Senusiyya

The **Senusiyya** (Arabic: سَنُوسَىي, <small>romanized:</small> _as-Sanūssiyya_) is a political and religious Muslim Sufi order. It is also a clan in Libya and surrounding regions. It was founded in Mecca in 1837 by Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi. In English, it can also be written **Senussi** or **Sanusi.**

### His education

The Sanusi Order was founded by Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi (1787–1859), an Algerian scholar known as ‘the Grand Sanusi’ (Arabic: السنوسي الكبير as-Sanūssiyy al-Kabīr). The Grand Sanusi was a thinker who learned a lot from his education and travels in the Muslim world. He first studied at a Sufi religious school in Algeria, then went to Qarawiyyin University in Fez in 1805. There, he studied Sufi teachings and Islamic law (Shari'a). In 1824, he went on a pilgrimage to Hejaz and met a well-known teacher, Ahmad ibn Idris al-Fasi (1749–1837). This teacher supported reform, using reason to understand Islamic law, and going back to the main Islamic texts: the Qur'an and the Hadith. He was against copying the old teachings of the four main Sunni schools without rethinking them.

### His vision of Islam and Sufism

Al-Sanusi did not agree with some Sufi ideas and actions. He refused the belief that people could become perfect like God or should stay away from daily life. Instead, he believed that there are many ways to get close to God, and no one should say that they have the only truth. He supported simple religious practices, hard work, and taking part in everyday life. This new way of thinking about Islam, along with his patience and understanding of local tribes, helped him create a strong social movement in Cyrenaica.

### Ideas and principles

The Sanusi movement was built around austerity, moral commitment and anti-colonial resistance. Its main goal was to build a strong and united community. They focused on education, work, using local resources, and being independent from the outside world. The order was built on an Islamic model of the state (taxation, law, education, and preparing for religious struggle, known as jihad).

### Organization and _zawiya_ system

Between 1856 and 1902, the order had three successive capitals. The first one was Jaghbub between 1856 and 1895. The second one was Kufra between 1895 and 1899. The third one was Quru (in northern today’s Chad) between 1899 and 1902.

The Sanusi movement was organized around places called zawiya (pl. zawaya) or lodges. They were used as the main tool of the order to extend their secular and spiritual power over Cyrenaica tribes and the Sahara merchants. The localisation of the zawaya was chosen carefully, often at the intersection of several tribal zones. The lodges were places of worship and school, but also sanctuaries, places to solve tribal disputes, a free guest-house for travellers, and centers of trades and of information. They also became the place of military training in the struggle against colonialist powers.

### Secular power

Until 1918, the order was technically under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. However, around 1900, the order had achieved to become the major state-like actor in the region. The order had a lot of power upon its lands. It was organized almost as a state with bureaucracy and a judiciary system. The Sanusi had a control on the land and the population even the nomades between the Tuareg country to Egypt and Sudan.

The Sanusi would sometimes recognize the rule of the Ottoman Empire. This was made in order to prevent attacks from colonialist powers who did not want to clash with the Ottoman Empire.

#### The beginning of the order

Between 1837 and 1840, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi recruted his first followers in Hejaz before travelling back to the north of Africa.

#### The foundation of the first zawaya

In 1843, al-Sanusi and his followers settled on the central Cyrenaican plateau in the Jabal al-Akhdar region. They built the order's first zawiya.

In the 1850s, al-Sanusi moves to the oasis of Jaghbub to avoid the Ottoman's garnisons surveillance in Benghazi and Dama.  There, he found a university complex. This will become the spiritual and administrative center of the order. The oasis was also on the pilgrimage road to Mecca, and on the an important trade route.

By the death of the Grand Sanusi in 1859, there were 52 lodges.

### 1860-1902: The leadership of Muhammad al-Mahdi - The growth of the order

In 1860, after the death of his father, **Muhammad al-Mahdi** ibn Muhammad al-Senussi (also called Muhammad al-Mahdi) was considered head of the family and of the order until his death in 1902. Under his leadership, the order continued to expand. By 1870, the order was central in the region. By 1890, the movement was clearly organized and the Sanusi could be considered as an unofficial state.

By 1902, the order had more than 150 zawayas under its control and 15.000 students.

### 1902-1916: Regency of Ahmed Sharif as-Senussi

After the death of Muhammad al-Mahdi, **Ahmed Sharif as-Senussi** was given power as a regent for his cousin Muhammad Idris bin Muhammad al-Mahdi as-Senussi, the futur king Idris of Libya.

#### The war against Italy and the declaration of state

In 1911, Italy invaded the coastal parts of modern Libya. In 1912, the Ottoman Empire signed a peace treaty with Italy. As a consequence of that treaty, the modern Libya territories were no longer under Ottoman rule. The Sanussiya order declared an independent state in 1913.

### 1916-1969: The leadership of Muhammad Idris

Around 1916, Ahmed Sharif as-Senussi abdicated his leadership on the Senusi family and order to **Muhammad Idris bin Muhammad al-Mahdi as-Senussi**. One of the first decision of shaykh Idris was to refuse the request of the Ottoman Empire to attack the British forces. This led to a close relationship between the Sanusi and the British during the 20th century.

After the October 1918 Armistice with the Ottoman Empire, Italy was granted sovereignty over Libya.

#### 1951-1969: Kingdom of Libya

The United Nations voted for the creation of the Libyan state in 1949. Idris, the shaykh of the Sanūsī order, became its new king. He is the grandson of Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi, the founder of the order.

On September 1, 1969, Muammar al-Qaddafi led the 1969 Libyan revolution, a military coup to depose the king. He proclaimed a republic. King Idris was in Turkey and fled to Egypt. This revolution marks the end of the rule of the Sanusi in Libya.

### From 1969: persecution under Qaddafi's government

Qaddafi banned the Senussi order, forcing its members to go underground. He also persecuted important Senussi figures and tried to eliminate Sufi symbols and the influence of the Senussi tradition from Libya’s public life. The remaining Senussi tribes faced strict restrictions, and the government appointed a supervisor to oversee their properties.

## Relations with the Ottoman Empire

Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi decided to live in Cyrenaica, in modern Libya, around 1840. He claimed to be a sharif (a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad) and believed that only people from the Prophet's tribe (Quraysh) should lead Muslims. Thus, he did not accept the Ottoman sultans as rightful Muslim leaders. He knew the Ottomans would not like his growing movement among the tribes in Cyrenaica, as it could challenge their power. Even though he kept good relations with Ottoman officials, he moved to the remote oasis of Jaghbub in 1856 to avoid their control. In 1895, his son also moved the center of their group to Kufra, a faraway place in the Sahara, to stay away from Ottoman influence.

## Sources

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