The Empire of Mali - Mansa Musa - Extra History - Part 3
Summary
TLDRIn 1312, Mansa Musa, the wealthiest person in history, embarked on a grand pilgrimage to Mecca that showcased Mali's prosperity. His extravagant journey, which included a retinue of 60,000 and 600 camels laden with gold, not only solidified Mali's status as a powerful Islamic state but also led to a cultural and educational boom, particularly in Timbuktu. Despite his achievements, some local griots viewed him as a fool who squandered wealth and neglected traditional values, foreshadowing the empire's eventual decline.
Takeaways
- 🚢 In 1312, Abubakari II embarked on a voyage with a large fleet, leaving his vizier to manage the state.
- 👑 The vizier, later known as Mansa Musa, became king after Abubakari II's disappearance and was remembered as one of the richest people in history.
- 💰 Mansa Musa's wealth was so vast that it was incomparable to modern wealth standards, even outshining figures like Jeff Bezos.
- 🌍 Europe was in an economic crisis during Mansa Musa's reign, while Mali was rich in gold and silver, which were scarce in Europe.
- 🔍 Mansa Musa aimed to elevate Mali from an economic power to a globally recognized great state.
- ⚔️ He expanded the Mali Empire by conquering trade cities like Timbuktu and Gao, and used military campaigns to extend his influence.
- 🕌 As a devout Muslim, Mansa Musa used religion as a political tool to strengthen Mali's ties with other Muslim nations and improve administrative practices.
- 🌆 His Hajj to Mecca in 1324 was an extravagant display of wealth and power, designed to put Mali on the map and attract international attention.
- 🏛️ On his return from Hajj, Mansa Musa brought scholars and architects to Mali, leading to a cultural and educational boom, particularly in Timbuktu.
- 📚 Timbuktu became a center of Islamic learning and culture, with an influx of books and an advanced book-copying industry, thanks to Mansa Musa's patronage.
- 📉 Despite his achievements, Mansa Musa's excessive spending during his Hajj caused a temporary devaluation of gold, impacting the economy of the Middle East.
- 🏙️ Under Mansa Musa, Mali became a center for Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa, spreading its influence and culture to neighboring regions.
- 📉 Contrary to the Islamic accounts, local Mali griots tell a different story, portraying Mansa Musa as a king who wasted resources and neglected local traditions.
Q & A
Who was Abubakari II and what was his significance in the script?
-Abubakari II was a great explorer king from Mali who embarked on a voyage west into the Atlantic. His significance lies in the fact that his departure led to the rise of Mansa Musa, who would become one of the wealthiest and most influential rulers in history.
What was the economic situation in Europe during Mansa Musa's reign?
-During Mansa Musa's reign, Europe was experiencing an economic crisis due to a decline in gold and silver production, while Mali was abundant in these resources.
How did Mansa Musa consolidate his power and expand the Mali Empire?
-Mansa Musa consolidated his power by further developing the administration and trade routes of the kingdom. He also initiated military campaigns to expand the empire eastward, with a focus on capturing the trade cities of Timbuktu and Gao.
Why was Mansa Musa's Hajj pilgrimage considered extravagant?
-Mansa Musa's Hajj pilgrimage was considered extravagant due to the immense wealth and grandeur he displayed. He traveled with a large retinue, including 500 heralds, 12,000 servants, and 600 camels carrying 300 pounds of gold dust each.
What was the impact of Mansa Musa's generosity during his Hajj on the gold market?
-Mansa Musa's generosity in giving away gold dust and spending excessively on his Hajj led to an influx of gold in the market, which in turn caused a significant devaluation of gold, a situation that took over a decade to recover.
How did Mansa Musa's pilgrimage contribute to the recognition of Mali on the global stage?
-Mansa Musa's pilgrimage helped put Mali on the map by attracting worldwide attention through his extravagant display of wealth. His actions led to European cartographers featuring Mali on their maps, enhancing the empire's global recognition.
