Musa took out large loans from money lenders in Cairo before beginning his journey home. While Musa's palace has since vanished, the university and mosque still stand in Timbuktu today. However, many believe Mansa Musa's wealth outdoes that of all modern billionaires. Well after his death, Mansa Musa remained engrained in the imagination of the world as a symbol of fabulous wealth. While Mansa Musa's grandfather, Abu-Bakr, was a nephew of Sundiata Keita, the founder of the Malian Empire, neither he nor his descendants had a strong claim to the throne. However, territories that were crucial to trade or subject to revolt would receive a farba. In 1645, the Bamana attacked Manden, seizing both banks of the Niger right up to Niani. Wagadou's control over Manden came to a halt after internal instability lead to its decline. The House of Saud is ruled by the descendants of King Abdulaziz, who founded and unified Saudi Arabia in 1932. You cannot download interactives. This style is characterised by the use of mudbricks and an adobe plaster, with large wooden-log support beams that jut out from the wall face for large buildings such as mosques or palaces. [78] There was evidently a power struggle of some kind involving the gbara or great council and donson ton or hunter guilds. The "Qur'an" had a great importance to Mansa Musa as it states "God loves the charitable" (Document D). [g] Faga Leye was the son of Abu Bakr, a brother of Sunjata, the first mansa of the Mali Empire. [87] The figure of Fajigi combines both Islam and traditional beliefs. ), mansa (emperor) of the West African empire of Mali from 1307 (or 1312). They founded the first village of the Manding, Kirikoroni, then Kirina, Siby, Kita. [131] Mansa Musa placed a heavy tax on all objects that went through Timbuktu. Gold dust was used all over the empire, but was not valued equally in all regions. His administration and military work allowed the empire to survive through the 16th century, solidifying him, his empire, and his family into the imaginations of storytellers around the world. Musa expanded the borders of the Mali Empire, in particular incorporating the cities of Gao and Timbuktu into its territory. Mansa Musa was a devout Muslim. Bowmen formed a large portion of the field army as well as the garrison. 6. [84][85] However, some aspects of Musa appear to have been incorporated into a figure in Mand oral tradition known as Fajigi, which translates as "father of hope". Some Rights Reserved (2009-2023) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license unless otherwise noted. Certainly, his descendants were Muslim, and many went on pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj), and Keita's most famous descendent, Mansa Musa, dazzled Egypt and the Islamic world on his lavish pilgrimage east. [140], The Mali Empire maintained a semi-professional, full-time army in order to defend its borders. Evidence of cavalry in terracotta figures suggest the empire's prosperous economy as horses are not indigenous to Africa. Your email address will not be published. [8] Suleyman's death marked the end of Mali's Golden Age and the beginning of a slow decline. During this period, there was an advanced level of urban living in the major centers of Mali. During most of his journey, Ibn Battuta travelled with a retinue that included servants, most of whom carried goods for trade. [46] Kangaba became the last refuge of the Keita royal family after the collapse of the Mali Empire, and so has for centuries been associated with Sundiata in the cultural imagination of Mande peoples. [50] Such impermanent capitals are a historically widespread phenomenon, having occurred in other parts of Africa such as Ethiopia, as well as outside Africa, such as in the Holy Roman Empire.[51]. He intended to abdicate the throne and return to Mecca but died before he was able to do so. [116] Songhai authority over Bendugu and Kala declined by 1571, and Mali may have been able to reassert some authority over them. In Mali he promoted trans-Saharan trade that further increased the empires wealth. Mansa Musa Family Tree | Empire of Mali Server Costs Fundraiser 2023 Running a website with millions of readers every month is expensive. In 1542, the Songhai invaded the capital city but were unsuccessful in conquering the empire. Ms I of Mali, Ms also spelled Musa or Mousa, also called Kankan Ms or Mansa Musa, (died 1332/37? Mansa Musa (Musa I of Mali) was the king of the ancient empire of Mali in