Sundiata founds the Mali Empire at Kirina

1235

At the Battle of Kirina on the upper Niger, the exiled Mande prince Sundiata Keita broke the sorcerer-king Sumanguru of Sosso and assembled the scattered clans into the Mali Empire. His gold and griots would reshape West Africa's political and literary geography. The Kouroukan Fouga, a charter of governance attributed to Sundiata, organized the empire's clans and trade guilds for generations to come.