History of Timbuktu

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History of Mali
Pre-Imperial Mali
Battle of Kirina Twelve Doors of Mali
Ghana Empire (c. 700 – c. 1200)
Soninke people Koumbi Saleh
Mali Empire (c. 1235–1670)
Musa I of Mali Mandinka people Kouroukan Fouga
Great Mosque of Djenné Sankore Madrasah
Gao Empire (9th century–1430)
Songhai Empire (1464–1591)
Sonni Ali Battle of Tondibi
After the Empires, 1591–1892
Saadi dynasty Pashalik of Timbuktu Bamana Empire Kaarta Kénédougou Kingdom Massina Empire Toucouleur Empire Wassoulou Empire
French colonization
French West Africa Mali Federation
After Independence
Republic of Mali Mali War
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Years in Mali History of West Africa History of Timbuktu
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Starting out as a seasonal settlement, Timbuktu was in the kingdom of Mali when it became a permanent settlement early in the 12th century. After a shift in trading routes, the town flourished from the trade in salt, gold, ivory and slaves from several towns and states such as Begho of Bonoman, Sijilmassa, and other Saharan cities.^[1] It became part of the Mali Empire early in the 14th century. By this time it had become a major centre of learning in the area. In the first half of the 15th century the Tuareg tribes took control of the city for a short period until the expanding Songhai Empire absorbed the city in 1468. The Moroccan army defeated the Songhai in 1591, and made Timbuktu, rather than Gao, their capital.

The invaders established a new ruling class, the Arma, who after 1612 became virtually independent of Morocco. However, the golden age of the city was over, in which it was a major learning and cultural center of the Mali empire, and it entered a long period of decline. Different tribes governed until the French took over in 1893, a situation that lasted until it became part of the current Republic of Mali in 1960. Presently, Timbuktu is impoverished and suffers from desertification.

In its Golden Age, the town's numerous Islamic scholars and extensive trading network made possible an important book trade: together with the campuses of the Sankore Madrasah, an Islamic university, this established Timbuktu as a scholarly centre in Africa. Several notable historic writers, such as Shabeni and Leo Africanus, have described Timbuktu. These stories fueled speculation in Europe, where the city's reputation shifted from being extremely rich to being mysterious. This reputation overshadows the town itself in modern times, to the point where it is best known in Western culture as an expression for a distant or outlandish place.