Fulani War The Fulani War of 1804 – 1808 , also known as the Fulani Jihad or Jihad of Usman dan Fodio , was a military contest in present - day Nigeria and Cameroon . The war begun when Usman dan Fodio , a prominent Islamic scholar and teacher , was exiled from Gobir by the king Yunfa , one of his former students . Usman dan Fodio assembled a Fulani army to lead in jihad against the Hausa kingdoms of the north . The forces of Usman dan Fodio slowly took over more and more of the Hausa kingdoms capturing Gobir in 1808 and executing Yunfa . The war resulted in the creation of the Sokoto Caliphate , headed by Usman dan Fodio , which became one of the largest states in Africa in the 1800s and inspired similar jihads in Western Africa . Background . The Kanem - Bornu Empire had been in decline in the area from the mid - 1700s . The result was the rise of a number of independent Hausa kingdoms throughout the region . Two prominent Hausa kingdoms which rose up were Gobir and Zamfara . However , warfare between the Hausa states and with other states were constant for the latter 1700s resulting in a harsh system of conscription and taxation . The Fulani , a largely pastoral people were often the victims of Hausa taxation , land control , and other discriminatory practices . Lead up to war . Usman dan Fodio , born in 1751 , joined a growing number of traveling Islamic scholars through the Hausa kingdoms in the 1770s and became quite popular in the 1790s . Originally , dan Fodio ' s preaching received the support of the leadership of Gobir ; however , as his influence increased and as he began to advocate for self - defense arming by his followers , his favor with the leadership decreased . Sarkin Gobir Nafata , the king of Gobir , placed a series of restrictions on dan Fodio ' s preaching . In 1801 , Sarkin Gobir Yunfa , a former pupil of dan Fodio , replaced Nafata as king of Gobir . However , Yunfa increased the restrictions on dan Fodio and exiled him from Gobir for the village of Degel . A crisis developed later in 1803 when Yunfa attacked and captured many of the followers of a group associated with dan Fodio . Yunfa then marched the prisoners through Degel enraging many of the dan Fodio ' s followers who attacked the army and freed the prisoners . Yunfa gave dan Fodio the option of exile before destroying Degel which led to the large - scale " hijra " of dan Fodio ' s community to Gudu . So many people went with dan Fodio throughout the state that on Feb . 21 , 1804 , Yunfa declared war on dan Fodio and threatened punishment to anyone joining him . As a response , dan Fodio was declared the Amir al - Mu ' minin , commander of the faithful , by his community denouncing their allegiance to Gobir . Battles . There were several minor skirmishes between forces until the forces met at the Battle of Tsuntua . Although Yunfa was victorious and dan Fodio lost a number of men , the battle did not diminish his force and he quickly responded by capturing the village of Matankari which resulted in a major battle between the forces of Yunfa and those of dan Fodio : the battle of Tafkin Kwatto . Although outnumbered , dan Fodio ' s troops were able to prevent Yunfa from advancing on Gunu and thus convince larger numbers of people to join his forces . In 1805 , the forces of dan Fodio , the " jihadists " , captured the Hausa kingdom of Kebbi . By 1807 , the states of Katsina , Daura , and the important kingdom of Kano had all been taken over by the jihadists . In 1808 , the jihadists were able to capture Gobir and Yunfa was slain in the battle . The capture of Gobir was significant in refocusing the effort of the war from one limited to a wider regional struggle . Other battles continued against a number of Hausa kingdoms and the Sokoto Caliphate expanded over the next two years . The last major expansion of the jihadists was the toppling of the Sayfawa dynasty in 1846 . Founding of the Sokoto Caliphate . Muhammed Bello , the son of Usman dan Fodio , transformed the semi - permanent camp of Sokoto into a city in 1809 , during the Fulani war . Usman ruled from Sokoto as the religious leader of the Fulani jihad states from that point until 1815 when he retired from administrative duties . The structure formed for the Caliphate involved the appointment of various Emirs to govern the various states of the empire . These were often individuals who had fought in the Fulani wars . Legacy . The success of the jihad inspired a number of later West African jihadists , including Massina Empire founder Seku Amadu , Toucouleur Empire founder Umar Tall , Wassoulou Empire founder Samori Ture , and Adamawa Emirate founder Modibo Adama . The Sokoto Caliphate remains in existence to this day ; although since British conquest of the Caliphate in 1903 , the political authority has diminished and only spiritual authority remains .