Rise of the Almoravid Movement

Timeline

1. 1061–1065Aghmat · MoroccoWithin the Sanhaja Berber tribal alliances of the Lamtuna and Gudala, Yusuf ibn Tashfin succeeded Abu Bakr ibn Umar as effective military commander, reorganizing warriors under strict religious discipline and consolidating the Almoravid movement's core armed forces.
2. 1066–1070West African Sahel to southern Morocco · MaghrebIn the mid-to-late 1060s Almoravid forces expanded along the Saharan gold–salt trade routes, weakening the Ghana Empire's border control and gradually moving north into southern Morocco. The movement's combination of religious reform and military conquest reshaped the political landscape of the Maghreb and the northern Sahel.