this led to considerable social mobility, for example, in the case of Sheikh Ramiya of Bagamoyo. Captured as a child in the eastern Congo, he was sold to a household in Bagamoyo, the most important trading hub of the Tanganyikan coast. Over time, he was not only able to ransom himself, but rose to become the town’s wealthiest and most respected political and religious authority, building a significant clientele through his leadership of the local Qādirīya brotherhood. 4