Amary Ngoné Sobel Fall – (or Amari Ngoneh Sobel Faal, or ''Amari Ngóone Sobel'' in

Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...

) was the second

Damel Damel was the title of the ruler (or king) of the Wolof kingdom of Cayor in what is now northwest Senegal, West Africa. The most well-known ''damel'' is probably Lat Dior Diop (1842–1886) who was killed by the French after decades of resisting t ...

of the independent Kingdom of

Cayor The Cayor Kingdom (; ) was from 1549 to 1876 the largest and most powerful kingdom that split off from the Jolof Empire in what is now Senegal. The Cayor Kingdom was located in northern and central Senegal, southeast of Waalo, west of the kingdom ...

in modern-day

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

. He was responsible for breaking Cayor's vassalage under the

Jolof Empire The Jolof Empire (), also known as Great Jolof or the Wolof Empire, was a Wolof state in modern-day Senegal, that ruled portions of Mauritania and Gambia from the mid-14th centuryFage, J. D.; Oliver, Roland; "The Cambridge History of Africa." Vo ...

at the

battle of Danki The Battle of Danki was a conflict fought in 1549 between the Jolof Empire and Cayor, a rebellious vassal. The decisive Aajor victory and the death of the reigning ''Buurba'' of the empire signaled the end of Jolof hegemony over Cayor, Baol, Sa ...

in 1549, and reigned until 1593. Amary Ngoné was the son of

Lamane Lamane or laman (also laam or lam) means "master of the land" in the Serer language. The name was also sometimes the title of chiefs or kings of the Serer people of the Senegambia region which includes modern day Senegal and the Gambia. This title ...

Dece Fu Njogu Fall and Ngoné Sobel Ndiaye, daughter of the Serer

Lingeer Lingeer (also: ''Linger'' or Linguère) was the title given to the mother or sister of a king in the Serer kingdoms of Sine, Saloum, and previously the Kingdom of Baol; and the Wolof kingdoms of Cayor, Jolof, Baol and Waalo in pre-colonial S ...

Sobel Diouf. When Dece Fu fell ill, he failed to send the necessary tribute to their overlord, the ''Buurba'' of the

, for several years. In 1549 Amary volunteered to go, leading an army recruited with the help of his maternal uncle Niokhor Ndiaye,

Teigne (title) Teigne ( Serer:Teeñ, alternate spellings include Teñ, Teen, Teign, Tègne, Tin, or Tinou) was the title of the monarchs of the pre-colonial Kingdom of Baol, now part of present-day Senegal. Etymology and Origin The title "Teigne" was Serer i ...

Baol Baol or Bawol was a kingdom in what is now central Senegal. Founded in the 11th century, it was a vassal of the Jolof Empire before becoming independent in the mid-16th century. The ruler bore the title of Teigne (title), Teigne (or Teeň) and re ...

. To camouflage his movements Amary Ngoné marched the army east to lake Danki, on the southern edge of Jolof, rather than directly to the imperial capital of Ouarkhokh. He left the bulk of his forces there, heading to Ouarkhokh with only a small group. They buried javelins along the way. When the ''buurba'' received them insultingly, Amary Ngoné publicly declared that the ''Aajor'' (people of Cayor) had no need for such a chief. Offended, the Jolof-Jolof pursued them, but Amary and his companions kept them at bay thanks to the stashes of ammunition they had left. Arriving at Danki, the full Cayor army ambushed the pursuers and killed the ''buurba''. Upon his return to Cayor, Amary Ngoné was received with a great feast to celebrate the kingdom's new independence from Jolof. Dece Fu Njogu was acclaimed ''damel'', meaning 'breaker', but during the celebrations was killed when a group of bulls brought to be slaughtered stampeded. Amary was immediately elected ''damel'' in his place. Upon his enthronement, he was ritually bathed by Islamic

marabout In the Muslim world, the marabout () is a Sayyid, descendant of Muhammad (Arabic: سـيّد, Romanization of Arabic, romanized: ''sayyid'' and ''sidi'' in the Maghreb) and a Islam, Muslim religious leader and teacher who historically had the f ...

s. Soon after his accession, Amary's uncle died as well, and he was elected ''Teigne'' of Baol, the first monarch to hold the dual title. Amary Ngoné proclaimed a new constitution for the independent Cayor and founded a new, more centrally located capital at Mboul. He repelled multiple invasions from Jolof in the first years of his reign, each time killing the ''buurba'' who led them. He also led a force north into the

Sahara desert The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

to chasten the Hassaniya emirs who were raiding south of the

Senegal river The Senegal River ( or "Senegal" - compound of the Serer term "Seen" or "Sene" or "Sen" (from Roog Seen, Supreme Deity in Serer religion) and "O Gal" (meaning "body of water")); , , , ) is a river in West Africa; much of its length mark ...

, reportedly going halfway to

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. Amari Ngoné reigned for 44 years. Upon his death in 1593 he was succeeded in Cayor by his son

Massamba Tako Massamba is a Congolese surname that may refer to *Alphonse Massamba-Débat Alphonse Massamba-Débat (February 11, 1921 – March 25, 1977) was a political figure of the Republic of the Congo who led the country from 1963 until 1968 in a one-par ...

and in Baol by his nephew Mamalik Tioro Ndjingèn, Massamba's son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fall, Amary Ngone Sobel 1593 deaths Wolof people People from Cayor Senegalese monarchs