Empire of a Hundred Millennia: a Congo River Civilization TL
- Thread starter DStecks
- Start date
You seem extremely confused. Three of those are new world crops; and the other only grows well in extremely wet climates, which do not exist in abundance in equatorial Africa during the early Ice Age.
For the record, I have them growing wheat because if my sources are correct, some wheat is native to Ethiopia, as my History of the World So Far post stated:
First, let me offer my profound congratulations on setting yourself such an immense task.
This is insanely ambitious and difficult, and what is called upon is little less than astonishing. It amounts to insane levels of research. Sussing out and rebuilding ice age climate worldwide, available species of un-extinct animals, possible available plants, a plethora of hominid and primate species.
So, congats in advance, for ambition. I wish you the very best.
You might want to take a look at similar, though much less ambitious works. Jared's "Land of Red and Gold", Twovultures native american timelines, my own "Land of Ice and Mice", etc.
I'll be watching with interest.
This is insanely ambitious and difficult, and what is called upon is little less than astonishing. It amounts to insane levels of research. Sussing out and rebuilding ice age climate worldwide, available species of un-extinct animals, possible available plants, a plethora of hominid and primate species.
So, congats in advance, for ambition. I wish you the very best.
You might want to take a look at similar, though much less ambitious works. Jared's "Land of Red and Gold", Twovultures native american timelines, my own "Land of Ice and Mice", etc.
I'll be watching with interest.
Interesting TL so far. But why 100,000 BC? It's more difficult than say 50,000 or 20,000 BC, because the world is so different. And it might be less plausible because behavioral modernity was not a certainty back then.
You still get to use the butterfly effect liberally no matter what time you start since the POD was 3.2 mya.
Although empires spreading across the Old World before the Siberians even leave for America and Neanderthals are pushed out of Europe is a pretty cool idea.
You still get to use the butterfly effect liberally no matter what time you start since the POD was 3.2 mya.
Although empires spreading across the Old World before the Siberians even leave for America and Neanderthals are pushed out of Europe is a pretty cool idea.
We do these things not because they are easy, but because they are hard.
The thing about researching this TL is that I do have an enormous amount of flexibility with certain things. A POD this early means that ethnic groups and languages can be whatever I want, since neither of those can be reliably traced that far back, and in Africa, they generally can't even be traced as far back as Roman times. The things I do need to know, largely, are matters of agriculture: climate, waterways, available crops, available animals, etc.
Writing this TL has actually been a lot of fun so far. Civilization developing in Africa presents a lot of fascinating possibilities, since the continent is so geographically diverse. Re-writing human history from scratch may be a huge undertaking, but I'd be a liar if I said I wasn't enjoying it.
We do these things not because they are easy, but because they are hard.
The thing about researching this TL is that I do have an enormous amount of flexibility with certain things. A POD this early means that ethnic groups and languages can be whatever I want, since neither of those can be reliably traced that far back, and in Africa, they generally can't even be traced as far back as Roman times. The things I do need to know, largely, are matters of agriculture: climate, waterways, available crops, available animals, etc.
Writing this TL has actually been a lot of fun so far. Civilization developing in Africa presents a lot of fascinating possibilities, since the continent is so geographically diverse. Re-writing human history from scratch may be a huge undertaking, but I'd be a liar if I said I wasn't enjoying it.
I like this idea, some of my favorite (pre-1900) timelines take the world we live in and inject a POD that essentially makes earth the setting for (for lack of a better term) a fantasy world filled with things that do not exist. I really like your POD, I do not think its too ASB we aren't here to write science but to engage in literary though exercise and that is exactly what this TL is so far. My only complaint would be that civilization in Africa is looking awful familiar, it would be fun to inject some more African style social structures or even made up ones for fun, to make this world as unique as possible.
Some of what I belive you're talking about (the government systems) is, I would argue, largely inevitable. However, civilizations will not all be taking the Elective Monarchy-Hereditary Monarchy route, and you can expect to see a few Athens-style attempts at an early republic, and maybe some more exotic systems once we reach the Second Dynasty Period.
