Abd al-Hafid of Morocco

Abdelhafid of Morocco (Arabic: عبد الحفيظ بن الحسن العلوي) or Moulay Abdelhafid (24 February 1875[2][3] – 4 April 1937)[2][4] (Arabic: عبد الحفيظ) was the Sultan of Morocco from 1908 to 1912 and a member of the Alaouite Dynasty. His younger brother, Abdelaziz of Morocco, preceded him. While Mulai Abdelhafid initially opposed his brother for giving some concessions to foreign powers, he himself became increasingly backed by the French and finally signed the protectorate treaty giving de facto control of the country to France.

Abd al-Hafid of Morocco
عبد الحفيظ بن الحسن العلوي
Portrait taken by J. Giry and given as a gift to Ridder van Rappard, special envoy of the Netherlands, on 13 February 1913[1]
Sultan of Morocco
Reign1909 – 30 March 1912
PredecessorAbdelaziz of Morocco
SuccessorVacant until August 1912

Yusef (in Rabat)

Ahmed al-Hiba (in Marrakesh)
Born24 February 1875
Fes, Morocco
Died (aged 62)
Saint Georges Castle, Enghien-les-Bains, France
Burial
Mawlay Abdallah Mosque, Fes, Morocco
ConsortLalla Rabia bint Madani el Glaoui
(m. circa 1905; died 1924)
Lalla Rabaha bint Mohammed el Zayyani
(m. 1907)
Lalla Ruqiya bint Mohammed al-Moqri
(m. 1910)
IssueLalla Amina
Moulay Slimane
HouseHouse of Alaoui
FatherHassan I
MotherLalla Aliya al-Settatiya
ReligionSunni Islam

Hafidiya
Main article: Hafidiya

After his brother Abdelaziz appointed him as Khalifa of Marrakesh, Abdelhafid sought to have him overthrown by fomenting distrust over Abdelaziz's European ties.[2][5] Abdelhafid was aided by Madani al-Glaoui, older brother of T'hami, one of the Caids of the Atlas. He was assisted in the training of his troops by Andrew Belton (Kaid), a British officer and veteran of the Second Boer War.[6] In February 1908, Abdelhafid was proclaimed the Sultan of Fes.[5] For a brief period, Abdelaziz reigned from Rabat while Abdelhafid reigned in Marrakesh and Fes. In August 1908 Abdelaziz was defeated in battle.[5] In 1909, Abdelhafid became the recognized leader of Morocco.[2]

Writing contemporaneously about his rule in 1909, George Frederick Andrews says that Abdelhafid "must play a very shrewd game. To maintain his authority over the tribes he must continue to appear decidedly anti-European in his feelings and his policy. On the other hand he must have money and the money must come from Europe. Also he knows that Morocco must submit to such reforms as have been decreed by the conference of the powers."[5]

Despotism

Muhammad al-Kattani, the influential Sufi poet and activist of Fes, was captured, tortured, and beaten to death in front of his wives and children in 1909.[7]

In 1910, Lalla Batoul, a Fesi aristocrat and the wife of a former governor of Fes and supporter of Abdelaziz, was tortured.[8][9] She was chained to the wall in a crucifixion position, completely naked with her breasts seized in a vice, and whipped and interrogated about the whereabouts of her husband's fortune under the direct supervision of Abdelhafid.[8] Walter Burton Harris reported on the incident in an article published in the Times of Morocco.[9][8]

Treaty of Fes, abdication, retirement and death
An illustration of Abd al-Hafid signing his act of abdication, on the front page of Le Petit Journal's weekly Supplément illustré, printed 25 August 1912.

