Neither Jeff Bezos Nor Elon Musk, The African King Mansa Musa Is The Richest Person In Human History!

Hanima Anand|Mar 01, 2021

On his way to Mecca, Mansa Musa bestowed so much gold to the poor in Cairo that this caused mass inflation in the country. His wealth was described as incomprehensible.

Mansa Musa was long believed to be the wealthiest person throughout human history though no one could tell exactly how rich he was.

The richest person in human history – Mansa Musa

Mansa Musa was the tenth Mansa of the Mali Empire in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. This was an Islamic West African state that consisted of former Ghana, Guinea, Senegal, Gambia, Mali and Mauritania. In total, Musa I ruled 24 cities and their surrounding regions during his reign.

A picture of Mansa Musa, Mali's emperor in its golden age

Across his enormous territory, gold was abundant, making Mali the largest producer of this precious metal. This also contributed to Mansa Musa’s title of the richest individual in human history.

Though no one could quantify his wealth accurately, archeologists believe Mansa Musa’s properties must be times higher than the net worth of Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Bill Gates combined.

Facts about Mansa Musa’s massive wealth

Everyone knows he was rich but hardly could they imagine the massive wealth of Mansa Musa. Here are some facts about his 4,000-mile pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 when the world had an idea of this African richest king!

Illustration of Mansa Musa's pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324

Mansa Musa traveled to Mecca with an unprecedented caravan that stretched as far as one’s eye could observe. The caravan included up to 1,000 attendants, musicians, 100 camels loaded with gold, and 500 slaves.

Some people even said Mansa Musa brought 12,000 slave women in the caravan just to carry his furnishings and equipment. These women also wore gowns of Yemeni silk and brocade.

When this African King stopped at Cairo, he distributed so many gifts and gold to the poor that Mansa Musa caused mass inflation in this city.

Mansa Musa was placed in the middle of the Medieval map

Commenting on Musa’s empire, many historians had to say that Mali was a ‘place of splendor, wealth and sophistication.’ With his tremendous wealth, this African emperor devoted himself to developing his cities, particularly Timbuktu. He built schools, a university, and many mosques in which the Djinguereber Mosque still stands till now.

Mansa Musa breathed his last in 1337. His life was associated with gold, wealth, and the golden age of Mali’s history.

An overview of Timbuktu during the reign of Mansa Musa

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