Mali Empire and Talk:Chet Blaylock: Difference between pages

Revision as of 23:13, 11 April 2007

Revision as of 00:54, 18 July 2007

Line 1:

{{WPBiography

{{MandenInfobox}}

|living=no

|class=Start

|priority=

|politician-work-group=yes

|listas=Blaylock, Chet

}}

{{WikiProject Montana|class=start}}

The '''Mali Empire''' or '''Manding Empire''' or '''Manden Kurufa''' was a [[medieval]] [[Islamic]] [[West Africa|West African]] state of the [[Mandinka people|Mandinka]] from 1235 to 1645. The empire was founded by [[Sundiata Keita]] and became renowned for the [[wealth]] of its rulers, especially [[Mansa]] [[Mansa Musa|Musa I]]. The Mali Empire had many profound cultural influences on West Africa allowing the spread of its language, laws and customs along the [[Niger River]].

----

==Manden==

The Mali Empire grew out of an area referred to by its contemporary inhabitants as Manden.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.manden.org/article.php3%3Fid_article%3D2&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=3&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DFarin,%2BMali%2BEmpire%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] Manden, named for its inhabitants the Mandinka (initially Manden’ka with “ka” meaning people of),[http://www.fakoli.net/nko/tutorial/intro.html] comprised most of present-day northern [[Guinea]] and southern [[Mali]]. The empire was originally established as a federation of Mandinka tribes called the Manden Kurufa (literally Manden Federation), but it later became an empire ruling some 50 million people of nearly every ethnic group imaginable in West Africa.

==Etymology==

The naming origins of the Mali Empire are complex and still debated in scholarly circles around the world. While the meaning of “Mali” is still contested, the process of how it entered the regional lexicon is not. As mentioned earlier, the Mandinka of the [[Middle Ages]] referred to their ethnic homeland as “Manden”.

Among the many different ethnic groups surrounding Manden were [[Pulaar]] speaking groups in [[Macina]], [[Tekrur]] and [[Fouta Djallon]]. In Pulaar, the Mandinka of Manden became the [[Malinke]] of Mali. [http://web.cocc.edu/cagatucci/classes/hum211/CoursePack/coursepackpast/sundjata.htm] So while the Mandinka people generally referred to their land and capital province as Manden, its semi-nomadic Fula subjects residing on the heartland’s western (Tekrur), southern (Fouta Djallon) and eastern borders (Macina) popularized the name Mali for this kingdom and later empire of the Middle Ages.

==Pre-Imperial Mali==

The Mandinka kingdoms of Mali or Manden had already existed several centuries before Sundiata’s unification as a small state just to the south of the [[Soninké]] empire of [[Wagadou]], better known as the [[Ghana Empire]].[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.soninkara.org/histoire-soninkara/wagadou/recherches/index.php&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=4&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DWagadou,%2BGhana%2BEmpire%26hl%3Den] This area was composed of mountains, savannah and forest providing ideal protection and resources for the population of hunters.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.histoire-afrique.org/article73.html%3Fartsuite%3D4&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmalimassa%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] Those not living in the mountains formed small city-states such as Toron, Ka-Ba and [[Niani]]. The Keita dynasty from which nearly every Mali emperor came traces its lineage back to [[Bilal]], <ref name=sundiata>Niane, D.T: "Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali". Longman, 1995</ref> the faithful servant of Islam’s prophet [[Muhammad]]. It was common practice during the Middle Ages for both [[Christian]] and [[Muslim]] rulers to tie their bloodline back to a pivotal figure in their faith’s history. So while the lineage of the Keita dynasty may be dubious at best, oral chroniclers have preserved a list of each Keita ruler from Lawalo (supposedly one of Bilal’s seven sons whom settled in Mali) to Maghan Kon Fatta (father of Sundiata Keita).

===The Kangaba Province===

During the height of Wagadou's power, the land of Manden became one of its provinces.[http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:2sjXxeHNsp8J:etudesafricaines.revues.org/docannexe6104.html+Wagadou+rule+Kangaba&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=15&gl=us] The Manden city-state of Ka-ba (present-day Kangaba) served as the capital and name of this province. From at least the beginning of the [[11th century]], Mandinka kings known as [[faama]]s ruled Manden from Ka-ba in the name of the Ghanas.<ref>Heusch, Luc de: "The Symbolic Mechanisms of Sacred Kingship: Rediscovering Frazer". The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 1997</ref>

===The Twelve Kingdoms===

Wagadou's control over Manden came to a halt after 14 years of war with the [[Almoravides]], [[Muslim]] fanatics of mostly [[Berber people|Berber]] extraction from [[North Africa]]. The Almoravide general [[Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar |Abu Bekr]] captured and burned the Wagadou capital of [[Kumbi Saleh]] in [[1076]] ending its dominance over the area. <ref name=peoplesand>Stride, G.T & C. Ifeka: "Peoples and Empires of West Africa: West Africa in History 1000-1800". Nelson, 1971</ref> However, the Almoravides were unable to hold onto the area, and it was quickly retaken by the weakened Soninké. The Kangaba province, free of both Soninké and Berber influence, splintered into twelve kingdoms with their own [[maghan]] (meaning prince) or faama.<ref name=recherches>Niane, D.T.: "Recherches sur l’Empire du Mali au Moyen âge". Presence Africaine. Paris, 1975</ref> Manden was split in half with the Dodougou territory to the northeast and the Kri territory to the southwest.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.manden.org/&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DManden%26hl%3Den] The tiny kingdom of Niani was one of several in the Kri area of Manden.

===The Kaniaga Rulers===

In approximately 1140 the [[Sosso]] kingdom of [[Kaniaga]], a former vassal of Wagadou, began conquering the lands of its old masters. By 1180 it had even subjugated Wagadou forcing the once proud Soninké to pay tribute. In 1203, the Sosso king Soumaoro of the Kanté clan came to power and reportedly terrorized much of Manden stealing women and goods from both Dodougou and Kri.[http://www.fsmitha.com/h3/h15-af.htm]

===The Lion Prince===

During the rise of Kaniaga, Sundiata of the Keita clan was born around 1217 AD. He was the son of Niani’s faama, [[Nare Fa]] (also known as Maghan Kon Fatta meaning the handsome prince). Sundiata’s mother was Maghan Kon Fatta’s second wife, [[Sogolon Kédjou]].<ref name=sundiata/> She was a hunchback from the land of Do south of Mali. The child of this marriage received the first name of his mother (Sogolon) and the surname of his father (Djata). Combined in the rapidly spoken language of the Mandinka, the names formed Sondjata or Sundjata.<ref name=sundiata/> The anglicized version of this name, Sundiata, is also popular. Maghan Sundiata was prophesized to become a great conqueror. To his parent's dread, the prince did not have a promising start. Maghan Sundiata, according to the oral traditions, did not walk until he was seven years old.<ref name=recherches/>

