Let us tell you about the empire that founded Jollof rice and was also home to the Richest Man that has ever lived.
Basically the Mali did not found Jollof rice, Jollof rice originated from the Wolof people who were under the Mali empire. But the Mali Empire was so rich and powerful during it reign, it was this period the Jollof rice travelled around West Africa.
After the fall of the Ghana Empire there was a large vacuum of power that needed to be filled and it was filled by Sumanguru of Susu who was a Tyrant, Sumanguru was cut down by Sundiata who then founded the Mali Empire.
Mali Empire existed between 1235-1600. It was founded by Sundiata. When Sundiata was born, he was born crippled and it had been prophesied that he was going to be a great ruler but his step mother was jealous of this prophesy and sent him away.
Sundiata struggled to walk until around age 7, when he was sent away, he spent his time searching and acquiring more knowledge, he became famous too. When Sumanguru wanted to attack his hometown his brother was weak and couldn’t safe his people so they cried Sundiata for help.
That crippled boy that was sent away the amassed a great army, destroyed Sumanguru of Susu and established one of the greatest and richest empire in the world. The Mali Empire was so large it contained states like present day Mali, Senegal, Northern Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Southern Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Western Niger, Gambia, Republic of Guinea, Ivory Coast. They also tried to conquer the Hausa states of Northern Nigeria. They had massive military of over 100,000 men with 10,000 of them being calvary. They were militarily strong and well off.
Did you know the Mali Empire was the first to send an expedition into the Americas, over 100 years before Christopher Columbus and the Spanish/Portuguese explorers shows how rich the Mali Empire was for them to have sent out such expedition. As a matter if fact they sent two.
It was on the second expedition that one of the emperors of this great empire went on and he never came back, and this gave birth of the rise of a king who was the richest man that ever walked the surface of the earth, Mansa Musa.
Source: Ronu Spirit
