This powerful kingdom was considered to be one of the largest empires known in the history of western Africa; yes we are talking about ‘the kingdom of Mali ’. At its peak, it spanned from the Atlantic Coast to central parts of the Sahara desert, if the kingdom exists today, it will contain Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, Niger and Guinea Bissau. Now you can imagine how big and powerful was the great kingdom.
The Empire was founded by the legendary King Sundiata and lasted until the early 1600s CE. The Capital of the kingdom was Niani and later it moved to Kangaba. Mali’s rulers adopted the title of ‘Mansa’
The most common crops the kingdom grew were beans, cotton, gourds, millet, papaya, peanuts, rice and sorghum. The livestock they raised included cattle, goats, poultry and sheep.
The Niger River was an important method of transporting goods to trade more. The river also bought fertile soil to the kingdom, with fertile soil better crops grew and flourished, and also better food to raise livestock.
Mali made enormous empire by conquering neighbouring people and demanding tribute from them .Mali’s wealth was built on gold and it is still mined today. The Emperor also earned its wealth from the tax system. They taxed its citizens, and all goods brought in and out of the Empire were heavily taxed.
The Empire’s most famous ruler was Mansa Musa. Mansa Musa ruled the kingdom between 1312 and 1337, the great Emperor was a follower of Islam and when he travelled to Mecca on a pilgrimage he distributed so much gold that he caused great inflation lasting a decade, when he returned he brought back with him many Arabian scholars and architects. He used the Arabian scholars to maintain the tax system and keeping records.
Mansa Musa was known to be a wise and efficient ruler, he ordered to start the construction of the Great mosque or Djingareyber mosque of Timbuktu in 1324, this great mosque shows a mixture of Malian and Middle-east architecture. The majestic Mosque became a centre of learning as well as a place of worship.
Timbuktu was founded around AD 1100 by the Nomadic People. It became part of the Mali Empire in the late 13th century. Mansa Musa also built and funded the Sankore Madrassa, which subsequently became one of the greatest centres of learning in the Islamic world, and the greatest library in Africa at the time. This later transformed into the University of Sankore. The subjects taught in the University of Sankore covered included Islamic theology, mathematics, law, geography, astronomy, medicine, sciences and history and much more.
He made Timbuktu as his capital city because it was ideal trading centre. It was end of the camel caravan route that linked sub Saharan Africa to North Africa and Arabia. It also was situated at the meeting point of desert and nearby mines to trade for Gold.
When Arab Muslim traders travelled to West Africa to trade goods, they also bought their religion with them. They made the journeys in the camel caravans. When traders travelled through the desert they travelled in camel caravans, which is a large group of camels. Traders also travelled in camel caravans because they would be safe from attack from robbers.
Islam required Muslims to be literate, so they were able to keep written records of their trade which then made their administration more efficient and they were able to maintain their successful business. The kingdom of Mali adopted the Muslim religion, the spread of Islam in Mali was by the contact though international traders not from war.
The wealth of ancient Mali was based on trade, especially the Trans-Saharan trade. The countries around the Mediterranean Sea and Arab Countries wanted Gold to make coins. The kingdom of Mali was rich in gold but needed salt. Swords, Iron, Coper, Cloth, Silk and Horses were brought in to the Empire and exchanged for slaves, ivory and Ostrich feathers.
The king of Mali kept all the gold nuggets, which then left only gold dust to be traded. Slavery has been part of human history, a very dark part in our human history, for many centauries slavery has existed in that time. In the market places of Timbuktu slaves were often sold. Criminals and prisoners were also sold as slaves.
In 1988 UNESCO declared heritage sites in Timbuktu, which included the great Mosques and madrassahs that are under now potential threat of being destroyed by militant rebels in the region.
A World Heritage Site is a specific site of outstanding importance. The site should be persevered as part of the common heritage of human kind
Many experts and organizations have been preserving the surviving manuscripts that represent the history of African scholars and are critical to the country’s history. Currently, most of the manuscripts are preserved in the Ahmed Baba Institute, which is named after a 15th century scholar.