African History · Unit 1
Empires of Gold, Faith, and Iron
Four African states whose sophistication colonial history spent a century trying to explain away
Learning Objectives
- •Students will be able to describe Aksum's political, religious, and economic significance as a major ancient trading power comparable to Rome, Persia, and China.
- •Students will analyze how colonial-era racial assumptions, and later, specific mid-20th-century political interests in Rhodesia, delayed acceptance of Great Zimbabwe's indigenous African origins.
- •Students will compare the Kingdom of Kongo's alliance-based strategy with the Asante Empire's independence-based strategy for encountering European colonial and commercial power.
- •Students will evaluate primary source evidence, including King Afonso I's letters, documenting African rulers' direct historical experience of early contact with European powers.
Unit 1 Knowledge Check
Score 70% or higher to complete this unit. Answers stay hidden until you submit.
1. How did the Kingdom of Kongo's and the Asante Empire's initial strategies for encountering European power differ?
2. Why did colonial-era Europeans initially refuse to accept that Great Zimbabwe was built by indigenous Africans?
3. Why is the third-century Persian prophet Mani's ranking of Aksum alongside Rome, Persia, and China historically significant?