Mansa Musa and the Empire of Mali

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Mansa Musa and the Empire of Mali Page 5

by P. James Oliver


  Mansa Kankan Musa, the Emperor of Mali, was home! His days in Mecca and Medina had been wonderful. The large addition to the empire had been an unexpected thrill. His journey, though long and difficult, had at times been fascinating. Someday he hoped to return to Mecca, but for now he was just glad to be home. Looking about happily, he smiled and greeted the large crowd, then eagerly walked forward to see his son Maghan, who had been left behind to serve as Mali’s emperor during his absence.

  In the days that followed, the Mansa spent many hours talking with Maghan, his governors, and his senior military officers. Slowly, and with great sorrow, he discovered that the reports indicating that Maghan was a weak leader were true. As he learned about his son’s lack of ability, his own dream of returning to Mecca to live out his life in study and prayer faded, and finally died away completely. He knew now that he couldn’t leave Mali. In fact, he was worried about Mali’s future, knowing that when he died, Maghan would become the Emperor of Mali. By then, perhaps, Maghan would be stronger and more capable. He certainly hoped so.

  By this time, the Empire of Mali was the second largest empire or kingdom in the world. It was composed of a vast collection of individual villages, cities, provinces, and states. Each village had a chief. Important cities were governed by an inspector (or mayor). The provinces, which were made up largely of Mali’s core population, the Mandingo people, were ruled by governors. The states, which were lands that had been conquered by Mali’s troops, were generally ruled by their own leaders if these leaders swore allegiance to Mali, supplied troops when requested, and paid tribute to the empire. Even when compliant, local leaders were sometimes supervised by a resident representative of the emperor. A large, paid bureaucracy ran the complex political machinery that maintained Mali’s system of law and order.

  Each governor, supervisor, city leader, high-ranking military officer, top bureaucrat, and foreign diplomat reported directly and personally to the emperor himself. To maintain control, peace, and prosperity throughout the empire required a leader with a strong personality and great skill. The Mansa was such a man. Maghan was not, at least not yet.

  Chapter 16

  MALI’S GOLDEN AGE

  Mansa Musa continued to serve as Mali’s emperor until his death in 1337. During these years, the Empire of Mali reached its greatest heights in terms of size, wealth, power, stability, culture, and general prosperity.

  ONCE HE DECIDED TO STAY IN MALI, the Mansa began to focus much of his energy on the projects he’d been dreaming about ever since talking with the scholars in Mecca. Still other plans grew out of the impact Cairo had made on him. One of the first projects he carried out was to commission the Moor to build more mosques and several new palaces. Each newly completed building became another exciting example of the Malian style of architecture he had first introduced in Gao.

  The royal palace the Moor built in Timbuktu, for instance, was a large, square-cornered, stone structure, quite unlike the rounded clay buildings Mali’s people were used to seeing. It had an airy porch, a soaring cupola, and plaster walls that were decorated with intricate designs painted in flaming colors. Both tourists and townspeople came to see it, admire its style, and enjoy its colorful frescoes.

  During these years, the Mansa became an increasingly ardent patron of the sciences and the arts, Islamic religious studies, history and the law. In Timbuktu alone, where he founded the University of Sankoré, he supported, very handsomely, many of the scholars, judges, doctors, clerics and other learned men who gathered there to teach and to study.

  As the university grew, so did the profits of the city’s book traders. By the time the University of Sankoré was well established, Timbuktu’s book traders were making larger profits than any of the city’s other merchants, even those trading in ivory, copper or gold! In addition to purchasing books, the university’s scholars wrote a great many books: histories and biographies, collections of poetry, books of science and medicine, and countless volumes of both legal and religious essays. Some of their work is still being read in Koranic* schools today.

  Though smaller, the other mosques the Mansa commissioned also became centers of education as well as of prayer. In them, lessons and prayers were conducted in Arabic, the scholarly language that was used in Mali and throughout most of the Muslim world, much as Latin was used across most of Western Europe. As Mali’s empire grew, its government became increasingly sophisticated and its populace more literate.

