Hamdullahi ( ar, حمد الله; also ''Hamdallahi'' or ''Hamdallaye''. From the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

: ''Praise to God'') is a town in the Mopti Region of

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...

. In the 19th century, it was the capital of the in what is now the

Fula Fula may refer to: *Fula people (or Fulani, Fulɓe) *Fula language (or Pulaar, Fulfulde, Fulani) **The Fula variety known as the Pulaar language **The Fula variety known as the Pular language **The Fula variety known as Maasina Fulfulde *Al-Fula ...

empire of Massina. Founded around 1820 by

Seku Amadu Sheikhu Ahmadu ( ar-at, شيخ أحمد بن محمّد لبّو, Shaykh Aḥmadu bin Muḥammadu Lobbo; ff, Seeku Aamadu ; ) (c. 1776 – 20 April 1845) was the Fulbe founder of the Massina Empire (Diina of Hamdullahi) in the Inner Niger D ...

. On March 16, 1862, the town fell to the Toucouleur conqueror

El Hadj Umar Tall Hadji Oumarûl Foutiyou Tall (Umar ibn Sa'id al-Futi Tal, ar, حاج عمر بن سعيد طعل), ( – 1864 CE), born in Futa Tooro, present day Senegal, was a West African political leader, Islamic scholar, Tijani Sufi and Toucoule ...

after three major battles that claimed over 70,000 lives. Umar Tall destroyed the city, marking the effective end of the Massina Empire. The ruins of the abandoned town are located 21 km southeast of Mopti, at a site lying to the east of the

Bani River The Bani River is the principal tributary of the Niger River in Mali. The river is formed from the confluence of the Baoulé and Bagoé rivers some east of Bamako and it merges with the Niger near Mopti. Its length is about . Geography Th ...

and to the west of the Bandiagara plateau. The link is to a pdf containing the whole issue. Need to scroll down to page 24 for article. The town was encircled by sun-dried mudbrick walls and covered an area of 244 hectares (604 acres). The town walls and some of the street layout are clearly visible on satellite images provided by Google. The mosque and Seku Amadu’s palace were located side by side in the centre of the town. They were also constructed of sun-dried bricks, except for the enclosing walls of the palace, which were of stone. The mosque has been rebuilt and reopened in 2004. In French.

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