Askia Muhammad’s pilgrimage to Mecca
The Songhai ruler Askia Muhammad made the hajj to Mecca with a large retinue and a store of gold; in Egypt the Abbasid caliph recognised him as his lieutenant in West Africa.
- Date
- between 1495 and 1497 – between 1497 and 1498exact date unknown: an interval is given · duration: ≈ 2 years
- Place
- Gaotoday: Gao, Mali · Africa
- Route
- Gao → Cairo → Mecca
- Participants
- Askia Muhammad I, Songhai Empire, Mamluk Sultanate
- Threads
- Asia and Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries
- Also known as
- Хадж Аскии Мухаммеда; Аския Великий
Muhammad Ture, a general of Sonni Ali, overthrew Sonni Ali’s son in 1493 and founded the Askia dynasty, relying on the Muslim scholars of Timbuktu whom the previous ruler had persecuted. He was reportedly accompanied to Mecca by 500 horsemen and 1,000 foot soldiers; lavish gifts and donations, among them a hostel in Medina for pilgrims from West Africa, left the ruler in debt.
On the way, in Egypt, the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil, who lived in Cairo under the Mamluk sultans, appointed Muhammad his lieutenant in Songhai. Returning almost two years later with the titles “al-hajj” and “caliph”, the askia made Islam a pillar of his power. The sources disagree on the years of the pilgrimage (from 1495 to 1498), so the dates are given as ranges; the route across the Sahara is approximate.
Connections
Related events
- Sonni Ali takes Timbuktubetween 1468 and 1469 · AfricaAskia Muhammad, a former general of Sonni Ali, overthrew Sonni Ali’s son and restored royal patronage to the scholars of Timbuktu
Same participants
- Fall of Acre18 May 1291 · Middle East and Egyptvia Mamluk Sultanate
- Battle of Diu3 February 1509 · South Asiavia Mamluk Sultanate
Adjacent events in the thread
- Muscovite campaign across the Urals against Pelym and Yugra9 May – 1 October 1483 · Central and Northern Asia
- Ismail I proclaimed shah in Tabriz1501 · Middle East and Egypt
Meanwhile in the world
Other regions, within a year of this event
Western and Central Europe
- Expulsion and forced conversion of the Jews of Portugal5 December 1496 – October 1497
- Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supperc. 1495 – 1498
- Vasco da Gama’s first voyage to India8 July 1497 – between August and September 1499
- Treaty of Tordesillas7 June 1494
Eastern Europe
- Sudebnik of 1497September 1497
- Construction of the Moscow Kremlin walls and towers1485–1495
Central and Northern Asia
- Shaybani Khan destroys the Timurid Empire1500 – 27 May 1507
South Asia
- Vasco da Gama arrives at Calicut20 May 1498
North America
- John Cabot’s voyage to North AmericaMay 1497 – 6 August 1497
- Voyages of the Corte-Real brothers to Newfoundland1500–1502