All through various civilizations in world history,battles and wars have forged men into beings whose deeds have been imprinted in the sands of time.We have read about various exploits of great and mighty ancient warriors of old.Men whose extraordinary tales of conquest have been adapted into motion pictures not only as a form of amusement,but as a means of enlightenment to the public as a whole. We have had the pleasure to study the likes of Alexander The Great from Macedonia,Hannibal Barcka of Cartage,Hector the great Trojan prince,Achilles of the Myrmidons in Greece and,Publius Cornelius Scipio of the Roman Republic.Remarkably,in this same league,the World has also produced renowned female warriors whose legendary life has left behind,a trail of mythical awe.

Most western movie enthusiasts would agree that the mere mention of the fictional female character “Xena” sparks a flame of admiration in the hearts of those who have followed the chronicle of this epic personality.Having surfaced first in 1995 where she was a secondary character to an equally formidable male fictional and Mythical character “Hercules” in the series Hercules:The Legendary Journey by Robert Tapert.Later on,a TV Series based on the Exploits of the Warrior Princess Xena which aired in the US and parts of Canada was crafted and put in motion.Little did we know that this character was actually inspired by a woman who was not only a queen and warrior,but probably the greatest feminine personality Africa has ever produced.She is the great legendary Queen Amina of Zazzau.

The decline of the Songhai Empire gave rise to subsequent clashes which occurred among the Hausa nation and against neighboring settlements which occurred during the 15th and 16th centuries.The kingdom of Zazzau was greatly involved in this ensuing crisis due to the fact that it was situated at an intersection linking three major trade routes of North Africa to the interior southern jungles and the lands west of Sudan.It was during this time that a warrior was born into the royal zazzau fold. Born around 1533 to the legendary Queen Bakwa Turunku in the province of Zazzau which today is known as Zaria in the Northern part of Nigeria.This occurred after the fall of the great Songhai Empire and was approximately 200 years before the rise of Uthman Dan Fodio and the Sokoto caliphate.

The young princess Amina at the peak of her adolescent years was already proving herself to be a worthy would-be queen and a capable successor to the throne of Zazzau.Though not directly in line for the throne,Amina was lectured by her mother,the rudiments of being a queen and also took part in the daily gathering with dignitaries of Zazzau.Also,Amina unlike other young women of her time,had a very strong interest for the art of War and matters of military and strategy thus,her decision to pick a career in military.This she achieved by constantly perfecting her skills in training along with the cavalry warriors of Zazzau.Eventually,she emerged as a fierce warrior the new cavalry leader of the Zazzau military and in the process,not only acquired a great amount of wealth,but earned herself various awards, accolades and,the admiration of the warriors along her adventurous military career.This principally aided her ascension to the throne of Zazzau which was vacant after the demise of her younger brother,the king who had hitherto ruled for 10 years after the death of their mother.From this time onward,she meter-morphed into the legendary figure we now know.


As said earlier,this was a period of turmoil and wars throughout the region which proved to be a perfect scenario for the new warrior queen to carry out her military campaigns.The seven Bokwoi or original states at the heart of Hausaland. then were Zazzau,Kano,Garun-Gabas,Rano,Katsina,Gobir and,Daura.Her first real military offensive came few months after her emergence as queen.She quickly launched series of assaults against the six remaining Hausa regions until by force of arms,she was able to proclaim herself ruler over them hence,making them vassal states.There is even an account that stated that the ruler of the Nupe kingdom made a tribute payment of 40 eunuchs and 10,000 kola nuts to the Warrior queen thereby making her the first monarch in the Hausa states with eunuchs at her service. Furthermore,Kano and Katsina were also made to pay tributes to her.It was also recorded that she carried out an invasion on the lands of Bauchi until she reached the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south hereby,earning her the nickname ‘Amina,daughter of Nikatau,a woman as capable as a man’.



The economic implications of her many wars were fruitful.Her main aim for waging lots of battles was not only to conquer and bring more states to her fold,but to ensure that her numerous traders were granted safe passage to their points of destination.This way,she was able to boost the wealth and power of her kingdom with gold,new crops and,slaves.Furthermore,the walled fortifications found around some conquered cities during her reign nicknamed “ganuwar Amina” meaning “Amina’s wall” was as a result of her architectural ingenuity.The walls basically served as a form of psychological and physical reassurance to the people on issues bothering safety of lives and properties.Most of these earthen walls still stand as at the time of this writing.

Perhaps,the most bizarre of form of character attributed to Amina was her exploits with the male specie.She was known to have neither taking a legal husband nor bore children at any particular time in history.She exhibited a trait similar to that of the spider specie known as the “black widow”,who specializes in disposing-off her mating partner have intercourse.It was said that every time she goes into battle, she picks a man from one of her conquered foes and spends the night with the unfortunate soul,thereafter in the morning,she had him executed.Some said it was a means to ensure that words about her sexual escapade does not surface in the public.

During her 3 and half decade reign as a warrior queen,she single-handedly expanded the Zazzau kingdom to its greatest and largest in history, and also made it the trading center for all lands of the southern Hausa states.This consolidated Zazzau’s wealth and prosperity.Finally,the great warrior queen was recorded to have died during a military campaign at a site called Attaagar near Bida in present day Nigeria.It is still common knowledge that she still remains the only ruler closest in terms of bringing the region of what we now know as Nigeria under a single authority.

Undoubtedly a woman as capable as a man,no other woman in living memory has ever attempted such a show of courage on a large and deadly scale;not even the great female Pharaoh Cleopatra of the Ptolemaic dynasty or the Dahomey Amazons came close to her warring legacy.She destroyed the myth attached to women as fickle and emotional beings.Also,her legacy and time as a queen put to sleep all notions and stereotypical references attached to women with regards to their role in leadership and governance in a male dominated society.

The epic story of the great warrior queen remains a tale that continues to manifest in the hearts of mortals and all who see untold possibilities within the strengths of womanhood.Even in death,she beckons to all women to rise from their decades long slumber and walk the epic path she painstakingly cleared for the feminine specie centuries ago.Indeed,Amina is Africa’s and perhaps,without prejudice,the world’s greatest heroine figure.


Article composed by Michael Senaike for Nubia Republic

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