Nubian Christian Kingdoms

Timeline

1. 600–640Nubian reach of the Nile · SudanNobatia (north), Makuria (center), and Alodia (south) lay along the Nile, all adopting Coptic Orthodoxy as the state religion. Church architecture, monasteries, and Greek–Coptic inscriptions testify to the flourishing of Nubian Christian culture in the 7th century, maintaining religious ties with Byzantine Egypt.
2. 641–652Dongola · SudanAfter the Arab conquest of Egypt, Abdullah ibn Sa'd led an army south into Nubia and besieged Makuria's capital Dongola. The Nubians resisted stubbornly; the Arabs failed to fully conquer them, and the stalemate created conditions for a later diplomatic settlement.
3. 651–700First Cataract of the Nile · EgyptArab authorities and the Nubian kingdoms signed the Baqt treaty, under which Nubia was to pay annual tribute of slaves and livestock, while the Arabs pledged not to advance further south and to allow Nubia to keep its Christian faith. The treaty made Nubia an independent Christian oasis on the edge of the Islamic world for centuries.