The Mali Empire
Explore the Mali Empire — the West African state founded by Sundiata Keita whose ruler Mansa Musa became the richest person in history.
The Mali Empire (c. 1235–1600 CE) was one of the largest and wealthiest states in African history. Founded by Sundiata Keita after his victory at the Battle of Kirina in 1235, Mali controlled the vital gold and salt trade across the western Sahara and became one of the richest polities on earth.
Mali's wealth was legendary even by medieval standards. When Mansa Musa made his famous hajj to Mecca in 1324, his entourage of tens of thousands of people — reportedly carrying tons of gold — was so lavish that his spending in Cairo depressed the gold market for a decade. European mapmakers took notice; the Catalan Atlas of 1375 depicts Mansa Musa seated on a golden throne, holding a gold nugget. His reign saw Timbuktu transformed from a trading post into one of the Islamic world's great centers of learning.
The Mali Empire's political system blended Islamic governance with traditional Mandinka institutions. The Mansa (emperor) ruled through a network of provincial governors and local chiefs, with the Kouroukan Fouga — an oral constitution attributed to Sundiata — establishing principles of governance, rights, and social organization. This political sophistication, combined with its control of trans-Saharan trade, made Mali a major actor in the medieval global economy.