How Did Africans Deal With The First Invasion Of The Continent?

If there's one thing that the world does know about Africa, it's that African people have suffered from many foreign invasions. The African continent most certainly was a huge landmass containing riches, resources, civilization, and irresistible elements of religion and culture. For the most part, we're aware of the many invasions of Africa and its end result. But I'm not sure if we've spent much time studying its early invasions. So today, I wanted to talk about how Africans dealt with the very first invasion of their beloved continent. To begin, one can make the argument that the first so-called invasion of Africa wasn't really an invasion at all, but simply a migration of people. Naturally, the first people outside of the continent to have interacted with African people would have been their immediate neighbors in the east, Levantine people or people from the Middle East. But I personally call it an invasion because the following group of people I'll be discussing soon took over the northern part of Thus, they didn't come as mere migrants, but conquerors. The first official invasion into Egypt was initially a movement of people into the Delta region by the Canaanites. Immigrant Canaanite populations first arrived in northern Egypt at the end of the 12th dynasty, establishing varying levels of independence in the Delta. For whatever reason, the Egyptians didn't seem to mind this mass movement of people into their land, apparently allowing them some level of autonomy. This came to an end once Canaanites saw an opportunity to take pharaonic Egypt itself. Queen Sabegneferu of the 12th dynasty died with no heirs, causing the 12th dynasty to come to a sudden end. With no heir on the throne, Egypt passed to a very weak 13th dynasty. This weak dynasty ushered in Canaanite ambition as they took over the whole of the Delta region in the north. Egypt for the first time was split between a foreign-ruled north and a native-ruled south. Some scholars even propose that the Canaanite ruler of the Delta tried to form a union with the Kushites in the far south so that they can one day take over all of Egypt with Kushite aid. Unfortunately for the Egyptians and the Canaanites, Egypt was suffering from a famine and plague, so everyone was pretty much at a stalemate. The Canaanite 14th dynasty of Egypt fell once invading Hyksos established a new dynasty in the Delta region called the Second Intermediate Period of Egypt or the 15th dynasty. Initially, the Egyptians seemed to have been flustered because they were struggling to solidify their power base further south in Thebes, caused by a succession, while simultaneously maintaining dominion over Nubia. Various Nubian groups seemingly aligned with this new invading force in the north. So from the onset, Africans had a diverse approach and reaction to the first invasion of the continent. African diversity in language and culture did not accommodate any Pan-African identity and so the foreign invaders presented an opportunity for some Africans to free themselves from their fellow African overlords. We see this concept manifest itself perfectly with Kamos stationed in Thebes expressed his frustrations openly about his new enemies in the north, in the Hyksos, and his old African enemies in the south, the Kushites, both of which at the time were said to be allied against him. Egypt was in a hard place. Kamos' father led some resistance against the Hyksos earlier, but was killed in battle according to some scholars. We believe Kamos' father was killed in battle against the Hyksos because his mummy is seen with two axe marks on his skull. For a brief time, Kamos is able to gain some ground against his Asiatic foes in the north, restoring some of the dignity of pharaonic Egypt. As mentioned before, we see the first response of Africans to foreign invasion as a mixture of resistance and collaboration, both of which clearly contradict the other. This is a trend that unfortunately defines the rest of the continent. But in this first invasion of the African continent, we're fortunate because African resistance to foreign occupation wins over collaboration. After the death of his father and his brother, one of the greatest pharaohs in Egyptian history comes to the throne, Amos I. Pharaoh Amos began the 18th dynasty of Egypt, the most flourishing dynasty of all according to some scholars. Frequently referred to as the establisher of the new kingdom, Amos finally defeated the Hyksos avenging his father's death and restoring Egypt back to its glory, completely driving them out of Egypt. Amos advanced the even rule over all of Egypt and successfully reasserted Egyptian power in its formal vassal territories of Nubia and Canaan. Essentially, Amos I administered justice in full. The last years of his reign were devoted to reorganizing Egypt's system of government. His building program culminated in the construction of the last pyramid built by native Egyptian rulers. Even though the very first invasion of Egypt ultimately ended in success, driving the foreign invaders completely out of Africa, what's more impressive is what they learned from that experience and their decision to advance themselves. Although later Egyptians depicted the period of Hyksos rule as one of chaos and misery, there were undisputable technological advances during that era. According to scholars, the Hyksos introduced many things into Egypt such as horses, war chariots, the composite bow, improved battle axes, and advanced fortification techniques. Technically speaking, the Egyptians didn't have to adopt any of their technology, but of course in their wisdom, they decided to incorporate all these technological advancements for the betterment of Egypt. They even improved the war chariot, making it lighter and easier to maneuver. So the very first invasion of Africa and their response was a successful one. Despite the lack of any Pan-African identity, which certainly didn't exist back then, the Africans who initially encountered their invaders established resistance, then full-fledged reconquering of lost land, and ultimately an adoption of new technology, leading to a peak in their civilization. You really couldn't ask for a better conclusion. Unfortunately for Africans, once the world got a taste of the continent, they couldn't resist repeated invasions. Well I'm all out guys. If you like these videos and want to help out in its continued production, please consider supporting the home team on patreon.com. The link is in the description below. Know thyself, remember your ancestors. Peace.