The Mali Empire was in decline by the 15th century CE. The Songhai (also Songhay) Empire fell in 1612. The Songhai Empire was the largest empire in the history of western Sudan. When the Mali empire started to decline in the 14 th century, the Songhai king declared independence. What factors led to the fall of the empire of Ghana? Social Studies Africa: Songhai Empire. Test. Beginning with Ghana as early as 300 c.e. The songhai empire was so wealthy and great, raiders started to steal and kill for their great riches. Match. During the latter half of the 14th century, the Songhai state slowly eclipsed the Mali Empire. This reduced commerce and ways of income drastically, and basically, crushed Songhai. Songhai grew rich trading gold and salt up and down the Niger River and across the desert lands of the Sahara. 2000 miles. This empire was a successor state of the powerful, centuries-long Mali Empire .The weakening of Mali rule allowed the Songhai to rebel and form their own empire and it became the largest state in West Africa. It also contributed to the fall of the Songhai Empire, because the slave and gold trade were no longer going through the Songhai kingdom. Economic expansion was a double-edged sword for Songhai. Gravity. Write. The Songhai Empire collapsed in the late 16th century due to Moroccan invasion. In 1591, the Moroccan army invaded and captured the cities of Timbuktu and Gao. PLAY. The Songhai Empire began to decline at the end of Askia Muhammad’s reign, and in 1590, a Moroccan army (from North Africa) invaded Songhai in search of gold. Due to a tremendous amount of control, it became too much for the empire which interrupted their stability. It had two great kings throughout its existence: Sunni Ali and Askia Muhammad. Then, as trade routes opened up elsewhere, several rival kingdoms developed to the west, notably the Songhai. obaba. Following Daoud's death, however, a civil war over succession weakened the Empire, leading Morocco Sultan Ahmad I al-Mansur Saadi to dispatch an invasion force under the Judar Pasha. Spell. Terms in this set (11) Where is the Songhai Empire located? This increased the power of small West African kingdoms like the Asante and Dahomey kingdoms. It dominated a portion of northwestern Africa for the next 200 years. The Songhai Empire dominated West Africa between the 15th and 16th centuries. Songhai rulers subsequently took advantage of the weakened Mali Empire to expand Songhai rule. Why Do the Mighty Fall? In 1528, the aging and frail Askia the Great was cowardly dethroned by his own children. The Songhai Empire fell in 1591 after years of ineffective rule and the […] The Songhai Empire collapsed in the late 16th century due to Moroccan invasion. The new system of rule, the Arma, were unable to stay in control of their empire. An empire cannot not survive without their capital, so after the moroccan invasion the empire of Songhai began to fall. In 1591 civil war in the Empire weakened the State, and the Moroccan Sultan Ahmad I al-Mansur Saadi saw this as an opportunity to conquer Songhai by sending an army to attack it. The empire was centered in what is now central Mali . Inland( East) away from Senegal River. This question drives our lesson today on the Songhai Empire of West Africa. The empire was defeated by the Moroccans in 1519 and then fell into anarchy and the empire came to a sudden close in 1612. What is the Songhai Empire known for? The Songhai, in about 1365, led the Mali city of Gao to independence. This period was considered Songhai ’s golden era for its fortunes increased and there was lots of peace and stability. Askia Mohammed Touré, made Songhai a great empire by extending its control throughout much of … Timbuktu was then raided and burned. Broke away from Mali and regained freedom, traded with Berbers, mad universities. Why was the trans-Saharan trade both a rise and fall for the Songhai Empire? The internal problems continued to worsen as the inhabitants of newly conquered territory started to rebel. Share Fall Part 4. to add on to their misery in the year 1590 CE the Moroccan army started to attack after everything started to go bad. This lesson examines the reasons why the Songhai Empire collapsed after arising as one of the most powerful and wealthy empires in the West Africa savanna during the 16th century. Following Daoud's death, however, a civil war over succession weakened the Empire, leading Morocco Sultan Ahmad I al-Mansur Saadi to dispatch an invasion force under the Judar Pasha. In the second half of the 14th century, disputes over succession weakened the Mali Empire and in the 1430s, Songhai, previously a Mali dependency, gained independence under the … At first, it brought new sources of taxation and tribute to fuel the empire. Songhai Empire’s decline did not necessarily start from outside, it came from within, right in the court yards of Askia the Great. As a result, the Songhai rulers … One by one, the Songhai seized neighboring territories until it, too, became an empire. STUDY. It eventually extended west to the Atlantic coast and east into what are now Niger and Nigeria. by 1500, rebels and invaders had reduced the empire to the size that it had been when the Malinke people lived there.