Often called Empire Ouattara, it is an African empire that lived a little less than 200 years. It was established in the regions that correspond to the current territories of the North-East of the Ivory Coast, the South of Mali and part of Burkina Faso. A Muslim Empire, it lived from 1710 to 1898.
Birth of the Kingdom
Basically, Kong was a city administered by the Tarawéré clan. The latter pool the Senoufo and Dioula traditions in order to increase their hegemony. With the help of a literacy acquired thanks to the Muslim culture combined with the excellent business sense, they succeed in making the city of Kong a very large commercial center. The traffic was between products from the North such as salt and fabrics, and products from the South such as kola, gold and slaves.
This excellent reputation does not leave the neighbors indifferent. Thus in 1710, Sekou Oumar Ouattara, a Dioula warrior, with the help of his army, entered the city and took control of it. He had himself enthroned king and transformed Kong into the capital of an empire which he named Ouattara. After imposing Dioula as the official language, he made Islam the practiced religion.
Peak of the empire
Sekou Oumar has at his command a cavalry as large and powerful as that of the Mali Empire, which nevertheless lived 300 years before him. Thanks to this impressive army, he controls the trade routes and extends his empire. The captured slaves will be used for the manufacture of foodstuffs such as fabrics, the cultivation of rice, millet, sorghum and cotton. In 1730, Kong reached its climax by becoming the most immense of the West African kingdoms. In 1745, King Sekou Oumar Ouattara died and was replaced by Koumbi Ouattara. The latter keeps the dragee high and makes Kong a center of Islamic studies. Mori Maghari succeeds Koumbi as head of the kingdom and also rises to the occasion.
Decline of the empire
The death of Mori Maghari in 1800 marks the beginning of the tribulations of the Kong Empire. Inside the kingdom, ethnic and religious groups are organizing resistance that weakens the central power. It is finally in 1887 that the Empire will collapse for the first time. Indeed, Samory Touré succeeded in overthrowing the central power and taking the reins of the kingdom. But, Samory Touré will be defeated in turn and the empire will find a semblance of calm. The then king, Karamokho-Oulé Ouattara made the mistake of allying himself with France. On January 10, 1889 he signed a protection agreement with the Frenchman Louis-Gustave Binger. In 1898, France seized the kingdom, splitting it into two parts. Côte d’Ivoire on one side and Upper Volta which will later become Burkina Faso on the other.
