Africa's astonishing conquests West Africa before the arrival of Europeans was a thriving and flourishing land at the height of its wealth and prosperity. The land they inhabited was full of natural resources such as gold and salt. This led the people of West Africa to great wealth and riches. The government has also been supportive and brilliantly strategic, devising a smart tax system that has also brought them advancements in the wealth category. Although it presented some difficult geographical obstacles, the location of the West African kingdoms proved to be very advantageous to their society. These three characteristics all constituted the successful civilization of West Africa before the arrival of the Europeans. The following paragraphs help describe how significant this culture was. Unlike some parts of modern Africa, during the 300s and until their decline, most of the area was swimming in wealth. Cities including Ghana, Mali and Songhai were located in an area teeming with specimens of gold, salt and even iron waiting to be recovered. Al-Bakir observed in the Book of Ways and Kingdoms: “…He sits in a pavilion around which stand ten pages holding shields and swords mounted in gold: and on his right hand are the sons of the princes of his empire, beautifully dressed and with gold braided in their hair” (Document 1). In this quote Al-Bakir expressed the true wealth of the city of Ghana. There was an excessive amount of gold, as can be seen from the extract which was used for frivolous purposes. Ghana, as well as Mali and Songhai, were rich in resources, which meant they used them for exorbitant purposes. Examples of this include silk carpets, silk umbrellas, gold birds… paper halves… government, who recognize the amount of trade going on in their land. By charging a tax to each visitor, the government displayed brilliant intelligence and skillful techniques (Document 1). This was a significant achievement achieved by civilizations and provided each with a large amount of money which brought each city into a pool of wealth and wealth. Ghana, Mali, and Songhai all emerged as advanced cultures in West Africa by the 300-30s. 1400. Each city flourished with wealth and proved to provide evidence of organized and stable governments. Resources such as gold and salt provided valuable trade materials. Each Kingdom displayed independence and control over its people, as well as skillful and thoughtful trading systems. Overall, the West African empires were all advanced in their own ways and achieved many things during their peak of success.