Egypt and Sudan compared

Entangled histories

11 events in which either nation’s sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle; nothing here was written for this page.

1. c. 2500–1500 BCE

   The Kerma culture

   The city-state of Kerma dominates the middle Nile, one of the earliest urban civilisations in sub-Saharan Africa and a rival of pharaonic Egypt.

   Formation · from the Sudan chronicle · Nubia, Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush · Kingdom of Kush, The Kingdom of Kush

2. c. 1070 BCE

   Kush independent at Napata

   As Egypt's New Kingdom collapses, Kush re-emerges as an independent kingdom centred on Napata, near Gebel Barkal.

   Formation · from the Sudan chronicle · Nubia, Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush · Kingdom of Kush, Sudan — The kingdom of Kush

3. c. 727 BCE

   Piye conquers Egypt — the 25th Dynasty

   The Kushite king Piye (Piankhi) brings Egypt under Nubian rule, founding the 25th Dynasty of "Black Pharaohs"; Taharqa later reigns at its height.

   War & Rupture · from the Sudan chronicle · Nubia, Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush · Kingdom of Kush, The Kingdom of Kush

4. 671 BCE

   Assyrians expel the Kushites from Egypt

   Esarhaddon and then Ashurbanipal invade Egypt, driving the Kushite pharaohs back to Nubia by the 660s BCE.

   War & Rupture · from the Sudan chronicle · Nubia, Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush · Kingdom of Kush

5. c. 593–590 BCE

   Capital moves to Meroe

   After Psamtik II of Egypt sacks Napata, the Kushite court shifts south to Meroe, beginning the Meroitic age of iron, script and pyramids.

   Politics & Power · from the Sudan chronicle · Nubia, Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush · Kingdom of Kush, Sudan — The kingdom of Kush

6. c. 652 CE

   The Baqt treaty

   After repelling an Arab invasion, Makuria and Muslim Egypt agree to the Baqt, a durable pact of non-aggression and regulated trade.

   Politics & Power · from the Sudan chronicle · The Christian Kingdoms of Nubia · Baqt, Christian Nubia and Muslim Egypt Sign Treaty

7. 1820–1821

   Turco-Egyptian conquest; Khartoum founded

   Muhammad Ali's armies conquer the Sudan; Khartoum is founded c. 1821 at the junction of the Blue and White Niles as the seat of Egyptian rule.

   Colonisation · from the Sudan chronicle · Turco-Egyptian Rule and the Mahdist Revolt · History of Sudan — Egyptian-Ottoman rule over the Sudan, Khartoum, Sudan (1821– )

8. 1881

   Muhammad Ahmad proclaims himself the Mahdi

   A religious teacher declares himself the awaited redeemer and launches a holy war against Turco-Egyptian rule.

   Religion · from the Sudan chronicle · Turco-Egyptian Rule and the Mahdist Revolt · Mahdist State, Battle of Omdurman

9. 2 September 1898

   Battle of Omdurman

   Kitchener's Anglo-Egyptian army destroys the Khalifa's forces with overwhelming firepower, ending the Mahdist state.

   War & Rupture · from the Sudan chronicle · Turco-Egyptian Rule and the Mahdist Revolt · Battle of Omdurman, Mahdist State

10. 1899

    Anglo-Egyptian Condominium established

    Sudan is placed under joint British and Egyptian rule by the Condominium agreements of January and July 1899.

    Colonisation · from the Sudan chronicle · Turco-Egyptian Rule and the Mahdist Revolt · Anglo-Egyptian Condominium, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan

11. 1 January 1956

    Independence of the Sudan

    Sudan becomes a sovereign republic, ending Anglo-Egyptian rule; its parliament chooses independence over union with Egypt.

    Independence · from the Sudan chronicle · Independence and the Long Civil Wars · Anglo-Egyptian Condominium, Sudan