When We Ruled

BOOK REVIEW

Every black household should own a copy of When We Ruled, Robin Walker’s epic opus chronicling African civilisation throughout the ages. Eloquently debunking the prevailing myth that African history began with slavery and ended with colonialism, Walker’s authoritative work goes in to painstaking detail about the Africa of our ancestors – the empires, the scholarship and the architecture - lending credibility to the much-maligned fact that Africa is indeed the cradle of humanity. Quoting from respected Arab and European establishment scholars and employing the use of maps and other historical imagery, Walker leaves no stone unturned in his quest to uncover the hidden truth of the continent’s former glory.

When We Ruled is a masterpiece of precision. Furthermore, it’s testament to the tenacity, conviction and vision of one man in search of the truth. Walker, who is now a secondary school teacher, worked for years as a night porter to support his research. Following in the hard-fought tradition of African-American scholars like DuBois, Walker is a pioneer of black British scholarship in historical African study. Such are the potential consequences of his groundbreaking work that historians, academics and liberals alike are frightened of what When We Ruled reveals. Even left-leaning papers like The Guardian have refused to review it and there will undoubtedly be people of African descent who, following years of Eurocentric conditioning will find some of Walker’s revelations hard to swallow.

At over 700 pages When We Ruled is a mammoth undertaking, both for the writer and the reader but it’s well worth the effort. Walker should be commended for he’s performed a great service to African and World history. The legacy of his work, if fully appreciated and embedded in the collective consciousness as it deserves to be, will be a more educated society, a more fulfilled people and a more productive Africa and its Diaspora.

When We Ruled by Robin Walker, published by Every Generation Media is out now priced £30 (Hardcover). Get your copy now. More info: www.whenweruled.com