XVIᵉ siècle – XVIᵉ siècle
Morocco
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The Saʿdī dynasty emerged in southern Morocco through resistance to Portuguese coastal occupation and opposition to the Wattasid-Marinid rulers. Beginning with al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh’s proclamation in 1511, the Saʿdīs consolidated control over the south, captured Agadir, forced Portuguese withdrawals from Safi and Azemmour, and entered Fez in 1554. Their rulers also confronted Ottoman power in Algeria and continued military and commercial state-building in Morocco.
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Le récit
The Saʿdī dynasty arose in a Morocco pressured by Spanish and Portuguese offensives. Since the Portuguese capture of Ceuta in 1415, coastal settlements had been seized and used as bases for raids into the Moroccan hinterland. Religious brotherhoods and zāwiya shaykhs encouraged resistance, while sharifs from Darʿa led by Abu ʿAbd Allāh, known as al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh, presented themselves as leaders against the foreign forts.
Al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh’s proclamation in 1511 marked the beginning of the Saʿdī dynasty. Their struggle lasted approximately forty years and was directed both against the Portuguese and against the Wattasid rulers. In southern Morocco, Portuguese power increasingly contracted to fortified positions, while fighters from Salé harried the invaders and drove them from Maʿmūrā at the mouth of the Sebou River.
A treaty following the indecisive battle at Tadla in 1527 granted the Saʿdīs the Sūs and Marrakesh while leaving the rest of Morocco to the Wattasid sultan, with Fez remaining his capital. The arrangement created twelve years of peace during which the Saʿdīs organized their forces and concentrated on confronting Portugal. Their decisive breakthrough came with the capture of Agadir after a six-month siege, achieved with powerful artillery.
The capture of Agadir led to the immediate evacuation of Safi and Azemmour by the Portuguese in 1542. These victories enhanced Muhammad al-Shaykh’s prestige and enabled him to resume the struggle against the Wattasids. He entered Fez on 13 September 1554, ending the long contest for control of the northern capital and becoming the sole leader of the Saʿdīs.
Muhammad al-Shaykh regarded Ottoman expansion in Algeria as the principal danger to Morocco. His sons ʿAbdallah and ʿAbd al-Rahmān had taken Tlemcen in 1550, although the Turks retook it in 1552. Muhammad al-Shaykh later sought Spanish cooperation against Algiers, besieged Tlemcen, and captured it, but he was assassinated in 1557 by an officer of his guard paid by the Ottoman government.
After Muhammad al-Shaykh’s murder, his son Abu Muhammad ʿAbdallah became sultan and was known as al-Ghālib Billāh. He rebuilt the army, acquired modern weapons, and used zāwiyas and brotherhood leaders to mobilize public support. His unsuccessful siege of Mazagan nonetheless demonstrated to the Portuguese that the Saʿdīs had become a serious military power.
Once the immediate Portuguese threat to the Moroccan interior had been reduced, al-Ghālib Billāh promoted prosperity through trade with European states, especially France. He constructed a major mosque in Marrakesh and restored the Almohad mosque in the Agadir Casbah. His reign is characterized in the passage as generally calm and prosperous, ending with his death in 1574.
XVIᵉ siècle – XVIᵉ siècle
Morocco
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Saʿdī dynasty emerged in southern Morocco through resistance to Portuguese coastal occupation and opposition to the Wattasid-Marinid rulers. Beginning with al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh’s proclamation in 1511, the Saʿdīs consolidated control over the south, captured Agadir, forced Portuguese withdrawals from Safi and Azemmour, and entered Fez in 1554. Their rulers also confronted Ottoman power in Algeria and continued military and commercial state-building in Morocco.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
The Saʿdī dynasty arose in a Morocco pressured by Spanish and Portuguese offensives. Since the Portuguese capture of Ceuta in 1415, coastal settlements had been seized and used as bases for raids into the Moroccan hinterland. Religious brotherhoods and zāwiya shaykhs encouraged resistance, while sharifs from Darʿa led by Abu ʿAbd Allāh, known as al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh, presented themselves as leaders against the foreign forts.
Al-Kāʾim bi-ʿAmr Allāh’s proclamation in 1511 marked the beginning of the Saʿdī dynasty. Their struggle lasted approximately forty years and was directed both against the Portuguese and against the Wattasid rulers. In southern Morocco, Portuguese power increasingly contracted to fortified positions, while fighters from Salé harried the invaders and drove them from Maʿmūrā at the mouth of the Sebou River.
A treaty following the indecisive battle at Tadla in 1527 granted the Saʿdīs the Sūs and Marrakesh while leaving the rest of Morocco to the Wattasid sultan, with Fez remaining his capital. The arrangement created twelve years of peace during which the Saʿdīs organized their forces and concentrated on confronting Portugal. Their decisive breakthrough came with the capture of Agadir after a six-month siege, achieved with powerful artillery.
The capture of Agadir led to the immediate evacuation of Safi and Azemmour by the Portuguese in 1542. These victories enhanced Muhammad al-Shaykh’s prestige and enabled him to resume the struggle against the Wattasids. He entered Fez on 13 September 1554, ending the long contest for control of the northern capital and becoming the sole leader of the Saʿdīs.
Muhammad al-Shaykh regarded Ottoman expansion in Algeria as the principal danger to Morocco. His sons ʿAbdallah and ʿAbd al-Rahmān had taken Tlemcen in 1550, although the Turks retook it in 1552. Muhammad al-Shaykh later sought Spanish cooperation against Algiers, besieged Tlemcen, and captured it, but he was assassinated in 1557 by an officer of his guard paid by the Ottoman government.
After Muhammad al-Shaykh’s murder, his son Abu Muhammad ʿAbdallah became sultan and was known as al-Ghālib Billāh. He rebuilt the army, acquired modern weapons, and used zāwiyas and brotherhood leaders to mobilize public support. His unsuccessful siege of Mazagan nonetheless demonstrated to the Portuguese that the Saʿdīs had become a serious military power.
Once the immediate Portuguese threat to the Moroccan interior had been reduced, al-Ghālib Billāh promoted prosperity through trade with European states, especially France. He constructed a major mosque in Marrakesh and restored the Almohad mosque in the Agadir Casbah. His reign is characterized in the passage as generally calm and prosperous, ending with his death in 1574.