Notable
Fulani throughout history
A large number of Fula/Fulani people
or people of Fula/Fulani descent have made great contributions to their
communities and the rest of the world.
- Karamokho Alfa - religious leader who led a jihad that led to the formation of Futa Jallon, Guinea
Karamokho Alfa (born Ibrahima Musa Sambeghu and sometimes called Alfa Ibrahim) (died c. 1751) was a Fula religious leader who led a jihad that created the Imamate of Futa Jallon in what is now Guinea. This was one of the first of the Fulbe jihads that established Muslim states in West Africa.
- Abdulrahman Ibrahim Ibn Sori (c.1762-1829) - Son of Ibrahim Sori Mawdo of Futa-Jallon. Enslaved but freed and repatriated to Liberia.
Abdul-Rahman ibn Ibrahim Sori was a Torodbe Fulani Muslim ruler (amir)[4] born in 1762 in the city of Timbo, now located in Guinea.[5] His father, Almami Ibrahim Sori consolidated the Islamic confederation of Futa Jallon in 1776, with Timbo as its capital, where Abdul Rahman lived and studied. "He was learned in the Islamic sciences and could speak at least 4 different African languages, in addition to Arabic, and in 1781, after returning from study in the renowned city of learning-Timbuktu, Abd'r-Rahman joined the armies of his father."[4] At age 26, he was made an Amir of one of the regiments that conquered the lands of the Bambara and in 1788 his father "made him the head a 2000 man army whose mission was to protect the coast and strengthen their economic interest in the region. It was during this military campaign that Abd'r-Rahman was captured and enslaved."[6] He was sold to the British who brought him to Natchez, Mississippi where he labored on the cotton plantation of Thomas Foster for more than thirty-eight years before gaining his freedom.[7] In 1794 he married Isabella, another slave of Foster’s, and eventually fathered a large family: five sons and four daughters.[8]
By using his knowledge of growing cotton in Futa Jallon, Abdul-Rahman rose to a position of authority on the plantation and became the de facto foreman. This granted him the opportunity to grow his own vegetable garden and sell at the local market. During this time, he met an old acquaintance, Dr. John Cox, an Irish surgeon who had served on an English ship, and had become the first white man to reach Timbo after being abandoned by his ship and then falling ill. Cox stayed ashore for six months and was taken in by Abdul-Rahman's family. Cox appealed to Foster to sell him "Prince" so he could return to Africa. However, Foster would not budge, since he viewed Abdul-Rahman as indispensable to the Foster farm. Dr. Cox continued, until his death in 1829, to seek Ibrahim's freedom, to no avail. After Cox died, his son continued the cause to free Abdul-Rahman.
In 1826, Abdul-Rahman wrote a letter to his relatives in Africa. A local newspaperman, Andrew Marschalk, who was Dutch, sent the letter to United States Senator Thomas Reed from Mississippi, who was in town at the time, and Reed forwarded it to the U.S. Consulate in Morocco. Since Abdul-Rahman wrote in Arabic, Marschalk and the U.S. government assumed that he was a Moor. After the Sultan of Morocco Abderrahmane read the letter, he asked President Adams and Secretary of State Henry Clay to release Abdul-Rahman. In 1829, Thomas Foster agreed to the release of Abdul-Rahman, without payment, with the stipulation that he return to Africa and not live as a free man in America.
Before leaving the U.S., Abdul-Rahman and his wife went to various states and Washington, D.C. He solicited donations, through the press, personal appearances, the American Colonization Society and politicians, to free his family back in Mississippi. Word got back to Foster, who considered this a breach of the agreement. Abdul-Rahman's actions and freedom were also used against President John Quincy Adams by future president Andrew Jackson during the presidential election.
After ten months, Abdul-Rahman and Isabella had raised only half the funds to free their children, and instead left for Monrovia, Liberia, without their children. He lived for four months before contracting a fever and died at the age of 67. He never saw Fouta Djallon or his children again.