However, once Sundiata did gain use of his legs he grew strong and very respected. Sadly for Sundiata, this did not occur before his father died. Despite the faama of Niani’s wishes to respect the prophecy and put Sundiata on the throne, the son from his first wife [[Sassouma Bérété]] was crowned instead. As soon as Sassouma’s son [[Dankaran Touman]] took the throne, he and his mother forced the increasingly popular Sundiata into exile along with his mother and two sisters. Before Dankaran Touman and his mother could enjoy their unimpeded power, King Soumaoro set his sights on Niani forcing Dankaran to flee to [[Kissidougou]].<ref name=sundiata/>

After many years in exile, first at the court of [[Wagadou]] and then at [[Mema]], Sundiata was sought out by a Niani delegation and begged to combat the Sosso and free the kingdoms of Manden forever.

====Battle of Kirina====

Returning with the combined armies of Mema, Wagadou and all the rebellious Mandinka city-states, Maghan Sundiata led a revolt against the Kaniaga Kingdom around [[1234]]. The combined forces of northern and southern Manden defeated the Sosso army at the [[Battle of Kirina]] (then known as ''Krina'') in approximately [[1235]].<ref name=recherches/> This victory resulted in the fall of the Kaniaga kingdom and the rise of the Mali Empire. After the victory, King Soumaoro disappeared, and the Mandinka stormed the last of the Sosso cities. Maghan Sundiata was declared “faama of faamas” and received the title “mansa”, which translates roughly to emperor. At the age of 18, he gained authority over all the twelve kingdoms in an alliance known as the Manden Kurufa.[http://66.218.71.231/language/translation/translatedPage.php?tt=url&text=http%3a//www.journee-nationale-communes.org/dec_chart1.htm&lp=fr_en&.intl=us&fr=yfp-t-501] He was crowned under the throne name Mari Djata becoming the first Mandinka emperor.<ref name=recherches/>

==Manden Kurufa==

The Mali Empire was the second in a wave of successive states forged in the Sahel characterized by stronger and stronger centralization. Whereas the Ghana Empire had very little centralization outside of the edicts of its emperor, the Mali Empire would emerge as West Africa’s first federalized state with sweeping laws that were more or less uniform over an area roughly the size of Western Europe. This trend of centralization would be adopted and further developed by the Songhai during Mali’s decline as well as [[Bamana]], [[Wolof]] and [[Fula]] states thereafter.

===Organization===

The Manden Kurufa founded by Mari Djata I was composed of the “three freely allied states” of Mali, Mema and Wagadou plus the [[Twelve Doors of Mali]].<ref name=sundiata/> It is important to remember that Mali, in this sense, strictly refers to the city-state of Niani.

Mema was a powerful city-state near the bend of the [[Niger River]] outside of Manden. It was allied to Sundiata throughout his campaign against Kaniaga. Its faama was allowed to keep his crown and not prostrate before Sundiata, because of the mansa’s exile at that court.

Wagadou, another land outside of Manden, was also allowed to keep its monarch. The Ghana of Wagadou received the same benefits as Mema and for the same reasons.

The twelve doors of Mali were a coalition of conquered or allied territories, mostly within Manden, with sworn allegiance to Sundiata and his descendants. Upon stabbing their spears into the ground before Sundiata’s throne, each of the twelve kings relinquished their kingdom to the Keita dynasty.<ref name=sundiata/> In return for their submission, they became “farbas” a combination of the Mandinka words “farin” and “ba" (great farin).<ref>Person, Yves: "SAMORI: UNE REVOLUTION DYULA". Nimes, impr. Barnier, 1968</ref> Farin was a general term for northern commander at the time. These farbas would rule their old kingdoms in the name of the mansa with most of the authority they held prior to joining the Manden Kurufa.

===The Kouroukan Fouga===

Immediately after being crowned mansa, Mari Djata instituted a universal constitution for all subjects of his new state called the [[Kouroukan Fouga]].[http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:lPDmWk42EHkJ:www.wildaf-ao.org/eng/IMG/pdf/THE_CHARTER_OF_KURUKAN_FUGA__Anglais_1.pdf+Somono+clan&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=17&gl=us] At a site just outside the town of Kangaba, he formalized the government and established the Gbara or Great Assembly.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.manden.org/&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DManden%26hl%3Den]

====The Great Assembly====

The [[Gbara]] or Great Assembly would serve as the Mandinka deliberative body until the collapse of the Manden Kurufa in 1645. Its first meeting, at the famous Kouroukan Fouga (Division of the World), had 29 clan delegates presided over by a belen-tigui (master of ceremony). The final incarnation of the Gbara, according to the surviving traditions of northern Guinea, held 32 positions occupied by 28 clans.[http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:lPDmWk42EHkJ:www.wildaf-ao.org/eng/IMG/pdf/THE_CHARTER_OF_KURUKAN_FUGA__Anglais_1.pdf+Somono+clan&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=17&gl=us]

====Social, Economic and Government Reform====

The Kouroukan Fouga also put in place social and economic reforms including prohibitions on the maltreatment of prisoners and slaves, installing women in government circles and placing a system of banter between clans which clearly stated who could say what about in who. Also, Sundiata divided the lands amongst the people assuring everyone had a place in the empire and fixed exchange rates for common products.

Another crucial fact established at the ''Kouroukan Fouga'' was the supremacy of Manden over all realms controlled by or allied to the federation including Wagadou and Mema. All future mansas would have to be chosen from the Keita clan, and the city-state of [[Niani]] (in present-day [[Guinea]]) would become the federal capital. Mansa Mari Djata returned to and rebuilt the capital of Niani, which had been destroyed by Soumaoro in his absence, and made it the most important center of trade in West Africa for the next 200 years.

====Mari Djata I====

Mansa Mari Djata’s reign saw the conquest and or annexation of several key locals in the Mali Empire. When the campaigning was done, his empire extended 1,000 miles east to west with those borders being the bends of the Senegal and Niger Rivers respectively.[http://www.vmfa.state.va.us/mali_geo_hist.html] After unifying Manden, he added the [[Wangara]] goldfields making them the southern border. The northern commercial towns of [[Oualata]] and [[Audaghost]] were also conquered and became part of the new state’s northern border. Wagadou and Mema became junior partners in the realm and part of the imperial nucleus. The lands of [[Bambougou]], Jalo (Fouta Djallon) and [[Kaabu]] were added into Mali by Fakoli Koroma,<ref name=recherches/> Fran Kamara and Tiramakhan Traore,[http://leadinternational.com/about/history_gb.php] respectively.

