Abdallah al-Ghalib Billah (; b. 1517 – d. 22 January 1574, 1557–1574) was the second Saadian sultan of

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. He succeeded his father Mohammed al-Shaykh as Sultan of Morocco.

Biography

Early life

With his first wife Sayyida Rabia, Mohammed al-Shaykh had three sons, but the two oldest had died while he was still alive (in 1550 and in 1551). Abdallah, the third, was 40 years old when he became sultan and received the name al-Ghalib Billah. Before that he had been vice-king of

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

and governor of Fes. Shortly after Abdallah came to power, three of his younger brothers fled the country and joined the Ottoman Turks. Abd al-Malik and Ahmad, both future Sultans of Morocco, spent 17 years in exile in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, moving between

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

and

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

, where they were trained by the Ottomans.''The last great Muslim empires: history of the Muslim world'' by Frank Ronald Charles Bagley, Hans Joachim Kissling p.103
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Battle of Wadi al-Laban

He fought the invading Turks in 1558 at the Battle of Wadi al-Laban. The Ottomans then had to retreat because the Spaniards launched an expedition on Oran. The Moroccan ruler formed an alliance with the Spanish against the Ottomans. After his victory he even occupied

Tlemcen Tlemcen (; ) is the second-largest city in northwestern Algeria after Oran and is the capital of Tlemcen Province. The city has developed leather, carpet, and textile industries, which it exports through the port of Rachgoun. It had a population of ...

for a short period. In 1568 he supported the insurrection of the Moriscos in Spain.

Architecture

During his reign, Abdallah al-Ghalib Billah resided in

. He was a prolific builder who was responsible for building, among other projects, the Mouassin Mosque, a maristan (a hospital usually attached to a mosque), and the Ben Youssef Medrassa. He repaired and restored the originally Almohad-built Kasbah Mosque and he is also believed to have begun the first mausoleum of the Saadian Tombs located behind the mosque.

Death

Abdallah al-Ghalib Billah died on 22 January 1574 of an asthma attack. After his reign, a period of civil war was to follow that lasted four years. He was succeeded by his son Abdallah Mohammed, despite a Saadian inheritance rule that decreed that the throne pass on to his eldest surviving brother, the exiled Abd al-Malik.

Biography

Early life

Battle of Wadi al-Laban

Architecture

Death

Notes

See also