By the early twelfth century, the Empire of Ghana was on its last legs. It had lost its gold and salt mines and had resorted to slavery as its primary source of revenue. Many of its vassals had broken off and declared their independence. Some of those vassals were even bold enough to attack Ghana itself.
One of those newly independent vassals was the Soso kingdom, led by the mysterious Sumanguru.
The blacksmiths held a special place in much of West African society. They were seen as magicians of sorts since they could bring metal out of the ground and fashion it into all sorts of weapons. The blacksmiths held their secrets close and maintained a tight fraternity. In many respects, they were the African equivalent of the European Freemasons.
Mashallah…….very informative an in depth podcast