Mansa Mahmud III, also known as Mamadou II, was
mansa Mansa may refer to:
Places In India
* Mansa, Gujarat, a town in northern Gujarat, Western India; the capital of:
** Mansa, Gujarat Assembly constituency
** Mansa State, a princely state under the Mahi Kantha Agency in India
* Mansa district, P ...
("king of kings") of the
Mali Empire
The Mali Empire ( Manding: ''Mandé''Ki-Zerbo, Joseph: ''UNESCO General History of Africa, Vol. IV, Abridged Edition: Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century'', p. 57. University of California Press, 1997. or Manden; ar, مالي, Māl ...
from 1496 to 1559. He was the last mansa to rule from Niani and is known as the mansa under which Mali suffered the most losses to its territory.
Further Songhay Expansion
Songhai forces under the command of
Askia Muhammad I
Askia Muhammad I (b. 1443 – d. 1538), born Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr al-Turi or Muhammad Ture, was the first ruler of the Askia dynasty of the Songhai Empire, reigning from 1493 to 1528. He is also known as Askia the Great, and his name in modern ...
defeat the Mali general Fati Quali in 1502 and seize the province of Diafunu.
[Turchin, Peter and Jonathan M. Adams and Thomas D. Hall: "East-West Orientation of Historical Empires and Modern States", page 222. Journal of World-Systems Research, Vol. XII, No. II, 2006] In 1514, the Denanke dynasty is established in Tekrour. It isn't long before the new kingdom of
Great Fulo is warring against Mali's remaining provinces. To add insult to injury, the Songhai Empire seizes the copper mines of Takedda.
More Talks with Portugal
In 1534, Mahmud III received another Portuguese envoy to the Mali court by the name of
Peros Fernandesbr>
This envoy from the Portuguese coastal port of
Elmina
Elmina, also known as Edina by the local Fante people, Fante, is a town and the capital of the Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem Municipal District, Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem District on the south coast of Ghana in the Central Region, Ghana, Centra ...
arrives in response to the growing trade along the coast and Mali's now urgent request for military assistance against Songha
Still, no help is forthcoming and Mali must watch its possessions fall one by one.
Rise of the Kaabu Empire
Mansa Mahmud III's reign also sees the military outpost and province of
Kaabu
The Kaabu Empire (1537–1867), also written Gabu, Ngabou, and N'Gabu, was an empire in the Senegambia region centered within modern northeastern Guinea-Bissau, larger parts of today's Gambia; extending into Koussanar, Koumpentoum, regions ...
become independent in 153
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 Bat
Sack of Niani
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,
Daoud, sack Niani and occupy the palac
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.
[Niane, D.T.: "Histoire et tradition historique du Manding". Presence Africaine, 89. Paris, 1974] The Songhai Empire does keep Mali's ambitions in check, but never fully conquers their old masters.
From Niani to Kangaba
After liberating the capital, Mahmud III abandons it for a new residence further north.
[ Still, there is no end to Mali's troubles. In 1559, the kingdom of Fouta Tooro succeeds in taking Takru]
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.
References
See also
*Mali Empire
The Mali Empire ( Manding: ''Mandé''Ki-Zerbo, Joseph: ''UNESCO General History of Africa, Vol. IV, Abridged Edition: Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century'', p. 57. University of California Press, 1997. or Manden; ar, مالي, Māl ...
* Keita Dynasty
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahmud 03 (Mansa)
Mansas of Mali
People of the Mali Empire
15th-century monarchs in Africa
16th-century monarchs in Africa
Keita family