- Modibo Mohammed Al Kaburi
- 15th century scholar who immigrated from Kabara to Timbuktu. He
established the cirriculum at Sankore University that produced
- Ibrahim Sori Mawdo (The Elder) - Religious Leader and Second Almaami of Futa Jalon, Guinea
In the second half of the 18th century a militant Islamic movement began in the Sudan region to the south of the Sahara, stretching from the Senegal to the Nile. The leaders waged jihad, or holy war, against pagans and less strict Muslims, establishing a string of strictly Muslim states across the region. The first jihad was launched in Fouta Djallon in 1726 by Ibrahim Musa.[3] He was a leading Muslim cleric who had studied in Kankan.[4]
Ibrahim Musa, also known as Ibrahima Sambeghu, Karamokho Alfa or Alfa Ibrahim, enlisted the support of gangs of young men, slaves and outlaws in his fight against the ruling powers.[5] He became recognized as the "Commander of the Faithful" at a time when the Fulani were gaining supremacy over the Jalonke people in a Jihad, although he had to contend with competing families and with squabbling clerics and military leaders.[4] The Jalonke people adopted the Muslim religion and achieved some social status, but remained subordinate to the Fula leaders.[6] The jihad process was protracted, because the Fula were not simply taking over an existing state, but were building a new state.[7] Alfa Ibrahim died in 1751.[8]
Ibrahim Sori was Alfa Ibrahim' cousin. He succeeded Alfa Ibrahim on the latter's death and consolidated the Fulani military authority. His motives were more commercial than religious. He threw his energy into taking control of all trade, which at that time primarily consisted of trading slaves for European fabric, iron and weapons.[6] Sori promoted warfare as a means to gain more slaves, joining forces with the king of the Dyalonke people of Solima.[8]Fula Jihad states around 1830 - Fouta Djallon to the west
In 1762 the combined Fulani and Solima forces invaded the territory of the animist Wassoulou to their west and were defeated. The alliance between the Fulani and Solima broke up. The Solima allied themselves with the Wasulunke against the Fulani, and began annual raids into Fulani territory. In 1776 they were decisively defeated by the Fulani under Ibrahim Sori, and the Solima had to accept Fulani supremacy.
After the victory over the Solima, Ibrahim Sorio adopted the title almami.[8] He became known as Sori Maudo ("Sori the Great"). Although he was the leader of the Fulani, he had to respect the advice of a council of elders, and had to accept that the council would confirm his successors. The council also collected tithes and booty to cover the costs of the jihad, and enforced the Shari's laws.[8] Under Ibrahim Sori the theocratic state was organized into nine provinces, each led by a cleric who was subordinate to Sori as almami. The almami was formally installed in Fugumba, the religious capital, but ruled from Timbo, the political capital, with the help of the council.[9]
The council became jealous of Ibrahim Sori's power and prestige, and began agitating against him. Sori entered Fugumba, executed the councillors who had opposed him, and called a general assembly to confirm his authority. The packed assembly duly voted in his favor, and the military faction was firmly in control until Sori's death in 1791-1792. He was succeeded by his son Sa'id, who held office until 1797-1798 when he was killed and replaced by a descendant of Karamokho Alfa.[10] The original Fulani leaders retained the right to elect the almami, who was usually a clerical descendant of either Alfa Ibrahim or a more secular and military descendent of Ibrahim Sori.
- Sulayman Bal (1726-1776) - Islamic scholar and war commander from the Futa Toro in Senegal He (died 1775) was an 18th-century African leader, warrior, and Islamic scholar, from the Futa Toro region in what is today western Mali.In the 1760s and 1770s, Sulayman Bal founded one of the earliest Fulani Jihad States. Inspired by the Jihads of Alfa Ibrahima Nuhu who led the Imamate of Futa Jallon from 1725, Sulayman Bal led a revolt in the Fulani Denyanke kingdom. Aimed at overthrowing the traditional aristocracy, the movement only succeeded after his death. In its place, a clerical oligarchy rose which quickly came into conflict with its neighbors. The Brakna Moors were repulsed after a long history of raids in Futa Toro, and non-Muslim states were invaded.Sulayman Bal was seceded by Abd al-Qādir who consolidated the Futa Toro state, created a military aristocracy, and became one of the first in a line of West African leaders to take the title almami. In 1796, Futa Toro was defeated during the battle of Bounghoy by the non-Muslim Cayor kingdom led by the Damel Amary Ngoné Ndella Fall, and Abd al-Qādir was killed in 1807, to be replaced by a less oligarchic council of clan leaders.
