of Sennar exercised his influence among the manjils forcing them to marry a woman from the royal clan, which acted as royal spies. A member of the royal clan also always sat at their side, observing their behaviour. Furthermore, the manjils had to travel to Sennar every year to pay tribute and account for their deeds. It was under king Badi II when Sennar became the fixed capital of the state and when written documents concerning administrative matters appeared, with the oldest known one dating to 1654. Military The army of Sennar was feudal. Each noble house could field a military unit measured in its power by its horsemen. Subjects, although generally armed, were only rarely called to war, in cases of uttermost need. Most Funj warriors were slaves traditionally captured in annual slave raids called salatiya, targeting the stateless non-Muslims in the Nuba mountains pejoratively referred to as Fartit. The army was divided into the infantry, represented by an official called muqaddam al-qawawid, as well as the cavalry, represented by the muqaddam al-khayl. The Sultan only rarely led armies into battle and instead appointed a commander for the duration of the campaign, called amin jaysh al-sultan. Nomadic warriors fighting for the Funj had an own appointed leader, the aqid or qa’id. The weaponry of the Funj warriors consisted of thrusting lances, throwing knives, javelins, hide shields and, most importantly, long broadswords which could be wielded two-handed. Body armour consisted of leather or quilts and additionally mail, while the hands were protected by leather gloves. On the heads, there were worn iron or copper helmets. The horses were also armoured, wearing thick quilts, copper headgear and breast plates. While armour was also manufactured locally, it was at times imported as well. During the late 17th century Sultan Badi III attempted to modernize the army by importing firearms and even cannons, but they were quickly disregarded after his death not only because the import was expensive and unreliable, but also because the traditionally armed elites feared for their power. In the early 1770s James Bruce remarked that the Sultan had "not one musket in his whole army". One time a year Sennar conducted a slave-raid against the regions to its south and south-west. The Funj made use of Shilluk and Dinka mercenaries. Culture Religion Islam By the time of the visit by David Reubeni in 1523, the Funj, originally Pagans or