  The Mansa and his pilgrimage ushered in a new era of increased contact with Egypt and, through Egypt, other Arab and European countries. New embassies were established which became actively engaged in diplomatic relations with other nations. Cultural exchanges with other countries became more frequent. Foreign trade increased in volume. During this time, Mali’s major cities became important metropolitan centers of commerce and culture. These were the empire’s greatest years—the heart of its Golden Age.

  Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage startled the world by suddenly introducing it to a vast and powerful empire, an empire that almost no one beyond the Sudan had even heard of. This immense empire was about the same size as all the lands of Western Europe combined, and its wealth, in terms of gold, was beyond imagining. Almost overnight, Mali was recognized as a world power. It also became the talk of the world’s adventurers, merchants and financiers. Mysterious and enticing, this vast “golden” land beckoned to them and to all who wanted or needed gold, adventure, and riches.

  Although the Mansa did not foresee the consequences of announcing the existence of Mali’s stupendous supply of gold to the whole world, he did fully comprehend both the importance of the gold trade to Mali’s economy and the need to keep its source a secret.

  Therefore, when someone he wanted to be polite to, such as the Sultan of Egypt, pressed him to tell them how to reach the source of Mali’s gold, the Mansa had a story he liked to tell.13 The story was amusing, yet, as it unfolded his listener learned, in a pleasant way, that the subject should be dropped.

  a gold plant

  “In a distant corner of my empire,” the Mansa would begin, “gold grows from the ground on plants and is picked like grain. Only the people who inhabit this far-off land know how to cultivate gold plants properly. These distant people have a strange power over their plants,” the Mansa would add with a smile, “that protects them from outsiders. You see, if anyone tries to steal one of their gold plants, or even just pick a bit of gold from one of them, the plant will suddenly wither and die.

  “So, even though these people are among Mali’s subjects and pay Mali a handsome tribute in pure gold, they must be left in peace; otherwise, the golden harvest will end!”

  During Mansa Musa’s reign, the golden harvest did not end. Instead, it grew and blossomed most wonderfully. Very early in his reign, he had learned that it was best to leave the gold miners in peace and that it was important to rid the land of bandits. As a result, the flow of gold into and through Mali grew. Throughout his long reign, the Mansa continued to foster, protect, and tax the immensely lucrative gold trade that formed the basis of Mali’s economic prosperity.

  Chapter 17

  NOT BY GOLD ALONE

  GOLD WAS THE FOUNDATION OF MALI’S PROSPERITY, but gold alone did not lift Mali into its Golden Age. The gold trade had been the basis of the Empire of Ghana’s prosperity for hundreds of years, long before the Empire of Mali superseded it. The method used to mine the gold was an old, completely indigenous technology. The main trading routes and the practice of taxing the gold trade were also centuries old. So, although gold was the basis of Mali’s prosperity, it wasn’t until Mansa Musa—with his vision, personal strength, superb administrative skills and military expertise—became emperor that Mali entered its Golden Age.

  Though best known for its gold, Mali also exported a lot of copper. By the 1000s in Ife and the 1300s in Benin, Mali’s copper was being used by highly skilled artists to create beautiful bronze sculptures. The above drawing is of a bronze sculpture of
an ancient queen mother.14

  Under his leadership, Mali’s agricultural production was expanded and diversified to create a solid base for the empire’s tremendous growth. In addition, throughout the entire empire, the Mansa established a single, highly effective system of law and order; oversaw a system of taxation that allowed both individual traders and Mali’s government to prosper; established a military presence that provided peace and stability across hundreds of thousands of square miles; and oversaw an efficient system of trade that provided Mali with a plentiful and diverse supply of goods. These complex, well-organized systems provided Mali’s people with a standard of living that was, in terms of food, personal safety, and freedom, comparable to or better than that found in contemporary Europe.15

  Mansa Musa also left a legacy of cultural and religious values that endured long after his death. Ridding the land of bandits had, in addition to all its economic benefits, expanded people’s horizons. Their marketplaces became living encyclopedias of the world where silks and knives and cinnamon were displayed beside ivory, drums, copper and cattle—all of which was sold to the accompaniment of lively music, news of the world, and exciting tales of adventure. Foreign diplomats, travelers, merchants, entertainers, scholars, and traders visited Mali’s cities in complete safety. The University of Sankoré, which the Mansa founded, continued to grow in size and status. Stately mosques stood as examples of architectural innovation and as centers of education and public prayer. Mali’s principal cities became cosmopolitan centers of commerce and culture, and its countryside peaceful and prosperous.