(1770–1864) was a writer and Islamic scholar, born and educated in what
is now Senegal, who was enslaved and transported to the United States
in 1807. There, while enslaved for the remainder of his life, he wrote a
series of works of history and theology, including a posthumously
famous autobiography.
Omar ibn Said was born in present-day Senegal in Futa Tooro,[1] a region along the Middle Senegal River in West Africa, to a wealthy family.[2] He was an Islamic scholar and a Fula
who spent 25 years of his life studying with prominent Muslim scholars,
learning subjects ranging from arithmetic to theology in Africa. In 1807, he was captured during a military conflict, enslaved and taken across the Atlantic Ocean to the United States. He escaped from a cruel master in Charleston, South Carolina, and journeyed to Fayetteville, North Carolina. There he was recaptured and later sold to James Owen. Said lived into his mid-nineties and was still a slave at the time of his death in 1864. He was buried in Bladen County, North Carolina. Omar ibn Said was also known as Uncle Moreau and Prince Omeroh.[1]Although Omar converted to Christianity on December 3, 1820, many modern scholars believe he continued to be a practicing Muslim, based on dedications to Muhammad written in his Bible, and a card dated 1857 on which he wrote Surat An-Nasr, a short sura which refers to the conversion of non-Muslims to Islam 'in multitudes.' The back of this card contains another person's handwriting in English misidentifying the sura as the Lord's Prayer and attesting to Omar's status as a good Christian.[3] Additionally, while others writing on Omar's behalf identified him as a Christian, his own autobiography and other writings offer more of an ambiguous position. In the autobiography, he still offers praise to Muhammad when describing his life in his own country; his references to "Jesus the Messiah" in fact parallel Quranic descriptions of Jesus (who is called المسيح 'the Messiah' a total of 11 times in the Quran), and descriptions of Jesus as 'our lord/master' (سيدنا) employ the typical Islamic honorific for prophets and is not to be confused with Lord (ربّ); and description of Jesus as 'bringing grace and truth' (a reference to John 1:14) is equally appropriate to the conception of Jesus in Islam. Given Omar's circumstances of enslavement "among the Christians" and the possibilities of lobbying for his freedom that only came with confessing Christianity, his conversion can be argued to have been made under duress. In 1991, a masjid in Fayetteville, North Carolina renamed itself Masjid Omar Ibn Said in his honor.
- Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (also known as Job ben Solomon) - Trader, then slave. Freed and repatriated to his homeland in Boundou, Senegal (1701—1773), also known as Job ben Solomon, was a famous Muslim who was a victim of the Atlantic slave trade. Born in Bundu, Senegal (West Africa), Ayuba's memoirs were published as one of the earliest slave narratives, that is, a first-person account of the slave trade, in Thomas Bluett's Some
Memories of the Life of Job, the Son of the Solomon High Priest of
Boonda in Africa; Who was enslaved about two Years in Maryland; and
afterwards being brought to England, was set free, and sent to his
native Land in the Year 1734. However, this version is not a
first-person account.A first hand account of Ayuba's capture and eventual return home can be found in Francis Moore's Travels into the Interior Parts of Africa.
