An indication of the glory and power of Timbuktu, MY ancestral capital in Mali, is that in the 1500's, the population was 100,000, twice as great as London at that time. Unlike the ignorant, unwashed hordes of London and the rest of Europe, however, 1/4 of the population, 25,000 people, were learned scholars creating the religious and scientific documents we marvel at today. That it was individual families who harbored the libraries underground and hidden during invasions and colonization is a clear indication of how highly education and learning were valued among our ancestors. Interestingly, along the Niger river during the middle ages, there was an urban area (city-sized settlements) with TWICE the population of Timbuktu and rivaled even the largest cities of Mesopotamia at its height. For centuries, they all lived PEACEFULLY, no war.
This is a fascinating film. I highly recommend it. Also, I recommend it for those who believe the EXTREMELY dark-skinned Tuaregs (24:17) are the 'whitish' people the news media would have us believe.