West Africa. All rights reserved. Maghan Sundiata was declared "faama of faamas" and received the title "mansa", which translates as "king". [149], Imperial banner carried with Musa I in 1325 Hajj, Social, economic and governmental reformation. [122] This campaign gutted Manden and destroyed any hope of the three mansas cooperating to free their land. Also, Sundiata divided the lands amongst the people assuring everyone had a place in the empire and fixed exchange rates for common products[127]. Each individual farariya ("brave") had a number of infantry officers beneath them called kl-koun or dknsi. [112] Still, no help came from the envoy and further possessions of Mali were lost one by one. He also made Eid celebrations at the end of Ramadan a national ceremony. These conflicts also interrupted trade. Afterward, he put himself and his kingdom, West Africa's Mali, on the map, literally. Ms I is widely considered the wealthiest man in history. During his reign, Mali was one of the richest kingdoms of Africa, and Mansa Musa was among the richest individuals in the world. In 1324, while staying in Cairo during his hajj, Mansa Musa, the ruler of the Mali Empire, told an Egyptian official whom he had befriended that he had come to rule when his predecessor led a fleet in an attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean and never returned. [93] It is during his reign that Fula raids on Takrur began. The Gbara or Great Assembly would serve as the Mandinka deliberative body until the collapse of the empire in 1645. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. The value of the salt was chiefly determined by the transport costs. [47], According to Jules Vidal and Levtzion, citing oral histories from Kangaba and Keyla, another onetime capital was Manikoro or Mali-Kura, founded after the destruction of Niani. The northern commercial towns of Oualata and Audaghost were also conquered and became part of the new state's northern border. The next great unit of exchange in the Mali Empire was salt. Although this time in the kingdom was prosperous, Mali's wealth and power soon declined. They are descendants of. Three bowmen supporting one spearman was the ratio in Kaabu and the Gambia by the mid-16th century. Mansa Mari Djata Keita II became seriously ill in 1372,[93] and power moved into the hands of his ministers until his death in 1374. There are a few references to Mali in early Islamic literature. He brought architects from Andalusia, a region in Spain, and Cairo to build his grand palace in Timbuktu and the great Djinguereber Mosque that still stands today. After many years in exile, first at the court of Wagadou and then at Mema, Sundiata was sought out by a Niani delegation and begged to combat the Sosso and free the kingdoms of Manden forever. According to Ibn Battuta who visited Mali in the mid-14th century, one camel load of salt sold at Walata for 810 mithqals of gold, but in Mali proper it realised 2030 ducats and sometimes even 40. Nobody lived in the area except the Musafa servants who worked to dig the salts and lived on dates imported from Sijilmasa and the Dar'a valley, camel meat and millet imported from the Sudan. [70] Two noble brothers from Niani, of unknown lineage, went to Dioma with an army and drove out the Fula Wassoulounk. [4] Much of the recorded information about the Mali Empire comes from 14th-century Tunisian historian Ibn Khaldun, 14th-century Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta and 16th-century Andalusian traveller Leo Africanus. "Mansa Musa Family Tree | Empire of Mali." Cairo and Mecca received this royal personage, whose glittering procession, in the superlatives employed by Arab chroniclers, almost put Africas sun to shame. Mansa Musa's reign itself was 25 years long. In the first millennium BC, early cities and towns were created by Mande peoples related to the Soninke people, along the middle Niger River in central Mali, including at Dia which began from around 900 BC, and reached its peak around 600 BC,[52] and Djenne-Djenno, which lasted from around 250 BC to 900 AD. Free warriors from the north (Mandekalu or otherwise) were usually equipped with large reed or animal hide shields and a stabbing spear that was called a tamba. In addition, the moral and religious principles he had taught his subjects endured after his death. The Twelve Doors of Mali were a coalition of conquered or allied territories, mostly within Manden, with sworn allegiance to Sundiata and