Diallo came from a prominent Fulbe family of Muslim religious leaders. His grandfather had founded the town of Bundu, and he grew up with Samba Geladio Diegui the heir (kamalenku) to the Kingdom of Futa-Toro. In 1730, Ayuba became a victim of the ever-growing slave exploitation of the Senegambia region. Ayuba and his interpreter Loumein Yoas (also known as “Lamine Jay,” “Lahamin Joy,” “Lahmin Jay,” “Lamine Ndiaye,” and “Loumein Ybai") were near the Gambia River to trade slaves and paper. While visiting some friends on their return trip, Ayuba and Yoas were captured by invading Mandingoes.[1] The invaders shaved their heads to make them appear as war captives, and thereby supposedly legitimately enslavable, as opposed to their actual condition of people captured in a kidnapping raid for the specific purpose of selling slaves for financial profit. The two men were sold to factors of the Royal African Company. Ayuba subsequently convinced English Captain Pike of his high social status, and explained his father was capable of paying ransom. Pike granted Ayuba leave to find someone to send word to Ayuba’s family. Since the messenger did not return in time, at the behest of Captain Henry Hunt, Pike’s superior, Ayuba and Loumein were sent across the Atlantic to Annapolis, Maryland, where he was delivered to another factor, Vachell Denton.
Ayuba was then purchased by Mr. Tolsey of Kent Island, Maryland. Ayuba was initially put to work in the tobacco fields; however, after being found unsuitable for such work, he was placed in charge of the cattle. While in captivity, Ayuba used to go into the woods to pray. However, after being humiliated by a child while praying, Ayuba ran away and was captured and imprisoned at the Kent County Courthouse. It was there that he was discovered by a lawyer, Rev. Thomas Bluett of the Anglican Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, traveling through on business.
The lawyer was impressed by Ayuba's ability to write in Arabic. In the narrative, Bluett writes the following:
Upon our Talking and making Signs to him, he wrote a Line or two before us, and when he read it, pronounced the Words Allah and Mahommed; by which, and his refusing a Glass of Wine we offered him, we perceived he was a Mahometan, but could not imagine of what Country he was, or how he got thither; for by his affable Carriage, and the easy Composure of his Countenance, we could perceive he was no common Slave.
When another African who spoke Wolof, a language of a neighboring African ethnic group, was able to translate for him, it was then discovered that he had aristocratic blood. Encouraged by the circumstances, Mr. Tolsey allowed Ayuba to write a letter in Arabic to Africa to send to his father. Eventually, the letter reached the office of James Oglethorpe, Director of the Royal African Company. After having the letter authenticated by John Gagnier, the Laudian Chair of Arabic at Oxford, Oglethorpe purchased Ayuba for ₤45.
According to his own account, Oglethorpe was moved with sentiment upon hearing the suffering Ayuba had endured. Oglethorpe purchased Ayuba and sent him to the London office of the Royal African Company in London. Bluett and Ayuba traveled to England in 1733. During the journey Ayuba learned to communicate in English. However emotionally swayed his letters claimed him to be, Oglethorpe was not so conscientious to leave instructions with the London office of the RAC concerning what to do with Ayuba upon his arrival in late April 1733.
Captain Henry Hunt (or perhaps his brother, William Hunt), one of the original factors in charge of Ayuba's enslavement, arranged for lodging in a country province. Yet Ayuba heard rumors that Hunt was planning to sell him to traders who claimed they would deliver him home. Ayuba, fearing yet more trickery, contacted Bluett and other men whom he had met en route to London. Bluett arranged for Ayuba’s stay in Cheshunt in Hertfordshire. The RAC, following Oglethorpe’s orders, made in part through persistent requests from interested men in London, subsequently paid all the expenses and purchase price of the bond for Ayuba. Ayuba beseeched Bluett once again, explaining that none of this secured he would not be enslaved once again. According to Bluett, all the honorable men involved had promised they would not sell Ayuba into slavery, so, though supposedly Ayuba was not under any threat, Bluett and other sympathizers paid “fifty-nine pounds, six shillings, and eleven pence half-penny” simply to ease Ayuba’s anxiety. Englishmen in London and surrounding provinces who had met Ayuba collected money so that his “freedom in form,” an official document seal made and sealed by the RAC. Bluett explained, “Job’s Mind being now perfectly easy,” he could fraternize with London’s elite, obtaining many gifts and new friendships, while also being of service to Hans Sloane through his newly acquired ability to translate Arabic into English. His service to Hans Sloane included organizing the collection of Arabic Manuscripts at the British Museum. Ayuba was in the company of many other prominent people, including the royal family and the Duke and Duchess of Montague which lead him to being inducted into the Gentleman's Society of Spalding. In July 1734, Ayuba freely returned to Gambia and later returned to his homeland. His father had died, and one of his wives, presuming that Ayuba had perished, had remarried. His homeland was ravaged by war, but being a prosperous individual, he was able to regain his old lifestyle. His memoirs were published by Bluett in English and French. Ayuba was an extremely rare exception in the slave trade. Due to his intelligence and monetary prowess, and Englishmen's desire to use him to increase their own profits in trade on the coast of Africa, he was able to legally escape the hardships of slavery and return home to Africa.
