Alhaji Ali was Mai (ruler) of the Bornu Empire

Bornu Empire

The Bornu Empire was an African state of Nigeria from 1396 to 1893. It was a continuation of the great Kanem Empire founded centuries earlier by the Sayfawa Dynasty...

, in what is now the African states of Chad

Chad

Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...

, Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

, and Niger

Niger

Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...

, from 1639 to around 1680. Ali succeeded his father Umar in 1639 and had a relatively long reign. During the early years of his reign, the empire was threatened with incursions from its neighbors, the Tuareg in the north and the Kwararafa

Kwararafa

Kwararafa was a multiethnic state and/or confederacy centered along the Benue River valley in what is today eastern Nigeria. It was located southwest of the Bornu Empire and south of the Hausa States, and much of what we know of the Kwararafa come from these sources...

 in the south. He was able to hold both forces at bay and finally defeated them in 1668. After his victory, he consolidated his kingdom, controlling the vital trans-Saharan trade

Trans-Saharan trade

Trans-Saharan trade requires travel across the Sahara to reach sub-Saharan Africa. While existing from prehistoric times, the peak of trade extended from the 8th century until the late 16th century.- Increasing desertification and economic incentive :...

 routes, and rekindling Islamic teaching in the empire. He is remembered for his piety, constructing four mosque

Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

s and making three Hajj

Hajj

The Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is one of the largest pilgrimages in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so...

 pilgrimages to Mecca

Mecca

Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...

.