حفريات حول النسب الامومي في دولة الفونج واثره على الشمال النيلي ..

Quote: When a king in Sinnar dies they choose another, and they do it in the following manner. All the shaykhs and the other highest noblemen of the kingdom assemble; they elect one of the royal princes, born to either a legitimate wife or a concubine, and name him king. All the other [princes], who are still confined in the palace, they then kill with lances. Should one escape, the newly-elected king, as his blood brother, is then himself obligated to pursue him and put him to death. This is done so that there will be no rebellion against the king among the many princes, nor any division of the realm; the peace of the kingdom is preserved. Under these circumstances it is better to be the son of a slave than of the king! In regard to the princesses they have another custom, and in their case a much happier one than with the men. They suffer no misfortune, but are honorably married off. According to the custom of the land, the king cannot have carnal knowledge of either a concubine or a queen after she has borne him a prince, so that the latter might, as the firstborn, achieve the royal choice. Such a queen or concubine is then dismissed from the palace and given an honorable maintenance either in the city or at another place in the kingdom. The prince, however, she must leave in the palace