Династия Алавитов: История марокканской монархии.

Ruling dynasty of Morocco since 1631
the current Moroccan royal family

The Alawi dynasty (سلالة العلويين الفيلاليين) – also rendered in English as Alaouite, Alawid, Their ancestors originally migrated to the Tafilalt region, in present day Morocco, from Yanbu on the coast of the Hejaz in the 12th or 13th century. The dynasty rose to power in the 17th century, beginning with Mawlay al Sharif who was declared sultan of the Tafilalt in 1631. His son Al Rashid, ruling from 1664 to 1672, was able to unite and pacify the country after a long period of regional divisions caused by the weakening of the Saadi Dynasty. His brother Isma'il presided over a period of strong central rule between 1672 and 1727, one of the longest reigns of any Moroccan sultan. After Isma'il's death the country was plunged into disarray as his sons fought over his succession, but order was re established under the long reign of Muhammad ibn Abdallah in the second half of the 18th century. The 19th century was marked by the growing influence of European powers. The 'Alawis ruled as sovereign sultans up until 1912, when the French protectorate and Spanish protectorate were imposed on Morocco. They were retained as symbolic sultans under colonial rule. When the country regained its independence in 1956, Mohammed V, who had supported the nationalist cause, resumed the 'Alawi role as independent head of state. Shortly afterwards, in 1957, he adopted the title of "King" instead of "Sultan". His successors, Hassan II and Mohammed VI (the current reigning monarch), have continued the dynasty's rule under the same title. Today, the Moroccan government is officially a constitutional monarchy, but the king retains strong authoritarian power over the state and public affairs, despite some political reforms in recent decades.

The dynasty claims descent from Muhammad via Hasan, the son of Ali. The name 'Alawi (علوي) stems either from the name of Ali (the father of Hasan), from which the dynasty ultimately traces its descent, or from the name of the dynasty's early founder Ali al Sharif of the Tafilalt. The state and empire ruled by the 'Alawis was also known in some periods as the "Sharifian Empire" (الإيالة الشريفة in Arabic) or Empire Chérifien in French according to the Treaty of Fes). This name was still in official usage until 1956 (when Morocco regained its independence from colonial rule), and is also used by historians to refer to the preceding Saadian state, which was also ruled by a sharifian dynasty.

