Sultanate of the Geledi

Origins of the sultanate At the end of the 17th century, the Ajuran Sultanate was in its decline and various vassals were breaking free or being absorbed by new Somali powers. One of these powers was the Silcis Sultanate, which began consolidating its rule over the Afgooye region. Ibrahim Adeer led the revolt against the Silcis ruler Umar Abrone and his oppressive daughter, Princess Fay. After his victory over the Silcis, Ibrahim then proclaimed himself Sultan and subsequently founded the Gobroon dynasty. The Geledi Sultanate was a Rahanweyn Kingdom ruled by the noble Geledi which held sway over the Jubba and Shabelle rivers in the interior and the Benadir coast. The Geledi Sultanate had enough power to force southern Arabians to pay tribute. The nobles within the Geledi claim descent from Abadir Umar ar-Rida. He had three other brothers, Fakhr and with two others of whom their names are given differently as Shams, Umudi, Alahi and Ahmed. Together they were known as Afarta Timid, 'the four who came', indicating their origins from Arabia. Claims of descent from Arabia was mainly for legitimacy reasons. Conflict with the Bimaal and Haji Ali Majeerteen The Bimaal The first documented conflict between the Geledi and Bimaal Somali clans would be the Battle of Adaddey Suleyman. After Geledi Sultan Yusuf Mahamud Ibrahim won a battle at the island of Siyu over the Salafist Somalis led by Haji Ali Majeerteen, the Witu Sultan would send aid to sultan Yusuf before he departed to meet the Bimaal rebels, who refused to join his battles against the extremist Salafist rulers in Bardera. Even allying them in Mungiya. The two forces finally would clash at Adadday Suleyman in 1848, a village near Merca. The Bimaal defended themselves, and after three days of fierce war, Sultan Yusuf Mahamud and his brother were killed, and ultimately lost against the Omani aligned Bimaal rebels in 1848. Years later, in 1878, Sultan Yusuf's son;Ahmed Yusuf Mahamud made preparations to finally defeat the Bimaal, as his father failed to. Ahmed's brother Abobokur Yusuf warned him, not to go through with the attack as the Geledi had an influential ally refuse to join the upcoming campaign. Sultan Ahmed, Reprimanding his brother, said he could watch the women & children then. With Abobokur eventually deciding to accompany his brother, the Geledi marched out to meet the Bimaal at Cagaaran, at town beside Merca. The two forces would enter a fierce engagement, the Geledi initially tiding the battle in their favor, however, the Geledi would eventually lose to the Bimaals, and the Geledi Sultan's army would be routed. Killing both Sultan Ahmed and his brother Abobokur in battle. Upon seeing the bodies of the dead noble men, the women of the Merca reportedly marveled at the beauty of Ahmed Yusuf and his brother, which resulted in a public uproar with them demanding a proper funeral for the late Sultan. Haji Ali Majeerteen Haji Ali Majeerteen arrived in Merca and formed an alliance with the Bimaal clan. He settled in the area near Merca with the consent of the Bimaal clan and began his Dawah activities and education programs. It is established that Ali had secret plans for himself to form a colony at the port of Mungiya, the point where Shabelle River was closest to the Indian Ocean coast, and had obtained permission from Sultan Yusuf of the Geledi to do so. However, initially, he attempted to play the role of a peacemaker between Sultan Yusuf and the Bimaal clan in their conflict, sending a letter to Sultan Yusuf requesting him that he accepts his reconciliation proposal. The Sultan, upon hearing of the proposal refused the offer, feeling disrespected that a newcomer would interfere with his internal affairs. Haji Ali was furious and in response declared war against the Geledi and his men raided a string villages near the capital of the Geledi, Afgooye. This included the coastal city of Barawa. Yusuf and the Geledi army confronted Haji Ali's well armed followers which mainly hailed from the Majeerteen tribe, and annihilated them in battle. Munginya was burnt to the ground and Haji Ali's ambitious dreams ended. Haji Ali’s response Haji Ali penned a letter he sent to the people of Barawa on the Banaadir coast, in that he considered the Geledi Sultanate a polity adhering to a deviated sect, (Firqa Al-Dalah). According to him, this deviation had to be stamped out through either Dawah or ultimate Jihad. Following his defeat against the Sultans of the Geledi, Sheikh Ali stated that The hardline stance of Haji Ali, to the propagation of Islam among his people, his mobilization of armed followers, and his siding with the Bimaal clan against Geledi Sultanate displays the militant ideology akin to the Bardera Jama, and the new Wahhabi tendency that was emerging across the Muslim world at the time. ==Bureaucracy==

