Mansa Musa
Life and reign
Ruler of the Mali empire, remembered for his 1324 pilgrimage to Mecca with a caravan of thousands and camels of gold, whose spending moved prices in Cairo. Timbuktu under his patronage became a center of manuscript learning. Often called the wealthiest person of the premodern age.
Related Monarchs and Houses
Shaka Zulu
The founder of the Zulu kingdom who revolutionized warfare with the short stabbing spear and the buffalo horns formation. He...
Khufu
The builder of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only survivor of the seven wonders of the ancient world, 146 meters tall and...
Hatshepsut
The woman who ruled as king of Egypt for over two decades, shown in inscriptions with the double crown and false beard. Her reign...
Tutankhamun
The boy king who died at about 19 and ruled little of note, yet became the most famous pharaoh when Howard Carter opened his...