Morocco Tours, from the Wattassids till the French occupation

After the fall of the first Marinids dynasty in 1465, new rulers came in power and they belonged to a dynasty that was called the Wattassids or Banu Wattas and they had the same origins as the Marinids as both come from the Zenata tribes. They have ruled over Morocco for the period from 1472 till 1554.

During the period of the Wattassids, the Spanish armies were able to take control of many of the Moroccan beaches like Sebtia, Asila, and Tanga. The Arabs leaders and peoples were very disappointed due to the expansion of the crusaders armies in the Arabian lands especially after the Moslems were expelled out of Andalusia and many Arabs were humiliated for different reasons.

These actions forced a large number of Moslems and Arabs to escape from Andalusia and fleet to Morocco and Northern Africa forming a new community and a new culture which travelers who come for packages to Morocco are fond of in our recent times.

Among the groups of Moslems who escaped from Spain to Morocco was Abu Abdullah Al Qaim, A Sheikh, or Moslem religious leader who always wished to rescue Morocco and Andalusia from the hands of the crusaders. A huge number of people gathered around him and gave him homage and in 1509, he announced his intentions to launch a war against the crusaders and declared himself the king of Morocco and Northern Africa forming a new dynasty called the Saadi who had many structures that still amaze the travelers coming for Vacation in Morocco.

Al Qaim was able to defeat the Wattassids and he had great victories over the Portuguese and he sent them out of the Arabian lands they have occupied for more than 70 years.

After the death of Al Qaim, his son, Abu Abbas Al Araj became the king and he followed the policies and procedures. Al Araj went on fighting the Portuguese and had many victories for the Arabs until he had some disagreements with his brother, Abu Abdullah who became the king after his brother. Abu Abdullah continued the wars against the Spanish, the Portuguese, and the Wattassids and he was able to regain control of a huge part of the Moroccan kingdom that has become a major destination for many nationalities that spent their vacation in Morocco nowadays.

When the Ottoman invasions reached Northern Africa and the Turkish armies entered Algeria, their relations with the Saadi started getting worse and worse with each new victory for the Ottomans.

Afterwards, a new character came into the scene and his name was Abu Hasoun Al Wattasy and he belonged to the tribes of Banu Wattas. This man resorted to the Ottomans and they welcomed and supported him to resume the wars against the Saadi rulers.

Abu Hassoun was able to defeat the Saadi armies and enter Fes in 1560. However shortly afterwards, the Saadi King Aba Abdullah regained control over the city and he murdered Abu Hassoun and he also captured many Ottoman soldiers, the fact that made the relations between the Saadi and the Ottomans even worse than before.

In the beginning of the reign of Ahmed Al Mansur, the most famous Saadi king who ruled from 1578 till 1603, and due to his large powerful armies and political abilities, he became an important figure for the Arabs, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Al Mansur was a powerful military man to the extent that made the Ottomans aim to have a piece treaty with him and in fact both sides decided to halt their clashes. Al Mansur was then able to focus on his internal affairs as he had many reforms implemented in his kingdom.

Many palaces, towers, and fortresses were erected during his reign which is now acting as major touristic destinations for many Morocco tours. This includes the Bahia Palace built in Marrakesh, one of the major highlights of the city that welcomes hundreds of tourists who travel to Morocco every year and the tower of the Fetouh Gate in Fes, another popular destination included in many Morocco tours.

Al Mansur has also worked on stretching the lands of his empire. His armies have reached as far as Sudan in the west and made use of all the resources of this region.

The Saadi dynasty seemed to have a wonderful history but when Al Mansur died in 1603, the power of the Saadis started to decline. His two sons had several clashes and battles among them which destroyed most of the architectural achievements of their father, his administrational reforms, and even his conquests as they lost the control of the Saadi over Sudan.

It was the end for the Saadi dynasty and it was the time for a new power to take control.

A new family of the Sharif of Mecca, who were nobles and descendants of Prophet Mohamed under the leadership of Ali Al Sharif, took control of Morocco. Ali Al Sharif worked on establishing a dynasty that ruled over the kingdom for a long period of time and for centuries to come.

Alaouite dynasty, named after its founder, Ali Al Sharif, ruled over morocco for a very long period for centuries with many ups and downs of the kingdom.

Many disagreements and clashes took place between the Alaouite kings and princes among themselves to the extent that some Alaouite leaders contacting the crusaders of Europe and asking them for help to fight other Alaouite kings. Alaouite rulers have had many defeats from the European until Morocco was officially occupied by the French forces

In the beginning of the 20th century, the French authorities had an agreement with Spain to divide the Moroccan region among them. France took control of Mauritania and Spain governed the Moroccan desert that hosted many oases that attracts travelers coming for magnificent Morocco trips.

The French government drafted many other agreements with several European countries to secure its gains in Northern Africa. In 1920 France had a convention with Italy and due to its provisions Italy left France applies the occupation of Morocco and France gave permission to Italy to take control of Libya.

Sultan Abdel Aziz Ibn Hassan, the Alaouite king how was supposed to rule over Morocco starting from the year 1894, tried to weaken the influence and power of France in Morocco in an international conference that was held in 1906 and representatives of five countries attended this meeting.

The most important outcomes of this conference included the recognition of the independence and integrity of the kingdom. However, in the same time, the recommendations of the conference also added that there has to be a foreign police power in Morocco that consists of French and Spanish forces.

Only less than one year passed by and in 1907, France occupied the Eastern section of the Moroccan Kingdom and Spain had large forces controlling the area of the countryside of Morocco that nowadays hosts a big number of travelers who come to enjoy their trips in Morocco.

Due to the large amount of debts that the Alaouite Moroccan king, Abdel Hafiz Ibn Hassan who ruled Morocco from 1908 till 1912, France was able to declare its protectorate over Morocco in 1912.

The Moroccan people and army refused the protectorate of France over their country and revolutions started all over the regions of Morocco. As a consequence of these revolutions, King Abdel Hafiz stepped down and his brother Yusuf took the power.

In the beginning of the 1920s, a new national movement was established in the Northern section of Morocco and it was under the leadership of Hebat Allah Al Sheikh and a large section of the population of the region gathered around him wishing that he might be the salvation for their misery.

Hebat Allah led an army and forcibly entered Marrakesh and declared himself as a caliph. The French government, knowing this, sent an army to fight against Hebat Allah who was able to win the first battle against the French forces but he was defeated in the second one.

When Hebat Allah found out that his loses in these wars against the French forces were grave, he retreated to Taroudannt and resumed his attacks against the French forces. The French government started at the time recognizing the real threat of Hebat Allah and his men. Therefore, they prepared a huge army that was empowered with military tanks and aircrafts and they were able to defeat Hebat Allah and destroy his arm and weapons.

Many Morocco private tours can be organized to Taroudannt and many other destinations of interest in the deserts of the country.