  It was a time of glory, a time to remember.

  How do we know so much about Mansa Musa and the Empire of Mali? Historians, scholars and Mali’s great epic chronicle the history of Mali and its empire. Thousands of texts written by African scholars in Timbuktu that preserve the traditions of Mali still exist.16 The vividly descriptive memoirs written during Mali’s Golden Age by al-‘Umari and other authors are, according to a modern expert, as good as anything we have from medieval Europe.17 Mansa Musa had secretaries and offices, merchants kept records, judges and scholars wrote letters, books, and treatises. Archaeologists continue to make discoveries. All of these sources have contributed to our considerable, though still incomplete, knowledge of Mali’s Golden Age.

  Even today, singers and poets delight audiences in Mali by reciting the Epic of Old Mali. Long ago, each new dyeli memorized the epic and added to it the story of his own times. Thus, over time, the epic grew. Crowds of people listened to the dyelis recitations and remembered the epic’s lyrical and rhythmic words. When there were no more dyelis, each generation told the next the story of those golden years when the Empire of Mali had spread so far across the land, when food was plentiful, and the army was strong and victorious. They told how great scholars had come from distant lands to study, of imported silks and richly decorated brocades. It was a glorious time, they said, when Mali’s cities were known for their culture, when gold was abundant, and peace and prosperity prevailed across their land.

  EPILOGUE

  DURING MAGHAN’S SHORT REIGN, Timbuktu was captured and burned by the Mossi people. The two Songhai princes escaped and returned to Gao, where one of the brothers established himself as king in his father’s old palace. In time, the Songhai people drove Mali’s officials from their land and successfully refused to pay further tribute to Mali. The new Songhai Kingdom continued to grow stronger until it replaced the Empire of Mali as the dominant political force in West Africa.

  After only four years as emperor, Maghan Musa died. Mansa Musa’s brother, Sulayman Musa, became Mali’s next emperor. He was not a gifted leader like Mansa Musa, nor was he as well-liked, but he was competent and he ruled successfully for many years. At the end of his reign, Mali’s Golden Age ended.

  GLOSSARY

  Abu Bakari II – Known as “the Voyager King,” he was Mansa Musa’s uncle and his predecessor to the throne of Mali.

  Abu Ishāq as-Sāhilī – Often referred to as “the Moor,” he was a poet and architect from Granada whom Mansa Musa met in Mecca and persuaded to return to Mali with him. The mosques and palaces the Mansa commissioned As-Sāhilī to build introduced new methods of building and a new style of architecture to the Sudan.

  Abu’l ‘Abbas Ahmed ben Abil‘l Haki, el Mehmendar – The Egyptian official who, on behalf of the Sultan of Egypt, went out to greet Mansa Musa when he entered Cairo.

  Ali Koleni – One of the two Songhai princes taken to Mali as guest-hostages by Mansa Musa after Mali’s forces defeated the Songhai in battle. In Mali, Ali Koleni became a soldier and was highly regarded for his leadership ability. While working in this capacity, he secretly began to stockpile supplies and weapons along the route from Niani to Gao. Then, shortly after Mansa Musa’s death, he and his brother escaped and returned to Gao where Ali Koleni established himself as Songhai’s king.

  Allah – The Arabic word for God.

  Arabian horse – Any of a breed of horses originally raised in Arabia and known for their endurance, elegance, speed and intelligence. Gray, a whole range of shades, is the most common color for Arabian horses; but there are also chestnut, bay, sorrel and occasionally white or black Arabian horses.

  Baobab tree – A large, useful tree that grows wild in the grasslands of West Africa.

