This fourth edition of this best-selling core history textbook offers a richly illustrated, single volume, narrative introduction to African history, from a hugely respected authority in the field. The market-leading range of illustrated material from prior editions is now further improved, featuring not only additional and redrawn maps and a refreshed selection of photographs, but the addition of full colour to make these even more instructive, evocative and attractive. Already hugely popular on introductory African History courses, the book has been widely praised for its engaging and readable style, and is unrivalled in scope, both geographically and chronologically - while many competitors limit themselves to certain regions or eras, Shillington chronicles the entire continent, from prehistory right up to the present day. For this new edition, both content and layout have been thoroughly refreshed and restructured to make this wealth of material easily navigable, and even more appealing to students unfamiliar with the subject.New to this Edition:- Now in full colour with fresh new design- Part structure and part intros added to help navigation- New and improved online resources include a new testbank, interactive timelines, lecturer slides, debates In African history, essay questions and further readings- Revised and updated in light of recent research

Introduction SECTION ONE: EARLY AND LATER PRE-HISTORY 1 Early prehistory of Africa 2 Later prehistory: farming and pastoralism in tropical Africa and Ancient Egypt SECTION TWO: EARLY IRON AGE 3 The impact of iron in north and west Africa 4 The Early Iron Age in central, eastern and southern Africa SECTION THREE: RELIGION AND EMPIRE IN NORTHERN AND WESTERN AFRICA 5 North Africa to 1000 CE 6 Trans-Saharan trade and the kingdom of ancient Ghana 7 Islam and the Sudanic states of west Africa SECTION FOUR: RELIGION, TRADE AND CHIEFTAINCY IN EASTERN, CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN AFRICA 8 Eastern Africa to the sixteenth century 9 Later Iron Age states and societies of central and southern Africa to the sixteenth century 10 Trading towns of the east African coast to the sixteenth century SECTION FIVE: WEST AFRICA IN THE ERA OF THE SLAVE TRADE 11 The Atlantic slave trade, sixteenth to eighteenth century 12 West African states and societies, to the eighteenth century SECTION SIX: STATE RENEWAL AND FORMATION IN NORTH, EAST, CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN AFRICA 13 North and north-east Africa to the eighteenth century 14 Central and eastern Africa to the eighteenth century 15 Southern Africa to the eighteenth century SECTION SEVEN: THE NINETEENTH CENTURY BEFORE THE EUROPEAN 'SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA' 16 West Africa in the nineteenth century 17 The ending of the Atlantic slave trade 18 Christian Missions, new States and pre-colonial 'nationalism' 19 Central and east Africa in the nineteenth century 20 Pre-industrial southern Africa in the nineteenth century 21 North and north-east Africa in the nineteenth century SECTION EIGHT: THE CHALLENGE OF CULTURAL AND POLITICAL IMPERIALISM, LATE-NINETEENTH CENTURY 22 Colonial conquest and African resistance in east, north-central and west Africa 23 Industrialisation, colonial conquest and African resistance in south-central and southern Africa SECTION NINE: THE IMPACT AND NATURE OF COLONIAL RULE, 1890-1945 24 Consolidation of empire: the early period of colonial rule 25 Africa between the wars: the high tide of colonial rule 26 The Second World War and Africa SECTION TEN: THE OVERTHROW OF COLONIALISM 27 The winning of independence (1) 28 The winning of independence (2) 29 The winning of independence (3) SECTION ELEVEN: AFRICA SINCE INDEPENDENCE 30 African responses to the colonial legacy 31 The challenges and dilemmas of development: debt and international aid 32 Contemporary Africa Further Reading Index.