tour 11 of 14
Sudan Past and Present: Early cultures to the Arrival of Christianity
Arrival of Christianity
The Kushite kingdom collapsed during the fourth
century AD due to a decline in trade and persistent raiding by
desert nomads. By the mid-sixth century, three kingdoms controlled
the Nile valley: Makuria in the centre, Nobatia in the north
(unified with Makuria in the mid-seventh century) and Alwa in the
south. Byzantine missionaries officially converted the kingdoms to
Christianity during the sixth century. Worship of the old gods
quickly disappeared, along with temples and grandiose burials with
rich grave goods. Churches were built and burials - even of rulers
- became more humble. There was a dramatic increase in literacy in
Greek, Coptic and Old
Nubian.
The Christian
Nubians managed to hold back the Arab people who invaded much of
the Near East and North Africa during the seventh century. The king
of Makuria negotiated a peace treaty with them, known as the
'Baqt'. After this the Nubians coexisted peacefully
with the Muslim world for nearly six centuries, apart from
occasional border raids. But by the twelfth century AD the Nubian
kingdoms were declining as the power of the clergy and Makurian
king decreased. Makuria finally fell to Muslim forces around AD
1365 and Alwa fell in AD 1504. Although local populations retained
their Christian beliefs for many years, the lack of state support
and the absence of ordained priests meant that most of the
population had converted to Islam by the eighteenth
century.
Illustration:
Chalice found at Khalil el-Kubra in the kingdom of Alwa, but
probably manufactured further north at its capital, Soba, during
the medieval period.