When Mari Djata I dies, as the result of either drowning in the Sankarani or an errant arrow in a celebration, he had a standing army and control over the coveted trans-Saharan trade routes.<ref name=sundiata/>

==Imperial Mali ==

[[Image:Great Mosque of Djenné 1.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Rebuilt [[Mosque of Djenne]]]]

There were 21 known mansas of the Mali Empire after Mari Djata I and probably about two or three more yet to be revealed. The names of these rulers come down through history via the djelis and modern descendants of the Keita dynasty residing in Kangaba. What separates these rulers from the founder, other than the latter’s historic role in establishing the state, is their transformation of the Manden Kurufa into a Manden Empire. Not content to rule fellow Manding subjects unified by the victory of Mari Djata I, these mansas would conquer and annex Peuhl, Wolof, Serer, Bamana, Songhai, Taureg and countless other peoples into an immense empire.

===The Djata Lineage 1250-1275===

The first three successors to Mari Djata all claimed it by blood right or something close to it. This twenty-five year period saw amazing gains for the mansa and the beginning of fierce internal rivalries that nearly ended the burgeoning empire.

====Ouali I====

After Mari Djata’s death in 1255, custom dictated that his son ascend the throne assuming he was of age. However, Yérélinkon was a minor following his father’s death.[http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:lPDmWk42EHkJ:www.wildaf-ao.org/eng/IMG/pdf/THE_CHARTER_OF_KURUKAN_FUGA__Anglais_1.pdf+Somono+clan&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=17&gl=us] Manding Bory, Mari Djata’s half-brother and kankoro-sigui (vizier), should have been crowned according to the Kouroukan Fouga. Instead, Mari Djata’s son seized the throne and was crowned Mansa Ouali (also spelt “Wali”).

Mansa Ouali proved to be a good emperor adding more lands to the empire including the Gambian provinces of Bati and Casa. He also conquered the gold producing provinces of Bambuk and Bondou. The central province of Konkodougou was established. The Songhai kingdom of Gao also seems to have been subjugated for the first of many times around this period. <ref name=peoplesand/>

Aside from military conquest, Ouali is also credited with agricultural reforms throughout the empire putting many soldiers to work as farmers in the newly acquired Gambian provinces. Just prior to his death in 1270, Ouali went on the hajj to Mecca strengthening ties with North Africa and Muslim merchants. <ref name=peoplesand/>

====The General’s Sons====

As a policy of controlling and rewarding his generals, Mari Djata adopted their sons. <ref name=recherches/> These children were raised at the mansa’s court and became Keitas upon reaching maturity. Seeing the throne as their right, two adopted sons of Mari Djata waged a devastating war against one another that threatened to destroy what the first two mansas had built. The first son to gain the throne was [[Mansa Ouati]] (also spelt “Wati) in 1270.<ref name=levitzion>Levitzion, N: "The Thirteenth- and Fourteenth-Century Kings of Mali". The Journal of African History, Vol. 4, No. 3. Cambridge University Press, 1963</ref> He reigned for four years spending lavishly and ruling cruelly according to the djelis. Upon his death in 1274, the other adopted son seized the throne.<ref name=levitzion/> [[Mansa Khalifa]] is remembered as even worse than Ouati. He governed just as badly and reportedly fired arrows from the roof of his palace at passersby. He was assassinated, possibly on orders of the Gbara, and replaced with Manding Bory in 1275.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.chez.com/afroweb/sen_his.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=10&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DKhalifa,%2B1275,%2BMali%2BEmpire%26start%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN]

===The Court Mansas 1275-1300===

After the chaos of Ouali and Khalifa’s reigns, a number of court officials with close ties to Mari Djata ruled. They began the empire’s return to grace setting it up for a golden age of rulers.

====Abubakari I====

Manding Bory was crowned under the throne name [[Mansa Abubakari]] (a Manding corruption of the Muslim name Abu Bakr).<ref name=recherches/> Mansa Abubakari’s mother was [[Namandjé]],<ref name=recherches/> the third wife of Maghan Kon Fatta. Prior to becoming mansa, Abubakari had been one of his brother’s generals and later his kankoro-sigui. Little else is known about the reign of Abubakari I, but it seems he was successful in stopping the hemorrhaging of wealth in the empire.

====Sakoura====

In 1285, a court slave freed by Mari Djata whom had also served as a general usurped the throne of Mali.<ref name=peoplesand/> The reign of [[Mansa Sakoura]] (also spelt Sakura) appears to have been beneficial despite the political shake-up. He added the first conquests to Mali since the reign of Ouali including the former Wagadou provinces of [[Tekrour]] and [[Diara]]. His conquests did not stop at the boundaries of Wagadou however. He campaigned into Senegal and conquered the Wolof province of [[Dyolof]] then took the army east to subjugate the copper producing area of [[Takedda]]. He also conquered [[Macina]] and raided into [[Gao]] to suppress its first rebellion against Mali.<ref name=peoplesand/> More than just a mere warrior, Mansa Sakoura went on the hajj and opened direct trade negotiations with [[Tripoli]] and [[Morocco]].<ref name=peoplesand/>

Mansa Sakoura was murdered on his return trip from Mecca in or near present-day [[Djibouti]] by a [[Danakil]] warrior attempting to rob him.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoMali.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=4&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DBitou,%2BMali%2BEMpire%26hl%3Den] The emperor’s attendants rushed his body home through the [[Ouadi]] Kingdom and into [[Kanem]] where one of that empire’s messengers was sent to Mali with news of Sakoura’s death. When the body arrived in Niani, it was given a regal burial despite the usurper’s slave roots.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoMali.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=4&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DBitou,%2BMali%2BEMpire%26hl%3Den]

===The Kolonkan Lineage 1300-1312===

The Gbara selected Ko Mamadi as the next mansa in 1300. He was the first of a new line of rulers directly descending from Mari Djata’s sister, [[Kolonkan]].<ref name=recherches/> But seeing as how these rulers all shared the blood of Maghan Kon Fatta, they are considered legitimate Keitas. Even Sakoura, with his history of being a slave in the Djata family, was considered a Keita; so the line of Bilal had yet to be broken.

It is during the Kolonkan lineage that the defining characteristics of golden age Mali begin to appear. By maintaining the developments of Sakoura and Abubakari I, the Kolonkan mansas steer Mali safely into its apex.

