Lost Kingdoms of Africa

The first episode looks at Nubia, in what is now northern Sudan, a kingdom that dominated a vast area of the eastern Sahara for thousands of years. Its people were described as barbarians and mercenaries, and yet Nubia has left us with some of the most spectacular monuments in the world.

Gus Casely-Hayford explores the history of Great Zimbabwe, a symbol of African genius which gives an insight into the empires which once dominated southern Africa.

Asante in West Africa was a kingdom that was built on gold and slaves, which ensured its important place in an economy that linked three continents.

Gus Casely-Hayford visits Morocco, once the centre of a vast kingdom created by African Berbers that stretched from northern Spain to West Africa.