Situated 20km north of the River Niger, on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert, Timbuktu became a permanent settlement early in the 12th century, and flourished from the trade in salt, gold, ivory and slaves, entering into the composition of the Mali Empire early in the 14th century. In the first half of the 15th century the Tuareg tribes took control of the city until the Songhai Empire absorbed the city in 1468. A Moroccan army defeated the Songhai in 1591, and made Timbuktu their capital. 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.
Read more »