# Umar of Borno

Umar I ibn Muhammad al-Amin (Arabic: عمر الأول ابن محمد الأمين; died 1881) or Umar of Borno was Shehu (Sheik) of the Kanem–Bornu Empire and son of Muhammad al-Amin al-Kanemi.

## Reign of Umar

Umar came to power at the death of his father in 1837. Umar did not match his father's vitality and gradually allowed the kingdom to be ruled by advisers (wazirs). Umar ruled from 1837 until November 1853 when he was deposed by his brother 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Amin who became Shehu. The latter only reigned until 1854 when Umar reconquered his throne.
Umar ruled as Shehu for a second time from September 1854 to 1880. Borno began to decline, as a result of administrative disorganization, regional particularism, and attacks by the militant Ouaddai Empire to the east. The decline continued under Umar's sons, and in 1894 Rabih az-Zubayr, leading an invading army from eastern Sudan, conquered Borno.
Salih the Muhammadu al-Amin’s elder son with his first wife Yamba and Abubakar (Garba), whom carved out of a unique legacy within the Kanem-Bornu Empire, were distinct from the path of royal ascension. While their brother, Shehu Abd ar-Rahman, pursued roles tied to the throne, Abubakar dedicated his life to Islamic scholarship, earning recognition as a respected scholar. Despite his intellectual prominence, he never held the title of Shehu of Borno just like Salih, nor did any of their descendants seek the throne, adhering to the established tradition that restricted royal succession to the lineage of Umar I, the first officially recognized Shehu of Borno. This practice of centralized succession mirrors similar patterns in other historical contexts, such as the Sokoto Caliphate. For instance, Sultatn Ibrahim Dasuki’s ascension diverged from the lineage of Sultan Bello, while Sultan Muhammad Bello, the son of Shehu Usman dan Fodio, solidified the legitimacy of the Sokoto lineage. In Borno, the claim to the throne similarly stems from the exclusive designation of Shehu Umar I, firmly establishing the hereditary line. The story of Abubakar’s family, however, takes an intriguing turn with Muhammad Auwal, also known as Mallam Kura, a son of Abubakar ibn Muhammad al-Amin. Unlike his father, Mallam Kura became entangled in palace intrigues, which eventually led to his departure from Kukawa, the then political and cultural heart of the Kanem-Bornu Empire to Takai local government area of Kano State. His journey westward was marked by adversity and disconnection from the royal court

## Dynasty

Umar of Borno House of Kanemi :
| Regnal titles |||
| Preceded byMuhammad al-Amin al-Kanemi | 2nd Shehu of Borno 1837-1853 | Succeeded by'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Amin |
| Preceded by'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Amin | 2nd Shehu of Borno 1854-1881 | Succeeded byBukar Kura |

## Footnotes

* ↑ Louis Brenner, The Shehus of Kukawa: A History of the Al-Kanemi Dynasty of Bornu, Oxford Studies in African Affairs (Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1973), p.72.
* ↑ Herbert Richmond Palmer, The Bornu Sahara and Sudan (London: John Murray, 1936), p. 269.
* ↑ Louis Brenner, The Shehus of Kukawa: A History of the Al-Kanemi Dynasty of Bornu, Oxford Studies in African Affairs (Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1973), pp.78-79.
* ↑ Helmolt, Hans F., ed. (1903). The history of the world; a survey of a man's record, Volume III: West Asia and Africa. New York: Dodd, Meade and Company. p. 538. OCLC 1193060.
* ↑ Brenner, L. (1973). The Shehus of Kukawa : a history of the Al-Kanemi dynasty of Bornu. Oxford : Clarendon Press. https://archive.org/details/shehusofkukawahi0000bren/mode/2up?q=ngala
* ↑ Chalk, P., RABASA, A. M., BENARD, C., CHALK, P., FAIR, C. C., KARASIK, T., LAL, R., LESSER, I., & THALER, D. (2004). Islam in West Africa: The Case of Nigeria. In The Muslim World After 9/11 (1st ed., pp. 413–432). RAND Corporation. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/mg246af.19
* ↑ AMINU, M. (1981). THE PLACE OF MAHRAMS IN THE HISTORY OF KANEM-BORNO. Journal of the Historical Society of Nigeria, 10(4), 31–38. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41857094