Editing History of Africa (section)

===== c. 1250-1500 =====
By 1250, [[Kingdom of Mapungubwe|Mapungubwe]] had a population of 5000, and produced [[textiles]] and [[ceramic]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Antonites |first=Alexander |date=2019-03-01 |title=Fiber Spinning During the Mapungubwe Period of Southern Africa: Regional Specialism in the Hinterland |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10437-018-09323-9 |journal=African Archaeological Review |language=en |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=105–117 |doi=10.1007/s10437-018-09323-9 |issn=1572-9842}}</ref><ref name=":82">{{Cite book |last1=Wingfield |first1=Chris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5lOTzgEACAAJ |title=The Pasts and Presence of Art in South Africa: Technologies, Ontologies and Agents |last2=Giblin |first2=John |last3=King |first3=Rachel |date=2020 |publisher=McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research |isbn=978-1-913344-01-6 |language=en}}</ref> The centre of the settlement was the domain of men, and had an area for resolving disputes and making political decisions, while the outer zone was the domain of women, containing domestic complexes.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Huffman |first1=Thomas N. |last2=du Piesanie |first2=Justin |date=2011 |title=Khami and the Venda in the Mapungubwe Landscape |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43135550 |journal=Journal of African Archaeology |volume=9 |issue=2 |pages=189–206 |doi=10.3213/2191-5784-10197 |issn=1612-1651 |jstor=43135550}}</ref> The second king had their palace in the middle of the hill, and is called "[[Tshidziwelele]]" in [[Venda people|Venda]] oral traditions.<ref name="Loubser 2024"/> The king had many wives, with some living outside of the capital to help maintain the network of alliances.<ref name=":03">{{Cite book |last=Huffman |first=Thomas N. |url=https://archive.org/details/mapungubweancien0000huff/mode/2up?view=theater |title=Mapungubwe : ancient African civilisation on the Limpopo |date=2005 |publisher=Johannesburg : Wits University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-1-86814-408-2}}</ref>{{Rp|page=|pages=38–51}} The economy was based on agriculture, and to make more productive use of the land, cattle (previously held as the primary identifier of wealth) were herded away from the capital and permitted to graze on other communities' land, forming social and political ties and increasing Mapungubwe's influence. A large amount of wealth was accumulated via tributes, which were paid in crops, animals, and sometimes rarer goods.<ref name=":72">{{Cite journal |last1=Delius |first1=Peter |last2=Chewins |first2=Linell |last3=Forssman |first3=Tim |date=2024 |title=Turning South African History Upside Down: Ivory and Gold Production, the Indian Ocean Trading System and the Shaping of Southern African Society, 600–1900 AD |journal=Journal of Southern African Studies |volume=50 |issue=3 |pages=499–520 |doi=10.1080/03057070.2024.2436329 |issn=0305-7070 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2024JSAfS..50..499D }}</ref><ref name=":82"/>{{Rp|page=163}}

Meanwhile, at [[Great Zimbabwe]] agriculture and cattle played a key role in developing a vital social network, and served to "enfranchise management of goods and services distributed as benefits within traditional political and social institutions", while long-distance trade was crucial for the transformation of localised organisations into regional ones. This process rapidly advanced during the 13th century, which saw large [[Dry stone|dry masonry stone walls]] raised, and by 1250 Great Zimbabwe had become an important trade centre.<ref name=":122">{{Citation |last=Pikirayi |first=Innocent |title=Great Zimbabwe, 1100–1600 AD, Rise, Development, and Demise of |date=2020 |pages=4696–4709 |editor-last=Smith |editor-first=Claire |url=https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |access-date=2024-12-20 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |isbn=978-3-030-30018-0 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology}}</ref>

The events around Mapungubwe's collapse are unknown.{{Efn|It has previously been attributed to drastic climatic change amid the [[Little Ice Age]], however this has since been disproven.}} It is plausible confidence was lost in the leadership amid the deepening material and spiritual divide between commoners and the king, and a breakdown in common purpose, provoking people to "vote with their feet".<ref name=":522"/> By 1300, trade routes had shifted north as merchants bypassed the [[Limpopo River|Limpopo]] and Mapungubwe by travelling the [[Save River (Africa)|Save River]] into the gold-producing interior, precipitating Mapungubwe's rapid decline and the dominance of Great Zimbabwe.<ref name=":522"/> Mapungubwe was abandoned as people scattered northwest and south. They didn't regroup.<ref name=":03"/>{{Rp|page=55}}
