Askia Muhammad Toure -- West Africa

Known as Askia the Great, also Muhammad Toure, Askia was an emperor of the Songhai Empire in the late 15th century, the successor of Sunni Ali Ber. Askia Muhammad strengthened his country and made it the largest country in West Africa's history. At its peak under Muhammad, the Songhai Empire encompassed the Hausa states as far as Kano (Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire in the west.  

His policies resulted in a rapid expansion of trade with Europe and Asia, the creation of many schools, and made Islam an integral part of the empire.  As a result of his efforts, Mali experienced a cultural revival it had never witnessed, and the whole land flourished becoming the centre of all things valuable in learning and trade.  

After Sunni Ali Ber died, Sunni Baru, his son and intended successor, refused to declare himself a General Toure, later known as  Muslim.  

His refusal gave Muhammad Toure, one of Sunni Ali Ber's generals, a reason to challenge the succession. General Ture defeated Sunni Baru and ascended to the throne in 1493. Askia Muhammad I or Askia the Great, subsequently orchestrated a program of expansion and consolidation which extended the empire from Taghaza in the North to the borders of Yatenga in the South; and from Air in the Northeast to Futa Tooro in Guinea.  

Instead of organizing the empire along Islamic lines, he tempered and improved on the traditional model by instituting a system of bureaucratic government.

The system included positions for finance, agriculture, justice, interior, protocol, waters and forests, this was unparalleled in Western Africa.  In addition, Askia established standardised trade regulations and measures, he initiated the policing of trade routes and established an organised tax system.

Askia encouraged learning and literacy, ensuring that Mali's universities produced the most distinguished scholars, many of whom published significant books.  To secure the legitimacy of his usurpation of the Sunni dynasty, Askia Muhammad allied himself with the scholars of Timbuktu, ushering in a golden age in the city for Muslim scholarship.  The eminent scholar Ahmed Baba, for example, produced books on Islamic law that are still in use today.  Muhammad Kati published Tarik al-Fattah and Abdul-Rahman as-Sadi published Tarik ul-Sudan ("Chronicle of Africa"), two history books which are indispensable to present-day scholars reconstructing African history in the Middle Ages.

The period of Muhammad’s rule is known as a golden age for Muslim scholarship at Sankore University in Timbuktu, and a period of cultural revival.  In 1528, Askia Muhammad was deposed by his son, Askia Musa. Muhammad Toure’s reign is marked by love for war and respect for Islam, Muhammad died in 1538, aged ninety-six, he is buried in the Tomb of Askia in Gao, a World Heritage Site.