page_title: Ismail Ibn Sharif
section_title: End of the reign and death
hierarchical_section_title: Ismail Ibn Sharif / Biography / End of the reign and death
caption_attribution_description: English: Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail, Meknes, Morocco Français&#160;: Mausolée de Moulay Ismail, Meknès, Maroc
context_page_description: Moulay Ismail Ben Sharif, born around 1645 in Sijilmassa and died on 22 March 1727 at Meknes, was a Sultan of Morocco from 1672–1727, as the second ruler of the Alaouite dynasty. He was the seventh son of Moulay Sharif and was governor of the Kingdom 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.
  The reign of Moulay Ismail marked a high watermark for Moroccan power. His military successes are explained by the creation of a strong army, originally relying on the 'Guichs' and on the Black Guard, black slaves who were totally devoted to him. As a result, the central power could be less reliant on tribes that often rebelled. Moulay Ismail successfully campaigned against the Ottomans in Algiers and their vassals and expelled the Europeans from the ports they had occupied: Larache, Asilah, Mehdya, and Tangiers. He took thousands of Christians prisoner and nearly took Ceuta.
context_section_description: The end of Moulay Ismail's reign was marked by military setbacks and family problems relating to the succession. In May 1692, Moulay Ismail sent his son Moulay Zeydan with a large army to attack Ottoman Algeria. He was defeated by the Ottomans who counter-attacked and advanced as far as the Moulouya River. Ismail was forced to send an embassy to Algiers to make peace. In 1693, Moulay Ismail raided the Oran region and attempted to pillage the Beni Amer. The city of Oran resisted two attacks, forcing the sultan to beat a retreat. This time, it was the Turks who sent envoys to make peace, at the initiative of the Ottoman Sultan, Ahmed II.
  Ismail attempted to besiege the city of Ceuta with an army of 40,000 soldiers, but the strength of Spanish resistance meant that the siege went on and on. Part of Ismail's army also besieged Melilla from 1694 to 1696, but the city's fortifications were too much for them. In spring 1701, Moulay Ismail launched another expedition against Algeria. The Moroccan forces advanced to the Chelif River before they were intercepted by the Ottoman army in Chediouïa. With a force of 10,000-12,000 men, the Algerian army managed to defeat the 60,000 soldiers of the Moroccan army. The Moroccan army suffered a heavy defeated and fell into disarray. Moulay Ismail himself was wounded and barely escaped. The heads of 3,000 Moroccan soldiers and 50 Moroccan leaders were brought to Algiers. In 1702, Moulay Ismail gave his son Moulay Zeydan an army of 12,000 men and instructed him to capture the Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera. The Moroccans razed the Spanish fortress, but failed to retain la Isleta. Meanwhile, the English admiral, George Rooke joined in the siege of Ceuta, blockading the port in 1704.
  Between 1699 and 1700, Moulay Ismail divided the provinces of Morocco between his children. Moulay Ahmed was given responsibility for the province of Tadla and a force of 3,000 Black Guards. Moulay Abdalmalik was entrusted with Draâ province, with a kasbah and 1,000 cavalry. Moulay Mohammed al-Alam received Souss and 3,000 cavalry. Moulay El-Mâmoun commanded Sijilmassa and received 500 cavalry. When he died, he was replaced two years later by Moulay Youssef. Moulay Zeydan received to command of Cherg, but he lost it after the Ottomans attacked and Ismail made peace with them. He was then replaced by Moulay Hafid. This division of the realm provoked jealousy and rivalry between Ismail's sons, which sometimes degenerated into open clashes. In one of these, Moulay Abdelmalek was defeated by his brother, Moulay Nasser, who took control of the whole of Draâ. Moulay Sharif was appointed governor of Draâ by his father in place of Abdelmalek and succeeded in retaking the region from Nasser.
  In response to the intrigues, slanders and opposition of Lalla Aisha Mubarka, who wanted her son Moulay Zeydan to succeed his father as Sultan, Ismail's eldest son Moulay Mohammed al-Alam revolted in Souss and took control of Marrakesh on 9 March 1703. When Moulay Zeydan arrived with an army, Mohammed al-Alam fled to Taroudant. His brother besieged the place and captured it on 25 June 1704, and took him to Oued Beht on 7 July. Mohammed al-Alam was harshly punished by his father, who amputated one hand and one arm, executing both the butcher who refused to spill Mohammed al-Alam's blood on the grounds that he was a Sharif, and the one who agreed to do it. He subsequently eliminated a caid of Marrakesh who had been responsible for Moulay Mohammed al-Alam's acquisition of the city, with exceptional violence. Moulay al-Alam committed suicide at Meknes on 18 July, despite precautions that his father had put in place to prevent this. On learning of the atrocities which Moulay Zeydan had committed at Taroudant, especially the massacre of the city's inhabitants, Moulay Ismail organised for him to be murdered in 1707, having his wives smother him when he was black-out drunk. Moulay Nasser also revolted in Souss, but was eventually killed by the Oulad Delim, who remained loyal to Moulay Ismail.
  To prevent further trouble, Moulay Ismail rescinded the
caption: Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail in Meknès, Morocco.
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