Citadel in the mid 1800s by Baron Karl Klaus von der Decken. The Sultanate of Geledi exerted a strong centralized authority during its existence and possessed all of the institutions and trappings of an integrated modern state: a functioning bureaucracy, a hereditary nobility, titled aristocrats, a taxing system, conducting foreign policy, a state flag as well as a standing army. The great sultanate also maintained written records of their activities which still exist in museums. The Geledi Sultanate's capital city was at Afgooye where the rulers resided. The kingdom had a number of castles forts with a variety of different architectures in various areas within its realm, including a fortress at Luuq and a citadel at Bardera. . At its height, the Sultanate covered all Rahanweyn territories within present-day Somalia, alongside minor territories in modern day Somali Galbeed. This is what some refer to as the Geledi confederacy. The confederacy was not only confined to Digil and Mirifle but incorporated other Somalis such as Bimaal, Sheekhaal, and Wacdaan. To reign such a diverse Sultanate, the rulers promoted a policy of indirect and flexible administration. They allowed the tribal chiefs, Imams, Sheikhs (religious figures), and Akhiyaars (notable elders) of the community to play significant roles in the administration of the Sultanate. The Geledi rulers were not only the political head of the Sultanate but also considered religious leaders. Akhiyaars were elders who would reconcile and solve cases such as murders and recite Al-Fatiha after adjudication. Between two different lineages groups if an injustice was committed then a googol meeting was held between the Akhiyaar of both. (mounted) and his mamluk soldiers The Sultan would have a regular guard consisting of armed slaves to protect him from those who wished harm. The Ul Hay would be his intermediaries between the Geledi sub lineages and received his directions and intentions on matters. The symbol of the Sultan's authority was his turban. It would be placed on his head by leading elders of the Abiikarow lineage. The brother of Sultan Ahmed Yusuf, Abobokur Yusuf managed the lands opposite the Banadir ports of Brava & Marka and also received a tribute from Brava. This Abobokur Yusuf was accustomed to send messengers to Brava for tribute, and he drew thence about 2,000 dollars per annum. ==Economy==

was the chief port and Islamic center for the Geledi Sultanate. The Geledi Sultanate maintained a vast trading network, and had trade relations with Arabia, Persia, India, Near East, Europe and the Swahili coast, dominating the East African trade, and minting its own currency, and were recognized as a powerful regional power. In the case of the Geledi, wealth accrued to the nobles and to the Sultanate, not only from the market cultivation which it had utilized from the Shebelle and Jubba valleys, but also trade from their involvement in the slave trade and other enterprises such as ivory, cotton, iron, gold, and among many other commodities. Generally, they also raised livestock animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, and chickens. During this period, the Somali agricultural output to Arabian markets was so great that the coast of South Somalia came to be known as the Grain Coast of Yemen and Oman. Afgooye, the headquarters of the Sultanate, was an extremely wealthy and large city. Afgooye had some thriving industries such as weaving, shoemaking, tableware, jewellery, pottery and produced various products. Afgooye was the crossroads of caravans bringing ostrich feathers, leopard skins, and aloe in exchange for foreign fabrics, sugar, dates and firearms. They raised numerous livestock animals for meat, milk and ghee. The farmers of Afgooye produced large quantity of fruits and vegetables. Afgooye merchants would boast of their wealth; one of their wealthiest said Moordiinle iyo mereeyey iyo mooro lidow, maalki jeri keenow kuma moogi malabside. Bring all the wealth of Moordiinle, Mereeyey, and the enclosures of lidow, I scarcely notice it. ==Military==

The Geledi army numbered around 20,000 men in times of peace, with a maximum of 50,000 troops in times of war. The supreme commanders of the army were the Sultan and his brother, who in turn had Malaakhs and Garads under them. The military was supplied with rifles and cannons by Somali traders of the coastal regions that controlled the East African arms trade. The best horse breeds were raised in Luuq and later sent to the army after maturity. They would be used mainly for military purposes, and numerous stone fortifications were erected to provide shelter for the army in the interior and coastal districts. In each province, the soldiers were under the supervision of a military commander known as a Malaakh, and the coastal areas and the Indian Ocean trade were protected by a powerful navy. ==Society==

The Geledi society is divided into three segments; nobles, commoners, and slaves (to use terms adopted by Helander) Each of these castes consist of several lineage groups whose federation formed the Geledi state; the lineages are divided between two moieties. Tolweyne and Yebdaale, each living in its section of the city. The nobles, in the old society, were the ruling group but depended on the support of the commoner lineages. Nobility The noble section of the society belonged to rulers. However, all members of the Geledi clan were also considered to be of noble stock despite the majority of them not being rulers. Nobility was not only exclusive to the Geledi clan as there were rulers of many districts in the Geledi realm that didn't belong to the Geledi lineage. The Bantus were not exclusive to slavery. Oromos would sometimes be enslaved following raids and wars. However, there were marked differences in terms of the perception, capture, treatment, and duties of the Oromo versus the Bantu slaves. On an individual basis, Oromo subjects were not viewed as racially inferior by their Somali captors. Despite Oromos taking the same roles as the Bantus, they were not treated the same. The most fortunate of the men worked as the officials or bodyguards of the ruler and emirs, or as business managers for rich merchants. They enjoyed significant personal freedom and occasionally held slaves of their own. Prized for their beauty and viewed as legitimate sexual partners, many Oromo women became either wives or concubines of their Somali owners, while others became domestic servants. The most beautiful ones often enjoyed a wealthy lifestyle and became mistresses of the elite or even mothers to rulers. ==Rulers==

'''Detailed biographies of the Sultanate's rulers''' ==Legacy==

The Sultanate left a rich legacy behind which continues to live on in popular memory and poetry composed about the powerful Sultans and other noble figures during the period. One notable poem was recorded by Virginia Luling in 1989 during her visit to Afgooye. Geledi laashins (poets) sang about the ever present issue of land theft by the Somali government. Sultan Subuge was asked to help the community and was reminded of his legendary Gobroon forefathers of the centuries prior. The law then was not this law was performed by the leading laashins of Afgooye, Hiraabey, Muuse Cusmaan and Abukar Cali Goitow alongside a few others, addressed to the current leader Sultan Subuge . Here the richest selection of the poem performed by Goitow ==See also==