As the sun rose through the mountains of the
Rif and the Middle Atlas, Sultan Abd al-Malik led his army in prayer. Then, he mounted his horse, surrounded by
five sacred banners and regiments of bodyguards... Across the field arrayed the Crusader army
in a large square formation, their cannons in the front, commanded by the young King
Sebastian, with all the great lords of Portugal at his side, as the royal standards of his
global maritime empire flutter in the gentle breeze. Sebastian came here to become the first Christian
Emperor of Morocco... Morocco endured a prolonged crisis in the 15th and early 16th century. The Portuguese occupation of nearly all seaports
brought about numerous economic, political, and cultural issues. And the decline only worsened when the Wattasids
assumed power, as they did little to try and improve the situation, resulting in the breakdown
of trade, the impoverishment of towns, decline of the intellectual life and the stagnation
of population growth. Against this backdrop of Wattasid conciliatory
policy towards the Catholic Kingdoms to the north, the Saadi dynasty arose in southern
Morocco, determined to re-establish order and curb the expansionist ambitions of the
Iberian kingdoms. Namely, there were three distinct reasons
that motivated the Saadi sharifs to organize the tribes of southern Morocco. First, the encroachment of the Portuguese
further into interior lands of Morocco alarmed local leaders and caused them to seek redress
against the Europeans. Second, the centuries-old trade routes, which
had been an important part of the Trans-Saharan economy were now being challenged by European privateers, who were supported by their monarchs at home. They aggressively tried to monopolize trade
by establishing trading posts in strategic locations along the Atlantic coast, and this
substitution of desert overland routes for the faster sea voyages became a considerable
advantage for the Europeans, which crippled the local economies. Third, Saadi sharifs feared, what they called,
the “Turkish peril”. The Ottoman Empire was in its’ zenith, its’
power stretching across three continents and there were few, if any, countries strong enough
to stop their relentless expansion. And Constantinople had ambitions in Morocco,
having supported the Wattasids as their clients, which allowed them to remain in power for
decades. However, the Saadis were a formidable opponent. Their dynasty’s origins are attributed to
the family of al-Bayt, which were a group of relatives of Prophet Muhammad, and their
ancestors lived in Hejaz, from where they went to western Africa to spread their religion. It was this prophetic lineage that enabled
the Saadis to resist the Ottomans and a period of prosperity followed under the efficient
rule of Mohammed al-Sheikh, who expanded the realm and was particularly effective in driving
out the Portuguese from most of their strongholds, and also destroyed the Ottoman-backed Wattasids
in the north of the country, becoming the first Saadi Sultan to rule over Morocco. Al-Sheikh had three sons, Abdallah al-Ghalib,
Abd al-Malik and Ahmad al-Mansur. From a very young age all three of his sons
showed exceptional potential for statesmanship and military leadership. But Sultan al-Sheikh met an untimely death
when he was assassinated by the Ottomans in 1557, and his eldest son al-Ghalib took the
throne. He would go on to rule Morocco for 17 years,
further consolidating his father’s gains, successfully defending the realm against the
Portuguese, the Spanish, as well as the Ottomans. By now the people of Morocco regarded the
Saadis as heroes, but when al-Ghalib died in 1574 the dynasty faced its’ first crisis. Namely, when the late sultan took the throne
17 years ago, his younger brothers Abd al-Malik and Ahmed al-Mansur fled Morocco to escape
his purge of all dynastic rivals in the country. The then 15-year old prince al-Malik and the
8-year old al-Mansur were forced to seek refuge and settled in Ottoman-ruled Algeria, in Algiers on the coast, a bustling new city enriched by the plunder
from the corsair captains. From there, some years later, the two brothers
travelled the vast expanses of the mighty Ottoman Empire, gaining valuable experience,
as well education and training from their generous hosts. The two princes participated and distinguished
themselves in the disastrous battle of Lepanto in 1571, and volunteered to take part in the
recapture of Tunis in 1574. It was this fighting spirit that brought them
to the attention of Sultan Murat III, who sought to expand Ottoman influence into Morocco
and offered to provide the older brother Abd al-Malik with men, money and munitions, to
help him take the Saadi throne. In exchange, Abd al-Malik promised to pay
15 tons of gold as tribute and lease the port of Larache to the Ottoman fleet. Acquiring such a large and well-built port
on the Atlantic would allow the Ottoman Empire to out-flank Spain in future naval conflicts
and would give the Algerian corsairs an opportunity to intercept the silver bullion being shipped
from South America to Seville. However, it was agreed that these plans would
be put on hold for now as al-Malik did not want to antagonise Spain and also aimed to prevent Morocco from becoming and Ottoman protectorate. The Ottoman-backed invasion of Morocco in
1576 was a resounding success. With sultan al-Ghalib dying two years prior,
his son Abdallah Mohammed II suffered three successive defeats at the hands of al-Malik,
and with an already weak hold on power, he was forced to flee the country, deciding to
seek help in recovering his throne from none other than the Portuguese Empire, an old enemy
of the Saadi dynasty, as Abd al-Malik became the new sultan of Morocco. This was music to King Sebastian’s ears
who began preparations straight away. He now had a pretext to invade and conquer
Morocco, under the cover of helping his ally Abdallah Mohammed to regain his throne. But, more importantly, the invasion was an
opportunity to slow down the seemingly unstoppable advance of the Ottoman military machine towards