his descendants. Available from http://incompetech.com. He's especially famous for his hajj to Mecca, during which he sponsored numerous mosques and madrases, and supposedly spent so much gold along the way that the metal was severely devalued, which for many people was not a very good thing. [54] Despite this initial awkwardness, the two rulers got along well, and exchanged gifts. In 14331434, the Mali Empire lost control of Timbuktu to the Tuareg, led by Akil [93] Gold mines in Boure, which is located in present-day Guinea, were discovered sometime near the end of the 12th century. Last modified October 17, 2020. [47][48][49] His procession reportedly included 60,000 men, all wearing brocade and Persian silk, including 12,000 slaves,[50] who each carried 1.8kg (4lb) of gold bars, and heralds dressed in silks, who bore gold staffs, organized horses, and handled bags. Musa Keita I (c. 1280 - c. 1337), or Mansa Musa, was the ninth Mansa of the Mali Empire, one of the most powerful West African states. Rather, authority would rest with the mansa and his court, wherever he went. [20] Arab interest in the Mali Empire declined after the Songhai conquered the northern regions of the empire which formed the primary contact between Mali and the Arab world. Mansa Ms, whose empire was one of the largest in the world at that time, is reported to have observed that it would take a year to travel from one end of his empire to the other. [12] However, these hypotheses have been rejected by locals and are inconsistent with the apparent cognate status of Mali and Mand.[19]. After unsuccessful attempts by Mansa Mama Maghan to conquer Bamana, the Bamana in 1670 sacked and burned the capital, and the Mali Empire rapidly disintegrated and ceased to exist, being replaced by independent chiefdoms. [74] The combined forces of northern and southern Manden defeated the Sosso army at the Battle of Kirina (then known as Krina) in approximately 1235. The Gao mosque was built of burnt bricks, which had not, until then, been used as a material for building in West Africa. [93] Musa may have brought as much as 18 tons of gold on his hajj,[94] equal in value to over US$957million in 2022. During his reign, the Mossi emperor Bonga of Yatenga raided into Mali and plundered Macina. [d], Musa's father was named Faga Leye[12] and his mother may have been named Kanku. Ibn Battuta had written that in Taghaza there were no trees and there is only sand and the salt mines. Thank you for your help! [93] Dyamani-tiguis had to be approved by the mansa and were subject to his oversight. Mansa Musa returned from Mecca with several Islamic scholars, including direct descendants of the prophet Muhammad and an Andalusian poet and architect by the name of Abu Es Haq es Saheli,. Musa I (known more commonly as Mansa Musa) was the tenth Mansa (a Mandinka word for "emperor") of the Mali Empire. This was due to the tax on trade in and out of the empire, along with all the gold Mansa Musa had. At Taghaza, for example, salt was exchanged; at Takedda, copper. World History Encyclopedia, 17 Oct 2020. Via one of the royal ladies of his court, Musa transformed Sankore from an informal madrasah into an Islamic university. In the event of conquest, farins took control of the area until a suitable native ruler could be found. Mansa Musa ruled the Malian empire from 1312-1337 CE. In search of a status discourse for Mande". Konkodougou Kamissa Keita, named for the province he once governed,[70] was crowned as Mansa Mari Djata Keita II in 1360. [102] It seems quite possible that an exodus of the inhabitants took place at this juncture and the importance of the city was not revived until the rise of the Songhai empire. Mss rule defined the golden age of Mali. Wali was succeeded by his brother Wati, about whom nothing is known,[82][83] and then his brother Khalifa. Research/Artwork: From Nothing Team. Mansa Musa eventually gained the throne owing to a strange sequence of events that turned in his favor. He brought back with him descendants of Mohammed, Islamic scholars, and architect Abu Es Haq es Saheli, who went on to create the Djinguereber mosque. [60] The anglicised version of this name, Sunjata, is also popular. [76] After unifying Manden, he added the Wangara goldfields, making them the southern border. [70] Both of these men were part of Mali's warrior elite known as the ton-ta-jon-ta-ni-woro ("sixteen carriers of quivers"). It had a well-organised army with an elite corps of horsemen and many foot soldiers in each battalion. Musa was a Muslim, and his pilgrimage to Mecca, also known as hajj, made him well known across Northern Africa and the Middle East. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media. At the time of Musa's ascension to the throne, Mali in large part consisted of the territory of the former Ghana Empire, which Mali had conquered. Al-Umari reported that Mali had fourteen provinces. [99] Mosques were built in Gao and Timbuktu along with impressive palaces also built in Timbuktu. The University of Sankore in Timbuktu was restaffed under Musa's reign with jurists, astronomers, and mathematicians. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. The final incarnation of the Gbara, according to the surviving traditions of northern Guinea, held 32 positions occupied by 28 clans. the descendants of the nearly 1,000-year-old objects made in Africa. [70][141] With the help of the river clans, this army could be deployed throughout the realm on short notice. His leadership of Mali, a state which stretched across two thousand . Imperial Malian architecture was characterised by Sudano-Sahelian architecture with a Malian substyle, which is exemplified by the Great Mosque of Djenne. [70] However, once Sundiata did gain use of his legs he grew strong and very respected. [3] During the 11th and 12th centuries, an empire began to develop following the decline of the Ghana Empire, or Wagadu, to the north. [20] Additional information comes from two 17th-century manuscripts written in Timbuktu, the Tarikh Ibn al-Mukhtar[c] and the Tarikh al-Sudan. There was also a palace conspiracy to overthrow him hatched by the Qasa (the Manding term meaning Queen) Kassi and several army commanders. Alternate titles: Kankan Ms, Mansa Musa, Mousa, Musa. [119], It would be the Mandinka themselves that would cause the final destruction of the empire. He stopped in Cairo along the way, and his luxurious spending and gift giving was so extensive that he diluted the value of gold by 10 to 25 percent and impacted Cairos economy for at least 12 years afterward. Mali's domain also extended into the desert. Umari also describes the empire as being south of Marrakesh and almost entirely inhabited except for few places. The city's water supply was a leading cause to its successes in trade. [105][106] Three years later, Oualata also fell into their hands. [70] Manden was split in half with the Dodougou territory to the northeast and the Kri territory to the southwest. We care about our planet! Mansa Musa brought architects and scholars from across the Islamic world into his kingdom, and the reputation of the Mali kingdom grew. The wooden window frames of an upper storey were plated with silver foil; those of a lower storey with gold. He has sometimes been called the wealthiest person in history. [71] The tiny kingdom of Niani was one of several in the Kri area of Manden. [122] They targeted Moroccan pashas still in Timbuktu and the mansas of Manden. Arabic sources omit Faga Leye, referring to Musa as Musa ibn Abi Bakr. The oldest brother, Srbandjougou Keita, was crowned Mansa Foamed or Mansa Musa Keita III. This is the least known period in Mali's imperial history. He has been subject to popular claims that he is the wealthiest person in history,[5] but his actual wealth is not known with any certainty. Please check the original source(s) for copyright information. Gao had already been captured by Musa's general, and Musa quickly regained Timbuktu, built a rampart and stone fort, and placed a standing army to protect the city from future invaders.[70]. Imperial Mali is best known through three primary sources: the first is the account of Shihab al-'Umari, written in about 1340 by a geographer-administrator in Mamluk Egypt. If Dakajalan was, in fact, situated near Kangaba, this may also have contributed to their conflation, beginning with Delafosse's speculation that the latter may have begun as a suburb of the former. [44] Niani's reputation as an imperial capital may derive from its importance in the late imperial period, when the Songhai Empire to the northeast pushed Mali back to the Manding heartland. [137], Copper was also a valued commodity in imperial Mali. Web. The Rock art in the Sahara suggests that northern Mali has been inhabited since 10,000 BC, when the Sahara was fertile and rich in wildlife. It is implausible that Abu Bakr was Musa's father, due to the amount of time between Sunjata's reign and Musa's. Many