Moses Pallache (died 1650), was a

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish-

Moroccan Moroccan may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to the country of Morocco * Moroccan people * Moroccan Arabic, spoken in Morocco * Moroccan Jews See also * Morocco leather Morocco leather (also known as Levant, the French Maro ...

-born merchant and diplomat of the

Pallache family "Pallache" – also de Palacio(s), Palache, Palaçi, Palachi, Palacci, Palaggi, and many other variations (documented below) – is the surname of a prominent, Ladino-speaking, Sephardic Jewish family from the Iberian Peninsula, who spread mostl ...

, who emerged as leader of his second generation.

Background

Pallache was born to father

Joseph Pallache Joseph Pallache ( – 1637/1638/1639/1648/1649/1657), was a Jewish- Moroccan-born merchant and diplomat of the Pallache family, who, as envoy, helped his brother conclude a treaty with the Dutch Republic in 1608. Background Pallache was born in Fe ...

; his uncle was

Samuel Pallache Samuel Pallache (Arabic: صامويل آل بالاتش, ''Shmuel Baylash'', Hebrew: 'שמואל פאלאץ, ''Shmuel Palach'', c. 1550 – February 4, 1616) was a Jewish Moroccan-born merchant, diplomat, and pirate of the Pallache family, who, ...

. He studied languages at the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city of L ...

without registering there.

Career

Thanks to his many languages known, as a young man he was able to help his father and uncle prepare important negotiations, for which they rewarded him. The

States General of the Netherlands The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The States ...

considered him a ''jeune homme de bonne expectation et fort qualifié et entendu en affaires et plusieurs langages'' ("young man of good prospects, very qualified, and knowledgeable in business affairs and several languages"). He partook in a mission to Istanbul (1614-1616). After the death of his uncle Samuel, he went to live in Morocco and served at the court of Fez, where 1622–1642 he served as European secretary and interpreter. He became a chief interpreter and translator from Spanish, Dutch, and French into Arabic for the rules of Morocco. During those years, he served under four sultans of Morocco (1618 to 1650):

Muley Zaydan Zidan Abu Maali ( ar, زيدان أبو معالي) (? – September 1627; or Muley Zidan) was the embattled Saadi Sultan of Morocco from 1603 to 1627. He was the son and heir of Ahmad al-Mansur by his wife Lalla Aisha bint Abu Bakkar, a lady ...

(1603–1627), Muley Abd al-Malik (1623–1627), Muley al-Walid (1631–1636), and Muley Muhammad al-Shakh al-Saghir (1636–1655). "He became a very important and influential figure at the Moroccan court, responsible for international and diplomatic dealings." In 1656,

Menasseh ben Israel Manoel Dias Soeiro (1604 – 20 November 1657), better known by his Hebrew name Menasseh ben Israel (), also known as Menasheh ben Yossef ben Yisrael, also known with the Hebrew acronym, MB"Y or MBI, was a Portuguese rabbi, kabbalist, wri ...

wrote, 'In the Kingdom of Barbary, their 'sic''lives also a great number of Iews ... at Marrocco, the Court and Kings house, where they have their Naguid or Prince that governs them, and is their Iudge, and is called at this day, Seignor Moseh Palache'. His name appears in English records from 1636 to his death. It also appears in the Spanish translation of a 1638 treaty between the English and Moroccans. His prominence in Morocco led many relatives to return there from the Netherlands, including his brothers Joshua and Abraham. Joshua became a tax official. Abraham set up in the port of Safi, where he provisioned ships and served as unofficial consult for the Dutch.

Death

Pallache probably died in Morocco around 1650.

References

External sources

* * * * *
Anno: Joodse Marokkaan onder christenen
(Dutch)
Universiteit Leiden: Openingscollege 400 jaar Marokkaans - Nederlandse betrekkingen
(Dutch)

(Dutch) * ttp://www.wereldomroep.nl/actua/nl/nederland/geschiedenis/nederlandmarokko/pallache050202 Wereldomroep: Diplomaat, handelaar, kaper en geleerde(Dutch) {{DEFAULTSORT:Pallache, Moses 1650 deaths Year of birth unknown Year of death uncertain Moroccan businesspeople Dutch Sephardi Jews 17th-century Moroccan Jews Moroccan diplomats People from Fez, Morocco Diplomats from Amsterdam 16th-century Moroccan Jews 16th-century Dutch businesspeople 17th-century Dutch businesspeople Moroccan emigrants to the Netherlands Businesspeople from Amsterdam