Sidi Ali ibn al-Mekki Amhaouch (1844–1918) was a Moroccan religious leader who opposed the

French conquest of Morocco The French conquest of Morocco began in 1907 and continued until 1934. By the Treaty of Fez of 1912, France imposed a protectorate over Morocco and spent the next two decades taking control of the country. Before the protectorate The French ...

. Amhaouch was descended from a long line of

marabout A marabout ( ar, مُرابِط, murābiṭ, lit=one who is attached/garrisoned) is a Muslim religious leader and teacher who historically had the function of a chaplain serving as a part of an Islamic army, notably in North Africa and the Sah ...

s who were influential religious figures in Morocco from 1715. Amhaouch backed two rebellions against the Moroccan government and later fought against the French occupying forces. He declared a defensive jihad against France during the

Zaian War Zayanes ( ber, Azayi (singular), (plural); ) are a Berber population inhabiting the Khenifra region, located in the central Middle Atlas mountains of Morocco. Zayanes tribes are known for their attachment to ancestral land and for their tenac ...

but died of natural causes in 1918, three years before the war ended in the tribesmen's defeat. His son, Sidi El Mekki Amhaouch, continued to fight the French until his defeat in 1932. Amhaouch's descendant is a religious leader in modern-day Morocco.

Early life

Amhaouch was a member of the Imhiwach, a dynasty of

s that dominated central Morocco from around 1715 to 1932. The Imhawch were renowned for their "Koranic-inspired teaching, magic rites and doomsday prophecies". A member of the same family was responsible for the capturing of Sultan Mulay Slimane on May 1819. Ali Amhaouch was born in 1844 and became widely known as a religious figure, of the Darqawa sufi order, who commanded respect across Morocco and was one of the few people capable of bringing peace to warring tribes. He made his own

prophecies In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or prete ...

and considered the Jbel Toujjit mountain, the source of the

Moulouya River The Moulouya River ( Berber: ''iɣẓer en Melwect'', ) is a 520 km-long river in Morocco. Its sources are located in the Ayashi mountain in the Middle Atlas. It empties into the Mediterranean Sea near Saïdia, in northeast Morocco. Water ...

, to be a sacred site. Amhaouch supported the Ait Sukhman tribe against the rival Zaian Confederation in intermittent warfare lasting from 1877 to 1909. Amhaouch was also a key backer of Si Mhand Laârbi, a member of the

Alaouite dynasty The Alawi dynasty ( ar, سلالة العلويين الفيلاليين, translit=sulālat al-ʿalawiyyīn al-fīlāliyyīn) – also rendered in English as Alaouite, Alawid, or Alawite – is the current Moroccan royal family and reigning ...

, against Moroccan government forces in the 1880s. Laârbi's men were able to defeat a force commanded by Moulay Srou, the uncle of Sultan Hassan I, in battle in 1888.

Interaction with the French

Amhaouch met with the French explorer René de Segonzac in 1904-5 and gave him documents detailing the mountains and tribes of Aghbala and also a

Tamazight The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight,, ber, label=Tuareg Tifinagh, ⵜⵎⵣⵗⵜ, ) are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related languages spoken by Berber communi ...

prophecy. The prophecy was written in the 12th century of Islam (approx 1700s) by Amhaouch's great uncle, Bou Beker, and was said to foretell the 1888 victory over Sultan Hassan. Segonzac later described Amhaouch as a strong and influential man, one of the "great spiritual leaders of Morocco" and the "most powerful religious personality of the south east". Amhaouch supported another revolt against the Moroccan sultan in 1908, leading troops of the Melwiya to join the uprising led by Moulay Lahssen el Sabaâ in the east of the country until forced to return home due to Sabaâ's defeat at the hands of the French troops in Menhaba and Boudenib. Following the declaration of the French protectorate over Morocco after the signing of the

Treaty of Fes The Treaty of Fes ( ar, معاهدة فاس, ), officially the Treaty Concluded Between France and Morocco on 30 March 1912, for the Organization of the French Protectorate in the Sherifien Empire (), was a treaty signed by Sultan Abd al-Hafid o ...

in 1912 French troops began occupying the inland portion of Morocco. Following the 1914 fall of

Khenifra Khenifra (Berber: ''Xnifṛa'', ⵅⵏⵉⴼⵕⴰ, ar, خنيفرة) is a city in northern central Morocco, surrounded by the Atlas Mountains and located on the Oum Er-Rbia River. National Highway 8 also goes through the town. The population, a ...

he joined forces with his former enemy,

Mouha ou Hammou Zayani Mouha Ou Hammou Zayani, by his full name: Mohammed ou Hammou ben Akka ben Ahmed, also known as Moha Ou Hamou al-Harkati Zayani (c.1863 – 27 March 1921) was a Moroccan Berber military figure and tribal leader who played an important role in ...

(leader of the Zaian Confederation), and tribal leader Moha ou Said to form a "powerful Berber trinity" that contested the

against the French. Amhaouch declared a defensive jihad against the French upon the outbreak of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. This extended from the Dadès Gorges to the desert beyond the Anti-Atlas mountains and was part of a plan to exploit the withdrawal of French troops from Morocco for the defence of France. Amhaouch's men were engaged and defeated by French columns commanded by Colonels Noël Garnier-Duplessix and

Henri Claudel Henri Edouard Claudel (13 January 1871 – 20 February 1956) was a French general. Early career and First World War Claudel became a lieutenant-colonel on 24 September 1911, before being assigned to the 3rd Senegalese Tirailleurs regiment on 2 ...

in late 1914. Amhaouch himself died of natural causes in 1918. Hammou and Said continued to fight the French and, though they lost the

in 1921, pacification of Morocco was not completed until 1934 - years after their deaths. Amhaouch's eldest son, Sidi Lmekki Amhaouch, who was said to have inherited a magical rifle cartridge from his father, also fought against the French. In August/September 1932 he held out for more than a month with just 1,000 tribesmen against two French columns. Amhaouch's descendant, Sidi Mohand Amhaouch, is a religious leader in modern Morocco.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amhaouch, Ali 1844 births 1918 deaths 19th-century Moroccan people 20th-century Moroccan people Moroccan military leaders Berber Moroccans Berber rebels Darqawi Moroccan independence activists