Wattasid dynasty

Morocco endured a prolonged multifaceted crisis in the 15th and early 16th centuries brought about by economic, political, social and cultural issues. Population growth remained stagnant and traditional commerce with the far south was cut off as the Portuguese occupied all seaports. At the same time, the towns were impoverished, and intellectual life was on the decline.

Morocco was in decline when the Berber Wattasids assumed power. The Wattasid family had been the autonomous governors of the eastern Rif since the late 13th century, ruling from their base in Tazouta (near present-day Nador). They had close ties to the Marinid sultans and provided many of the bureaucratic elite. While the Marinid dynasty tried to repel the Portuguese and Spanish invasions and help the kingdom of Granada to outlive the Reconquista, the Wattasids accumulated absolute power through political maneuvering. When the Marinids became aware of the extent of the conspiracy, they slaughtered the Wattasids, leaving only Abu Abd Allah al-Sheikh Muhammad ibn Yahya alive. He went on to found the Kingdom of Fez and establish the dynasty to be succeeded by his son, Mohammed al-Burtuqali, in 1504.

The Wattasid rulers failed in their promise to protect Morocco from foreign incursions and the Portuguese increased their presence on Morocco's coast. Mohammad al-Chaykh's son attempted to capture Asilah and Tangier in 1508, 1511 and 1515, but without success.

In the south, a new dynasty arose, the Saadian dynasty, which seized Marrakesh in 1524 and made it their capital. By 1537 the Saadis were in the ascendent when they defeated the Portuguese Empire at Agadir. Their military successes contrast with the Wattasid policy of conciliation towards the Catholic kings to the north.

As a result, the people of Morocco tended to regard the Saadians as heroes, making it easier for them to retake the Portuguese strongholds on the coast, including Tangiers, Ceuta and Maziɣen. The Saadians also attacked the Wattasids who were forced to yield to the new power. In 1554, as Wattasid towns surrendered, the Wattasid sultan, Ali Abu Hassun, briefly retook Fez. The Saadis quickly settled the matter by killing him and, as the last Wattasids fled Morocco by ship, they too were murdered by pirates.

The Wattasid did little to improve general conditions in Morocco following the Reconquista. It was necessary to wait for the Saadians for order to be reestablished and the expansionist ambitions of the kingdoms of the Iberian peninsula to be curbed.

Known Wattasid coins include a few extremely rare gold coins and also square silver dirhams and half dirhams, still following the Almohad Caliphate standard of roughly 1.5 grams.[5]

• According to the Treaty of Alcáçovas (1479), and to the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), Spain recognized the kingdom as being in the Portuguese sphere of influence.
• 1485: Treaty with Spain: The sultanate agrees to not help the Kingdom of Granada, Spain agreed to not capture Moroccan ships in the Alboran Sea.
• 1488: Portuguese conquer Safi.
• 1491: Muhammad XIII, Sultan of Granada (El Zagal) went to Fez, but was captured and blinded.
• 1492: Arrival of Spanish Muslims and Jews.
• 1497: Spain captures Melilla
• 1502: Portugal captures Mazagan.
• 1505: Portugal captures Agadir.
• 1506: Portugal captures Mogador.
• 1511: Saadians capture Rabat.
• 1524: Saadians capture Marrakesh.
• 1541: Saadians capture Agadir.
• 1541: Saadians capture Safi.
• 1542: Hasan Hâsim captures Tetuan.
• 1548: The last wattasid king is captured by the Saadians.
• 1550: Saadians conquer Fez.

• List of rulers of Morocco

• Brancato, Dario (2014). "'Leo Africanus' and His Worlds of Translation". In Federici, F.; Tessicini, D. (eds.). Translators, Interpreters, and Cultural Negotiators: Mediating and Communicating Power from the Middle Ages to the Modern Era. Palgrave Macmillan.
• Bosworth, C.E. (1996). The New Islamic Dynasties. Columbia University Press.