[[File:Great-zim-aerial-looking-West.JPG|thumb|Aerial view of the Great Enclosure and Valley Complex at [[Great Zimbabwe]], looking west]]
Great Zimbabwe's wealth was derived from cattle rearing, agriculture, and the domination of trade routes from the goldfields of the Zimbabwean Plateau to the [[Swahili coast]]. The kingdom taxed other rulers throughout the region and was composed of over 150 smaller zimbabwes, and likely covered 50,000&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>.<ref name=":32">{{Cite journal |last=Chirikure |first=Shadreck |date=2020-06-01 |title=New Perspectives on the Political Economy of Great Zimbabwe |journal=Journal of Archaeological Research |language=en |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=139–186 |doi=10.1007/s10814-019-09133-w |issn=1573-7756 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Owomoyela 2002">{{Cite book |last=Oyekan Owomoyela |url=https://archive.org/details/culturecustomsof00owom |title=Culture and customs of Zimbabwe |date=2002 |publisher=Greenwood Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-313-31583-1}}</ref>{{Rp|page=7}} The large cattle herd that supplied the city moved seasonally and was managed by the court,<ref name="Garlake 2002 158">Garlake (2002) 158</ref> and salt, cattle, grain, and copper were traded as far north as the [[Kundelungu National Park|Kundelungu Plateau]] in present-day [[DR Congo]].<ref>{{Cite thesis |last=Mugabe |first=Bedone |title=Circulation of copper and copper alloys in hinterland southern Africa: material evidence from Great Zimbabwe (1000-1700CE) |date=2022 |url=https://open.uct.ac.za/items/ea51b7a0-190a-41fa-bbd3-9f0296539ddc |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":22">{{Cite book |last=Mlambo |first=A. S. |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofzimbabw0000mlam/mode/2up?view=theater |title=A history of Zimbabwe |date=2014 |publisher=New York, NY : Cambridge University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-1-107-02170-9}}</ref>{{Rp|page=17}} At Great Zimbabwe's centre was the Great Enclosure which housed royalty and had demarcated spaces for rituals. Commoners' homes were [[Mudbrick|built out of mud]] on wooden frame structures,<ref name=":152">{{Citation |last=Pikirayi |first=Innocent |title=Great Zimbabwe, 1100–1600 AD, Rise, Development, and Demise of |date=2020 |pages=4696–4709 |editor-last=Smith |editor-first=Claire |url=https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |access-date=2024-12-20 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |isbn=978-3-030-30018-0 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology}}</ref><ref name=":63"/> and within the second perimeter wall they surrounded the royalty.<ref name=":132">{{Citation |last=Pikirayi |first=Innocent |title=Great Zimbabwe, 1100–1600 AD, Rise, Development, and Demise of |date=2020 |pages=4696–4709 |editor-last=Smith |editor-first=Claire |url=https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |access-date=2024-12-20 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-30018-0_2666 |isbn=978-3-030-30018-0 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology}}</ref> The institutionalisation of Great Zimbabwe's politico-religious ideology served to legitimise the position of the king ([[Mambo (title)|''mambo'']]), with a link between leaders, their ancestors, and [[Mwari|God]].<ref name=":63"/><ref name=":72" /> The community incorporated [[dhaka pit]]s into a complex water management system.<ref name=":84">{{Cite journal |last=Pikirayi |first=Innocent |date=2024-05-01 |title=Granite Landforms and Water Storage at Great Zimbabwe |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/09719458241258551 |journal=The Medieval History Journal |language=en |volume=27 |issue=1 |pages=254–279 |doi=10.1177/09719458241258551 |issn=0971-9458}}</ref>

As with Mapungubwe, it is unclear to what extent coercion and conflict facilitated Great Zimbabwe's dominance. While the Great Enclosure served to display prestige and status, and to reinforce inequalities between elites and commoners, it likely also served to deter contestation for political power amid the close linkage between wealth accumulation and political authority, with rivals for power, such as district chiefs and regional governors, located outside the settlement in prestige enclosures.<ref name=":74">{{Cite journal |last=Huffman |first=Thomas N. |date=2014-04-01 |title=Ritual Space in the Zimbabwe Culture |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1179/1944289013Z.0000000008 |journal=Journal of Archaeological, Ethnographic and Experimental Studies |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=4–39 |doi=10.1179/1944289013z.0000000008 |issn=1944-2890}}</ref> The perimeter walls also likely served a defensive purpose, indicating warfare was conventional.<ref name=":63"/>
[[File:Zimbabwe_states_and_trade_map.png|thumb|Map of trade centres and routes in precolonial Zimbabwe.]]
