The Mali Empire
The Mali Empire flourished in West Africa from about 1240 to 1500. At its height, the Mali Empire controlled most of what are now Gambia, Guinea, Mali, and Senegal, and parts of present-day Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and Niger.
Between 1235 and 1240, Sundiata, the king of Kangaba, conquered the nearby lands of the Sosso. He built a new city, Mali, to be the capital of his empire. Later, under Mansa Musa, who ruled from 1312 to about 1337, the empire spread eastward to Gao. Mansa Musa brought the empire to the peak of its political power and cultural achievement. Timbuktu became a famous center of learning, especially in law and the study of Islam, the Muslim religion.
The cities of the Mali Empire were centers for the caravan trade from beyond the Sahara. The people were successful farmers and herders. Members of the governing classes were Muslims, but most of the people continued to worship traditional local African gods.
Control of the vast empire required skill and power that Mansa Musa's successors lacked. After about 1400, Songhai and other states conquered Mali's outlying areas. By 1500, the Songhai Empire controlled most of the Mali Empire.
Excerpt adapted from the "Mali Empire" article, The World Book Encyclopedia © 1999