====Economy====

The Mali Empire flourished because of trade above all else. It contained three immense gold mines within its borders unlike the Ghana Empire, which was only a transit point for gold. The empire taxed every ounce of gold or salt that entered its borders. By the beginning of the 14th century, Mali was the source of almost half the [[Old World]]'s [[gold]] exported from mines in [[Bambuk]], [[Boure]] and [[Galam]].<ref name=peoplesand/> There was no standard currency throughout the realm, but several forms were prominent by region.

=====Gold=====

[[Image:Mansa_Musa.jpg|thumbnail|right|300px|'''Mansa Musa''' depicted holding a [[gold nugget]] from a [[1395]] map of [[Africa]] and [[Europe]]]]

Gold nuggets were the exclusive property of the ''mansa'', and were illegal to trade within his borders. All gold was immediately handed over to the imperial treasury in return for an equal value of gold dust. Gold dust had been weighed and bagged for use at least since the reign of the Ghana Empire. Mali borrowed the practice to stem inflation of the substance, since it was so prominent in the region. The most common measure for gold within the realm was the ambiguous ''mithqal'' (4.5 grams of gold).<ref name=recherches/> This term was used interchangeably with ''dinar'', though it is unclear if coined currency was used in the empire. Gold dust was used all over the empire, but was not valued equally in all regions.

=====Salt=====

[[Image:Targui.jpg|thumbnail|left|200px|[[Tuaregs]] were and still are an integral part of the salt trade across the Sahara]]

The next great unit of exchange in the Mali Empire was salt. Salt was as valuable if not more valuable than gold in Sub-Saharan Africa. It was cut into pieces and spent on goods with close to equal buying power throughout the empire.<ref name=recherches/> While it was as good as gold in the north, it was even better in the south. The people of the south needed salt for their diet, but it was extremely rare.[http://www.mrdowling.com/609-trade.html] The northern region on the other hand had no shortage of salt. Every year merchants entered Mali via Oualata with camel loads of salt to sell in Niani. According to historians of the period, a camel load of salt could fetch 10 dinars worth of gold in the north and 20 to 40 in the south.<ref name=recherches/>

=====Copper=====

Copper was also a valued commodity in imperial Mali. Copper, traded in bars, was mined from Takedda in the north and traded in the south for gold. Contemporary sources claim 60 copper bars traded for 100 dinars of gold.<ref name=recherches/>

====Military====

The number and frequency of conquest in the late 13th century and throughout the 14th century indicate the Kolonkan mansas inherited and or developed a capable military. While no particular mansa or mansa has ever been credited with the organization of the Manding war machine, it could not have developed to the legendary proportions proclaimed by its subjects without steady revenue and stable government. Conveniently, the Mali Empire had just that from 1275 until the first Kolonkan mansa in 1300.

=====Strength=====

The Mali Empire maintained a professional, full-time army in order to defend its borders. The entire nation was mobilized with each tribe obligated to provide a quota of fighting age men.<ref name=recherches/> Contemporary historians present during the height and decline of the Mali Empire consistently record its army at 100,000 with 10,000 of that number being made up of cavalry.<ref name=recherches/> With the help of the river tribes, this army could be deployed throughout the realm on short notice.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.histoire-afrique.org/article73.html%3Fartsuite%3D4&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmalimassa%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D]

=====Divisions=====

The forces were divided into northern and southern armies. The northern army, under the command of a farin (northern commander) was stationed in the border city of Soura.<ref name=recherches/> The southern army, under the command of a Sankar (a term for the ruler near the Sankarani River),<ref name=recherches/> was commanded from the city of Zouma. The Farin-Soura and Sankar-Zouma were both appointed by the mansa and answerable only to him.

=====Infantry=====

[[Image:Mali_Archer.jpg|thumbnail|left|200px|Djenne [[Terracotta]] depicting an archer from Mali Empire dated around 13-15th Century.]]

An infantryman, regardless of weapon (bow, spear, etc.) was called a [[sofa]].<ref name=sundiata/> Sofas were organized in tribal units led by tribal chiefs. The smallest unit of sofas was commanded by a ''kun-tigui'' (tribe master). As mentioned before, kun-tiguis recruited and led quotas of their tribesmen into battle once called to service by their lord. A kun-tigui commanded an infantry unit of 10 to 20 men called a ''kelé-kulu'' meaning "war heap". An officer commanding ten ''kelé-kulus'' (100 to 200 infantry) was in charge of a ''kelé-bolo'' meaning "war arm".[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.histoire-afrique.org/article73.html%3Fartsuite%3D4&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmalimassa%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] These officers received the titled ''bolo kun-tigui''.

=====Cavalry=====

[[Image:Equestrian_Figure.jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|Djenne Terracotta Equestrian figure found in Mali Empire region and dated approximately 13-15th Century]]

Cavalry units called [[Mandekalu]] served as an equal if not more important element of the army. Then as today, horses were expensive and only the nobles took them into battle. A Mandinka cavalry unit was composed of 50 horsemen and called a ''seré''. A “kelé-tigui” or war master commanded these. Aside from commanding a personal contingent of horsemen, a ''kélé-tigui'' had two or more ''bolo kun-tiguis'' obliged to follow him onto the battlefield. Kélé-Tiguis, as the name suggest, were professional soldiers and the highest rank on the field short of the ''Farin'' or ''Sankar''.

=====Equipment=====

The common sofa was armed with a large shield constructed out of wood or animal hide and a stabbing spear called a ''tamba''. Bowmen formed a large portion of the sofas. Three bowmen supporting one spearman was the ratio in Kaabu and the Gambia by the mid 16th century. Equipped with two quivers and a shield, Mandinka bowmen used iron headed arrows with barbed tipped that were usually poisoned. They also used flaming arrows for siege warfare. While spears and bows were the mainstay of the sofas, swords and lances of local or foreign manufacture were the choice weapons of the Mandekalu.[http://salempress.com/Store/samples/weapons_and_warfare/weapons_and_warfare_westafrica.htm] Another common weapon of Mandekalu warriors was the poison javelin used in skirmished. Imperial Mali's horsemen also used [[chain mail]] armor for defense and shields similar to those of the sofas.

====The Gao Mansas====

Ko Mamadi was crowned [[Mansa Gao]] and ruled over a successful empire without any recorded crisis. His son, Mansa Mohammed ibn Gao, ascended the throne five years later and continued the stability of the Kolonkan line.<ref name=recherches/>

====Abubakari II====

The last Kolonkan ruler, Bata Manding Bory, was crowned Mansa Abubakari II in 1310.<ref name=recherches/> He continued the non-militant style of rule that characterized Gao and Mohammed ibn Gao, but was interested in the empire’s western sea. According to an account given by Mansa Musa I, who during the reign of Abubakari II served as the mansa’s kankoro-sigui, Mali sent two expeditions into the Atlantic. Mansa Abubakari II left Musa as regent of the empire, demonstrating the amazing stability of this period in Mali, and departed with the second expedition commanding some 4,000 [[pirogue|pirogues]] equipped with both oars and sails in 1311.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1068950.stm] Neither the emperor nor any of the ships returned to Mali. Modern historians and scientists are skeptical about the success of either voyage, but the account of these happenings is preserved in both written North African records and the oral records of Mali’s djelis.

