Latest / Mansa Musa: The Richest Man Who Ever Lived — Fexingo History / Mansa Musa's Lost Brother: The Mystery of Abu Bakr II
Transcript
- Lucas: We’ve spent the last dozen episodes dissecting the golden age of the Mali Empire under Mansa Musa, focusing on his pilgrimage, his architecture, and his staggering wealth. But there is a shadow hanging over that narrative, a ghost story embedded in the same Arabic records we rely on. Luna: A ghost story? Lucas: Exactly. It concerns his predecessor and older brother, Abu Bakr II. Most historians treat him as a brief footnote, a transitional ruler who died before Musa could take the throne. But the chronicles tell a much stranger tale about where Abu Bakr actually went. Luna: Wait, he didn't die? Lucas: Not in the way you’d expect. According to the historian al-Umari, writing decades later, Abu Bakr II was obsessed with discovering the edge of the ocean. He believed the Atlantic extended infinitely westward and wanted to be the first to find its limit. Luna: He just gave up the empire for that? Lucas: He handed the crown to Musa and prepared a massive fleet. Al-Umari describes two thousand ships carrying men, gold, provisions, and even water barrels—enough for years at sea. Abu Bakr boarded the lead vessel and sailed into the deep blue, never to return. Luna: That sounds like a suicide mission. Lucas: It does, but Musa wasn’t content to leave it at that. He couldn’t accept that his brother had simply vanished into the waves without a trace. So, Musa launched his own expedition to find him, leading a fleet of one thousand vessels filled with supplies. Luna: And what did Musa find out there? Lucas: Nothing. The second fleet returned empty-handed. Musa kept searching for a year, then another, sending out smaller groups. Eventually, he accepted that Abu Bakr was gone, and Musa himself took the title of Mansa, shifting focus from exploration to consolidation. Luna: So Musa traded adventure for administration. Lucas: Precisely. And this raises a fascinating question about how we remember history. Why is Musa the celebrated architect of Timbuktu, while Abu Bakr II is mostly a footnote in academic papers? There’s a political reason for that silence. Luna: Because Musa wanted to look stable? Lucas: Partly. A ruler who abandons his post for a mythical voyage is a liability. Musa needed to project strength, especially after his Hajj. Admitting that the previous king sailed off into oblivion would undermine the Keita dynasty’s legitimacy. Luna: So they buried the story. Lucas: They didn’t bury it completely; they just reframed it. The griots, or jeliw, kept the memory alive in their songs, but the state-sponsored narratives emphasized Musa’s divine right and military prowess. Abu Bakr’s curiosity was framed as folly. Luna: Did anyone else try to cross the Atlantic back then? Lucas: There are debates among historians about whether West African sailors had the technology for such voyages. The currents and winds of the Atlantic can be treacherous, but the Canary Current flows west, which might have made a drift voyage possible. Luna: Drift sailing is real. Lucas: It is. Some researchers argue that if Abu Bakr’s fleet was pushed too far west, they might have reached the Americas centuries before Columbus. It’s a controversial idea, but it fits the pattern of West African maritime knowledge. Luna: That would rewrite everything. Lucas: It would. But let’s pause here for a moment to talk about how this show gets made. We dive deep into these archives so you don’t have to wade through them yourself. Luna: And that takes time and resources. Lucas: It does. If you’ve been enjoying our deep dives into West African history, a small contribution really helps us keep these conversations going. You can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It’s just a few dollars a month, but it makes a huge difference in keeping this ad-free. Luna: Yeah, I appreciate that transparency. Lucas: Thanks, Luna. Now, back to Abu Bakr. Even if he didn’t reach America, his decision to abdicate tells us something crucial about the Mali court. Luna: What does it say about the gbara? Lucas: The gbara, the Great Assembly, had significant power. They could depose a mansa. Abu Bakr’s departure suggests he may have felt pressured by the council to step aside, choosing exile over potential conflict. It shows the checks and balances within the Mande system. Luna: So it wasn't just a whim. Lucas: Likely not. The farba, the provincial governors, were powerful figures too. If Abu Bakr lost their support, his position would have been precarious. Abdication might have been a negotiated exit to preserve his life and lineage. Luna: That’s actually quite pragmatic. Lucas: It is. And Musa, upon taking power, had to navigate those same pressures. He couldn’t afford to look weak. So he doubled down on Islam and trade, using the wealth from Bambuk and Bure to buy loyalty. Luna: Gold buys stability. Lucas: In many ways, yes. But the mystery of Abu Bakr remains. Was he an explorer, a political casualty, or both? The lack of physical evidence makes it impossible to know for sure, but the story persists. Luna: Why does it persist? Lucas: Because it challenges our modern view of history. We tend to see the past as linear and predictable. Abu Bakr represents a branch that was cut off, a future that never happened. It’s haunting. Luna: Like a parallel timeline. Lucas: Exactly. And it reminds us that for every Mansa Musa who built mosques, there was someone else who chose the horizon instead. The empire moved on, but the question of where Abu Bakr went still lingers. Luna: I wonder if he ever looked back. Lucas: If he survived the journey, perhaps he did. But if he found a new land, he probably knew he couldn’t go home. The cost of discovery is often isolation. Luna: A heavy price for an emperor. Lucas: Indeed. And Musa paid a different price—the burden of legacy. He had to ensure his name eclipsed his brother’s. That pressure drove the construction of Djinguereber and the patronage of scholars. Luna: Building to be remembered. Lucas: Yes. Stone and scripture endure longer than ships. Abu Bakr chose the sea; Musa chose the library. Both left marks, but one mark is easier to see. Luna: Do we have any maps from that era? Lucas: The Catalan Atlas, drawn around 1375, shows Mansa Musa holding a gold nugget. It depicts the Mali Empire with incredible detail, but it doesn’t mention Abu Bakr’s voyage. Cartographers tended to record what was known, not what was rumored. Luna: Rumors travel fast though. Lucas: They do. And in the oral traditions of the Mandinka people, the story of the king who sailed away is told with a mix of reverence and sadness. It’s not seen as a failure, but as a sacrifice. Luna: A sacrifice for what? Lucas: For the unknown. For the desire to understand the world beyond the map. That spirit is part of the Mali heritage, even if the king himself is forgotten. Luna: It feels very human. Lucas: It is. Beneath the gold and the titles, it’s just a person looking at the ocean and wondering what’s on the other side. Maybe that’s enough. Luna: Maybe it is.