In 1911, rebellion broke out against the Sultan. This led to the Agadir Crisis, also known as the Second Moroccan Crisis. These events led Abdelhafid to sign the Treaty of Fez on 30 March 1912,[10] which made Morocco a French protectorate.[11]

A few months later, Resident-General Hubert Lyautey persuaded Abdel Hafid to abdicate against the payment of a massive pension,[12] part of which was used to build the opulent Abdelhafid Palace in Tangier, completed in 1914.[13] His brother Yusef was proclaimed Sultan by the French administration on 13 August 1912.[14] Yusef was chosen by dignitaries of Rabat,[14] to which he soon relocated to escape the instability in Fez. Abdel Hafid signed his abdication while already on the quay in Rabat, with the ship that would take him to France waiting. During his extended visit in France, he received a great deal of attention from the press.[10] He later returned to Morocco to live in Tangier.

Abd al-Hafid died in Enghien-les-Bains, France, on 4 April 1937.[2] His body was transported to Fez, where he was buried in the royal mausoleum of the Moulay Abdallah Mosque.[15]

Marriages and children

By marriage Moulay Abd al-Hafid is so far recorded to have had six children. He wedded three women:

  1. Lalla Rabia bint Madani el Glaoui, they married around 1905[16] and she died in 1924.[17] together they had two sons and two daughters,[17] among them:
    • Moulay Idriss (b. 1905).[18][16]
    • Lalla Amina,[19][17] in her first marriage she married Moulay Mohammed al-Hassan ben Yusef[17] and in her second marriage she wedded Moulay Lafchar el Alaoui.[17]
  2. Lalla Rabaha bint Mohammed el Zayyani, they married in December 1907.[18] Whether they issued children is not stated.
  3. Lalla Ruqiya bint Mohammed al-Moqri, they married in July 1910.[18] Together they had:

Honors

See also

References
  1. "Abdelhafid of Morocco or Moulay Abdelhafid (1875-1937)". 19thcentury-photo. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  2. "Abd al-Hafid". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. I: A-Ak – Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, IL: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2010. pp. 14. ISBN 978-1-59339-837-8.
  3. There is uncertainty about his exact birthdate. Some sources list either 1875 or 1880 without any month or day listed
  4. Biography of Mulai Abd al Hafiz
  5. Andrews, George Frederick (1909). "The North African Question and Its Relation to European Politics". American Political Science Review. 3 (1): 20–29. doi:10.2307/1945906. ISSN 1537-5943. JSTOR 1945906. S2CID 143544181.
  6. New York Times, November 4, 1908
  7. Miller, Susan Gilson. (2013). A history of modern Morocco. New York: Cambridge University Press. pp. 67–69. ISBN 978-1-139-62469-5. OCLC 855022840.
  8. "Supplice de Lalla Batoul : Moulay Hafid au cœur du scandale". Zamane (in French). 16 April 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  9. "قصـة الباتـول.. أول معتـقلة سياسيـة في المغرب صلبها السلطان مولاي حفيظ". فبراير.كوم | موقع مغربي إخباري شامل يتجدد على مدار الساعة (in French). 24 September 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  10. W. Harris, "Morocco That Was", ISBN 0-907871-13-5
  11. Long, David E.; Bernard Reich (2002). The Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa. p. 393.
  12. Richard Pennell (2003), Morocco: From Empire to Independence, Oxford: Oneworld, p. 140
  13. "Ruta por el Tánger histórico". Guía de Marruecos. 10 March 2020.
  14. "Journal Officiel" (PDF). 1 November 1912. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  15. Bressolette, Henri (2016). A la découverte de Fès. L'Harmattan. ISBN 978-2343090221.
  16. "Idriss Al Hassan". geni_family_tree. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  17. Glaoui, Abdessadeq El (2004). Le ralliement: le Glaoui, mon père : récit et témoignage (in French). Marsam Editions. p. 169. ISBN 978-9981-149-79-3.
  18. "Morocco (Alaoui Dynasty)". 29 August 2005. Archived from the original on 29 August 2005. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  19. "Amina Al Hassan". geni_family_tree. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  20. "Mohammed Al Hassan". geni_family_tree. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
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