Ayuba, however, faced later hardships. In June 1736, he was imprisoned or held as a parolee by the French. Ayuba may have been targeted by the French because of his alliances with the British. He was held perhaps for a year by the French, when Ayuba's local countrymen, rather than the British, secured his release. He later sent letters to the London RAC to visit London, but this request was denied. His death was recorded in the minutes of the Spalding Gentleman's Society in 1773 [2]
Notably, none of Ayuba’s English contemporaries mention the conditions and experience of Ayuba and Loumein during the Middle Passage. Ayuba continued to press London factors for Loumein’s freedom. Due to Ayuba’s commitment and the help of Bluett, Loumein was eventually returned to the Gambia region in 1738.
- Modibbo Adama - Islamic Scholar and first emir of Adamawa (Both Cameroon and Nigerian Adamawa)
Adama ɓii Ardo Hassana (1786 – 1847), more commonly known as Modibo Adama, was a Fulani scholar and holy warrior, who hailed from the Ba'en clan of Fulbe. He led a jihad into the region of Fumbina (in modern-day Cameroon and Nigeria), opening the region for Fulani colonisation. As a result of Adama's constant warring, the Fulani today make up the largest ethnic group in Northern Cameroon (at more than 60% of the region's entire population, which considering the fact that they weren't from the area, is a remarkable feat), and Islam is the dominant religion. The wars also forced many peoples south into the forest region.
Adama studied in Hausaland and earned the title "Modibo" ("Lettered One") for his scholarship. Upon finishing his studies, he returned home to Gurin and learned of the jihad declared by Fulani mystic Usman dan Fodio. When he accompanied a delegation to visit Usman, the leader ordered Adama to extend his jihad east as "Lamido Fumbina" (Ruler of the Southlands).
Adama raised an army and attacked Bata settlements near Gurin. He took the villages, and many more traditional Fulbe leaders and new soldiers came to his side. He next took on Mandara, the largest and best organised state in the region. He swept over several smaller settlements and eventually conquered the Mandara capital, Dulo, with ease. While his men celebrated, however, the Mandara army counterattacked and recaptured the town.
Though he fought many more campaigns, Adama now spent most of his time in Yola, which became his capital. He set about creating the administrative structure of his new state, which he named Adamawa after himself. Adama ruled the empire, subordinate only to Usman dan Fodio in Sokoto. Below him lay the heads of major settlements, known as lamibe (singular: lamido). The village formed the smallest unit of government.
Upon Adama's death in 1847, his son Muhammadu Lawal became Lamido of Adamawa. The empire was not to last, however, as colonial battles and division eventually destroyed the independent Fulani state. The conquest had long-term repercussions, however. The Fulani became the dominant ethnic group in the region, and Islam the major religion. The herdsmen altered the land to be more suitable for herding cattle, their primary pursuit. The jihad also pushed those peoples who had lived on the Adamawa Plateau south into the forest, the single most important event in the populating of Southern Cameroon.
Adama came from a respected but humble family; his father, Hassana, was a well regarded scholar of Islam and minor nobleman from Ba'ajo. Adama travelled to Bornu for his education, where he stayed for some time under the tutelage of Mallam Kiari. He continued his studies in Hausaland (modern Northern Nigeria), where legend says his teacher was the Fulani Shehu Usman dan Fodio in Degel. Adama proved a bright scholar and a pious Muslim, and he earned the title Modibo, "Lettered One". After several years away, he returned home to Guringa around 1804. There, the news was grim. Adama's father had died in 1803 fighting the Bata.