It is unclear what caused Great Zimbabwe's decline. [[Shona people|Shona]] [[oral tradition]] attributes Great Zimbabwe's demise to a salt shortage, which may be a figurative way of speaking of land depletion for agriculturalists or of the depletion of critical resources for the community.<ref name="auto2">{{cite book |last=Silva |first=Alberto da Costa |author-link= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yLTrAAAAMAAJ |title=A enxada e a lança: a África antes dos Portugueses |publisher=Editora Nova Fronteira Participações S.A. |isbn=9788520939475 |location=Rio de Janeiro |publication-date=2009 |page= |language=Portuguese |trans-title=The Hoe and the Spear: Africa before the Portuguese |chapter=15. Zimbabué}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Pikirayi |first=Innocent |title=Cities in the World: 1500-2000: v. 3 |date=2006 |publisher=Routledge |edition=1st |chapter=The Demise of Great Zimbabwe, ad 1420–1550: An Environmental Re-Appraisal |doi=10.4324/9781315095677 |isbn=978-1-315-09567-7 |chapter-url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315095677-3/demise-great-zimbabwe-ad-1420%E2%80%931550-environmental-re-appraisal-innocent-pikirayi}}</ref>{{Rp|page=10}} It is plausible the [[aquifer]] Great Zimbabwe sat on top of ran out of water, or the growing population contaminated the water.<ref name=":84"/> From the early 15th century, international trade began to decline amid a global economic downturn, reducing demand for gold, which adversely affected Great Zimbabwe. In response to this, elites expanded regional trading networks, resulting in greater prosperity for other settlements in the region.<ref name=":16">{{Citation |last=Newitt |first=Malyn |title=Southern Zambezia States and Indian Ocean Trade, 1450–1900 |date=2018-05-24 |encyclopedia=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History |url=https://oxfordre.com/africanhistory/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277734-e-289 |access-date=2025-02-18 |language=en |doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.013.289 |isbn=978-0-19-027773-4}}</ref>

By the late 15th century, the consequences of this decision began to manifest, as offshoots from Great Zimbabwe's royal family formed new dynasties, possibly as a result of losing succession disputes.<ref name=":16" /> According to oral tradition, [[Nyatsimba Mutota]], a member of Great Zimbabwe's royal family, led part of the population north in search for salt to found the [[Mutapa Empire]].{{Efn|According to tradition, the move came about because the king was tired of eating salt made from goat's dung.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Huffman |first=T. N. |date=1972 |title=The Rise and Fall of Zimbabwe |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-african-history/article/abs/rise-and-fall-of-zimbabwe/DF9B15B96E63ADFFC62967F9F2801703 |journal=The Journal of African History |language=en |volume=13 |issue=3 |pages=353–366 |doi=10.1017/S0021853700011683 |issn=1469-5138}}</ref>}}<ref name=":16" /> It was believed that only their most recent ancestors would follow them, with older ancestors staying at Great Zimbabwe and providing protection there.<ref name=":74"/> Mutota is said to have found salt in the lands of the [[Tavara people|Tavara]],<ref name=":32" />{{Rp|page=204}} and settled around the [[Ruya River|Ruya]]-[[Mazowe River|Mazowe]] Basin, conquering and incorporating the pre-existing chiefdoms to control agricultural production and strategic resources. This placed the state at a key position in the gold and ivory trade.<ref name=":9">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2005 |title=Mutapa state, 1450-1884 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of African History |publisher=Routledge |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9780203483862/encyclopedia-african-history-3-volume-set-kevin-shillington |last=Pirikayi |first=Innocent |editor-last1=Shillington |editor-first1=Kevin |doi=10.4324/9780203483862 |isbn=978-1-135-45670-2}}</ref> [[Angoche Sultanate|Angoche]] traders opened a new route along the [[Zambezi]] via Mutapa and [[Ingombe Ilede]] to reach the goldfields west of Great Zimbabwe, precipitating its decline and the rise of [[Khami]] (previously a [[Leopard's Kopje]]'s chiefdom located close to the goldfields), the capital of the [[Kingdom of Butua]].