===The Laye Lineage 1312-1389===

Abubakari II’s 1312 abdication, the only recorded one in the empire’s history, marked the beginning of a new lineage descended from Faga Laye.<ref name=recherches/> Faga Laye was the son of Abubakari I. Unlike his father, Faga Laye never took the throne of Mali. However, his line would produce seven mansa whom reigned during the height of Mali’s power and toward the beginning of its decline.

====Governance====

The Mali Empire retained much of the framework established to govern the original area of the Manden Kurufa, but wisely made changes to suit the needs of newly acquired lands. At the very top of government was the ruler of Manden or Mali followed by his vizier. The governors of BaGhana (Wagadou) and Mema were next in reverence if not importance.

*Mali, ruled by a ''mansa''; the paramount state from which the empire gets its name

*Mema, ruled by a ''fama''; it was the land that reared Sundiata to manhood while in exile

*Wagadou, ruled by a ''ghana''; hence the name BaGhana, also aided Sundiata

=====Administration=====

The Mali Empire covered a larger area for a longer period of time than any other West African state before or since. What made this possible was the decentralized nature of administration throughout the state. According to [[Ki-Zerbo]], the farther a person traveled from Niani, the more decentralized the mansa’s power became.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.afrique-gouvernance.net/fiches/dph/fiche-dph-340.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=10&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DKi-Zerbo,%2BMali%2BEmpire%26hl%3Den] Nevertheless, the mansa managed to keep tax money and nominal control over the area without agitating his subjects into revolt. At the local level (village, town, city), kun-tiguis elected a dougou-tigui (village-master) from a bloodline descended from that locality’s semi-mythical founder.<ref>O'Sullivan, John M.: "Slavery in the Malinke Kingdom of Kabadougou (Ivory Coast)". The International Journal of African Historical Studies, Vol. 13, No. 4. Boston University African Studies Center, 1980</ref> The county level administrators called kafo-tigui (county-master) were appointed by the governor of the province from within his own circle.<ref name=peoplesand/> Only when we get to the state or province level is there any palpable interference from the central authority in Niani. Provinces picked their own governors via their own custom (election, inheritance, etc). Regardless of their title in the province, they were recognized as dyamani-tigui (province master) by the mansa.<ref name=peoplesand/> Dyamani-tiguis had to be approved by the mansa and were subject to his oversight. If the mansa didn’t believe the dyamani-tigui was capable or trustworthy, a farba might be installed to oversee the province or administer it outright.

=====Farins and Farbas=====

Territories in Mali came into the empire via conquest or annexation. In the event of conquest, farins took control of the area until a suitable native ruler could be found. After the loyalty or at least the capitulation of an area was assured, it was allowed to select its own dyamani-tigui. This process was essential to keep non-Manding subjects loyal to the Manding elites that ruled them.

Barring any other difficulties, the dyamani-tigui would run the province by himself collecting taxes and procuring armies from the tribes under his command. However, territories that were crucial to trade or subject to revolt would receive a farba.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.afrique-gouvernance.net/fiches/dph/fiche-dph-340.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=6&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dfarba,%2Bmansa%26hl%3Den] Farbas were picked by the mansa from the conquering farin, family members or even slaves. The only real requirement was that the mansa knew he could trust this individual to safeguard imperial interests.

Duties of the farba included reporting on the activities of the territory, collecting taxes and ensuring the native administration didn’t contradict orders from Niani. The farba could also take power away from the native administration if required and raise an army in the area for defense or putting down rebellions.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.afrique-gouvernance.net/fiches/dph/fiche-dph-340.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=6&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dfarba,%2Bmansa%26hl%3Den]

The post of a farba was very prestigious, and his descendants could inherit it with the mansa’s approval. The mansa could also replace a farba if he got out of control as in the case of Diafunu.

====Territory====

The Mali Empire reached its largest size under the Laye mansas. During this period, Mali covered nearly all the area between the [[Sahara Desert]] and coastal forests. It stretched from the shores of the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to [[Niamey]] in modern day [[Niger]]. By 1350, the empire covered approximately 439,400 square miles. The empire also reached its highest population during the Laye period ruling between 40 and 50 million people in 400 cities,[http://endingstereotypesforamerica.org/wealth_africa_and_europe.html] towns and villages of various religions and ethnicities. Scholars of the era claim it took no less than a year to traverse the empire from east to west. During this period only the Mongol Empire was larger.

The dramatic increase in the empire’s size demanded a shift from the Manden Kurufa’s organization of three states with twelve dependencies. This model was scrapped by Ibn Battuta’s 1352 visit. Replacing the old model was a setup of fourteen provinces covering all areas loyal to the mansa.[http://www.cr.nps.gov/ethnography/aah/AAheritage/histContextsA.htm] The fourteen provinces included:

*Audaghost (Northeast of Takrur, West of Oulata)

*BaGhana (“Great Ghana” contains Wagadou and Mema)

*Bambougou (contains Bambuk and Boure conquered by Fakoli Koroma)

*Bati (The area immediately north of the Gambia)

*Cassa (Senegal South of the Gambia)

*Diafunu (contains Diara; NE of Bambouk, SE of Audaghost, SW of Oulata)

*Dyolof (Atop Senegal River)

*Gao (East of Niger northernmost hump)

*Kaabu (south of Cassa, west of Manden, most of northern Guinea Bissau)

*Kita (In SE region of the Kayes division of modern Mali, West of Bambouk)

*Konkodougou (West of Sangala, Possibly southwest of Kita)

*Manden (Capital province from which the empire gets it name; South of Kita)

*Oualata (East of Audaghost, West of Timbuktu; directly north of Kumbi Saleh)

*Takrur (On 3rd cataract of the Senegal River, north of Dyolof)

====Musa I====

[[Image:Timbuktu Mosque Sankore.jpg|thumb|right|270px|[[Sankore Mosque]]]]

