The Mossi Horsemen: Songhai's Toughest Enemy

This episode explores Songhai's prolonged conflict with the Mossi kingdoms to the south. Lucas and Luna dive into the Mossi cavalry tactics that repeatedly humiliated Songhai armies, the strategic importance of the Mossi states in the trans-Saharan trade network, and how Askia Muhammad's 1498 jihad against the Mossi ended in a costly stalemate. They discuss the legendary Mossi warrior-queens, the role of the Niger River bend as a natural barrier, and the surprising cultural exchanges between the two civilizations. Listeners will learn about the Mossi capital of Ouagadougou, the Yatenga kingdom's raids, and how Songhai's failure to conquer the Mossi shaped the empire's southern frontier. The conversation also touches on the Mossi's ironworking traditions and their enduring independence until the French colonial era. #SonghaiEmpire #Mossi #WestAfricanHistory #AskiaMuhammad #CavalryWarfare #TransSaharanTrade #NigerRiver #Ouagadougou #Yatenga #Sahel #1498 #Ironworking #QueenWarrior #FexingoHistory #History #AfricanHistory #MedievalAfrica #EmpireBuilding #WestAfrica #SunniAli Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo