WHI-Chap19-Axum

Axum

Axum was a trade city in modern northern Ethiopia founded about the first century C.E. In the mid-fourth century C.E., by which time Axum had become a large kingdom, Christianity took root in Axum by way of merchants looking to improve trade with Mediterranean Christians. From the seventh century, Axum went through a decline caused by a weak ruling house and the introduction of a new religion: Islam. Once Islam began to spread through the Middle East, Africa, India, and Southeast Asia, Axum lost many trade partners because Muslims refused to trade with Christians, and vice-versa. In the twelfth century, Ethiopian Christianity was revitalized by a new, more centralized, ruling campaign. During this time, eleven massive rock churches were carved and dug out of the ground. A construction project this large was a testament to Axum’s power and wealth, as well as Christianity’s influence. Because of geographical barriers, Ethiopian Christianity developed separated from all other Christian entities, and its practices incorporated many aspects and traditions of indigenous African religions. To validate the practice of Christianity, thirteenth-century Ethiopian kings claimed descent from Solomon and David in the (fictional) book Kebra Negast (“The Glory of the Kings”). Ethiopian Christians also believed that evil spirits could be warded off with amulets and charms. Axum’s role in trade and Christianity shaped its identity as the sole Christian power in Africa. (T&E pp. 416, 501-503)

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