What was the purpose of Mansa Musa bringing Arab scholars, bureaucrats, and architects back to Mali after his Hajj?
-Mansa Musa brought Arab scholars, bureaucrats, and architects to Mali to help transform it into an Islamic cultural and religious center. Their expertise was used to design and construct buildings, including mosques, libraries, universities, and the Great Djinguereber Mosque at Timbuktu.
How did Mansa Musa's rule impact the city of Timbuktu?
-Under Mansa Musa's rule, Timbuktu experienced a boom in Islamic education and commerce. It became a leading city in the Islamic world, attracting scholars, artists, and artisans, and fostering an advanced book-copying industry.
What was the local perspective on Mansa Musa's rule according to the griots?
-The griots, who were local storytellers and keepers of Mali's oral history, had a different view of Mansa Musa. They portrayed him as a foolish king who squandered the empire's wealth and was overly enamored with Islamic culture at the expense of traditional customs.
What were the long-term consequences of Mansa Musa's rule on the Mali Empire?
-The long-term consequences of Mansa Musa's rule included the empire's eventual decline, which began shortly after his death. His extravagant spending and focus on Islamic culture may have contributed to the weakening of the empire's traditional foundations.
Outlines
🌊 Mansa Musa's Ascension and Extravagant Pilgrimage
In 1312, as Abubakari II's fleet vanished into the Atlantic, a vizier named Musa Keita prepared to rule in his stead. When the king failed to return, Musa Keita ascended to the throne and became known as Mansa Musa. His reign marked a significant era in history, as he was considered the richest person to have ever lived, with wealth so vast it dwarfed modern billionaires like Jeff Bezos. During his reign, Mansa Musa focused on strengthening Mali's administration and expanding its trade routes. He also aimed to elevate Mali's status from an economic power to a globally recognized state. To achieve this, he embarked on a grand pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324, which was as much a religious journey as it was a public relations stunt. His pilgrimage was an opulent display of wealth, with a retinue of 60,000 people, 500 heralds, and 12,000 servants, along with a baggage train of 600 camels carrying 300 pounds of gold dust each. His generosity was so extreme that he inadvertently caused a financial crisis in the Middle East by flooding the market with gold, which took over a decade to recover.
🏛️ Mansa Musa's Cultural and Architectural Legacy
Mansa Musa's pilgrimage was not solely a display of wealth; it was also a strategic move to attract talent and elevate Mali's cultural and religious status. Upon his return from Mecca, he brought with him Arab scholars, bureaucrats, and architects to transform Mali into a center of Islamic culture and learning. His armies had conquered Timbuktu and Gao in his absence, and these cities became the focus of his architectural and educational ambitions. In Timbuktu, he commissioned the construction of a new palace, mosques, libraries, universities, and the Great Djinguereber Mosque, which stands to this day. This influx of knowledge and talent led to a boom in Islamic education and commerce, making Timbuktu a leading city in the Islamic world. Mali's unique position as a bridge between the Sahara and the Niger River made it a hub for intellectual and cultural exchange. Books were both written and imported, and an advanced book-copying industry thrived there. Despite the Islamic accounts praising Mansa Musa's wealth and influence, local griots told a different story of a king who squandered the empire's wealth and neglected his people's traditions. After his death, the Mali Empire began to decline.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Abubakari II
💡Regent
💡Mansa Musa
💡Hajj
💡Economic Crisis
💡Trade Routes
💡Timbuktu
💡Islamic Cultural Center
💡Scholars
💡Griots
💡Collapse
Highlights
Abubakari II's fleet sails west into the Atlantic, with the vizier left to manage the state.
The vizier, later known as Mansa Musa, becomes king after Abubakari II fails to return.
Mansa Musa is often remembered as the richest person in history.
Mansa Musa's wealth was so vast, it's incomparable to modern standards.