  Cairo – The large, vibrant, Egyptian city that Mansa Musa stayed in on his way to and from Mecca. Ibn Khaldun praised it, calling it “the metropolis of the universe.”

  Canoes and Ships – Long before the advent of saws, West African boat-builders began making canoes. In the forests of what is now Guinea, these ingenious boat-builders felled trees by burning through the base of a tree’s trunk until it crashed to the ground. The downed trees were stripped and made into dugouts right where they fell. When finished, the heavy canoes were manhandled to the nearest waterway and launched.

  Today, and for the last thousand years or so, canoes are made from boards sent downriver from the forests in Guinea to villages along the banks of the lower Upper Niger River. Carefully measured, cut, and shaped, the hand-hewn boards are fastened together with spikes the boat-builders make themselves. The resulting sleek, flat-bottomed canoes are used by fishermen, farmers, traders, and transporters all along the Upper Niger and throughout Mali’s huge inland delta.

  Photos were taken by Omer MEKAYI in 2007.

  For hundreds of years, the fishermen of Dakar have wrestled their boats (large seafaring vessels built with heavy planks cut from the giants of the rainforest) through the ocean’s surf to the smoother waters beyond, just as Mansa Musa’s uncle’s men must have done. From Dakar, which is almost certainly the place his uncle’s fleet departed from,18 the prevailing winds blow toward the west and the ocean’s currents flow to the west. All Abu Bakari II and his men needed to do to reach the New World was to stay afloat long enough—any paddling they did or sails they might have used, would only have served to shorten their time at sea.19

  Cavalry – An armed force whose members are mounted on horseback.

  Citadel in Cairo – The Citadel was a large stone fortress that encircled the Sultan’s Palace, the Mosque of an-Nasir (which was being built when Mansa Musa was in Cairo), the headquarters of the Sultan’s government and of his army, barracks for many of his soldiers, housing for his harem and courtiers, wells, kitchens, etc. According to legend, the location of the Citadel complex was chosen in part for its “good air.” Saladin—the ruler of Egypt then—ordered pieces of meat hung in a variety of places around the capital. The pieces that were hung on the Muqattam Hills stayed fresh the longest, so he decided to build the Citadel there.

  Cresques, Abraham – A Majorcan cartographer who, in 1375, completed his masterpiece, the Catalan Atlas, for Charles V of France. It included a map of Mali and a drawing of Mansa Musa.

  Dyeli – Each emperor of Mali had a dyeli who served as his herald and spokesman, counselor, and intimate friend—he was the only person, for instance, allowed to see the
emperor in his wrath. He recited the Epic of Old Mali in public, composed the portion of the epic that related the events occurring during his time as dyeli, and served as the court’s master of ceremonies. Trained in constitutional procedures, he also settled disputes between clans and tribes.

  Dyelis were chosen, in part, because of their low social status. This was considered important because it meant the dyelis would be dependent upon “their” emperor and would not have any kinsmen among the nobility or the freemen who might try to influence them or make a claim to the throne. For these reasons, though the dyelis held a very important position in Mali’s government, it was believed they were reliable.

  Empire of Ghana – The first of the three great empires of West Africa (700 – 1200 A.D.).

  Empire of Mali – The second of the three great empires of West Africa (1200 – 1500 A.D.).

  Empire of Songhai – The third of the three great empires of West Africa (1350 – 1600 A.D.).

  Gao – The capital city of the Songhai peoples. Defeated by Mali’s forces in 1325, Gao became one of Mali’s great commercial centers.

  Guimbris – Two-stringed, gold and silver guitars that were played in ancient Mali.

  Hajj / hadj / haj – A Muslim’s pilgrimage to Mecca.

  Hajji / hadji / haj – A Muslim who has completed a pilgrimage to Mecca.

  Hegira – The flight of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 A.D. This event marks the first year of the Muslim calendar.

  Ibn – Means “the son of.”

  Ibn Battuta – Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Battuta (1304 – 1368/69) was a world famous traveler (75,000 miles by foot, camel, horse, and ship) and the author of one of the world’s most famous travel books. He visited the Empire of Mali in 1352-53.

 

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