Who was Mansa Musa?

Mansa Musa was the richest man ever. His net worth was over $400 billion, which is double Jeff Bezos' net worth. He was the Mansa of the West African Empire. Mansa is the Mandikan word for king or emperor. His name means King of the Kings.

Artist depiction of Mansa Musa

Mansa Musa's Rule

 Mansa Musa was the Mansa, or emperor of the Western African Empire from 1312 C.E. to 1337 C.E. Mansa Musa came to power after the previous king disappeared at sea. The kingdom that he was given was already wealthy at that time, but he turned it into one of the wealthiest kingdoms in Africa.

Map of the Mali Empire

Gaining Wealth

How did Mansa Musa make his kingdom so wealthy? He expanded trade, and the Mali empire contained some of the largest and most active gold mines. This meant that he had total control over the gold. He traded the gold but also kept most of it for himself. He also traded salt from the salt mines and ivory from elephants.

Pilgrimage

As a Muslim, it was custom to go to Mecca as a pilgrimage. During his 4000-mile long journey was when other countries came aware of how wealthy Mansa Musa had become. It took place from 1324 B.E. to 1325 B.E. His caravan consisted of 60,000 men, including 12,000 slaves who dressed in Persian silk. Musa rode on horseback with 500 slaves carrying gold-adorned staff pointing at him. He also took 80 camels, and they each carried 300 pounds of gold.

Mansa Musa's route to Mecca

Putting Wealth to Use

What did Mansa Musa do with his wealth? He used his wealth to build many palaces, mosques, and educational centers. A famous mosque that he built was the Great Mosque of Timbuktu. During his Pilgrimage, he gave a lot of gold to people that he passed. It was said that he gave away so much gold that it crashed the economy for over 12 years.