houses were built by hand and during the hot weather some houses would melt so they had to be very secure, The dating of the original Great Mosque's construction is obscure (the current structure, built under French Colonial Rule, dates from 1907). to 1337 C.E. [16] However, al-Umari gives Mali as the name of the capital province and Ibn Khaldun refers to Mali as a people, with each giving different names for the capital city itself. He did however, maintain contacts with Morocco, sending a giraffe to King Abu Hassan. Mansa Sandaki Keita, a descendant of kankoro-sigui Mari Djata Keita, deposed Maghan Keita II, becoming the first person without any Keita dynastic relation to officially rule Mali. [72], According to Niane's version of the epic, during the rise of Kaniaga, Sundiata of the Keita clan was born in the early 13th century. [28] The Tarikh al-fattash claims that Musa accidentally killed Kanku at some point prior to his hajj. Mansa Musa brought the architect back to Mali to beautify some of the cities. In addition, Mansa Ms had a baggage train of 80 camels, each carrying 300 pounds of gold. He ruled between 707-732/737 according to the Islamic calendar (AH), which translates to 1307-1332/1337 CE. [46] [86] Fajigi is remembered as having traveled to Mecca to retrieve ceremonial objects known as boliw, which feature in Mand traditional religion. Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. The other account claims that Gao had been conquered during the reign of Mansa Sakura. [10], Mali, Mand, Manden, and Manding are all various pronunciations of the same word across different languages and dialects. [41] Given the grandeur of his subsequent hajj, it is likely that Musa spent much of his early reign preparing for it. He also brought architects from the Middle East and across Africa to design new buildings for his cities. That same year, after the Mandinka general known as Sagmandir put down yet another rebellion in Gao,[93] Mansa Musa came to Gao and accepted the capitulation of the King of Ghana and his nobles. He attempted to make Islam the faith of the nobility,[93] but kept to the imperial tradition of not forcing it on the populace. Mansa Musa ruled over the Mali empire in the 14th Century, and his incredible access to gold made him arguably . The fame of Mansa Musa and his phenomenal wealth spread as he traveled on his hajjto Mecca. Mansa Ms probably died in 1332. [70] These men had to be of the horon (freemen) caste and appear with their own arms. Mansa Musa Keita was succeeded by his son, Maghan Keita I, in 1337. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Ag-Amalwal. The Malian and Moroccan armies fought at Jenne on 26 April, the last day of Ramadan, and the Moroccans were victorious thanks to their firearms and Bukar's support, but Mahmud was able to escape. [81] The territory of the Mali Empire was at its height during the reigns of Musa and his brother Sulayman, and covered the Sudan-Sahel region of West Africa. Mande bards in the region speak of the Dakajalan site, containing Sundiata's grave, as sacrosanct. The Mansa led the second expedition himself, and appointed Musa as his deputy to rule the empire until he returned. The Mandinka went on to form the powerful and rich Mali Empire, which produced the richest Black man who ever lived, King Mansa Musa. The history of the Mandinka started in Manding region. Mali Emperors Family Tree | Mansa Musa - The Richest Man in World History 71,113 views Nov 27, 2019 1.8K Dislike Share Save UsefulCharts 1.08M subscribers Watch the map animation on From. He built mosques and large public buildings in cities like Gao and, most famously, Timbuktu. Musa and his entourage arrived at the outskirts of Cairo in July 1324. [136] While it was as good as gold in the north, it was even better in the south. By the 6th century AD, the lucrative trans-Saharan trade in gold, salt and slaves had begun, facilitating the rise of West Africa's great empires. [42] Among these preparations would likely have been raids to capture and enslave people from neighboring lands, as Musa's entourage would include many thousands of enslaved people; the historian Michael Gomez estimates that Mali may have captured over 6,000 people per year for this purpose. [126], The Kouroukan Fouga also put in place social and economic reforms including prohibitions on the maltreatment of prisoners and slaves, installing documents between clans which clearly stated who could say what about whom. Ibn Battuta mentions that the value of salt increased fourfold when transported between Oualata and the Malian capital. Jansen, Jan: "The Younger Brother and the Stranger. [93] Mansa Maghan Keita I spent wastefully and was the first lacklustre emperor since Khalifa Keita. Salt was as valuable, if not more valuable, than gold in sub-Saharan Africa. Lange, Dierk (1996), "The Almoravid expansion and the downfall of Ghana", Der Islam 73 (2): 313351. