page_title: Ismail Ibn Sharif
section_title: Background, early life, and accession to power
hierarchical_section_title: Ismail Ibn Sharif / Biography / Background, early life, and accession to power
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Situation du Maroc en 1660, à la suite de l'assassinat du dernier sultan saadien Ahmed al-Abbas (fin 1559) et l'usurpation du trône à Marrakech par Kerroum al-Haj. Carte selon Henry de Castries - Travail personnel
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: Born in 1645 at Sijilmassa, Moulay Ismail ben Sharif was the son of Sharif ibn Ali, prince of Tafilalt and first sovereign of the Alaouite dynasty. His mother was a black slave. He claimed descent from Hassan ad-Dakhil, a 21st generation descendant of Muhammad, and from Az-Zakiya, a 17th generation descendant of Muhammad who had installed himself at Sijilmassa in 1266.
  After the death of the Saadi Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur, Morocco entered a period of unrest, during which his sons fought with one another for the throne, while the country was parcelled up by the different military leaders and religious authorities. From the beginning of the reign of Zidan Abu Maali in 1613, the Saadi sultanate was very weak. The Zaouia of Dila controlled central Morocco, the Zaouia of Illigh established its influence from Souss to the Draa River, the marabout Sidi al-Ayachi took possession of the northwestern plains, the Atlantic coast as far as Taza, the Republic of Salé became an independent state at the mouth of the Bou Regreg, and the city of Tétouan became a city-state under the control of the Naqsis family. At Tafilalt, the Alouites were appointed by the local people in order to check the influence of the Zaouias of Illigh and Dila. They were an independent emirate from 1631.
  Three rulers preceded Ismail ben Sharif: his father, Moulay Sharif, then his two half-brothers. As the first sovereign of the Alaouite dynasty from 1631, Moulay Sharif succeeded in keeping Tafilalt outside the authority of the Zaouia of Dila. He abdicated in 1636 and his eldest son, Moulay Muhammad ibn Sharif succeeded him. Under the latter's reign, the Alaouite realm expanded into the north of the country, to Tafna and the Draa river. His half-brother, Moulay Rashid rebelled against him and managed to kill him on 3 August 1664, in a battle on the plain of Angad (near Oujda). Moulay Ismail chose to support Rashid and was rewarded by being appointed governor of Meknes. There, Ismail devoted himself to the region's agriculture and commerce, in order to increase his wealth, while Moulay Rashid reigned as Emir of Tafilalt and then as Sultan of Morocco after his conquest of Fez on 27 May 1664. Rashid further entrusted Ismail with military control of the North of Morocco and made him feudatory caliph and vice-roy of Fez in 1667, while he fought in the south of Morocco. Rashid conquered the Zaouia of Dila in 1668 and then took two years to overcome rebels at Marrakesh before he broke into the city in 1669.
  On 6 April 1670, Ismail celebrated his first marriage at Fez, in the presence of his brother Rashid. On 25 July, he put to death sixty brigands from Oulad Djama, by crucifying them on the wall of the Borj el-Jadid in Fez. While Rashid continued his campaigns against the independent tribes of the High Atlas, he was killed on 9 April 1672 at Marrakesh, after falling off his horse. On 13 April, after he had learnt of Rashid's death, Moulay Ismail rushed to Fez, where he took possession of his brother's treasury and then proclaimed himself Sultan of Morocco on 14 April 1672, at the age of twenty-six. This proclamation occurred around 2pm and a grand ceremony followed. The whole population of Fez, including the nobles, intellectuals, and sharifs swore to be loyal to the new sovereign, as did the tribes and cities of the kingdom of Fez, who sent embassies and presents to him. Only Marrakesh and the region around it did not send an embassy. Ismail fixed his capital at Meknes, on account of the water supply and climate of the town.
caption: Political situation in Morocco in 1660, after the assassination of the final Saadian sultan Ahmad al-Abbas.
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