The Ajuran Sultanate was a Somali empire in the Horn of Africa which existed from the 13th century to the late 17th century, with Marka serving as its capital. Ajuran was founded by the House of Garen as the successors of the Garen Kingdom of Ogaden, and Marka, Mogadishu, and Barawa became major urban centers after the nomadic Somalis settled into cities. During the Age of Discovery, the Portuguese systematically sacked and plundered the coastal cities of Kilwa, Mombasa, Malindi, Pate, and Lamu in East Africa, and the Portuguese failed to capture Mogadishu during the 1500s. In the late 17th century, the Ajuran Empire declined in power as its client rulers were deposed, and the Ajuran Sultanate was replaced by the Geledi Sultanate and the Hiraab Imamate.