<ref name=":122" />{{Rp|page=50}} Butua's first ''mambo'' was Madabhale of the Torwa dynasty, who had the [[praise name]] ''Chibundule'' (meaning "sounding of the war horn").{{Efn|Kalanga [[oral tradition]]s collected in 1922 compress the history of the Torwa dynasty into that of one ruler called Chibundule, such that the story of Chibundule represents that of Butua. In a [[praise poem]], Chibundule is said to have given refuge to the elephant (the totem of the Mutapa dynasty) and the rhinoceros (possibly the totem of [[Mapungubwe]]'s dynasty due to the [[Golden Rhinoceros of Mapungubwe]]).<ref name=":1"/>{{rp|page=51}}}}<ref name=":17">{{Cite book |last=Van Waarden |first=Catrien |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u1SqMwEACAAJ |title=Butua and the End of an Era: The Effect of the Collapse of the Kalanga State on Ordinary Citizens : an Analysis of Behaviour Under Stress |date=2012 |publisher=Archaeopress |isbn=978-1-4073-1019-0 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=|pages=50–51}}

In Mutapa, Mutota's son and successor, [[Nyanhewe Matope]], moved the capital to [[Mount Fura]] and extended this new kingdom into an empire encompassing most of the lands between Tavara and the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref name="Oliver, page 2042">Oliver, page 204</ref> Matope's armies overran the [[Manyika people|Manyika]] and [[Tonga people (Zambia and Zimbabwe)|Tonga]] as well as the coastal [[Teve people|Teve]] and [[Madanda people|Madanda]].<ref name="Oliver, page 2042">Oliver, page 204</ref> Meanwhile, Butua rapidly grew in size and wealth, and came to border the Mutapa Empire along the [[Sanyati River]].{{Efn|Portuguese records from 1520 state that Butua was a vassal of Mwenemutapa, however this is likely to have been falsified in order to portray Portuguese commercial dealings with Mutapa as more important than they were.<ref name=":18"/>{{rp|page=49}}}}<ref name=":03" /> There appear to have intermarriages between the Nembire dynasty of Mutapa and the Torwa dynasty of Butua.<ref name=":22" /> According to oral traditions, Changamire was likely a descendant of both dynasties.<ref name=":22" /> He had been appointed governor (''amir'') of the southern portion of the Mutapa Empire (''Guruhuswa'').<ref name=":0222">{{Cite book |last1=Lipschutz |first1=Mark R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QYoPkk04Yp4C&dq=mutapa+empire&pg=PA46 |title=Dictionary of African Historical Biography |last2=Rasmussen |first2=R. Kent |date=1986 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-06611-3 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=46}} In 1490, Changamire I rebelled against the ''Mwenemutapa'', his elder brother Nyahuma, and deposed him, reportedly with help from the Torwa. He ruled Mutapa for four years until he was killed by the rightful heir to the throne, reportedly his nephew. His son Changamire II continued the conflict,<ref name=":18">{{Cite book |last=Waarden |first=Catrien Van |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u1SqMwEACAAJ |title=Butua and the End of an Era: The Effect of the Collapse of the Kalanga State on Ordinary Citizens : an Analysis of Behaviour Under Stress |date=2012 |publisher=Archaeopress |isbn=978-1-4073-1019-0 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=54}} ruling the southern portion which broke away from the Mutapa Empire.<ref name=":0222"/>{{Rp|page=46}} Whether this breakaway state maintained independence or came back under the rule of the ''Mwenemutapa'' is unclear, as we don't hear of the Changamire dynasty again until the 17th century.<ref name=":18" />{{Rp|page=54}}