Ancient Mali was essentially a trade nation, particularly during the trans-Saharan trade era. A system of control and taxes on trade provided stability to the Mali Empire by generating wealth. Trading ...

Mansa Musa ruled for the next 25 years and used Mali's military might to control the trade routes of the Sahara and the Niger River, greatly expanding the wealth and power of the empire.

Mansa Musa, emperor of the Mali Empire, is widely regarded as the richest man in history. He was exceptionally wealthy to an extent that historians have struggled to quantify it accurately. Though the ...