MALI EMPIRE: Epic History of a Great African Kingdom and Most Powerful Military Force in the African

Sundiata Keita (r. 1230-1255) built the Mali Empire (1240-1645) in West Africa after defeating the kingdom of Sosso (c. 1180-1235). Sundiata's centralized administration, diplomacy, and well-trained army allowed for a major military expansion, paving the way for the Mali Empire to develop, becoming Africa's biggest.
The empire reached unprecedented heights under Mansa Musa I (1312-1337), in terms of the area held, cultural florescence, and the spectacular riches provided by Mali's control of regional trade routes. Mali utilized the commerce in gold, salt, copper, ivory, and slaves that crisscrossed West Africa by acting as a middleman between North Africa and the Niger River to the south. All of this economic activity drew Muslim traders, who converted Mali kings, who then disseminated Islam through well-known centers of study like Timbuktu. In contrast to towns such as Niani (the capital), Djenne, and Gao, the majority of rural Malians remained farmers who adhered to traditional animist beliefs.
Civil warfare, the opening up of trade routes abroad, and the emergence of the neighboring Songhai Empire all contributed to the Mali Empire's demise in the 1460s, but it did retain control of a tiny section of the western empire until the 17th century.