How Europe Underdeveloped Africa - Walter Rodney. Tarikh al Sudan & Tarikh al Fattash (both are extremely rare & cost a fortune.

If anyone is interested in learning more about the great societies of Pre-Colonial Africa, I'll recommend the following books. The Lost cities of Africa - Basil Davidson The African Genius - Basil Davidson When We Ruled - Robin Walker

Kumassi was blown up with dynamite, burnt & looted by the British during the war of the Golden stool. According to records, over 90% of the city was destroyed in the war.

This 👇🏿is the 3rd iteration of the Manyhia (King's Residence) completed in 1920. The first one, which was said to be 5 times bigger & more impressive, was blown up with dynamite by the British during the Anglo - Ashanti war of 1874.

According to eyewitness testimony from British traders, Kumassi had more 2 story homes than London at the time. Most, the homes were constructed in Moorish style architecture, using carved stone. Most house had an upstairs bathroom & toilet.

6- Kumassi. Kumassi was the Capital of the Ashanti (Asante) empire which existed in what is now the nation of Ghana. Before the colonization of the Gold Coast, Kumassi was considered one of the most developed city in 18th & early 19th century Africa.

Stay tuned, I'll continue adding great cities to this thread.

In 1591, Timbuktu, then under the domain of Songhai Empire, was invaded, occupied & looted by Moroccan forces under the command of Judar Pasha. Most of the territory of Mali & Songhai will later fall to Fulani Jihads & European slave raids, finally being colonized by France.

The University of Sankoré in Timbuktu had at least 25 thousand students a year, the largest of any learning institution of the period.

Timbuktu in this period was 5 times larger & more populated than London, Europe's biggest city at the time. The great Library of Timbuktu housed over 5 million text on a wide variety of subjects, including Science Mathematics, Astronomy etc.

5- Timbuktu. Timbuktu was the largest city in the Mali Empire which existed in what is now the West African nations Mali, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal & Gambia. At it's peak in the 14th century, Timbuktu was the wealthiest city in the world & the center for knowledge.

In 1897, Benin was destroyed & looted by British Forces after the King of Benin refused to relinquish control of Palm oil trade, which was then used as the main lubricant for European industrial machines. It's great wall was mostly destroyed & it's bronze statues stolen.

A European explorer described the Benin Bronze artwork as such "These works from Benin rival the finest examples of European casting techniques, Cellini himself could not have casted them better. These bronze works represent the very highest possible human achievement"

Benin was renowned for it's great wall, which surpassed that of China in grandeur, totalling over 10,000 miles in length. The Guinness book of records once described the walls of Benin as "The largest earthworks in the world prior to the mechanical era".

4- Edo Edo was the Capital of the Kingdom of Benin (not to be confused with the modern nation of Benin), which existed in what is now southwestern Nigeria from the 11th century until it was destroyed & her territory annexed by the British Empire in 1897.

Towards the end of the 18th century, Kanem Bornu began to decline due successive waves of Fulani Jihads. Finally, in the closing of the 19th century, Ngazargamu was destroyed & looted by French forces, who divided the territory between their colonies of Chad, Cameroon & Niger.

One Arab scholar described the wealth of Ngazargamu as such. "The Emperor's Calvary has Golden stirrups, spurs, bits & buckles. Even the dogs had chains of the finest gold" . "A lone woman clad in gold might walk alone at night, with none to fear but God."