That's good to know, one thing I was referring to was the expanded role of women in many traditional African societies (compared to Europe) so far you have hinted that where voting is done the franchise in many places is limited to men, also I see you went the patriarchal rather than matriarchal or matrilinear route for property inheritance and monarchical structure. While I understand that patriarchal rather than matriarchal societies are considered an outgrowth of agriculture I do think that matrilinear societies could be more compatible. It would be fun to see matrilinear systems since they are far out of the norm OTL.
Also the reference to Zess as angels makes me think you might be basing your theology on Abrahamic faiths, I hope this isn't the case because African mythology and mysticism is fascinating and not often done as a codified religion. Although perhaps I am reading too much into the reference.
You're reading too much in.
Oosong religion is most analogous to Shinto, and the various civilizations will have very diverse religions. That's one of the fun bits!There might be more diversity among societies along gender lines, for the sake of something interesting, but my personal belief is that patriarchy is biologically nearly inevitable. In almost all social animals, the leader of the group is the largest, strongest individual, and I would expect that to carry over to pre-agricultural humans. Agriculture levels the gender playing field, but there would still be the millenia of unstated assumptions that the leader is almost always a man. There's also the fact that no true matriarchal society is known to have ever existed, which you'd think there would be if it were a possibility. Note that I am not saying that this is the proper state of affairs; ideally society would have total gender equality, I'm just describing the reality of the situation.
That having all been said, this TL is an excuse to take humanity in radically new directions. I'm thinking now that the constant chaos of the Niger River Civilization may lead to an essentially matriarchal state. In fact, I think that will be the subject of my next update!
I (mostly) agree with this but that's where my suggestion of matrilinear society comes in... men are still the leaders but inheritance is passed through the female line, it was once fairly common in Africa and the Americas. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matrilinear the differences between Patriarchy and Matrilinear Patriarchy may not be immediately noticeable but culturally its interesting.
Early Niger River Civilization (Tumbuktu Kingdom Period)
The area was one of the most racially diverse places in the world, due to having been settled multiple times by various groups of migrants, all heading to find the source of the Niger. It is believed that the first settlers were the Waati people, due to their presence at the extreme end of the river. The fact that the Volta and Gambia civilizations were also ethnically Waati lends credence to this theory. Shasong settlers trekked through the mountains, and ended up taking a different route up the river, eventually founding the Tchadda civilization. Nubian nomads travelled west through the desert, and settled at the most distant northerly reaches of the Niger, founding the city of Tumbuktu. Other ethnic groups which can now only be found along the Niger settled later. Finally, a significant Oosong population existed at the Atlantic mouth of the river, many descendents of merchants.
Despite being home to so many different groups, for most of the civilization’s early history this led to little conflict. The various settlements largely kept to themselves, and the civilization functioned more as a collection of city-states than as a true country. All this changed when the Oosong of the Kongo discovered mining.
Since time immemorial, humans have lusted after gold. Nobody knows exactly why, other than because it is shiny and it is rare. The Niger River watershed was an extremely gold rich area, though most of the surface gold had been collected during the beginnings of early civilization. Still, the people remembered the Niger area as a rich supply of gold, even naming the region after it: Cheauri, meaning “Land of Gold” in proto-Waati.
The Oosong developed a number of techniques for extracting rock from the ground in the process of creating the Great Palace of Paubagash. Stumbling onto gold veins while quarrying rock, they realized that the same techniques could be used to mine for metals. Soon after the unification of the Kongo, a number of enterprising Oosong mounted an expedition up the Niger, and eventually found an area known by the locals to have once been rich in surface gold. They began quarrying the area, and as they suspected, they found large veins of gold.
Despite their best efforts to keep it secret, the miners decided it would be easier to sell the gold in the nearby city of Tumbuktu than to haul it all the way back to Paubagash, even if it meant that they risked being discovered. Despite their best efforts, the mine was eventually discovered, and the Tumbuktu nobility seized the mine and began digging themselves. Over the next decade, the technique spead, and soon the Niger region was dotted with large gold mines, each belonging to the nearest city’s leadership.
