The Empire of Mali

Sundiata Makes Mali an Empire Like Ghana, Mali lay along the upper Niger River The area had very fertile soil Consider the geographic advantages of Mali’s location. How might these factors contribute to the growth of Mali?

Sundiata Makes Mali an Empire Mali’s rise to power began under a ruler named Sundiata Sundiata was a son of the king of Mali A cruel ruler conquered Mali when Sundiata was a boy How do you think Sundiata took over and made Mali an empire?

Sundiata Makes Mali an Empire When he got older, Sundiata gathered a huge army and won Mali’s independence Sundiata conquered nearby kingdoms, including Ghana

Sundiata Makes Mali an Empire He also took over the salt and gold trades Sundiata made Mali an empire

Improvements in Mali Sundiata’s improvements: Rebuilt overgrazed farmlands Cleared new farmlands for crops Introduced new crops like cotton Put soldiers to work in the fields Draw a picture that demonstrates what Sundiata did to improve Mali.

Sundiata’s Consolidation of Power Sundiata took power away from local leaders These leaders had been called Mansas Sundiata took the title “Mansa” for himself

Wrap it Up Review: What steps did Sundiata take to turn Mali into an empire? Predict: What do you think happened to Mali when Sundiata died? Infer: Given what we know about African history, how do you think we came to know about Sundiata?

Mansa Musa Mali’s greatest and most famous ruler was a Muslim named Mansa Musa Under his leadership, Mali reached the height of its wealth, power, and fame Mansa Musa ruled for about 25 years, and captured many important trading cities

Mansa Musa Religion was very important to Mansa Musa Because of Mansa Musa’s influence, Islam spread through a large part of West Africa

Mansa Musa In 1324, he left on a pilgrimage to Mecca He brought with him: 100 camels loaded with 300 pounds of gold nuggets 100 camels loaded with 300 pounds of gold dust 100 camels loaded with 300 pounds of gold flakes 60,000 servants to help him along the way Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage put Mali and West Africa on the map Draw a picture that represents Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage to Mecca

Mansa Musa Mansa Musa also supported education He sent scholars to study the Qur’an and Arabic in Morocco He established Arabic schools in Mali

Mansa Musa The Mali capital of Timbuktu became a great center of Islamic culture Arabic became the main language of both religion and government

Mansa Musa Mansa Musa built mosques in Mali’s cities, but he did not force Islam on anyone who chose not to practice it. Infer: Do you think Mali under Mansa Musa was a free society? Why or why not?

The Fall of Mali After Mansa Musa died, there were no more strong leaders Invaders and uprisings tore apart the large and unwieldy empire Invaders destroyed the great schools and mosques of Timbuktu By 1500, Mali had lost most of its land and power

Predict: What do you think is going to happen in West Africa after Mali falls?