page_title: History of Somalia
section_title: 19th century
hierarchical_section_title: History of Somalia / 19th century
caption_attribution_description: English: Statue of Sayyid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan (the "Mad Mullah") in Mogadishu, Somalia.
context_page_description: Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa.
  Somalia was an important centre for commerce with the rest of the ancient world, and according to most scholars, it is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt.
  During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali states and port towns dominated the regional trade, the Mogadishu Sultanate and Ajuran Sultanate both centered around the port town Mogadishu, the Adal Sultanate and Ifat Sultanate both centered around the port town Zeila, but also the port towns of Barawe, Merca and Berbera.
  In the late 19th century, through a succession of treaties with these kingdoms, the British and Italians gained control of parts of the coast, and established British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland. In southern parts of Somalia, the Italians fought a war with the Somalis around the port town of Merca, dubbed the Banadir Resistance.
context_section_description: In 1841, Haji Sharmarke Ali Saleh, a successful and ambitious Somali merchant, successfully invaded Zeila utilizing canons and Somali Musketeers, he deposed and imprisoned the port town's Arab ruler and succeeded him as the undisputed ruler of Zeila and its dependencies. Sharmarke's governorship had an instant effect on the city, as he maneuvered to monopolize as much of the regional trade as possible, with his sights set as far as Harar and the Ogaden. In 1845, Sharmarke deployed a few matchlock men to wrest control of neighboring Berbera from that town's then feuding Somali authorities. Sharmarke's influence was not limited to the coast as he had many allies in the interior of the Somali country and even further in Abyssinia. Among his allies were the Sultans of Shewa. When there was tension between the Amir of Harar Abu Bakr II ibn `Abd al-Munan and Sharmarke, as a result of the Amir arresting one of his agents in Harar, Sharmarke persuaded the son of Sahle Selassie, ruler of Shewa, to imprison on his behalf about 300 citizens of Harar then resident in Shewa, for a length of two years.
  Sultan Yusuf Mahamud Ibrahim, the third Sultan of the House of Gobroon, started the Golden age of the Gobroon dynasty. His army came out victorious during the Bardheere jihad, which restored stability in the region and revitalized the East African ivory trade. He also received presents and had cordial relations with the rulers of neighbouring and distant kingdoms such as the Omani, Wituland and Yemeni sultans. Sultan Ibrahim's son Ahmed Yusuf succeeded him and was one of the most important figures in 19th century East Africa. Ahmed Yusuf was considered to be the most powerful king in East Africa in his time. He managed to gather 20 thousand Somali troops and invaded the Zanzibar island near Tanzania and he captured the islands, defeated the enemy troops and freed the Bantu slaves and through his military dominance, Sultan Yusuf managed to exact tribute from the Omani king in the coastal town of Lamu. In northern and southern  Somalia, the Gerad Dynasty conducted trade with Yemen and Persia and competed with the merchants of the Bari Dynasty. The Gerads and the Bari Sultans built impressive palaces, castles and fortresses and had close relations with many different empires in the Near East.
  In the late 19th century, after the Berlin Conference, European powers began the Scramble for Africa, which inspired the Dervish leaders in the north like Mohammed Abdullah Hassan and Sultan Nur Ahmed Aman to rally support from across the Horn of Africa, but also Sheikh Abikar Gafle to start a resistance around Merca called the Banadir Resitance. Both the Banadir Resistance and Dervish Movement sparked the beginning one of the longest anti-colonial struggles on the continent.
caption: Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, leader of the Dervish movement.
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