Wadai, located northeast of Bagirmi, is a…

Wadai, located northeast of Bagirmi, is a non-Muslim kingdom that had emerged in the sixteenth century as an offshoot of the state of Darfur (in present-day western Sudan).

Early in the seventeenth century, the Maba and other small groups in the region had rallied to the Islamic banner of Abd al Karim, who led an invasion from the east and overthrew the ruling Tunjur group.

Abd al Karim had established a dynasty and sultanate that will last until the arrival of the French.

During much of the eighteenth century, Wadai had resisted reincorporation into Darfur.