The Great Garamantes Empire of Libya

Figure 1: Remnants of Garama, the capital city of the Garamantes Empire

 

You may have heard of the Saraha Desert.  It is the desert that exists in northern Africa, stretching from coast to coast on the continent.  It has been home to various great civilizations, including the ancient Egyptians and Nubians, but it was also where another great civilization existed: the Garamantes Empire, which is considered one of Libya’s first empires.  This blog post is dedicated to discussing what is currently known about these people based on the study of the empire’s capital city: Garama.

 

The capital city of the Garamantes empire is Garama, which is beneath and adjacent to the modern day Libyan city of Germa.  Human occupation of the region existed for hundreds of years before this capital city was established in 500 BC, which is a period marked by dramatically changing climatic conditions.  The region, which previously had plentiful water resources, was rapidly changing, leading to the hyper-arid environment that the region is known for today.  For unknown reasons the Garamantes remained in this area, perhaps because of the long history of occupation, and they made the best of the conditions.  They were successfully able to do so based on creative technological advancements that came, in part, from mimicking those of neighboring civilizations.  The Garamantes constructed a complex system of underground irrigation canals known as foggaras.  These intricate canals spanned hundreds of miles throughout the desert and region, and they were dug and constructed anywhere from 30 to hundreds of feet below the Earth’s surface.  These foggaras brought water resources to the city and throughout the neighboring countryside, enabling the Garamantes to maintain a plentiful agriculture.  They grew and harvested dates, grapes, olives, figs, sorghum, millet, barley and wheat, while also raising cattle, sheep, and pigs.

 

The Garamantes were able to sustain a large population for their capital city (Figure 1).  It is estimated that 4000 people lived within the urban center, while another 6000 lived in suburban residences outside the main city.  The city was constructed in large part with ashlar stonework, which was used to create various large structures such as temples, entertainment centers, public plazas, and homes for the royals and elites.  Inexpensive mudbrick structures were also built, but these were for lower class residences. 

 

The Garamantes empire was maintained through various trade networks and a fierce military.  The Garamantes controlled all of the trade in the region, acting as intermediaries for trade between the ancient Greeks and Romans and most of Africa.  They also manufactured and traded their own goods that they traded with foreign people.  Their most lucrative trade item, however, was enslaved human labor.  It is believed that the majority of the slaves were foreigners captured through the Garamantes military conquests.  Various early historians, including the famous Greek historian Herodotus, chronicled their military exploits, which characterized them as a formidable foe.  The ancient Romans stated the same, which is supported by the failure of the Roman military to best the Garamante military.  The Garamante recorded their own histories through written records and cave art.  Collectively, we know that the Garamantes were knowledgeable horse riders who used various chariots in battle.  They wore little to no armor but utilized javelins and shields in combat.

 

The Garamantes empire fell after 1000 years.  It is unclear what specifically led to the empire’s collapse, although it is assumed that they were unable to maintain their population in the face of continued changing climatic conditions.  Ultimately, the king was captured around A.D. 668 and the empire fell.  The people continued on in the region, building a new town (Germa) and maintaining elements of their previous social lives in the future incarnations that continue to exist to this day.

 

Bibliography

Brooks, N. (2002). The Fezzan Project: Geoarchaeology of the Sahara. Retrieved from The Fezzan Project: Geoarchaeology of the Sahara: https://web.archive.org/web/20060207154954/http://www.cru.uea.ac.uk/~e118/Fezzan/fezzan_home.html

Milligan, M. (2021, May 17). Germa – Capital of the Saharan Kingdom of the Sands. Heritage Daily, p. 1.

Temehu.com. (2023). Germa. Retrieved from Temehu: https://www.temehu.com/Cities_sites/germa.htm

World Archaeology. (2005, January 7). Garama: an ancient civilisation in the Central Sahara. World Archaeology, p. 1.