7 less-known ancient African civilisations that you might not find in colonisers’ books

-photo-Kwakudee

Shilluk Kingdom

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The ancient Nilotic inhabitants of this Kingdom were great warriors. The Shilluk kingdom was founded during the 15th century by King Nyikang, and its history is told through the folk tales of Sudan. The kingdom existed along the White Nile River in what is now modern South Sudan and was well known for its monopoly of economic resources and trade.

The health and wealth of the kings were closely linked to that of the kingdom, thus if a king was not well, the kingdom would decline in trade and standard. In the 19th century, the kingdom suffered as from the invasion of the Ottoman Empire and later the British in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. The kingdom still exists today but its ruler is now a chief under within the Sundanese government.