The first ruler from the Laye lineage was Kankan Musa, also known as Kango Musa. After an entire year without word from Abubakari II, he was crowned Mansa [[Mansa Musa|Foamed Musa]]. Mansa Musa was one of the first truly devout Muslims to lead the Mali Empire. He attempted to make Islam the faith of the nobility,<ref name=peoplesand/> but kept to the imperial tradition of not forcing it on the populace. He also made [[Id]] celebrations at the end of [[Ramadan]] a national ceremony. He could read and write Arabic and took an interest in the scholarly city of [[Timbuktu]], which he peaceably annexed in [[1324]]. Via one of the royal ladies of his court, Musa transformed [[Sankore]] from an informal [[madrasah]] into an Islamic university. Islamic studies flourished thereafter. That same year a Mandinka general known as Sagmandir put down yet another rebellion in Gao.<ref name=peoplesand/>

Mansa Musa’s crowning achievement was his famous pilgrimage to Mecca, which started in 1324 and concluded with his return in [[1326]]. Accounts of how many people and how much gold he spent vary. All of them agree it was a very large group (the mansa kept a personal guard of some 500 men),[http://www.sarasota.k12.fl.us/sarasota/african.htm] and he gave out so many alms and bought so many things that gold’s value in Egypt and the near east depreciated for twelve years.[http://www.bu.edu/africa/outreach/materials/handouts/k_o_mali.html] When he passed through [[Cairo]], historian al-Maqurizi noted "the members of his entourage proceeded to buy [[Turkey|Turkish]] and [[Ethiopia|Ethiopian]] slave girls, singing girls and garments, so that the rate of the gold ''dinar'' fell by six ''dirhams''."

Musa was so generous that he ran out of money and had to take out a [[loan]] to be able to afford the journey home. Musa's ''hajj'', and especially his gold, caught the attention of both the Islamic and [[Christian]] worlds. Consequently, the name of Mali and Timbuktu appeared on 14th century world maps.

While on the hajj, he met the [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] poet and architect [[Es-Saheli]]. Mansa Musa brought the architect back to Mali to beautify some of the cities. Mosques were built in Gao and Timbuktu along with impressive palaces also built in Timbuktu. By the time of his death in 1337, Mali had control over [[Taghazza]], a salt producing area in the north, which further strengthened its treasury.

Mansa Musa was succeeded by his son, [[Maghan I]].<ref name=peoplesand/> Mansa Maghan I spent wastefully and was the first lackluster emperor since Khalifa. But the Mali Empire built by his predecessors was too strong for even his misrule and passed intact to Musa’s brother, [[Souleyman]] in 1341.

====Souleyman====

Mansa Souleyman took steep measures to put Mali back into financial shape developing a reputation for miserliness.<ref name=peoplesand/> However, he proved to be a good and strong ruler despite numerous challenges. It is during his reign that Fula raids on Takrur began. There was also a palace conspiracy to overthrow him hatched by the Qasa (Manding term meaning Queen) and several army commanders.<ref name=peoplesand/> Mansa Souleyman’s generals successfully fought off the military incursions, and the senior wife behind the plot was imprisoned.

The mansa also made a successful hajj, kept up correspondence with Morocco and Egypt and built an earthen platform at Kangaba called the [[Camanbolon]] where he held court with provincial governors and deposited the holy books he brought back from [[Hedjaz]].

The only major setback to his reign was the loss of Mali’s Dyolof province in Senegal. The [[Wolof]] populations of the area united into their own state known as the [[Jolof Empire]] in the 1350s. Still, when [[Ibn Battuta]] arrived at Mali in July of 1352, he found a thriving civilization on par with virtually anything in the Muslim or Christian world. Mansa Souleyman died in 1360 and was succeeded by his son, Camba.

====Mari Djata II====

After a mere nine months of rule, [[Mansa Camba]] was deposed by one of Maghan I’s three sons. Konkodougou Kamissa, named for the province he once governed,<ref name=recherches/> was crowned as Mansa [[Mari Djata II]] in 1360. He rules oppressively and nearly bankrupts Mali with his lavish spending. He does; however, maintain contacts with Morocco sending a giraffe to King Abu Hassan of the Maghreb. Mansa Mari Djata II becomes seriously ill in 1372,<ref name=peoplesand/> and power moves into the hands of his ministers until his death in 1374.

====Musa II====

The ruinous reign of Mari Djata II left the empire in bad financial shape, but it passed intact to the dead emperor’s brother. Mansa [[Fadima Musa]] or Mansa Musa II, began the process of reversing his brother’s excesses.<ref name=peoplesand/> He does not; however, hold the power of previous mansa because of the influence of his kankoro-sigui.

Kankoro-Sigui Mari Djata, who had no relation to the Keita clan, practically ran the empire in Musa II’s stead. He put down a Taureg rebellion in Takedda and campaigned in Gao. While he met success in Tahkedda, he never managed a decisive victory in Gao. The Songhai settlement effectively shook off Mali’s authority in [[1375]]. Still, by the time of Mansa Musa II’s death in 1387, Mali was financially solvent and in control of all of its previous conquests short of Gao and Dyolof. Forty years after the reign of Mansa Musa I, the Mali Empire still controlled some 1.1 million meters of land throughout Western Africa.[http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:Vjto7rdI0AsJ:jwsr.ucr.edu/archive/vol12/number2/pdf/jwsr-v12n2-tah.pdf+%22East-West+Orientation+of+Historical+Empires%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us]

====Maghan II====

The last son of Maghan I, Tenin Maghan (also known as Kita Tenin Maghan for the province he once governed) is crowned [[Mansa Maghan II]] in 1387.<ref name=recherches/> Little is known of him except that he only reigned two years. He is deposed in 1389 marking the end of the Faga Laye mansas.

===The Obscure Lineages 1389-1545===

From 1389 onward Mali will gain a host of mansas of obscure origins. This is the least known period in Mali’s imperial history. What is evident is that there is no steady lineage governing the empire. The other characteristic of this era is the gradual loss of its northern and eastern possession to the rising Songhai Empire and the movement of the Mali’s economic focus from the trans-Saharan trade routes to the burgeoning commerce along the coast.

