Abd al-Rahman of Morocco

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Not to be confused with Abd al-Rahman I.
'Abd al-Rahman ben Hisham
عبد الرحمن بن هشام
Amir al-Mu'minin
Abderrahman Ben Hicham.jpg
The Sultan of Morocco
Moulay Abd al-Rahman in 1845
Sultan of Morocco
Reign1822–1859
PredecessorMoulay Sulayman
SuccessorMoulay Muhammad IV
Born(1778-02-19)February 19, 1778
Fes, Morocco
Died (aged 81)
Meknes, Morocco
Burial
Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail, Meknes, Morocco
Issue54 children, including:
Moulay Muhammad IV
Dynasty'Alawi
FatherMawlay Hisham bin Muhammad
ReligionSunni Islam

Mawlay Abd al-Rahman ben Hisham (Arabic: عبد الرحمن بن هشام‎), born in Fes on 19 February 1778, and died in Meknes on 28 August 1859, buried in the Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail, was the 'Alawi sultan of Morocco from 30 November 1822 to 28 August 1859.[1][2]

Biography[]

Abd al-Rahman bin Hisham was born in Fes on 19 February 1778.[3] Following the death of his uncle Sulayman, Abd al-Rahman was proclaimed sultan of Morocco in Fes on 30 November 1822. His reign began during a tumultuous time, when many noble families and rural tribal confederations in Morocco were trying to extract greater power away from the center, and spent much of the early part of his reign crushing revolts.

The will of Moulay Sulayman to entrust the throne to Abd al-Rahman:

I do not think that the children of Mawlana, the grandfather Abdallah, nor the children of Mawlay, my father, may God have mercy on him, nor the children of his children, are better than my master Abd al-Rahman ibn Hisham, and I am not better for this matter than him, because - God willing – may God protect him, he does not drink alcohol, does not commit adultery, does not lie, and does not betray. He does not take blood and money unnecessarily. And if the king of the two Easts reigns... and he fasts the obligatory and the supererogatory, and he prays the obligatory and the supererogatory. But I brought him from Essaouira for people to see and know him. And I took it out of Tafilalet to show it to them, because religion is advice. If the people of truth follow him, their affairs will be made right, as did Mawlay Muhammad, his grandfather, and his father is alive. They never need me, and the people of Morocco will envy him and follow him, God willing. And whoever followed him followed guidance and light. And whoever follows others, he follows sedition and misguidance.

— Moulay Sulayman, [4]

Upon ascension, the sultan's finances were in shambles. With the country in disarray, the central government (the Makhzen) was unable to collect much customary taxation. Abd al-Rahman turned to foreign trade, which had been cut off by the prior sultan, as way to reap in customs revenue, and began to negotiate a series of trade treaties with various European powers. Abd al-Rahman also decided to revive the institution of Barbary piracy, hoping to replenish his treasury, but this created confrontations with the European powers as British blockaded Tangier in 1828, and the Austrians bombarded Larache, Asilah and Tetouan[1] in 1829. The final bombardment of a Moroccan city in retribution for piracy occurred in 1851 at Salé.[1]

Sultan Mawlay Abd al-Rahman of Morocco and his courtiers

He was an adept leader and administrator and was able to build public works and infrastructure. He did however have to deal with internal conflicts and had to quell revolts many times: 1824–1825, 1828, 1831–1832, 1843, 1849, 1852, 1853, and 1857–1858.[5] He was always successful at placating the nobles and malcontents though.[1]

The most serious foreign threat to Morocco, however, was France, which had launched its invasion of neighboring Algeria in 1830. Abd al-Rahman sent Moroccan troops to defend Tlemcen in 1830, but they were thrown back and Tlemcen was captured by the French in 1832.[6] Abd al-Rahman supported the continued guerrilla resistance in Algeria led by Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri who was in theory, a vassal of the Moroccan sultan,[7] albeit only tentatively, not wishing to incur French retaliation. But the border tribes of Morocco continued supporting Abd al-Qadir more actively, prompting the French launch their own strikes over the border and establishing forward outposts in Moroccan territory, which only inflamed the reaction in Morocco and increased the irregular border war. The Moroccan army attacked a French military group which France considered a declaration of war.[8] After learning that the Sultan had sent huge forces to the eastern front, Peugeot gave Morocco a deadline of eight days to withdraw its armies from the east, but the Sultan was not convinced.[1][8]

Sultan Mawlay Abd al-Rahman with the Black Guard.

