At the start of the 16th Century, Indian Ocean supremacy was contested by the Portuguese & the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt (1250-1517). ‘Mamluk’ means one who is owned. The Sultanate had the Sultan heading a military caste of slave soldiers, the Mamluk (Mamluki in Kiswahili)...

The Mamluk Sultanate had no qualms with the Portuguese & their sea exploration until it reflected in their dwindling treasury coffers. The Portuguese slow but sure grasp of the pepper trade in Calicut, India & disrupting Muslim pilgrim traffic deprived them revenue from customs…

Forwarding their complaints to Pope Julius II, the Mamluk Sultanate threatened to mete out similar harsh treatment to Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land as the Portuguese were meting out to Muslim pilgrims, unless the Pope intervened…

The Portuguese knew of Mamluk naval strength that could almost rival theirs even as a lone entity. The message to the Pope was a signal to a pending Red Sea coalition to drive them out of the Indian Ocean. They had to act. Kilwa & Mombasa were unfortunate to be in their plans…

By order of King Manuel I of Portugal, the 7th India Armada (fleet) was assembled under Francisco de Almeida to establish dominance on the Indian Ocean via building fortresses at critical points & reducing any local threats, Mombasa was a rival to Portuguese-friendly Malindi...

Kilwa fell to the Portuguese in July 1505. On reaching the island & firing a gun in salute, Almeida received no response to the courtesy. He launched an attack that saw the ruler of Kilwa flee. They imposed a new ruler & set about building the first fort on the E.African coast...

The news reached Mombasa & the Sultan prepared for an oncoming onslaught. He hired 1000+ Mijikenda archers, in those years referred as the ’Muzungulos/Muzungulos’ by the Portuguese, before being later known as ‘Wanyika’. Payment for the archer services was pieces of fine cloth…

Portuguese records of the time, probably exaggerated, portray the Mijikenda arrows as carrying poison made by ‘boiling the fruit of the oil palm tree’ & causing immediate death by causing blood not to flow in the body. Also, that the poison had no antidote…

Declining Almeida’s offer of peace in return for tribute to Portugal, the Sultan declared “the warriors of Mombasa are not the hens of Kilwa”. What followed was a fierce fight in the “narrow streets of the city”, poisoned arrows, stones from rooftops against Portuguese guns...

The gun ultimately prevailed & much of the city was torched. Scores of Mombasa residents & some of the hired Mijikenda archers died. The Sultan escaped with some Mijikenda archers & his survivors through the palm trees that covered the city. 5 of Almeida's men also died.

200+ Mombasa residents were taken as slaves. The city was under attack twice more by the Portuguese before Fort Jesus was built. It is not for lack of spirit/a unified front that Mombasa fell in its history but by being against a better-equipped enemy. Each time it gave its all.

Sources: 'The Muzungulos of Mombasa', James Kirkman...'7th Portuguese India Armada'...

@PwaniTribune You must be historian and a good one.

@hazzun07 I try bro. Humbled and shukran.

@PwaniTribune ..let this serve as a reminder to the current state of affairs....the warriors of Mombasa are not the hens of Kilwa. Kenya has forgotten that the Multi-Party Democracy's Mightiest push came from Mombasa

@deadinmombasa You seem passionate about the Coast's involvement in the second liberation. Ever thought of doing some writing on it? It could inform and inspire many.

@PwaniTribune Aah after reading numerous books on the same, I'm really happy to confirm that the above is accurate. 👍Kazi safi @PwaniTribune , as always.

@IntrepidKomen Shukran bro. Thank you for the seal of approval as well.

@PwaniTribune Wow, what a wonderful thread. The name Francisco de Almeida has reminded me of a certain history text book, during my primary school days, whose cover had a photo of Fort Jesus. That book made me fall in love with history.

@AbutoNeville Shukran sana kaka. History is golden.

@PwaniTribune First class article!!

@siambiliki Thanks Senior.

@PwaniTribune Great thread

@achiles20373373 Many thanks!

@PwaniTribune Thanks for this piece of history bro.

@JeffahJoseph Karibu kaka. Thanks for taking the time to read through.

@PwaniTribune Thank you for the history lesson

@mc_wachira Shukran kwa kuhudhuria darasa, hehe. Much appreciated.

@PwaniTribune What an amazing thread.

@abuiman20013 Shukran sana.

@PwaniTribune Your threads are quite something! I enjoy them… 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

@didi_filipoh Thanks bro. Much appreciated. Your readership is valued.

@PwaniTribune Nice read bro 🙏🏾

@VictorMwambacha Thanks kaka.