Europe was in an economic crisis during Mansa Musa's reign, while Mali was rich in gold and silver.
Mansa Musa aimed to consolidate administration and develop trade routes to strengthen Mali.
Mansa Musa launched a military campaign to capture trade cities like Timbuktu and Gao.
Mansa Musa's Hajj was a calculated move to attract global attention and assert Mali's power.
His pilgrimage was a lavish display, with a retinue of 60,000 people and 500 heralds carrying gold staffs.
Mansa Musa's Hajj procession was so grand it took over a day for it to pass by.
He gave away so much gold that he caused a financial crisis in the Middle East.
Mansa Musa's Hajj was not just for show; he brought back Arab scholars, bureaucrats, and architects to Mali.
Mansa Musa's influence helped make Timbuktu a leading city in the Islamic world.
Timbuktu became a hub of intellectual and cultural exchange due to Mansa Musa's policies.
Mansa Musa's leadership sparked a boom in Islamic education in Mali.
Local storytellers, the griots, had a different view of Mansa Musa, seeing him as a fool who wasted resources.
The Mali Empire began to collapse shortly after Mansa Musa's death.
Transcripts
It's 1312.
As Abubakari II's great fleet sails west into the Atlantic,
one man watches them Disappear into the sunset.
This vizier will serve as regent for the great explorer king
managing the state while his master sails the ocean that encircles the earth
and when the great king fails to return,
this regent will take the throne the next year under the name Musa Keita.
History will remember him as Mansa Musa.
(music)
Mansa Musa is often remembered for being the richest person in history
And he was. By a wide margin.
In fact, his wealth was so inconceivably vast
that there is no accurate way of comparing it to modern standards.
Jeff Bezos has like a fraction of the wealth Mansa Musa possessed.
Europe at the time was not doing so great.
The whole region was reeling from an economic crisis driven by plummeting gold and silver production.
Meanwhile, Mali was drowning in the stuff.
But Mansa Musa wanted Mali to be more than an economic superpower.
He wanted it to be a great state recognized the world over.
He spent the early years of his reign further consolidating the administration of the kingdom
and developing the Empire's trade routes.
He greenlit a military campaign to expand the empire east
with an eye toward capturing the trade cities of Timbuktu and Gao.
Then he turned his attention toward international matters,
which also meant religion.
Musa was a devout Muslim.
In fact, probably more devout than his predecessors.
But he was not above using religion as a political tool.
Islam had made inroads with royalty in Sub-Saharan Africa
specifically because it gave them access to things that made the state more efficient,
like Arabic writing, religious law and Middle Eastern administrative practices,
and of course, Mali's lucrative trans-Saharan trade was only possible
because it was a Muslim nation like its trade partners.
But despite economic might and religious prestige,
Mali was something of a second class power
treated as lesser than the kingdoms of its trade partners in North Africa.
And that is something Mansa Musa could not abide.
It was time Mali took its rightful place among the Muslim kingdoms.
So, 17 years into his rule in 1324,
Mansa Musa set off on the most extravagant Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, in the history of humanity.
It was a trip calculated to attract the world's attention and put Mali on the map.
Two other mansas had made the Hajj before but that was during a more chaotic time
when the resources and ambitions of rulers were diverted to surviving war and famine.
Musa's pilgrimage would be part religious journey, part publicity stunt.
It was a statements to the Islamic world that the Mali Empire was thriving, devout and powerful.
It was said that his glittering procession put even the Sun to shame.
Wealth beyond dreams.
Riches beyond imagination.
Camels for days. Literally.
Some accounts claim it took over a day for his opulent Caravan to pass.
One account claims his retinue included over 60,000 people
at its head were 500 heralds carrying gold staffs
and a personal retinue of 12,000 servants dressed in silk and carrying gold bars.
A baggage train of 600 camels followed each one carrying 300 pounds of gold dust.
Musa brought along his wife and her 500 servants.
