The African ruler of the Mali Empire in the 14th century, Mansa Musa was one of the richest people in history with a net worth of over $400 billion by some estimates.
Public DomainThis 14th-century illustration hints at Mansa Musa’s net worth, as the Malian ruler is depicted holding a gold piece.
In today’s world, there’s plenty of jockeying over who is the richest person alive. But no one today can hold a candle to the net worth of Mansa Musa, an incredibly wealthy 14th-century Malian ruler.
After rising to power in 1312, Musa consolidated his kingdom’s wealth by taking advantage of natural resources like ivory, salt, and gold. During his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324, he astounded cities across the world with his caravan of richly dressed slaves and his seemingly endless supply of gold.
Centuries after his death, Mansa Musa is still considered to be the richest person in history. This is his story, from his rise to power, to how he grew his wealth, to how much he was actually worth.
A New King Builds His Vast Fortune
Public DomainA 14th-century depiction of Mansa Musa, the richest man in history, who became king after his predecessor disappeared on a voyage in the Atlantic Ocean.
Mansa Musa was born in 1280 to a powerful family in the West African empire of Mali. Scholars have debated the identity of his predecessor, with some saying it was Musa’s brother, Mansa (meaning king) Abu-Bakr, and others saying it was Mansa Muhammad ibn Qu.
Whoever it was, in 1312, this ruler decided to explore the Atlantic Ocean. He departed with thousands of ships and was never seen again. Thus, Musa became king.
As the new Mansa, Musa expanded the boundaries of his kingdom. He annexed 24 cities so that the Malian kingdom spread out over 2,000 miles and contained parts of present-day Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal.
Gabriel Moss/Wikimedia CommonsThe borders of the Mali Empire at the time of Mansa Musa’s death. He greatly expanded his territory by annexing 24 nearby cities, becoming the richest person in history in the process.
This territory contained plenty of natural resources like salt — and huge amounts of gold. In fact, it’s reported that the Mali Empire accounted for about half of the world’s gold circulation during Musa’s rule. Because of this, Mansa Musa’s net worth began to grow.
The Incredible Wealth Of Mansa Musa
Though Mansa Musa’s net worth grew quickly after he assumed power, it took the rest of the world a while to realize just how wealthy the Malian king had become. In 1324, Mansa Musa went on his Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca — and astounded every city that he visited during his 4,000-mile journey.
Print Collector/Getty ImagesA 20th-century depiction of Mansa Musa on His Way to Mecca. The wealthy ruler traveled with a caravan of tens of thousands of people.
Mansa Musa traveled with an entourage fit for a king. He was accompanied by 60,000 men, including soldiers, entertainers, his entire royal court, and 12,000 enslaved people — as well as herds of goats and sheep and about a hundred camels carrying some 300 pounds of gold each. Even the enslaved people in the caravan were richly dressed in Persian silks.
Naturally, the huge caravan drew attention as it cut its way across Africa and the Middle East. In Egypt, Mansa Musa and his people gave away or spent so much that they caused the price of gold to plummet — and it would take 12 years for the Egyptian economy to recover. Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage also led to more than $1 billion in economic losses across the Middle East overall, as his caravan caused the depreciation of gold wherever it went.
Upon his return from Mecca, Mansa Musa continued to spend his fortune. Though the legend that he built a new mosque every Friday during his reign may not be true, Mansa Musa certainly built mosques in cities like Gao and Timbuktu. To build the famous Djinguereber Mosque, Mansa Musa purportedly paid the architect 440 pounds of gold, or over $8 million today.
Public DomainAn early 20th-century image of the Djinguereber Mosque, which was built thanks to Mansa Musa’s net worth. It still stands to this day.
He also commissioned universities and libraries which drew Muslim scholars, poets, and artisans to his empire. As a result, Timbuktu became one of the most prominent cities in the Islamic world, and drew scores of travelers curious about Mali’s wealthy king. But Mansa Musa’s reign did not last forever.
In 1337, the Malian king died. Though he passed power on to his sons, his empire slowly fell apart.
Still, Mansa Musa’s net worth remains the highest of all time. So how much exactly was the wealthy king worth?
What Was Mansa Musa’s Net Worth?
Public DomainMansa Musa’s net worth was illustrated on the Catalan Atlas, a famous map created during the Middle Ages. This part of the map shows the Western Sahara and Mansa Musa on his throne.
Today, Mansa Musa’s fortune can be difficult to calculate. Contemporary estimates suggest that he may have been worth as much as $400 billion, which would put his net worth above that of the richest men alive today. For context, as of 2024, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk is worth about $270 billion, and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is worth about $210 billion.
But some economic historians say that Mansa Musa’s net worth is simply impossible to assess. They’ve called his wealth incomprehensible and beyond description.
However, they do believe that Mansa Musa was worth more than other wealthy historical leaders, including the first Roman emperor, Augustus Caesar (estimated to be worth $4.6 trillion) and American industrialists like Andrew Carnegie (worth $372 billion).
“This is the richest guy anyone has ever seen, that’s the point,” Rudolph Ware of the University of Michigan told Money in 2015. “They’re trying to find words to explain that. There are pictures of him holding a scepter of gold on a throne of gold holding a cup of gold with a golden crown on his head. Imagine as much gold as you think a human being could possess and double it, that’s what all the accounts are trying to communicate.”
All this makes Mansa Musa the wealthiest man to ever live. His net worth is so high above that of the other richest people in history that it’s almost impossible for contemporary accounts to absorb.
They say money isn’t everything. But Mansa Musa’s net worth certainly left a mark on both the ancient world and on world history.
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