King Idris Alooma is one of the most famous Kings of the Kanem-Bornu Empire.
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| Getty Images: Kanem Bornu Soldier |
He came to power in 1564 AD, and was around at the same time as the famous Caliphs/Sultans of other Islamic Empires from Baghdad (Iraq), Cairo (Egypt) and Songhai (Mali).As a devout Muslim, he not only went on his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1571 AD, but also brought back with him scholars from the Middle-East and Northern Africa.
He, like Mai Dunama II also constructed a hostel in Mecca for the Muslims of Kanem to stay at when they went on their pilgrimage to Mecca. He imported camels from the Sahara that replaced the donkeys and oxen that had been used as transportation previously.
He was a great military leader and he conquered surrounding territories. He firmly solidified the Empire as the Kanem-Bornu Empire, as he kept the potential invaders at bay. He controlled and protected the Empire from invasions by the Hausa to the West, the Bulala to the East and the Tuareg to the North.
Idris reformed and standardised the judiciary by establishing a system of Islamic courts.He himself ruled according to Islamic political theory, taking a stand against, among other things, immorality in the capital.
Oliver and Atmore wrote that: “He presided over a court famous for the high standard of its legal and theological disputations”. Like his Songhai contemporaries, he was a patron of learning, encouraging scholars from many other African countries to take up residence in Borno.
He improved navigation on the Yobe River. He commissioned the building of longer, flat-bottomed boats initially for his navy. For land transportation, he imported a much greater number of camels replacing the dependence on mules, oxen and donkeys.
The great Mai was also a builder, raising new brick mosques in the cities that replaced the older buildings.Aloma also founded a hostel in Mecca for Borno pilgrims. Following the fall of Songhai in 1591, the great Mai became the undisputed champion of the Muslims in the region.
The empire became the Borno Caliphate. Phillip Koslow, a modern historian, declared that: “His contemporary, Elizabeth I of England, a shrewd and strong-willed monarch who gave her name to an age and has been repeatedly celebrated in books and films, could hardly have claimed greater achievements in war, administration or diplomacy.”
Source: Right Education , Reclaw Education Ltd
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