Mansa Musa was one of the most extraordinary Emperors of Mali. He was named Mansa, which means King.
He was also called Kankan Musa. He ruled from 1312 to 1337, which was for 25 years. He was the 9th king and was preceded by Muhammad Ibn Qu. During the reign of Mansa Musa in Mali, Mali was one of the world’s wealthiest and most territorial kingdoms.
This made the fame of Mansa Musa spread all across and beyond Africa. Mansa Musa contributed to the growth of Mali in various significant areas and even to the development of west Africa. Mali was deposited with enormous natural deposits and was mainly known for gold.
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In 1323, Mansa Musa started his pilgrimage journey called Hajj, where he visited several places which made him and Mali famous and known to the world. He was accompanied by an entourage caravan consisting of 60,000 men aside from a retinue of 12,000 persons. Mansa Musa rode on a horse and was preceded by about 500 men.
Each of them carried a staff adorned with gold. He also had about 80 camels that held 300 pounds of gold each. He visited Cairo in Egypt and gave out so much gold that the value of gold in Cairo declined by about 25 percent.
It took a while for gold’s value to stabilize back in Cairo. His pilgrimage stood out and drew so much attention. After his expedition, significantly being the first Muslim Emperor to visit Mecca, he transformed Mali in major aspects.
He brought many Muslim Scholars to Mali, which made Islamic education grow in Mali. Universities, Libraries, and Mosques were built in Mali to this effect.
Also, he brought in professional architects who drew out beautiful architectural designs in Mali. One of the people he brought was Ishaq El Teudjin, who designed a new palace and a mosque in Gao, and another great mosque at Timbuktu, which was named Djinguereber.
The Emperor’s chamber in Niani, the capital of Mali, was El Teudjin’s most famous design.
Mansa Musa transformed Timbuktu into a commercial city, and Timbuktu had caravan connections with Egypt and other North African states. Aside from trade and commerce, which were encouraged in Timbuktu, learning and arts were greatly encouraged.
The mosque of SanKore in Timbuktu became a teaching center, eventually becoming the university of SanKore.
Mali also spread into one of the most territorial areas under Mansa Musa, as he conquered several other kingdoms like the Songhai empire. The Empire of Mali in the modern day covers Mali, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Niger, Nigeria, Mauritania, and Burkina Faso.
Mansa Musa was a very successful king who built the reputation of the Mali kingdom. He died in 1337 and left Mali a great kingdom. His sons succeeded him, and later, the kingdom of Mali fell apart, but the reputation Mali had in the world never left.
Culled from Pulse Nigeria