====Maghan III====

[[Mansa Sandaki]], a descendant of Kankoro-Sigui Mari Djata, deposed Maghan II becoming the first person without any Keita dynastic relation to officially rule Mali.<ref name=peoplesand/> He would only reign a year before a descendant of Mansa Gao removed him.<ref>Niane, D.T.: "Recherches sur l’Empire du Mali au Moyen âge". Paris Press, 1975</ref> Mahmud, possibly a grandchild or great-grandchild of Mansa Gao, was crowned [[Mansa Maghan III]] in 1390. During his reign, the Mossi emperor Bonga of [[Yatenga]] raids into Mali and plunders Macina.<ref name=peoplesand/> Emperor Bonga does not appear to hold the area, and it stays within the Mali Empire after Maghan III’s death in 1400

====Musa III====

In the early 1400s, Mali is still powerful enough to conquer and settle new areas. One of these is [[Dioma]], an area south of Niani populated by Peuhl Wassoulounké.<ref name=recherches/> Two noble brothers from Niani of unknown lineage go to Dioma with an army and drive out the Peuhl Wassoulounké. The oldest brother, Sérébandjougou, is crowned Mansa Foamed or [[Mansa Musa III]]. It is likely that his reign saw the first in a string of many great losses to Mali. In 1430, the Taureg seized Timbuktu.[http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/mansa.htm] Three years later, Oualata also fell into their hands.<ref name=peoplesand/>

====Ouali II====

Following Musa III’s death, his brother Gbèré became emperor in the mid 15th century.<ref name=recherches/> Gbèré was crowned Mansa Ouali II and ruled during the period of Mali’s contact with Portugal. In the 1450s, Portugal began sending raiding parties along the Gambian coast.<ref>Thornton, John K.: "Warfare in Atlantic Africa, 1500-1800". Routledge, 1999</ref> The Gambia was still firmly in Mali’s control, and these raiding expeditions met with disastrous fates before Portugal’s Diego Gomez began formal relations with Mali via its remaining Wolof subjects.[http://66.218.71.231/language/translation/translatedPage.php?tt=url&text=http%3a//www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoMali.htm&lp=fr_en&.intl=us&fr=yfp-t-501] [[Cadomasto]], a Venetian explorer, recorded that the Mali Empire was the most powerful entity on the coast in 1454.[http://66.218.71.231/language/translation/translatedPage.php?tt=url&text=http%3a//www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoMali.htm&lp=fr_en&.intl=us&fr=yfp-t-501]

Despite their power in the west, Mali was losing the battle for supremacy in the north and northeast. The new [[Songhai Empire]] conquered Mema,<ref name=peoplesand/> one of Mali’s oldest possessions, in 1465. It then seized Timbuktu from the Taureg in 1468 under Sunni Ali Ber.<ref name=peoplesand/>

====Mansa Mahmud II====

It is unknown when exactly Mamadou became [[Mansa Mahmud II]] or whom he descended from, but he is likely to have taken the throne in the 1470s. Another emperor, Mansa Mahan III, is sometimes cited as Mansa Mahmud I, but throne names don’t usually indicate blood relations. Mansa Mahmud II’s rule was characterized by more losses to Mali’s old possessions and increased contact between Mali and Portuguese explorers along the coast. In 1477, the Yatenga emperor Nasséré makes yet another Mossi raid into Macina this time conquering it and the old province of BaGhana (Wagadou).[http://www.fanaticus.org/DBA/armies/Variants/mossi.html] In 1481, Peuhl raids against Mali’s Tekrur provinces begin.

The growing trade in Mali’s western provinces with Portugal witnesses the exchange of envoys between the two nations. Mansa Mahmud II receives the Portuguese envoy Pedro d’Evora al Gonzalo in 1484.<ref name=recherches/> The mansa looses control of Jalo during this period.[http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/papers/wilkinson_david/spatio-temporal_boundaries_african_civilizations] Meanwhile, Songhai seizes the salt mines of Taghazza in 1493. That same year, Mahmud II sends another envoy to the Portuguese proposing alliance against the Peuhl. The Portuguese decide to stay out of the conflict and the talks conclude by 1495 without an alliance.[http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/papers/wilkinson_david/spatio-temporal_boundaries_african_civilizations]

It is unlikely that Mahmud II ruled much longer than the first decade of the 16th century; however, there are no names for the ruler or rulers during this time. If Mahmud II was still on the throne between 1495 and the 1530s, he may hold the dubious honor of having lost the most possession during Mali’s imperial period. Songhai forces under the command of [[Askia Muhammad]] defeat the Mali general Fati Quali in 1502 and seize the province of Diafunu.<ref name=peoplesand/> In 1514, the Denanke dynasty is established in Tekrour. It isn’t long before the new kingdom of [[Fouta Tooro]] is warring against Mali’s remaining provinces. To add insult to injury, the Songhai Empire seizes the copper mines of Takedda.

====Mansa Mahmud III====

The last mansa to rule from Niani is [[Mansa Mahmud III]] also known as Mansa Mamadou II. Like many rulers of this period, it is unclear when he came to power. The only dates distinguishing his rule are the arrival of a Portuguese envoy in [[1534]], and the [[1545]] sack of Niani. These do not rule out his ascension to the throne in the late 1520s or even earlier.

In 1534, Mahmud III received another Portuguese envoy to the Mali court by the name of [[Peros Fernandes]].[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoPeuls.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMali%2BEmpire,%2BPeros%2BFernandez%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DX] This envoy from the Portuguese coastal port of [[Elmina]] arrives in response to the growing trade along the coast and Mali’s now urgent request for military assistance against Songhai.[http://san.beck.org/1-13-Africa1500-1800.html] Still, no help is forthcoming and Mali must watch its possessions fall one by one.

Mansa Mahmud III’s reign also sees the military outpost and province of [[Kaabu]] become independent in [[1537]].[http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/papers/wilkinson_david/spatio-temporal_boundaries_african_civilizations] The Kaabu Empire appears every bit as ambitions as Mali was in its early years and swallows up Mali’s remaining Gambian provinces of Cassa and Bati.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.humtec.org/humtec/lettreinfos/lettreinfo6.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=6&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DKaabu%26start%3D80%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN]

The most defining moment in Mahmud III’s reign is the final conflict between Mali and Songhai in 1545. Songhai forces under [[Askia Ishaq I|Askia Ishaq]]’s brother, [[Askia Daoud|Daoud]], sack Niani and occupy the palace.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.cosmovisions.com/ChronoSonghai.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=5&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMali%2BEmpire,%2B1545%26start%3D30%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN] Mansa Mahmud III is forced to flee Niani for the mountains. Within a week, he regroups with his forces and launches a successful counter-attack forcing the Songhai out of Manden proper for good.<ref name=histoire>Niane, D.T.: "Histoire et tradition historique du Manding". Presence Africaine, 89. Paris, 1974</ref> The Songhai Empire does keep Mali’s ambitions in check, but never fully conquers their old masters.

After liberating the capital, Mahmud III abandons it for a new residence further north.<ref name=histoire/> Still, there is no end to Mali’s troubles. In [[1559]], the kingdom of Fouta Tooro succeeds in taking Takrur.[http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/papers/wilkinson_david/spatio-temporal_boundaries_african_civilizations] This defeat reduces Mali to Manden proper with control extending only as far as Kita in the west, Kangaba in the north, the Niger River bend in the east and Kouroussa in the south.