The French then demanded that Morocco cease its support of Abd al-Qadir and cede its eastern frontier lands to French control and, in 1844, launched the First Franco-Moroccan War.[1][9] The war did not go well for the sultan. The French navy bombarded Mogador (Essaouira) and Tangier, while the Moroccan army, under Abd al-Rahman's son Moulay Muhammad, was defeated by the French at the Battle of Isly in August 1844. Abd al-Rahman consented to the Treaty of Tangier in October 1844, withdrawing support for al-Qadir, and reducing border garrisons.[1]

The treaties aggravated the internal situation in Morocco. Abd al-Rahman in fact rejected the Treaty of Lalla Maghnia at first, blaming it on his negotiators, but was eventually forced to ratify it. Army units and rural tribes across the north and east, already basically ungovernable, started raising rebellions which were only crushed with difficulty. The aftermath saw the break between Abd al-Rahman and Abd al-Qadir.

Royal ceremony taking place in front of Bab Mansour in 1920, with Mawlay Abd al-Rahman's 19th-century loggia visible in the back.

In 1856, Moulay Abd al-Rahman established the souk of Zraqten on the north side of the High Atlas, adding to territory in southern Morocco controlled by the , who were Caids ruling various southern areas from the 18th century until Moroccan independence in 1956, after originally settling in Telouet to establish a souk. They would tax caravans travelling from the Sahara and Tafilalt regions as well as taxing goods sold locally.

The Agdal Gardens of Marrakesh, an irrigated garden, originally established by the Almoravids in the 12th century and enlarged in the days of the Saadians was revamped, reforested and encircled by ramparts during the reign of Moulay Abd al-Rahman al-'Alawi.

Abd al-Rahman died in Meknes on August 28, 1859 and was buried in the Mausoleum of his Great Great Grandfather, Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif.[1] He was succeeded by his son Muhammad, who took the title of sultan Muhammad IV.[10]

During his long reign he proved himself competent in an age where Africa was being colonized by stronger European nations. He was able to remain independent and maintain his borders without ceding any land. He also signed the necessary treaties to enforce his beliefs.[1]

Armed Forces[]

When Moulay Abd al-Rahman ben Hicham ascended the throne on 30 November 1822, Morocco was an undefeated power with a modern army made up of four main armed forces:[11]

Appearance and Personality[]

Abd al-Rahman was tall and tanned, he was firm in his stance despite his advanced age, and wore simple clothes. Every day, he rode a horse to his garden in Agdal, situated near the gates of Fes.[12]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i "'Abd ar-Rasham". Encyclopædia Britannica. I: A-Ak - Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2010. pp. 17. ISBN 978-1-59339-837-8.
  2. ^ Julien, Charles-André (1994). Histoire de l'afrique du nord: Des origines à 1830 (in French). France: Payot. ISBN 9782228887892.
  3. ^ FP89796.
  4. ^ "المولى سليمان أراد التخلي عن عرش المغرب". 2016-11-16. Archived from the original on 2016-11-16. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  5. ^ Historical Dictionary of Morocco
  6. ^ Miller, Susan Gilson (2013-04-15). A History of Modern Morocco. Cambridge University Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-521-81070-8.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  7. ^ Miller, Susan Gilson (2013-04-15). A History of Modern Morocco. Cambridge University Press. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-521-81070-8. 'Abd al-Qadir was careful, however, not to appear to challenge 'Abd al-Rahman's own claims of suzerainty, and made it known that he was acting merely as the Moroccan sultan's khalifa, or deputy. Still in theory a vassal of the Moroccan sultanCS1 maint: date and year (link)
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Sessions, Jennifer E. (2017-03-15). By Sword and Plow: France and the Conquest of Algeria. Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-5446-2.
  9. ^ "TelQuel : Le Maroc tel qu'il est". 2014-12-10. Archived from the original on 2014-12-10. Retrieved 2021-07-09.
  10. ^ "FP89796". web.archive.org. 2019-12-16. Archived from the original on 2019-12-16. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  11. ^ "L'armée marocaine à travers l'histoire". fr.le360.ma (in French). 2021-06-15. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  12. ^ Arlach, H. de T. d' Auteur du texte (1856). Le Maroc en 1856 (in French). Paris: Ledoyen. pp. 59–60.CS1 maint: date and year (link)

External links[]

Preceded by
Sulayman 		Sultan of Morocco
1822–1859 		Succeeded by
Muhammad IV
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