Suakin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Suakin is a port in north eastern Sudan, on the Red Sea. It was formerly the region's chief port on the Red Sea, but is now a secondary port to Port Sudan, which lies about 30 miles to the north. The old city, built of coral and reputed to be the last place where slaves were traded, is in ruins. Ferries run daily from Suakin to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

In earlier times, Suakin was an important port; there are a number of references to Venetian merchants residing at Suakin and Massawa in the 14th century. O. G. S. Crawford believed that this city was a center of Christianity in the 13th century; there is evidence that this city was a departure point for Ethiopian pilgrims for Jerusalem until Selim I conquered the port in 1517. Within 50 years, Suakin became the residence of the Pasha for the Ottoman province of Habeş, which included Arqiqo and Massawa (located in present-day Eritrea) until the end of Ottoman rule.

However, the Christian influence gradually waned after the fall of the Nubian kingdom in the 14th century, and the believers either died out or converted to Islam in the 16th century, due to the encouragement of the neighboring Kingdom of Sennar.

[edit] British military victory

In December, 1888 and in 1889, General Grenfell of Great Britain defeated the Mahdist forces here.

[edit] Buildings of Suakin

A detailed description of the buildings of Suakin including measured plans and detailed sketches can be found in "The Coral Buildings of Suakin" by Jeanne-Pierre Greenlaw, Kegan Paul international, 1995, ISBN 0-7103-0489-7.