Talk in Gurina also concerned events in Hausaland. Word had arrived that Usman dan Fodio had declared a militant jihad on the Hausa leaders. He had installed himself at Gudu and subsequently defeated non-Fulani leaders at Gobir and Kébbi. Usman had now turned his attention to Bornu and to the vast southlands of Fumbina (modern-day Northern Cameroon).
Still, the picture seemed unclear to leaders farther from the fighting. Was Usman a Mujaddid (reformer), or was he the Mahdi, a saviour figure who would create an ideal Muslim society? In 1805 or 1806, the Fulani leaders at Guringa assembled a delegation to visit Usman and find out. Adama's pious reputation and familiarity with Hausaland made him a natural fit for the mission.The party met Usman in 1806, probably in Gwandu. There, they learned that his intention was to extend his jihad eastward, into Fumbina. The goal was ostensibly to convert various Kirdi (pagan) peoples to Islam and to protect Muslims who already lived in the area. The jihadists were also supposed to educate the region's current Muslim population, many of whom merged Islam with paganism.
Though not the oldest member, Adama was one of the more zealous about Usman's ideas. Usman thus presented him with a command that would change his life dramatically. The Shehu gave Adama his blessing and presented him with a flag, the symbol of command in Usman's army. The Shehu then charged Adama to carry the jihad into Fumbina and from the Nile to the Bight of Biafra. Adama also received the power to distribute flags of command to others, thus establishing more centres of Fulani Islam and spreading the war to farther reaches.
Adama immediately began recruiting Fulani and Hausa volunteers and mercenaries. These were mainly mounted cavalrymen fighting with sword, bow, and poisoned arrow. Adama forbade them to pillage or to kill indiscriminately, but enemy nations were given two choices: convert to Islam or become a tributary state. Those ethnic groups that lacked a centralised government had but one: become slaves to the Fulani and convert to their faith.The non-Fulani Muslims of the Adamawa largely rejected Adama's jihad; they viewed it as little more than an excuse to spread Fulani hegemony. However, it was primarily the Fulani leaders (ardo'en, singular: ardo) of Fumbina with whom Adama was concerned. Some of them rejected his primacy for various reasons: He was from a fairly humble background, he owned little wealth, his army was still small, and he lacked charisma. The majority, however, welcomed Adama as a military commander or religious leader at the very least. Adama's son-in-law, Jauro Dembo, had already settled in Fumbina at Malabu and became one of his lieutenants.
The makeshift army made headquarters at Gurin, a fort at the junction of the Faro and Benue Rivers where Fulani warriors had regrouped after fighting the Bata in 1803. Adama then led his forces in a series of strikes on Bata settlements such as Pema, Tepa, and Turuwa. The victories elated Adama's men, who took numerous Bata slaves.
The early successes convinced more local Fulani leaders to come to Adama's side. Even those ardo'en who opposed his political rule recognised the jihad as an opportunity to expand their territories. Njobdi of the Wollarbe clan is one notable example, and his major rival, Hammam Sambo, perhaps the first ardo to have settled in Fumbina, proved the major holdout. Bitter relations between Njobdi and Hammam would prove a major obstacle in Adama's quest to maintain a cohesive empire.
In addition, common Fulani were inspired by Adama's exploits and formed into bands. Adama created a new position for their leaders: The lamido (plural: lamibe), who was the leader of a particular territory, as opposed to an ardo, leader of a particular people. Both groups received flags of command and shared the same status in Adama's armies. Before his death, Adama would appoint over 40 non-ardo lamibe. They would prove his most loyal lieutenants.