And that was just the showy part.
They took a baggage train with enough pack animals to carry provisions for the entire crew.
At every step of the way, the well-dressed, generous and pious group made a favorable impression.
Too favorable impression, in fact.
To fulfill his religious duty to share his wealth for the poor,
Musa gave handfuls of gold dust to beggars and passers-by.
Some accounts claimed he built a mosque every Friday,
and he spent months in the Cairo bazaars buying souvenirs at absurdly inflated prices.
In fact, the emperor spent and gave away so much gold in Cairo, Medina and Mecca
that he flooded the market crashing the metals value.
Although Musa attempted to rectify this by quote:
"borrowing gold from money lenders in Cairo" at an astronomical Interest,
the value of gold still took over a decade to recover in the Middle East.
Just think about that for a second.
Mansa Musa was so rich that he caused a financial crisis
by buying too many souvenirs on his religious roadtrip.
But he had come all this way to make an impression and boy oh boy, did he achieve that.
Centuries later, residents of Cairo were still telling stories of his pilgrimage train
and their reports filtered to Europe through the traders of Venice.
By 1375, European cartographers were producing world maps that featured Mali
represented by Mansa Musa inspecting a gold nugget.
But this gratuitous display wasn't just to show off.
It was also to attract talent.
On his return trip from Mecca,
Mansa Musa brought Arab scholars, bureaucrats and architects with him
in hopes of building Mali into an Islamic cultural and religious center.
On his way back home, Mansa Musa took a different route.
Through Timbuktu and Gow, which his armies had invaded and conquered while he had been away.
And, let's just stop to think about that too
Mansa Musa was so powerful that he could traipse off on a sweet pilgrimage party
leaving the kingdom in the hands of his son with armies in the field for over a year
and not get deposed.
Historically speaking, that is pretty incredible.
So, on his way back, he stopped at these new trading centers
not just to bask in his new conquests, but to assess his new assets.
Now, in addition to his Saharan trade centers in the west,
he had two in the east that also sat on the Niger River.
It was a good position for trade. But he wanted more.
Timbuktu in particular would become a project of his
and there he would put all of those new architects and scholars to work.
Together they designed numerous buildings for the emperor
including a new palace, mosques, libraries, universities
and the Great Djinguereber Mosque at Timbuktu, which still stands today.
This resulted in a boom of Islamic education in Mali
and the influx of trained minds, artists and artisans brought increased commerce,
and made Timbuktu a leading City the Islamic world
And this was at a time when the most advanced nations in the world were Muslim from Spain to central India.
Mali became the center for Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa missionizing its neighbors.
It was said that while gold came from the south and salt from the north,
knowledge came from Timbuktu.
Because of its unique location near the Sahara Desert and on the Niger River,
it was a melting pot and a hub of Intellectual and cultural exchange.
Books were not only written in Timbuktu, but also imported from all over.
There was an advanced book-copying industry there.
And at a time when books were luxury goods, that were difficult and expensive to produce.
And all of this was sparked by Mansa Musa's leadership in growing his empire.
But while the Islamic accounts tell of Mansa Musa's great wealth and prestige,
there was another perspective.
local storytellers, the griots, who kept the oral history of Mali
spoke of a different king:
a foolish one who wasted the imperial treasury and coveted Islamic things
abandoning the traditions of his people.
So, perhaps, it's no accident
that shortly after his death, the Mali Empire began it's slow collapse.
(music)
浏览更多相关视频
Mansa Musa, one of the wealthiest people who ever lived - Jessica Smith
The Empire of Mali - An Empire of Trade and Faith - Extra History - Part 2
The TRANS-SAHARAN TRADE Network, Explained [AP World History Review—Unit 2 Topic 4]
The Songhai Empire: A History of Conquest and Commerce
Mansa Musa and Islam in Africa: Crash Course World History #16
How Gold and Salt Shaped Africa’s Greatest Empires?
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)