At the beginning of the 16th century, the Saadiens or Its `dides direct tribes come from the valley of the Draâ, exasperated by the Christian offensives, which revolt against the Berbères Wattassides and drive out them capacity.

Origins

Saadiens are of origin Arab some. They claim under Chérif S as a descendant of the prophet Mahomet and of its grandson Hassan Ben “Ali oldest son of Ali and Zahra. This prestigious relationship which was allowed by all at the time, was blamed at; it could be that they go down not from the prophet but from its Halima nurse of the tribe of the Outlaw His `D. From there would come the name Saadiens given to the dynasty.

Melting their own dynasty, they start an holy war against the Portuguese. Thus Agadir is taken again in 1541… In same time, Saadiens are combined with the Spanish to face the Turkish threat.

The final bouquet takes place the August 4th 1578, close to Ksar to el-Kébir (or Alcazar Quivir ), in the north of the country, when Sebastien I {{er}} (24 years), king of the Portugal, goes with 20  000 men with the meeting of the sultan saadien Abu Marwan Abd Al-Malik, itself with the head of 50  000 men. Sebastien has an ally in the person of a former sovereign of Morocco, El Motaouakil. The battle turns to the disaster for the Portuguese and his ally. Their armies are beaten and themselves drown in the Oued el Makhazen. Their adversary does not have itself the occasion to enjoy its victory because it is killed during the engagements. This battle, called “battles of the Three Kings”, was going to involve two years later the Annexation of Portugal by Spain.

Ahmed IV el-Mansour, successor of Abd el-Malik, will carry the dynasty saadienne to its apogee. A victorious forwarding against the African empire of the Songhaï, in 1591, will enable him to enrich its capital with gold by Sudan.

The dynasty

The Saadiens Sultans

Up to 1554 only in the south of the country

Filiation

Chronology

1524: The saadienne family makes itself main of Marrakech. It is about a line of the sherifs originating in Tamegroute, a village in the valley of the Draâ, whose one of the chiefs Abou Abdallah, disappeared in 1517, had rejoined behind him Under fighting against the Portuguese. The growing role of Saadiens goes hand in hand with the rise of the zaouias or brotherhoods, and the growing spiritual authority of the marabouts, frequent phenomenon in crisis period whereas Islam appears threatened. Mohammed el-Jazouli, chief of powerful a zaouïa of the Under, thus supported as of 1511 designation as war leader of Abou Abdallah called “That which is called by God”.

1524 - 1550: Reign of Ahmed Al-Wattassi. It must recognize in Saadiens an independence in fact in the areas of the South. When it decides to go on Marrakech in 1528, it is beaten and must be folded up. Two wire of Abou Abdallah then share the capacity in the south of the country: Ahmed Al 'has `raj reign in Marrakech, Mohammed ech-Sheik is governor of Under.

1537: Victorious from Wattassides to the Wadi-el-Abid, Saadiens obtain the division of Morocco in two kingdoms whose border is located at height of the area of Tadla.

1541: Saadiens tear off Agadir with the Portuguese and seem the defenders of Islam whereas, too weak, the Wattassides seek to negotiate with the Christians. The fall of Agadir marks the beginning of the Portuguese backward flow. Azemmour and Safi is evacuated soon and, after the catch of Fès, by Saadiens, Ksar be-Seghir and Asilah is abandoned in their turn in 1550. At this date, the Portuguese preserve nothing any more but Tangier, Ceuta and Mazagan.

1548: Captive fact by Saadiens, the sultan is released against the abandonment of Meknès.

1550: Catch of Fès by Saadiens.

1552: Failure of the attempts saadiennes in the west (current the Algeria).

1554: Supported by the Turks of Algiers, Bou Hassoun, Wattasside takes again Fès but this restoration is transitory because Bou Hassoun finally is overcome and killed in Tadla by Saadien Mohammed ech-Sheik which recovers Fès. The Wattassides last are massacred by pirates whereas they fled Morocco.

1554 - 1557: Reign of Mohammed ech-Sheik on reunified Morocco, whose capital is transferred from Fès to Marrakech. The sultan saadien, anxious of the Othoman ambitions, then turns to Spain of Philippe II and negotiates secretly with the count of Alcaudete, governor Spanish of Oran, to act against Algiers but the Turks precede the offensive envisaged and besiege without Oran success, whereas Saadiens fail in front of Tlemcen.

1557: Mohammed ech-Sheik is assassinated by a Turkish defector who had put himself at his service and its head is carried to Algiers then sent to Constantinople. The of Algiers troops threaten Fès after an undecided battle delivered on the Sebou wadi but an exit of the Spanish forces of Oran the constrained one to the fold.

1557 - 1574: Reign of Abou Mohammed Abdallah el-Ghalib Billah. It fails in its attempt against Mazagan and the morisque revolt of Grenade embarrassment its will of alliance with Spain against the Othoman threat. This one appears less dangerous after the Christian fleets beat in Lépante that of the sultan, in October 1571.

