The Battle of Dongola (1276) was a battle fought between the

Mamluk Sultanate The Mamluk Sultanate ( ar, سلطنة المماليك, translit=Salṭanat al-Mamālīk), also known as Mamluk Egypt or the Mamluk Empire, was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz (western Arabia) from the mid-13th to early 16th ...

under

Baibars Al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari ( ar, الملك الظاهر ركن الدين بيبرس البندقداري, ''al-Malik al-Ẓāhir Rukn al-Dīn Baybars al-Bunduqdārī'') (1223/1228 – 1 July 1277), of Turkic Kipchak ...

and the

Kingdom of Makuria Makuria (Old Nubian: , ''Dotawo''; gr, Μακουρία, Makouria; ar, المقرة, al-Muqurra) was a Nubian kingdom located in what is today Northern Sudan and Southern Egypt. Makuria originally covered the area along the Nile River from the ...

. The Mamluks gained a decisive victory, capturing the Makurian capital

Dongola Dongola ( ar, دنقلا, Dunqulā), also spelled ''Dunqulah'', is the capital of the state of Northern Sudan, on the banks of the Nile, and a former Latin Catholic bishopric (14th century). It should not be confused with Old Dongola, an ancien ...

, forcing the king

David of Makuria Rulers Note that dates are quite uncertain for most Makurian rulers. Bibliography *Derek A. Welsby: ''The Medieval Kingdoms of Nubia'', British Museum Press, London 2002, pp. 259–61 Notes See also *Makuria *Nubia {{DEFAULTSORT:Rul ...

to flee and placing a puppet on the Makurian throne. After this battle the Kingdom of Makuria went into a period of decline until its collpase in the 15th century

Background

The

Baqt The Baqt (or Bakt) (بقط)was a 7th-century CE treaty between the Christian state of Makuria and the new Muslim rulers of Egypt. Lasting almost seven hundred years, it is by some measures the longest-lasting treaty in history. The name comes eith ...

was an agreement between the Muslims of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and the Christians of

Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), or ...

which had guaranteed peace between the two opposing groups for over 600 years at this point and is in many ways the longest lasting treaty in history. The treaty greatly benefitted the Makurians, who gained friendly relations with a powerful neighbour, with the main drawback being that they were required to send 360 slaves a year to Egypt, which was later negotiated down so the payment was only made every 3 years. However the treaty never fully stopped conflict and small scale raiding often occurred between both sides The exact reasons for the breakout of war between Makurian king David and Egyptian sultan Baibars are not known but was most likely a simple unwillingness by David to pay the Baqt to the upstart Mamluk state, as the Mamluks had only came to power in 1250 and were seemingly not viewed favourably by David. There is also evidence raids between the two sides had been occurring for a few years before the reigns of both Baibars and David. This already strained relationship was likely not helped by the arrival of Shekenda, a Makurian prince with a claim to David’s throne, in the Mamluk court. These factors would lead the two states to full scale war, which started in 1272 as the Nubians sacked the Egyptian town of Aidhab. This was followed by Nubian raid on

Aswan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...

in 1275

Battle

In 1276 Sultan Baibars led a campaign into Nubia and fought David of Makuria in a series of battles that culminated in Makuria's defeat at their capital of Dongola. Very little details about the engagement are known but it was a heavy defeat for the Makurian army. David was forced to flee and Dongola fell. Baibars placed Shekenda on the throne where he would rule as a Mamluk vassal. The battle signified the beginning of the end for Makuria as the state would slowly shrink in territory over the coming century in the face of increased aggression from its Muslim neighbours, eventually disappearing altogether in the 15th century

References

* {{cite book , last=Werner , first=Roland , date=2013 , title=Das Christentum in Nubien. Geschichte und Gestalt einer afrikanischen Kirche. Lit. , language=de

13th century in the Mamluk Sultanate Kingdom of Makuria Military history of Africa