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. One of the five pillars of Islam states that Muslims should embark on a pilgrimage known as Hajj, to the holy city of Mecca.. The third great account is that of Ibn Khaldun, who wrote in the early 15th century. [23] Numbered individuals reigned as mansa; the numbers indicate the order in which they reigned. In Niani, Musa built the Hall of Audience, a building communicating by an interior door to the royal palace. This process was essential to keep non-Manding subjects loyal to the Manding elites that ruled them. [124] Following this disastrous set of events, Mansa Mama Maghan abandoned the capital of Niani. After Ibn Khaldun's death in 1406, there are no further Arab primary sources except for Leo Africanus, who wrote over a century later. [42] Another source of income for Mali during Musa's reign was taxation of the copper trade. Mansa Musa's personal name was Musa (Arabic: , romanized:Ms), the Arabic form of Moses. They tell of his hardships as a boy before he came to the throne. [90][91] His reign is considered the golden age of Mali. The Mali Empire expanded through conquest or annexation. Sundiata, according to the oral traditions, did not walk until he was seven years old. [107] The Gambia was still firmly in Mali's control, and these raiding expeditions met with disastrous fates before Portugal's Diogo Gomes began formal relations with Mali via its remaining Wolof subjects. [111] This envoy from the Portuguese coastal port of Elmina arrived in response to the growing trade along the coast and Mali's now urgent request for military assistance against Songhai. It is unknown from whom he descended; however, another emperor, Mansa Maghan Keita III, is sometimes cited as Mansa Mahmud Keita I. This can be interpreted as either "Musa son of Abu Bakr" or "Musa descendant of Abu Bakr." Not only do we pay for our servers, but also for related services such as our content delivery network, Google Workspace, email, and much more. Mansa Musa returned from Mecca with several Islamic scholars, including direct descendants of the prophet Muhammad and an Andalusian poet and architect by the name of Abu Es Haq es Saheli,. The tarikh states that a Sultan Kunburu became a Muslim and had his palace pulled down and the site turned into a mosque; he then built another palace for himself near the mosque on the east side. [58] This area was composed of mountains, savannah and forest providing ideal protection and resources for the population of hunters. While on the hajj, he met the Andalusian poet and architect es-Saheli. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. Niane, D. T.: "Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali". He is the resurrected spirit of Masuta the Ascended, the second boss in the first elite dungeon, Temple of Aminishi . As founded by Mari Djata, it was composed of the "three freely allied states" of Mali, Mema and Wagadou plus the Twelve Doors of Mali.[60]. UsefulCharts, . [12][h] Ibn Battuta, who visited Mali during the reign of Musa's brother Sulayman, said that Musa's grandfather was named Sariq Jata. The post of a farba was very prestigious, and his descendants could inherit it with the mansa's approval. [56] Musa and his entourage lingered in Mecca after the last day of the hajj. While in Cairo during his hajj, Musa befriended officials such as Ibn Amir Hajib, who learned about him and his country from him and later passed on that information to historians such as Al-Umari. Consequently, the name of Mali and Timbuktu appeared on 14th century world maps. It spanned the modern-day countries of Senegal, southern Mauritania, Mali, northern Burkina Faso, western Niger, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, the Ivory Coast and northern Ghana. This is one of the main factors to the fall of the kingdom. Abu Bakr was the first and only mansa to inherit through the female line, which has been argued to be either a break from or a return to tradition.
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