1574 - 1576: Reign of Mohammed el-Mottouakil, the elder one of wire of Mohammed el-Ghalib whereas, according to the tradition, the older brother of late, Abu Marwan Abd Al-Malik, should have succeeded to him. Abd Al-Malik, which fought in the Othoman armies, profits from the support of the Turkish sultan who thus seeks to install the Othoman power finally with the Morocco. Abd Al-Malik can thus invade the country with powerful a Turkish Armée and it seizes Fès, then of Marrakech after having beaten its nephew close to Rabat. This one then seeks the support of the king of Portugal Sebastien, which thus hopes to again take foot on the Moroccan coasts.

1576 - 1578: Reign of Abu Marwan Abd Al-Malik. That Ci seeks to draw aside the Turkish ally which enabled him to settle with the capacity because it understands that the Sultan of Constantinople constitutes the principal threat for Moroccan independence, otherwise dangerous that of Spain of Philippe II, forced to disperse its efforts of Italy to the Netherlands.

1578 - 1603: Reign of Ahmed Al-Mansur Saadi, the brother of Abd el-Malik. Its reign corresponds to one period of peace which sees the Ottoman Empire giving up its ambitions in direction of the west, which contributes to strengthen independence saadienne.

1581: Seize the oases of the Touat which constituted an obligatory stage on the road carrying out of the Algerian South towards Tombouctou and Gao, a road which had gradually supplanted that passing by the Tafilalet. Decline of the Trans-Saharan trade - whose caravans are now competed with by the Portuguese caravels which go directly on the Guinean coasts -, the will to control the saltworks of Teghaza whose the Empire songhaï seized Gao, wishes it to put the hand on the gold mines of Sudan lead Morocco to turn to these areas to restore exchanges which, during at least seven centuries, had appeared very profitable for him.

1603: With died of the sultan, carried by an epidemic of plague, the country sees soon clashing its proclaimed sons sultans, one with Fès, the other with Marrakech. Moulay Zaidan to el-Nasir leaves finally victorious the fight the opponent with his brothers Abou Faris and Al-Mamoun. During forty years which follow, several sultans saadiens follow one another Fès on the one hand, in Marrakech of the other. It is necessary to await the victory of Alaouites to see the restored order and the unit.

1609 - 1614: Expulsion of the Morisque S of Spain. A great number of them comes to settle in Morocco: those come from Estrémadure close to Reduction, others with Salted where they found a republic corsair called to become famous and to multiply its forwardings in all the Atlantique.

August 4th 1578: the battle of the Three Kings

See also: Battle of the Three Kings

The king of the Portugal Sebastien I {{er}}, combined with the king of Spain Philippe II, tries to reverse the sultan Abd Al-Malik. During the confrontation with Ksar to el-Kébir, the 40  000 riders of the sultan destroy the Portuguese troops. Abd Al-Malik and young king Sebastien, who dreamed only of Croisade against the Infidels, are killed in the battle. Philippe II will take possession of the Portugal, while the brother of the sultan, Ahmed Al-Mansur Saadi, will go up on the Trône saadien. A tribute will be requested from overcome and following this victory, the blazon of Saadiens is regilded.

Conquest of the Empire Songhaï

The Empire Songhai was born eight centuries earlier, at the time of the Mérovingiens and of Mahomet (7th century), around the small town of Koukia, in the loop of the Niger. It thrives quickly thanks to the Trans-Saharan trade, while dispatching towards the North Africa of salt and gold but also of the Ambergris, of the Gum arabic, the skins of leopards and the Esclaves. It receives the Maghreb n the other hand manufactured goods (jewels, weapons, fabrics, mirrors…) as well as agricultural produce (corn, horses…). The trade of slaves towards the Morocco becomes more than ever flourishing. But the Songhai ends up entering in conflict with the Saadien for the possession of the salt mines of the desert.

They converted with the Islam.

At the end of the 16th century, the sultan Saadien Ahmed IV el-Mansour, which already has with its credit a victory over the Portuguese, worries about the decline in the gold deliveries in Morocco, via the oasis of Sijilmasa, in the north of the the Sahara. It wishes to adapt this trade like that, very important, of salt. For this reason, he asserts the saltworks of Teghaza, in full desert, which belong to Songhai. In 1589, it sends towards the Niger a powerful forwarding which crushes the army of Askia Ishaq II with the battle of Bataille of Tondibi and occupies the area. Askia proposes with Saadiens a generous tribute and the monopoly of the trade of salt in exchange of their departure. But the sultan refuses. Its army, ordered by a new chief of the name of Mahmoud, continues the troops of Songhai and crushes completely them while the Askia is massacred by rebels.

Via a pasha, the sultan saadien imposes from now on his domination on all the southernmost fringe of the Sahara, the Sudan (of the Arab expression Bilad Al-Sudan, which means “country of the Blacks”)… But the trade between Sijilmasa and Saadiens are not rectified therefore. Tombouctou, declining, falls under the cut from afro-Morrocan women families. It is finished by it large African kingdoms.

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