Aksumite Kingdom

Type of Government

Based in what are today the East African nations of Ethiopia and Eritrea, the kingdom of Aksum combined the absolute rule of a dynastic monarchy with an innovative system of decentralized provincial administration. Aksumite kings generally used family members as court advisers and palace administrators, but depended on the leaders of client states to govern the vast hinterland. In this respect, Aksum was essentially a federation, held together by the prestige and authority of its negusa nagast (king of kings).

Background

Aksum’s capital, also called Aksum, lay astride a major trade route from the interior to the Red Sea. At its height between the third and seventh centuries, the kingdom stretched from the Nile eastward to parts of southern Arabia. Because much of this territory was too arid for intensive agriculture, most historians believe that trade was the primary source of Aksumite power. By the first century AD, and probably much earlier, Aksum’s traders and middlemen were exporting vast quantities of gold, ivory, salt, and slaves in exchange for glass, wine, and textiles. Archaeological evidence suggests these trade routes stretched as far as India.

Government Structure

The personal authority of the Aksumite monarch was enormous. Early kings declared themselves sons of Mahrem, a local warrior god. Though they ceased doing so after the arrival of Christianity in the fourth century, the pomp and ceremony surrounding the throne remained impressive. Even late witnesses spoke of subjects prostrating themselves before their gold-draped king. The coronation ceremony of a new king was particularly magnificent, probably because it was intended to awe the client kings in attendance.

The precise nature of the king’s relationship with his clients is not clear. There is no doubt that kings made periodic visits to the client states to check on conditions and to receive tribute. Many historians believe that client kings enjoyed full autonomy in their own domains as long as they paid tribute. Both sides interpreted nonpayment as a declaration of rebellion. Rebellions were frequent, but most were isolated and never reached the capital. It is likely that the client states were too diverse or too distrustful to form an effective alliance against their master.

In contrast to the loose administration of the countryside, the royal palace was a tightly controlled organization with a clear chain of command and multiple functions. One of the most important departments was the royal mint, for a single issue of poorly produced or debased coinage would have been devastating to trade. Most of the time, mint directors and other leading officials were members of the king’s extended family. Of the few outsiders known to have gained high office, the most famous is Saint Frumentius (fourth century), who arrived in Aksum after a shipwreck, found favor at court, and rose to become secretary and treasurer to King ʿĒzānā (fourth century), whom he converted to Christianity. The administration of the church paralleled and reinforced the organization of the state, at times even coinciding with it. Thus, Frumentius undoubtedly retained some of his civil authority, at least informally, when he left the palace to become Aksum’s first metropolitan (bishop).

Little is known about the procedures of succession. It appears, however, that transfer of the crown was not always patrilineal (from father to son). The emphasis seems to have been merely on keeping it within the royal family.

Political Parties and Factions

As in other monarchies, there were probably factions attached to various members of the king’s family. Given the apparent flexibility of succession, the king’s brothers were likely quite powerful. Historians also believe that the wealthiest traders enjoyed significant influence at court, particularly if they belonged to the king’s clan.

Major Events

Two major foreign campaigns mark Aksumite history. The first occurred in 325, when a force under King ʿĒzānā marched north to destroy the Kushite capital of Meroë. The destruction of Kush strengthened Aksum’s ties to Egypt and the Mediterranean, as did ʿĒzānā’s conversion to Christianity about the same time. The second campaign was longer and ultimately less successful. In the sixth century an Aksumite force crossed the Red Sea to exact tribute and protect local Christians in what is now Yemen. Though initially successful, the expedition exhausted the Aksumite army and provoked the anger of the Persian Empire. By 600 the Persians had permanently driven the Aksumites off the Arabian Peninsula.

Aftermath

Dependent on Red Sea trade throughout its history, Aksum reeled when Muslim traders from Arabia seized control of the narrow waterway in the seventh and eighth centuries. Some historians believe environmental factors, including the depletion of ivory and other resources, played a role in Aksum’s decline as well. Though there were Aksumite kings well into the tenth century, power had shifted to the Agaw people long before.

Kobishchanov, Yuri M. Axum. Edited by J.W. Michaels, translated by Lorraine T. Kapitanoff. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1979.

Munro-Hay, Stuart. Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh, Scotland: Edinburgh University Press, 1991.

Phillipson, D.W. Ancient Ethiopia: Aksum, its Antecedents and Successors. London: British Museum Press, 1998.