Prelude to the Mahdiyya: Peasants and Traders in the Shendi Region, 1821-1885During the first colonial period (the Turkiyya, 1821 85), the Shendi region of the Northern Sudan was inhabited by peasants, traders and nomads. This book analyses socio economic change among the peasants and traders during this formative period of Sudanese history. Administration, agriculture and trade in transition from a pre colonial to a colonial economy are discussed. Anders Bj rkelo argues that Turkish demands for cash crop cultivation and