will show them the same respect we would show our kind." He reached into a pouch on his horse's saddle and retrieved a wrapped scroll. "Take this to their king," he said, handing it to his messenger, Oweh Nwosia. The boy nodded and rode toward the city gate.

"To Mansa Undeh Jaku of the Mali," it began:

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Centuries ago, your ancestors took the sacred land of my forefathers and drove my family far from our homeland. For many years, we lived under the oppression of the Malinese Empire. Three decades ago, I and my brothers seized what was ours from you, and left you a splintered holding in Gao and Tombouctu. Now, the time has come for the Degunbenese to rightfully take what is theirs once and for all. We will give you a choice: You may surrender your holdings willingly, and we will allow your family to live and hold seats of honor in our council, though they must convert to Islam. We will allow your people to keep their sovereignty and religion. If you decline our generous offer, we will take what is ours by force. You have two hours to answer.

In Allah's Name,
Mansa Mouhammad Dankolize


Bundou and Ndemu waited impatiently for the response. As the two hour limit reached its end, they began to send a message through the ranks to prepare their weapons. Finally, a messenger from the Mali appeared, holding a platter commonly used to serve someone of a high position their dinner.

"Mansa Undeh Jaku the Great of the Mali has considered your offer, and his response is enclosed in this platter."

Bundou hesitated. "Ndemu, please remove the lid." The lieutenant nodded and stepped forward, lifting the lid of the platter. In the center, surrounded by garnishes, was Oweh Nwosia's head. With a yell, General Bundou drew his sword and, in one clean swing, lopped the messenger's head from his shoulders. "Those heathens!" he cried, lifting his sword into the air. "The streets of Gao will run red with the blood of our oppressors!" The men behind him began to cry out, one by one, until the roar was nearly deafening. Then, as the army began to move, Bundou climbed up to the bucket of the lead catapult, and placed the head of the enemy messenger inside.

"Fire the first volley!"
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General Bundou strode through the streets of Gao, happy with the progress that had been made that day. It had been a violent struggle: it was obvious that the month of training that the soldiers had been given with the new firearms was not enough, and they proved largely ineffective in the battle. Still, he knew that they would naturally improve in the battles ahead. As he reached the square, he could see his personal bodyguards standing next to a crumpled shape on the ground.

"You may stand," he said to the heap before him. The enemy leader rose to his knees. "Your men fought bravely, but it is I who stand before you."

The Malinese king said nothing.

"The Kingdom of Degunbe hereby claims all of the territory belonging to the Malinese Empire. This city will be rebuilt -" he gestured towards the smoldering piles of mortar behind him - "and you will be allowed to live comfortably in the dungeon."

"I...I spit on you..."

With a yell, Bundou cleaved the man's head from his shoulders. After wiping his blade clean, he turned to face the crowd of men that had been brought to him.

"You are among the strongest men in this city. And you know what will become of you." A few in front nodded. More of them hung their heads in shame. A few were on the verge of tears.

"You," Bundou began, approaching the man nearest him, "what is your name?"

"Jide Batia."

"No. You are now Deme Bohwu. You will be given his old arms." The man nodded and stepped forward, as was customary. He would take the names and weapons of the fallen man. It was to be as if the Degunbenese army had never lost a soldier.

Bundou turned to face his men behind him. "Finish the replacements." They nodded as he headed down to the river.

They would go south, along the Niger. Tombouctu wasn't even a day's ride north, he knew, but he was convinced that they wouldn't need to attack the city to convince it to join the Kingdom. In a short time, merchants would see the wreckage, would return home with the news. And then they would join peacefully out of fear. There was no reason to head north.

As he stepped into his personal war canoe, Bundou turned to see the mass of people heading east, flanked by a convoy of soldiers. They had taken 12,000 slaves that day, mostly men, but some women and children. They would make fine additions to homes all over Europe and Africa, and would fetch the kingdom a very healthy sum.
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The conquest of the south had gone very well; the tribes to the south had no access to gunpowder, and were settled in small villages. There were no walls to keep the Degunbenese out. As they rode further down the Niger, tribes began to willingly capitulate, undoubtedly having heard word of the power these people had. The Kingdom, when all was said and done, held nearly all of the land along the banks of the Niger, something that would aid greatly in future trade and conquest.

Meanwhile, in the capital of Koumbi Saleh, Mansa Dankolize began to turn his gaze north. The rest of the land south of him would be no harder to conquer than the land along the Niger, he knew. However, to the north was a threat that continued to grow closer to his borders daily: the Spanish Empire. His scouts had brought word of their conquest to him a few weeks before, and he simply waved his hand, believing that the problem wouldn't grow to the point that he would have to worry about it. However, as his scouts brought back reports of the swift conquest of the Spanish, the Mansa hastily wrote a letter to his allies the Mamlukes.

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Caliph Najib Salah-al-Din Hosni Gafar Amirmoez,
My scouts have brought word of the Spanish Empire claiming territory on our continent. As it stands, they have taken land from the Moroccans, and I fear they may move farther south into my Kingdom. I ask for your advise and aid in this issue, as the influence the Christians are bringing to our Muslim people is dangerous.

Mansa Mouhammad Dankolize
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Caliph Najib Salah-al-Din Hosni Gafar Amirmoez hastily wrote a reply to his ally.

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Mansa Mouhammad Dankolize,
The Catholics are a plague upon the face of the planet, they will continue to spread their control until they have nowhere left to go, then they will fight eachother over it. We must stop their expansion as fast as possible, to assist in this I offer the services of 6,000 infantry and the Alexandria Fleet.
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=bigaria
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