Extracting gold from the Tumbuktu mine soon became more difficult, as all the easiest gold had been extracted. The King of Tumbuktu became jealous of the bountiful gold mines of his southern neighbors, the Waati city of Djaali. Thus, the Gold Wars began.
The conflict between Tumbuktu and Djaali soon spread to other city-states, as the mutual alliances that kept the region peaceful broke down. While the coastal city of Ghoahorrum, the trading port at the mouth of the Niger, had been the dominant city on the river before; ten years into the conflict it was apparent that no city had an edge, as none were willing to ally with each other. The region had devolved into chaos as raiding parties travelled from city to city, torching farmhouses, raping and pillaging as they went.
Most of the soldiers in the conflict were part of mercenary bands, whose only alliance was to whichever city promised them the biggest cut of loot. Constantly switching loyalties kept the conflict from calming down, and it soon became in many people’s economic interest for the war to never end.
Twenty years into the bitter conflict, a mysterious figure emerged from the wastes of the Sahara. A Nubian man known only as the Jackal, he had led a mercenary band from the far east, from the Kingdom of Nubia itself. He promised the King of Tumbuktu that he could win the Niger for Tumbuktu, on the condition that if he succeeded, the king would name him his heir. Not believing the man could do it, the king agreed.
The Jackal quickly proved himself as a military leader, he seized city after city in a four year campaign that would spell the end of the Gold Wars. Finally having conquered the rest of the Niger, the Jackal demanded to be made Crown Prince of Tumbuktu. However, the king reneged on the deal, and the Jackal seized Tumbuktu by forc; ending the Gold Wars. He proclaimed himself King Qallik (Jackal in Nubian) of the Cheauri, inaugurating the Tumbuktu Kingdom Period.
[Information on the cultures of the various peoples of the Cheauri to follow)
Early Niger River Civilization (Tumbuktu Kingdom Period)
During the Oosong First Dynasty Period, the Niger River Civilization was in a state of constant upheaval.The area was one of the most racially diverse places in the world, due to having been settled multiple times by various groups of migrants, all heading to find the source of the Niger. It is believed that the first settlers were the Waati people, due to their presence at the extreme end of the river. The fact that the Volta and Gambia civilizations were also ethnically Waati lends credence to this theory. Shasong settlers trekked through the mountains, and ended up taking a different route up the river, eventually founding the Tchadda civilization. Nubian nomads travelled west through the desert, and settled at the most distant northerly reaches of the Niger, founding the city of Tumbuktu. Other ethnic groups which can now only be found along the Niger settled later. Finally, a significant Oosong population existed at the Atlantic mouth of the river, many descendents of merchants.
Despite being home to so many different groups, for most of the civilization’s early history this led to little conflict. The various settlements largely kept to themselves, and the civilization functioned more as a collection of city-states than as a true country. All this changed when the Oosong of the Kongo discovered mining.
Since time immemorial, humans have lusted after gold. Nobody knows exactly why, other than because it is shiny and it is rare. The Niger River watershed was an extremely gold rich area, though most of the surface gold had been collected during the beginnings of early civilization. Still, the people remembered the Niger area as a rich supply of gold, even naming the region after it: Cheauri, meaning “Land of Gold” in proto-Waati.
The Oosong developed a number of techniques for extracting rock from the ground in the process of creating the Great Palace of Paubagash. Stumbling onto gold veins while quarrying rock, they realized that the same techniques could be used to mine for metals. Soon after the unification of the Kongo, a number of enterprising Oosong mounted an expedition up the Niger, and eventually found an area known by the locals to have once been rich in surface gold. They began quarrying the area, and as they suspected, they found large veins of gold.
Despite their best efforts to keep it secret, the miners decided it would be easier to sell the gold in the nearby city of Tumbuktu than to haul it all the way back to Paubagash, even if it meant that they risked being discovered. Despite their best efforts, the mine was eventually discovered, and the Tumbuktu nobility seized the mine and began digging themselves. Over the next decade, the technique spead, and soon the Niger region was dotted with large gold mines, each belonging to the nearest city’s leadership.