==Post Imperial Mali==

There are no dates for when Mansa Mahmud III ceased to rule the Mali, which by 1560 was really only the core of the Manden Kurufa. From 1559 to 1645, the mansas of Manden rule from Kangaba during its final decline. The next notable mansa, Mahmud IV, doesn’t appear in any records until the end of the 16th century. However, he seems to have the distinction of being the last ruler of a unified Manden. His descendants are blamed for the break-up of the Manden Kurufa into north, central and southern realms.

===Mansa Mahmud IV===

Mansa Mahmud IV (also known as Mansa Mamadou III, Mali Mansa Mamadou and Niani Mansa Mamadou) is the last great emperor of Manden according to the [[Tarikh es-Soudan]]. It states that he launched an attack on the city of Jenne in 1599 with Fula allies hoping to take advantage of Songhai’s defeat.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://maissa.chez-alice.fr/empsong.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=3&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMansa%2BMamoudou%26hl%3Den] Moroccan fusiliers, deployed from Timbuktu, met them in battle exposing Mali to the same technology (firearms) that had destroyed Songhai. Despite heavy losses, the mansa’s army was not deterred and nearly carried the day.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://maissa.chez-alice.fr/empsong.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=3&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMansa%2BMamoudou%26hl%3Den] However, the army inside Jenne intervened forcing Mansa Mahmud IV and his army to retreat to Kangaba.[http://san.beck.org/1-13-Africa1500-1800.html]

===Tri-Partition===

The mansa’s defeat actually won Manden the respect of Morocco and may have saved it from Songhai’s fate. It would be the Bamana; however, that would finally cause the destruction of the Manden Kurufa. The death of Mansa Mahmud IV ushered in the era of a divided Manden.<ref name=representation>Jansen, Jan: "The Representation of Status in Mande: Did the Mali Empire Still Exist in the Nineteenth Century?". History in Africa, Vol. 23. JSTOR, 1996</ref> If ever discovered, the year of his death will probably serve as an appropriate date for the actual demise of the unified Mandinka state directly descended from Sundiata. Once the last true mansa of Manden was dead, his three sons waged war on each other and divided the land into three spheres of influence. Kangaba, the de facto capital of Manden, became the capital of the northern sphere. The Joma area, governed from Siguiri, controlled the central region, which encompassed Niani. Hamana or Amana, southwest of Joma, became the southern sphere with its capital at Kouroussa in modern Guinea.<ref name=representation/> Each ruler used the title of mansa, but their authority only extended as far as their own sphere of influence.

Despite this disunity in the realm, the Manden Kurufa survived into the mid 17th century. The three states warred on each other as much if not more than they did against outsiders, but rivalries generally stopped when faced with invasion. This trend would continue into colonial times against [[Tukulor]] enemies from the west.<ref>Jansen, Jan: "THE Younger Brother and the Stranger. In search of a status discourse for Mande". Cashiers d'etudes africanines, 1996</ref>

===Collapse===

In 1630, the Bamana of Jenne declared their version of holy war on all Muslim powers in present day Mali.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.clio.fr/CHRONOLOGIE/chronologie_mali_des_origines_a_la_colonisation.asp&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DNiani,%2BBambara%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] They targeted Moroccan Pashas still in Timbuktu and the mansas of Manden. In 1645, the Bamana attacked Manden seizing both banks of the Niger right up to Niani.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.clio.fr/CHRONOLOGIE/chronologie_mali_des_origines_a_la_colonisation.asp&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DNiani,%2BBambara%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] This campaign gutted Manden and destroyed any hope of the three mansas cooperating to free their land. From this point on, the Manden Kurufa is over. The only Mandinka power spared from the campaign is Kangaba.

====Mama Maghan====

Mamma Maghan, mansa of Kangaba, campaigned against the Bamana in 1667 and attacked Segou.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.clio.fr/CHRONOLOGIE/chronologie_mali_des_origines_a_la_colonisation.asp&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DNiani,%2BBambara%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D] Segou, defended by [[Biton Kouloubali]], successfully defended itself and Mama Maghan was forced to withdraw to Kangaba. Either as a counter-attack or simply the progression of pre-planned assaults against the remnants of Mali, the Bamana sack and burn Niani in 1670.[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.clio.fr/CHRONOLOGIE/chronologie_mali_des_origines_a_la_colonisation.asp&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DNiani,%2BBambara%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D]

==See also==

*[[Sundiata Keita]]

*[[Battle of Kirina]]

*[[Mansa of the Mali Empire]]

*[[Kouroukan Fouga]]

*[[Twelve Doors of Mali]]

*[[Gbara]]

*[[Sofa (warrior)|Sofa]]

*[[Manneh]]

==References==

{{Reflist|3}}

==External links==

*[http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-165152_ITM A Town Called Dakajalan]

*[http://archnet.org/library/dictionary/entry.tcl?entry_id=DIA0444&mode=full ArcNet]

*[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.clio.fr/CHRONOLOGIE/chronologie_mali_des_origines_a_la_colonisation.asp&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DNiani,%2BBambara%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D Clio.fr - Mali Chronology]

*[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.histoire-afrique.org/article73.html%3Fartsuite%3D4&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMalimassa%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26as_qdr%3Dall Histoire Afrique - Armies and Weapons in the Empires of Western Sudan]

*[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.afrik.com/article7676.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=3&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DKurukan%2BFouga%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D Afrik.com - Women and the Kouroukan Fouga]

*[http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.afrique-gouvernance.net/fiches/dph/fiche-dph-314.html&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DKurukan%2BFuga,%2Bclans%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D Governance in Africa - Sanankuya and the Kouroukan Fouga]

*[http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/sundiata.htm Princeton Online - Sundiata Keita]

*[http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mali/hd_mali.htm Metropolitan Museum - Empires of the Western Sudan: Mali Empire]

[[Category:Mali Empire]]

[[Category:Ancient Empires of Africa]]

[[Category:Muslim history]]

[[Category:1235 establishments]]

[[Category:1645 disestablishments]]

[[ast:Imperiu de Mali]]

[[de:Malireich]]

[[es:Imperio de Malí]]

[[eo:Imperio Mali]]

[[fr:Empire du Mali]]

[[ko:말리 제국]]

[[nl:Koninkrijk Mali]]

[[ja:マリ帝国]]

[[no:Maliriket]]

[[pl:Imperium Mali]]

[[pt:Império Mali]]

[[fi:Malin kuningaskunta]]

[[sv:Maliriket]]