The 'Alawis were a family of sharifian religious notables (or shurafa) who claimed descent from Muhammad via his grandson Hasan, the son of Ali and of Muhammad's daughter Fatimah. Little is known of 'Alawi history prior to the 17th century. By the 17th century, however, they had evidently become the main leaders of the Tafilalt. In 1647, he won the loyalty of several Arab tribes of the Banu Ma'qil in this region, and conquered Oujda. As Oujda was an imperial city, he became Sultan of Tafilalt upon his conquest. He advanced as far as al Aghwat and Tlemcen in Algeria (which was part of the Ottoman Empire at the time) in 1650. His forays into Ottoman Algeria provoked a response from the Ottomans, who sent an army that chased him back to Sijilmasa. In negotiations with an Ottoman legation from Algiers, Sidi Mohammed agreed not to cross into Ottoman territory again and the Tafna River was set as their northern border. Despite some territorial setbacks, the 'Alawis' influence slowly grew, partly thanks to their continued alliance with certain Arab tribes of the region. In June 1650, the leaders of Fez (or more specifically Fes el Bali, the old city), with the support of the local Arab tribes, rejected the authority of the Dala'iyya and invited Sidi Mohammed to join them. Soon after he arrived, however, the Dala'iyya army approached the city and the local leaders, realizing they did not have enough strength to oppose them, stopped their uprising and asked Sidi Mohammed to leave. while around the same time Sidi Mohammed made a new base for himself as far west as Azrou. The power of the Dala'iyya was in decline, and both brothers sought to take advantage of this, but both stood in each other's way. When Sidi Mohammed attacked Angad to force his rebellious brother's submission on August 2, 1664, he was instead unexpectedly killed and his armies defeated. He made the city his capital, but settled his military tribes in other lands and in a new kasbah outside the city (Kasbah Cherarda today) to head off complaints from the city's inhabitants about their behaviour. He then defeated the remnants of the Dala'iyya by invading and destroying their capital in the Middle Atlas in June 1668. In July he captured Marrakesh from Abu Bakr ben Abdul Karim Al Shabani, the son of the usurper who had ruled the city since assassinating his nephew Ahmad al Abbas, the last Saadian sultan. He also built fortifications across the country, especially along its eastern frontier, which many of his Abid troops garrisoned. This was partly a response to continued Ottoman interference in Morocco, which Isma'il managed to stop after many difficulties and rebellions.]] Isma'il also sought to project renewed Moroccan power abroad and in former territories. Following the decline of central rule in the late Saadian period earlier that century, the Pashalik of Timbuktu, created after Ahmad al Mansur's invasion of the Songhay Empire, had become de facto independent and the trans Saharan trade routes fell into decline. The 'Alawis became masters over Tuat (oasis in present day Algeria) in 1645, they rebelled many times after this initial conquest but Isma'il established direct control there from 1676 onwards. ), persuaded the English to evacuate Tangier in 1684. Mawlay Isma'il immediately claimed the city and sponsored its Muslim resettlement, but granted local authority to 'Ali ar Rifi, the governor of Tetouan who had played an active part in besieging the city and became the chieftain of northern Morocco around this time. and his youngest Sidi Mohammed, Khalifa of Marrakesh. After 9 years of uninterrupted reign, Mawlay Abdallah died at Dar Dbibegh November 10, 1757. Many of the 'Abid had by then deserted their contingents and joined the common population of the country, and Sidi Mohammed III was able to reorganize those who remained into his own elite military corps. The last Portuguese outpost on the Moroccan coast, Mazagan (al Jadida today), was taken by Morocco in 1729, leaving only the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla as the remaining European outposts in Morocco. He was interested in scholarly pursuits and also cultivated a productive relationship with the ulama, or Muslim religious scholars, who supported some of his initiatives and reforms. Abdelhafid was aided by Madani el Glaoui, older brother of T'hami, one of the Caids of the Atlas. He was assisted in the training of his troops by Andrew Belton, a British officer and veteran of the Second Boer War. For a brief period, Abdelaziz reigned from Rabat while Abdelhafid reigned in Marrakesh and Fez and a conflict known as the Hafidiya (1907–1908) ensued. In 1908 Abdelaziz was defeated in battle. In 1909, Abdelhafid became the recognized leader of Morocco. which made Morocco a French protectorate. He signed his abdication only when on the quay in Rabat, with the ship that would take him to France already waiting. When news of the treaty finally leaked to the Moroccan populace, it was met with immediate and violent backlash in the Intifada of Fez. His brother Youssef was proclaimed Sultan by the French administration several months later (13 August 1912). At the same time a large part of northern Morocco was placed under Spanish control.

Under colonial rule the institution of the sultan was formally preserved as part of a French policy of indirect rule, or at least the appearance of indirect rule. Under the French Protectorate, the 'Alawi sultans still had some prerogatives such as the power to sign or veto dahirs (decrees). In the Spanish zone, a Khalifa ("deputy") was appointed who acted as a representative of the sultan. In practice, however, the sultan was a puppet of the new regime and many parts of the population saw the dynasty as collaborators with the French. The French colonial administration was headed by the French resident general, the first of whom was Hubert Lyautey, who enacted many of the policies that set the tone for France's colonial regime in Morocco. Mawlay Youssef died unexpectedly in 1927 and his youngest son, Muhammad (Mohammed ben Youssef or Mohammed V), was acclaimed as the new sultan, at the age of 18. By the guidance of the French regime, he had spent most of his life growing up in relative isolation inside the royal palace in Meknes and Rabat. These restrictions on his interactions with the outside world continued in large part even after he ascended to the throne. However, over the course of his reign he became increasingly associated with the Moroccan nationalist movement, eventually becoming a strong symbol in the cause for independence. The nationalists, for their part, and in contrast with other anti colonial movements like the Salafis, saw the sultan as a potentially useful tool in the struggle against French rule. with most of the territory under de facto Moroccan control while the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic controls the easternmost zones. During the 1990s Hassan II changed course in domestic politics and publicly promoted an agenda of reform. A new constitutional reform, approved by referendum, was enacted in 1993. Another amendment to the constitution was passed in 1996 to create a bi cameral legislature, with the lower house elected directly by voters and an upper house chosen indirectly by regional assemblies and professional organizations. Another constitutional reform was passed by a referendum in 2011 in response to protests inside the country, in the wider context of the Arab Spring.