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Sudan

History

General History

Sudan, located in northeast Africa along the Nile and its two main tributaries, the White and Blue Niles, has been home to humans for tens of thousands of years. Known as Nubia in antiquity, Sudan was home to the Kingdom of Kush, which thrived in the Nile River Basin and ruled Egypt as the 25th Dynasty around the 8th century BCE. Following the decline of Kush, the region saw the rise of Christian Nubian kingdoms such as Nobatia, Makuria, and Alodia, which lasted until the 14th century when internal decline and conversion to Islam resulted in the rise of multiple Muslim states..

In the 19th century, Sudan came under the control of the Ottoman Empire and later Turco-Egyptian rule under the Egyptian dynasty of Muhammad Ali Pasha, which lasted until the Mahdist War of 1881 to 1885, led by Muhammad Ahmad. The short-lived Mahdist State was defeated by the British-Egyptian forces in 1898, leading to the establishment of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan.

Sudan gained independence in 1956, but its post-independence history has been marked by prolonged civil conflicts, including two civil wars between the north and the south, largely driven by ethnic, religious, and economic differences. These conflicts have spurred hundreds of thousands of Sudanese to flee the country as refugees.

In 2011, South Sudan successfully seceded from the country as a result of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the Second Sudanese Civil War. Since then, Sudan has faced ongoing political instability, including the ousting of long-time President Omar al-Bashir in 2019 and subsequent military coups. Despite these challenges, Sudan continues to navigate its complex identity and political landscape.

Timeline

652 Nubians repel a second invasion of Arab Muslim armies from Egypt, slowing the spread of Islam into the region of modern Sudan and prolonging the survival of several Christian kingdoms.
1821 Ottoman Egypt, under the direction of Muhammad Ali Pasha, begins an invasion of Sudan that will eventually conquer most of the modern country's territory.
1885 Upon taking Khartoum, a rebel movement led by the self-proclaimed Mahdi Muhammad Ahmad frees Sudan from Egyptian control.
1899 British troops defeat Mahdist Sudan and assert Anglo-Egyptian rule over the territory.
1956 Sudan achieves independence from Great Britain.
2011 South Sudan votes to leave Sudan and becomes independent.