Adama turned his attentions on the only major state in Fumbina that could present a threat to his fledgling emirate: Mandara. It was an attractive target. It lay between Bornu to the north and Baghirmi in the Chad Basin, so its fall would facilitate the conquest of these areas. Its people were already Muslim, though they mixed the religion with pagan practices. Moreover, it had a large population from whom soldiers could be conscripted, and it was renowned for its excellent horses. Mandara was well organised, however, and would not be an easy prize. The people who lived there, the Mandarawa, had a long-standing rivalry with the Fulani, who had fought them under the Bornu in previous years. This animosity only served to drive more Fulani to Adama's armies, though, as many veterans were eager for another crack at an old rival. Furthermore, Fulbe rulers Modibo Damraka and others were already embroiled in fighting against the Mandara in the Diamaré Plain. Sentiment for jihad was high.Adama reached Guringa in 1809 with a large army in good morale. He quickly conquered the Mandara settlement at Guider and headed north, taking several more villages along the way. Outside of the Mandara capital, Dulo, Adama demanded that the king, Bukar Djiama, swear his allegiance and convert to Islam untainted with paganism. Bukar agreed to acknowledged Adama's right to rule his own subjects, but he refused to yield his own sovereignty. Adama and his men took Dulo with little fighting.
Adama searched for someone to rule the settlement, but he found no one whom he felt adequate for the post. Meanwhile, his troops revelled in their plunder. No one expected the Mandara counterattack, which was launched from nearby Mora. Adama fled the town, and Dulo fell from his grasp forever.
Adama and his men retreated to Yola (in present-day Nigeria). The town would become his capital by 1841. From here, he and his lieutenants continued to expand the emirate, which he named Adamawa after himself. The subordinates had to send him tribute in the form of cattle. Large settlements such as Maroua, Garoua, and Ngaoundéré fell to Adama or his lieutenants. By 1825, the Fulani had penetrated the Adamawa Plateau. Nevertheless, Adama lived in relatively moderate surroundings and never acquired great wealth.From Yola, Adama began the administrative tasks necessary for his nascent state. He did this with Usman's advice; he was to foster understanding between his people and their governors, facilitate communication between elders and their subordinates, and prevent the stratification of society based on class or wealth. The empire eventually took on three administrative tiers. At the centre was the emir al-Mu'minin ("commander of the faithful"), Adama himself, ruling from Yola and answering only to Usman dan Fodio in Sokoto. A contingent of councillors and administrators directly aided him, and a household staff of non-Fulbe and slaves doubled as his bodyguard. Below him were a number of district leaders, the lamibe, who ruled key settlements. Under them were a number of villages, each headed by a village chief.
Meanwhile, some of the older ardo'en grew powerful through their own conquests. They regarded the unconquered areas near their territories as their own private backyards and defended these zones from all comers. This sometimes surfaced in their relations with Adama, such as when Bouba Njida of Rai refused to come to Adama's aid when the emir was fighting the Namchi at Poli. Instead, Bouba waited for Adama to retreat from the area to bring in his own forces and finish the enemy off. He then sent prisoners from the battle to Adama as a gift.
Adama died in 1847 and was laid to rest at Yola (his tomb survives to this day). Adamawa covered 103,000 km² from Lake Chad to Banyo and was inhabited by 1,500,000 people. Further expansion to the south had proved difficult and undesirable since the presence of the tsetse fly and thick jungle made cattle rearing difficult there.Adama's son Muhammadu Lawal succeeded him after a brief regency under Hamidu bi Adama. Eventually, three of Adama's other sons would at some point serve as Emir of Adamawa. Not until the British and German colonial periods would the emirate come to an end.
Despite their loss of independence, the Fulani were now the preeminent ethnic group of Northern Cameroon. They spread Islam throughout the region, establishing it as the dominant religion. Education also flourished, as new converts learned Arabic writing and studied the Qur'an. Trade flourished, and communications with it. The conquests were also important ecologically. Lands that had once been used for cultivation now became part of Fulani pastureland. Herdsmen cut down trees to make way for cattle, and they burned grasses that their herds later trampled. Centuries of such behaviour have replaced the region's forest with savanna.
Ironically, the Adamawa was more sparsely populated after Adama's conquest. Rather than fight the Fulani invaders, many peoples fled, displacing others in turn. The Adamawa Plateau, once home to many of Cameroon's ethnic groups, soon became a pastureland, and the forest zone of Cameroon became more heavily populated.
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