Africans Who Ruled the Holy Land: The Forgotten Governors, Generals, and Kings

The Holy Land—stretching across ancient Israel, Palestine, Jordan, parts of Syria, and Lebanon—is often imagined as a region shaped exclusively by Near Eastern and Mediterranean peoples. But the historical record tells a different, more complex story: Africans not only lived in the Holy Land—they ruled parts of it, governed its cities, commanded its armies, and shaped its politics for centuries.

Ancient texts, archaeology, and modern academic studies reveal a deep African presence — particularly Egyptian, Nubian, and sometimes Ethiopian — in the governance of the Levant. Their influence spans from the Late Bronze Age through the Classical period and into the early Christian and Islamic eras.

 

1. The Egyptian Pharaohs Who Ruled Canaan

For nearly 400 years, much of the Holy Land was under direct Egyptian rule. Cities like Megiddo, Hazor, Jaffa, Lachish, and Gaza were governed by Egyptian commanders or loyal vassals.

Egypt’s control is confirmed by the Amarna Letters, a collection of diplomatic tablets from Canaanite rulers to the Pharaoh. As Egyptologist William Moran explains:

“The Amarna tablets show that Egypt exercised real political authority over Canaan, installing its own officials and military garrisons throughout the region.” — W.L. Moran, The Amarna Letters

Pharaohs of the 18th and 19th Dynasties (such as Thutmose III, Amenhotep III, and Ramesses II) appointed Egyptian-born Africans as:

• governors (often called “mayors” or hazzanu)
• military commanders
• tax administrators
• overseers of fortresses and ports

Archaeologist Israel Finkelstein notes:

“Finds at Jaffa, Beth Shean, and Gaza clearly demonstrate the presence of Egyptian officials living and ruling directly in Canaan.” — I. Finkelstein, The Forgotten Kingdom

These rulers were African—Egyptian by birth and identity—exercising authority over the Holy Land long before the rise of Israelite kingdoms.

 

2. The Nubian Pharaohs Who Dominated the Wider Near East

Perhaps the most dramatic African rule over the Holy Land came from the 25th Dynasty of Kush, the Nubian line of pharaohs who conquered Egypt and claimed influence across the Levant.

Taharqa, the most famous of the Kushite kings, played a pivotal role in the geopolitics of Judah and Jerusalem. According to Assyriologist Donald Redford:

“Taharqa’s military intervention in the Levant directly affected Judah’s fate during Sennacherib’s campaigns.” — D.B. Redford, Egypt, Canaan, and Israel

The Bible itself mentions Taharqa (2 Kings 19:9), showing that an African pharaoh was a decisive power in the struggles of the Holy Land.

These Kushite-African rulers:

• sent armies into Palestine
• protected Jerusalem from Assyrian destruction
• influenced Judean politics and alliances
• maintained diplomatic control across the region

The Black Pharaohs’ impact was so significant that classical historian Herodotus wrote:

“The Ethiopians [Nubians] once ruled Egypt and beyond, extending their power over Asia.” — Herodotus, Histories (Book II)

This “Asia” included the Holy Land.

 

3. African Mercenaries and Military Rulers in the Levant

African soldiers—Egyptian, Nubian, Libyan, and Ethiopian—played major roles in ruling and defending key cities in the Holy Land.

Archaeologist Oren Tal explains:

“Egyptian garrisons in Jaffa and Beth Shean included significant numbers of Nubian and Libyan troops, some of whom became local rulers.” — O. Tal, The Archaeology of Ancient Israel

Nubian archers, famous for accuracy, were especially prominent. Reliefs from Beth Shean and Jaffa show African soldiers wearing Kushite headdresses while commanding local Canaanite forces.

In some cases, African generals became:

• governors of city-states
• administrators of ports
• overseers of trade routes
• enforcers of Egyptian authority

 

4. Africans in Early Christian and Byzantine Jerusalem

By the first centuries CE, African influence in Jerusalem and the Levant was still substantial.

The Acts of the Apostles records an Ethiopian royal official—the Ethiopian Eunuch—who visited Jerusalem as part of the Kandake (Queen Mother) court of Meroe. New Testament scholar Craig Keener states:

“The Ethiopian court official in Acts 8 represented a powerful African kingdom with longstanding ties to Jerusalem.” — C. Keener, Acts: An Exegetical Commentary

Christian Ethiopia later formed political ties to Jerusalem, funding churches and sending governors and monks who wielded influence in the city.

 

5. African Influence in Early Islamic Jerusalem

During the early Islamic period (7th–10th centuries), Africans held positions of power in Jerusalem and the wider Levant—especially Nubians and East Africans serving in the Umayyad and Abbasid armies.

Historian Michael Lecker notes:

“East Africans and Sudanese frequently served as military commanders, governors, and elite guards in the early Islamic Near East.” — M. Lecker, Muslims, Jews, and Pagans

Some served as:

• governors (wālīs)
• commanders of Jerusalem’s garrison
• administrators of taxation and pilgrimage routes

African political influence was real and documented.

 

 The Holy Land Was an Afro-Levantine World

When we retrace the historical record, a clear picture emerges:

Africans were not outsiders in the Holy Land—they were rulers, generals, governors, diplomats, and power brokers.

From the Egyptian and Nubian pharaohs to African generals in Bronze Age Canaan, from Christian Ethiopian officials to early Islamic African leaders, the region’s history is profoundly shaped by African governance.

As historian David Wengrow summarizes:

“Africa and the Near East were never separate worlds. Their histories are entangled, their peoples intertwined.” — D. Wengrow, The Origins of the State

References

Amarna Letters & Egyptian Rule in Canaan

1. Moran, William L. The Amarna Letters. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992.

2. Finkelstein, Israel. The Forgotten Kingdom: The Archaeology and History of Northern Israel. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature Press, 2013.

3. Finkelstein, Israel, and Neil Asher Silberman. The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts. New York: Free Press, 2001.

Egyptian & Nubian Rule over the Levant
4. Redford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992.
5. Morkot, Robert. The Black Pharaohs: Egypt's Nubian Rulers. London: The Rubicon Press, 2000.
6. Herodotus. The Histories. Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. London: Penguin Classics, 2003.

African Military Presence & Governance in Canaan
7. Tal, Oren. The Archaeology of Ancient Israel: From the Bronze Age to the Roman Period. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022.
8. Higginbotham, Carolyn R. Egyptian Imperialism in Late Bronze Age Canaan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000.
9. Brandl, Baruch. “Egyptian Garrisons in Canaan.” Israel Exploration Journal 38, no. 1–2 (1988): 1–12.

Africans & Early Christianity in Jerusalem
10. Keener, Craig S. Acts: An Exegetical Commentary, Vol. 2. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013.

Africans in the Early Islamic Near East
11. Lecker, Michael. Muslims, Jews, and Pagans: Studies on Early Islamic Medina. Leiden: Brill, 1995.
12. Kennedy, Hugh. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State. London: Routledge, 2001.

General African–Levantine Historical Connections
13. Wengrow, David. The Origins of the State: Property, Hierarchy, and Early Political Systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022.
14. Smith, Stuart Tyson. “Egypt and the Levant: Cross-Cultural Interaction in the Bronze Age.” Near Eastern Archaeology 65, no. 3 (2002): 164–181.