| Laghouat Expedition | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Conflicts between the Regency of Algiers and Morocco | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Morocco | Laghouat Beni M'zab other tribes | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Ismail Ibn Sharif Moulay Abdelmalek | |||||||
The Laghouat Expedition were a series of raids led by Morocco, under the reign of Ismail Ibn Sharif from 1708 to 1713.
In the seventeenth century, these oases were already the target of the Alaouite Emir of Tafilalt - before this dynasty took the place of the Saadians on the throne – and were tributaries for a short period of time. [1] [2]
In 1708, the son of Sultan Moulay Ismail, a man named Moulay Abdelmalek launched an expedition to impose a tribute on Laghouat and Aïn Madhi. It is based on the previous conquest of the Alaouite Emir Sidi Mohammed who from the time when Yusuf Bacha was the Pasha of the Regency of Algiers (1647-1650) had carried out raids on Tlemcen, Oujda, Aïn Madhi and Laghouat to claim tribute . The inhabitants of Laghouat then pay tribute only in a forced and temporary way. [1]
This Saharan Expedition of 1708 took place after a reorganization of the Moroccan army following its defeat in the Battle of Chelif against the dey of Algiers in 1701 as counterattack after the Mascara campaign. The son of Moulay Ismail, Abdelmalek, who led the troops established his camp at Aïn Madhi and from there sent troops to collect a tax. One of these troops would have reached Ouargla, but couldn't do anything against Biskra where a garrison of the Beylik of Constantine was present. [3] These expeditions in Algerian territory [3] seem lucrative enough for them to be attempted again between 1710 and 1713 in the direction of Laghouat and Aïn Sefra by more or less controlled elements of the Moroccan army [2] including probably one of Moulay Ismail's nephews who established themselves in Boussemghoun. [3]
These territories were far from the Moroccan homeland, and thus Moroccan control was often loose, and nominal at best. In 1727, following the death of Ismail, a rebellion broke out in Laghouat, which was pacified by an expedition from the Beylik of Titteri (a governorate of Algiers) which removed Moroccan control over the area, and instead established control from Algiers in the region. [4] Laghouat, and other Saharan territories previously under Moroccan control became tributaries of the Bey of Titteri. [5]
Moulay Ismail Ibn Sharif, born around 1645 in Sijilmassa and died on 22 March 1727 at Meknes, was a Sultan of Morocco from 1672 to 1727, as the second ruler of the 'Alawi dynasty. He was the seventh son of Moulay Sharif and was governor of the province of Fez and the north of Morocco from 1667 until the death of his half-brother, Sultan Moulay Rashid in 1672. He was proclaimed sultan at Fez, but spent several years in conflict with his nephew Moulay Ahmed ben Mehrez, who also claimed the throne, until the latter's death in 1687. Moulay Ismail's 55-year reign is the longest of any sultan of Morocco. During his lifetime, Isma’il amassed a harem of over 500 women with more than 800 confirmed biological children, making him one of the most prodigious fathers in recorded history.
MoulayAbd al-Rahman bin Hisham, born on 19 February 1778 in Fes and died on 28 August 1859 in Meknes, was a sultan of Morocco from 30 November 1822 to 28 August 1859, as a ruler of the 'Alawi dynasty. He was a son of Moulay Hisham. He was proclaimed sultan in Fes after the death of Moulay Sulayman.
Laghouat is one of the fifty-eight provinces (wilaya) of Algeria. It is located in the north central part of Algeria. The province borders Tiaret Province to the north, El Bayadh Province to the west, Ghardaia Province to the south and Djelfa Province to the east. The capital of the province is Laghouat City. The province is famous for palm trees and livestock.
The Regency of Algiers was an autonomous eyalet of the Ottoman Empire in what was known as the Barbary coast of North Africa from 1516 to 1830. It was an early modern tributary state founded by the corsair brothers Oruç and Hayreddin Barbarossa, ruled first by viceroys, which later became a sovereign military republic. The Regency was infamous for its Barbary corsairs, and a formidable pirate base for maritime Holy war and plunder against Christian powers. It was also the strongest Barbary state. Situated between the Regency of Tunis in the east, the Sharifian Sultanate of Morocco and Spanish Oran in the west, the Regency originally extended its borders from the Mellegue river in the east to Moulouya river in the west and from Collo to Ouargla, with nominal authority over the Tuat and In Salah to the south. At the end of the Regency, it extended to the present eastern and western borders of Algeria.
Tuat, or Touat, is a natural region of desert in central Algeria that contains a string of small oases. In the past, the oases were important for caravans crossing the Sahara.
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The Battle of Moulouya took place in May 1692 at a ford on the Moulouya river in Morocco. It was fought between the armies of the Alaouite Sultan Moulay Ismail and those of the Dey of Algiers Hadj Chabane.
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The Beylik of Titteri,, was one of the three permanent Beyliks of the Regency of Algiers, the other two being the Western Beylik, and the Beylik of Constantine. It was established in 1546 and was ended during the French conquest of Algeria.
The Mascara campaign of 1699–1701 was launched by Moulay Zidan, son of the Moroccan Sultan Moulay Ismail, to capture the Beylik of Mascara, situated in the west of the Deylik of Algiers. This episode reopened the hostilities between the Sherifian Empire and the Regency of Algiers.