The Floating Army: Songhai's Naval Power on the Niger

When you think of a landlocked empire in the Sahel, you probably don't picture a navy. But Songhai's control of the Niger River was so complete that they fielded a fleet of hundreds of war canoes, crewed by Sorko fishermen, that could transport an entire army downriver faster than any cavalry. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the forgotten riverine warfare of the Songhai Empire. They examine the Battle of Anfao, where Sonni Ali's navy broke the Mossi siege of Gao, the tactical advantages of rafts and shallow-draft boats, and the logistical system that kept the fleet supplied. They discuss how the Sorko people, traditional river dwellers, became the backbone of Songhai naval power, and how the empire's decline was accelerated when the fleet was trapped at Tondibi. This is a story of a military arm that historians largely overlook, and it reshapes how we understand power in medieval West Africa. #SonghaiEmpire #NigerRiver #NavalHistory #SonniAli #Anfao #Mossi #Sorko #WarCanoes #RiverineWarfare #WestAfrica #MedievalAfrica #Gao #Timbuktu #Fleet #Logistics #BattleOfTondibi #AfricanHistory #FexingoHistory #SunniAli #AskiaMuhammad Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo