Latest / Mansa Musa: The Richest Man Who Ever Lived — Fexingo History / Mansa Musa's Baghdad Connection: The Lost Embassy of 1324
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've covered a lot of ground on Mansa Musa — his hajj, his army, his taxes, his gold mines. But there's one diplomatic move that hardly ever gets mentioned, and it connects the Sahel all the way to Persia. Luna: Persia? In the 1300s? Lucas: Exactly. In 1324, while Musa was making his famous pilgrimage to Mecca, he also dispatched an embassy to the Ilkhanate court in Baghdad. The Ilkhanate was the Mongol state that ruled over Iran and Iraq, and its sultan at the time was Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan. Lucas: Our main source for this is a Persian chronicle called the Tarikh-e Wassaf, written by a contemporary historian named Abdallah ibn Fadlallah al-Shirazi. It records that Musa sent gifts — including large quantities of gold — and proposed an alliance. Luna: What kind of alliance? Military? Trade? Lucas: A bit of both. The Ilkhanate was a major Islamic power, and Musa clearly wanted to position Mali as a global player in the Dar al-Islam. The embassy likely carried letters proposing mutual recognition and exchanges of scholars. We know from al-Umari's Masalik al-Absar that Musa was deeply invested in Islamic learning and wanted to bring Maliki jurisprudence to Baghdad. Luna: So this wasn't just about gold — it was about intellectual prestige. Lucas: Exactly. Musa brought scholars to his court from across the Muslim world, and he wanted the Ilkhanate to see Mali as a peer, not a peripheral kingdom. The embassy likely included several farbas — high-ranking officials — and a qadi from the Mali court. Lucas: The journey itself would have been staggering. From Niani, the capital, they'd have crossed the Sahara to Sijilmasa, then to Cairo, then down the Red Sea to Jeddah, and from there overland to Baghdad. We're talking thousands of miles. Lucas: And the gifts? The Tarikh-e Wassaf mentions gold nuggets, slaves, and exotic animals — possibly including a giraffe, which would have caused a sensation in a Persian court. Luna: A giraffe from West Africa to Baghdad in 1324 — that's incredible. Lucas: It shows the scale of Musa's ambition. He wasn't just a wealthy king; he was building a network. And the Ilkhanate was a tempting partner. Abu Sa'id's realm was at a crossroads of trade routes connecting China, India, and the Mediterranean. Lucas: But the embassy also had a religious angle. The Ilkhanate had officially converted to Islam under Ghazan Khan at the turn of the century, but there were still tensions between different schools of law. Musa was a devout Maliki, and he may have hoped to promote Maliki scholarship in the east. Luna: Did the mission succeed? Do we have any record of Abu Sa'id's response? Lucas: That's the frustrating part. The Tarikh-e Wassaf mentions the embassy's arrival and the gifts, but we don't have a detailed account of the negotiations. It's possible that the Ilkhanate sent a return mission, but if they did, the records haven't survived. Lucas: What we do know is that the Ilkhanate collapsed within a decade after Abu Sa'id's death in 1335. So any long-term alliance probably never materialised. Lucas: But the fact that Musa even attempted this — sending envoys across the Sahara and the Red Sea to a Mongol court — tells us that he saw Mali as part of a wider Islamic world, not just a regional power in West Africa. Luna: It puts the whole 'richest man in history' thing in a different light. He wasn't just hoarding gold — he was using it to build relationships. Lucas: Exactly. And that's a side of Musa that doesn't get enough attention. He was a diplomat and a patron of learning, not just a walking treasury. Lucas: One more detail: the Tarikh-e Wassaf describes the embassy as including a qadi who debated with Ilkhanate scholars at the court in Tabriz — which was the Ilkhanate's summer capital. Imagine that scene: a Mande-speaking jurist from Niani arguing Maliki fiqh with Persian and Arab scholars in the heart of Mongol Iran. Luna: That's mind-blowing. And it makes you wonder what they thought of each other. Lucas: Unfortunately, we don't have a transcript. But it's a reminder that this was a cosmopolitan world — and Mansa Musa was determined to put his empire on the map. Lucas: Quick honest thing — these are the kinds of stories we love digging into, and we're able to do it because a handful of listeners chip in monthly through Buy Me a Coffee. It literally funds the research and production. If you've been getting something out of these conversations, that's where to find us: buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, and it's what keeps us ad-free and focused on the stuff that actually surprises us. Lucas: Anyway — back to Musa's broader vision. That embassy to the Ilkhanate also hints at something else: he may have been trying to counterbalance the influence of the Mamluk Sultanate in Cairo. Luna: Interesting — because the Mamluks were the other big power in the region. Lucas: Right. Musa's famous stop in Cairo during his hajj was a mixed blessing. He gave away so much gold that it caused inflation and annoyed the Mamluk sultan al-Nasir Muhammad. By reaching out to the Ilkhanate, Musa was essentially saying, 'I have other options.' Lucas: It's a sophisticated bit of medieval realpolitik. And it's a shame more people don't know about it. Luna: I guess that's why we're here. Lucas: Exactly. Next time, maybe we'll look at the return embassy — if there was one.