African Jihad States c. 1800

The late 18th and early 19th centuries saw a series of Muslim uprisings amongst Fula populations across West Africa, which resulted in the establishment of a number of Jihad states. These events, known as the Fula Jihads, were conducted upon religious calls to arms by local Islamic leaders who rallied the Muslim Fulas together against nearby governing kingdoms. The first of the Fula Jihads occurred in Bondu in 1688. This was followed by a Jihad amongst the Muslim population of Futa Jallon in 1725. The Imamate of Futa Jallon was then founded, which went on to adopt a strict system of Sharia law. The largest of the Fula Jihads resulted in the Fulani War between 1804–08. The exiled Islamic scholar Usman dan Fodio raised an army against the local Hausa kingdoms. He gradually gained control of territory in the region, which would later be established as the Sokoto Caliphate.