Extracting gold from the Tumbuktu mine soon became more difficult, as all the easiest gold had been extracted. The King of Tumbuktu became jealous of the bountiful gold mines of his southern neighbors, the Waati city of Djaali. Thus, the Gold Wars began.
The conflict between Tumbuktu and Djaali soon spread to other city-states, as the mutual alliances that kept the region peaceful broke down. While the coastal city of Ghoahorrum, the trading port at the mouth of the Niger, had been the dominant city on the river before; ten years into the conflict it was apparent that no city had an edge, as none were willing to ally with each other. The region had devolved into chaos as raiding parties travelled from city to city, torching farmhouses, raping and pillaging as they went.
Most of the soldiers in the conflict were part of mercenary bands, whose only alliance was to whichever city promised them the biggest cut of loot. Constantly switching loyalties kept the conflict from calming down, and it soon became in many people’s economic interest for the war to never end.
Twenty years into the bitter conflict, a mysterious figure emerged from the wastes of the Sahara. A Nubian man known only as the Jackal, he had led a mercenary band from the far east, from the Kingdom of Nubia itself. He promised the King of Tumbuktu that he could win the Niger for Tumbuktu, on the condition that if he succeeded, the king would name him his heir. Not believing the man could do it, the king agreed.
The Jackal quickly proved himself as a military leader, he seized city after city in a four year campaign that would spell the end of the Gold Wars. Finally having conquered the rest of the Niger, the Jackal demanded to be made Crown Prince of Tumbuktu. However, the king reneged on the deal, and the Jackal seized Tumbuktu by forc; ending the Gold Wars. He proclaimed himself King Qallik (Jackal in Nubian) of the Cheauri, inaugurating the Tumbuktu Kingdom Period.
[Information on the cultures of the various peoples of the Cheauri to follow)
So Africa is the cradle of civilization instead of Mesopotamia? This should definitely be an interesting timeline! Subscribed.
Questions for you:
1. We are talking about H. sap. sap., and not some other Homo species, right? Or are you being vague and allowing for analogues of H.s.s.?
2. Flora, fauna, geography: The Congo river, I assume, is dry enough for wheat and other familiar grasses to grow, right? What animals are we talking about here? Animals were obviously different 100 kya, so what animals are being used? Are they analogues as well?
1. We are talking about H. sap. sap., and not some other Homo species, right? Or are you being vague and allowing for analogues of H.s.s.?
2. Flora, fauna, geography: The Congo river, I assume, is dry enough for wheat and other familiar grasses to grow, right? What animals are we talking about here? Animals were obviously different 100 kya, so what animals are being used? Are they analogues as well?
First off, congratulations on beginning what is a very ambitious project.
Secondly, and this is only because I'm a pedantic nitpicker at heart, a minor correction/suggestion:
It's possible that some wild species of wheat relatives (other Triticum species) may be native to Ethiopia, though I've not heard of it. But the domesticable versions of wheat (einkorn and emmer) were confined to the Fertile Crescent. Having them crop up in Ethiopia is a bit of a stretch.
I'd suggest simply using some of the native African domesticable cereals instead. Teff - which is from Ethiopia - is a good choice for anywhere that's not too hot, since it's native to the Ethiopian highlands.
For a higher-temperature, drought-tolerant alternative, sorghum (aka the cereal that Diamond forgot) is what you need. Easily domesticable, highly drought and altitude tolerant, it's well-suited for the conditions of the time.
Secondly, and this is only because I'm a pedantic nitpicker at heart, a minor correction/suggestion:
It's possible that some wild species of wheat relatives (other Triticum species) may be native to Ethiopia, though I've not heard of it. But the domesticable versions of wheat (einkorn and emmer) were confined to the Fertile Crescent. Having them crop up in Ethiopia is a bit of a stretch.
I'd suggest simply using some of the native African domesticable cereals instead. Teff - which is from Ethiopia - is a good choice for anywhere that's not too hot, since it's native to the Ethiopian highlands.
For a higher-temperature, drought-tolerant alternative, sorghum (aka the cereal that Diamond forgot) is what you need. Easily domesticable, highly drought and altitude tolerant, it's well-suited for the conditions of the time.