1. Medieval Africa

2. Essential Questions
Why did Ghana emerge in a region of savanna, as opposed to the Sahel to the north or the rainforests to the south?
Why were Ghana and Mali both land-based empires not linked in any real way with or dependent on coastlines along the Atlantic Ocean?
Why was salt so significant a factor for both Ghana and Mali?
Why was long-distance trade so crucial to the growth of Ghana and Mali into powerful empires?
What was the nature of kingship in these two empires? What was the basis of the wealth and power of these kings?
What role did Islam play in the formation of these empires, and why was its role so important?

3. Section 1: Introduction
Kingdoms of Wealth and Power

4. Kingdoms of Wealth and Power Around the World
On every continent, there have been kingdoms of enormous wealth and power. Some of these were/are the medieval civilizations of Europe, of Islam in the Middle East, of the Aztec in the Americas, of China and Japan. In the western region of Africa, two such kingdoms arose: first Ghana, then Mali.
Medieval civilizations, circa 1300

5. Ghana and Mali Kingdom of Ghana: 700–1070 Kingdom of Mali: 1235–1490s
Great wealth and power
Ghana prospered from roughly 700 to Mali succeeded Ghana as an even larger kingdom. The kingdom of Mali dominated the region from 1235 until the 1490s, when its leadership was defeated in battle by others looking to control the kingdom’s wealth. Other kingdoms and wealthy city-states developed in Africa during this 600-year period, including Great Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Benin, and the Swahili city-states, which traded across the Indian Ocean. However, our focus is on Ghana and Mali, two of the greatest African kingdoms.

6. Modern and Medieval Locations in Africa
A number of modern African countries exist now where these kingdoms were located. (Ask your students to locate the two modern countries named after the kingdoms.)
Ghana and Mali, then and now

7. The Wealth of Ghana and Mali
King of Ghana— “The richest king on the face of the earth.”
“Gold grows in the sand like carrots do and is plucked at sunrise.”
The wealth of these two kingdoms drew attention from across the Red Sea and thousands more miles away. A famous geographer of the time, al-Fazari, was living and writing in Baghdad (Iraq) at the time of Ghana. Al-Fazari pronounced that the king of Ghana was “the richest king on the face of the earth.”
Another man, Ibn al-Fakih, also living far from Ghana, wrote in the tenth century that in Ghana, “gold grows in the sand like carrots do and is plucked at sunrise.” Which parts of this statement are true and which parts came only from his overactive imagination? Did Ghana have sand? Gold? Does gold grow? Does gold appear in the ground like carrots? Can you simply pick it out of the ground?
(From this presentation, students will learn more than he knew. Archeologists of today and travelers of the time who actually visited these kingdoms have written about them in detail. Historians are now beginning to pore over ancient books from the libraries of these kingdoms. While the history of these kingdoms may have been neglected, it is now coming to light. Ten years from now, much more will be known. Perhaps one of your students will be teaching the rest of us while working on a dig there.)

8. Section 2: Geography as a Key Source of Wealth and Power

9. Geography as a Key Source of Wealth and Power
What makes a nation rich or powerful?
How does geography affect wealth and power?
What made both Ghana and Mali important enough for people to write about them from thousands of miles away? What made them, in fact, wealthy and powerful? Before we find the answer, ask yourself the same question about any other place. What, for example, makes the United States today not just powerful, but also very rich? What about some of the other medieval kingdoms? Would you be surprised to learn that geography is one of the reasons for a nation’s wealth? Geography, in fact, blesses some nations and causes difficulties for others. Remember that geography explains how the physical world shapes people’s lives.
Photos courtesy of Africa Focus: Image and Sound Collection, University of Wisconsin DigitalCollections

10. Location as a Source of Wealth and Power
The Atlantic Ocean was a barrier to trade
Wealth and power due to inland location
Let’s start with location: both kingdoms were located in West Africa in roughly the same location. Mali touched the coast of the Atlantic. However, the hearts of both kingdoms were well inland. At this time, the Atlantic was a difficult ocean to sail in and navigate. Thus little trade went by ocean. By contrast, the interior location and the ability to travel over land were two of the keys to the wealth and power of both Ghana and Mali.