the Atlantic, which could threaten the security of the Portuguese coast, their strongholds
in Western Africa, as well as their invaluable trade from across the Atlantic. The 24-year-old Sebastian became king of Portugal
at the age of three. He was mostly looked after by his grandmother
and although she was a devout Roman Catholic, his uncle and other patriotic anti-Castillian
court members ensured that Sebastian would be raised a Jesuit. It’s said that he was a bright but impulsive
boy and, being very fond of military pursuits, he was trained by Portuguese knights in jousting,
riding and sword fighting, and from an early age it was perhaps the Jesuit order that instilled
in him a fanatical desire to conquer Morocco and win glory for Portugal. Indeed, even as a boy, Sebastian spoke of
leading a Crusader army that would destroy the Sultanate of Morocco and converting the
population of North Africa to Christianity, determined to succeed where his predecessors
had failed. This mindset had widespread support in Portugal,
because of the obvious benefits the Empire would have from the trade of gold, cattle,
wheat, sugar, and other produce, which offered opportunities to the mercantile bourgeoisie
and the nobility. And now, in June 1578, Sebastian attended
a service in Lisbon’s cathedral where he was presented with a battle standard embroidered
with an imperial crown, and soon after the Portuguese army of some 23,000 troops embarked
from the harbour, carried by a fleet of 500 ships. It included 2000 Portuguese knights, around
8000 mercenaries, mostly Germans, Castilians, English and Italians, as well as a Papal Infantry
contingent, with the core of the army consisting of Portuguese and Moorish troops. The flower of the Portuguese nobility accompanied
Sebastian with their retinues, with most powerful dukes and petty kings unanimously supporting
the King’s crusade. The army made landfall near the Portuguese
fortress of Asilah in the first days of July. As he disembarked, King Sebastian spotted
a Moroccan detachment in the nearby hills. On the spot he hastily assembled a contingent
of knights and charged to chase off the enemy, without waiting for the rest of his army. The garrison on the walls of Asilah watched
on in amazement and the thousands of troops on the beach, and on the ships, were encouraged
that they would be serving under a fearless young commander who would lead them from the
front. However, further progress into Moroccan territory
was halted, as the Crusaders would spend the entire month of July assembling their vast
camp into marching order, weighed down by the thousands of camp followers, servants,
priests, women, page-boys, and slaves, as well as the fully mobile royal court, portable
pavilions for the nobility, chapels and a royal choir, all fully provisioning the Portuguese
nobility with all of their daily comforts. Needless to say, some of the troops did not
enjoy languishing on the beach as they ate through their supplies, and became disenchanted
with the stalled crusade. But the march finally continued on July 29th. As the army moved south it quickly became
apparent that Sebastian had no intention of capturing the key port city of Larache in
order to secure the coast. Instead, he led his army inland to confront
what he considered to be the main heathen army, aiming to strike a decisive blow that would enable him to conquer the entire Sultanate of Morocco. Meanwhile, Sultan Abd al-Malik was on his
way from Marrakesh. He had been preparing to resist the invasion
for the past eighteen months, and once word reached him that the Crusader fleet left Lisbon
a month earlier, he summoned the tribes of Morocco to defend their nation, their families,
and their faith. Tens of thousands of warriors answered the
call of the son of the great Mohammed al-Sheikh, the first Saadi sultan of Morocco – but
most importantly, Sultan al-Malik’s younger brother Ahmad al-Mansur, who was serving as
governor of Fez, brought with him the men of the northern hills. An army of some 50,000 assembled just north-west
of the town of Alcacer Quibir to meet the invaders as they crossed the Makhazen river
on August 3rd. Tomorrow they would do battle… Without too much scouting ahead, when the
Portuguese army crossed the river they were bewildered by the large numbers of tribal
cavalry and infantry that were assembling across the field. King Sebastian immediately decided that the
only tactical option for his much smaller force of 23,000 was to form into a vast square. In the center, the wagon train was formed
as a fort to protect the camp followers and provide a central anchor for the army. Portuguese regiments formed the flanks and
rear of the square, mixed with contingents of cavalry and professional troops to boost
their morale and keep the men in line. The front of the square was a formidable force,
formed by experienced German and Italian mercenaries and other volunteers armed with arquebuses,
who were trained to shoot and reload behind the protection of the wall of German pikemen. In addition, aiming to break up a potential
massive charge by the Moroccans, Sebastian placed a series of wooden forts made of wagons
which bristled with sharpshooters. Finally, an elite shock-regiment of heavy
cavalry was drawn up in the front. Although vastly outnumbered, Sebastian’s
army was better equipped and more technologically advanced. On the other side of the field, the 50,000-strong
Moroccan army formed in a crescent-shape. In the center, disciplined infantry and arquebusiers
were arrayed in two lines, each several ranks deep. To either side were Moroccan townsmen, as
well as renegades from Spain and Turkey. The third line was formed of Berber soldiers
and cavalrymen on the flanks. Realizing that the Crusaders were better equipped
and possessed technologically superior weaponry, Sultan Abd al-Malik rode out to galvanize
the men: “You must oppose the Crusaders with valour! For you fight for your families, your life,
and your honour! And should you die today, you will be led
into Paradise!” With their confidence raised, the troops cheered
al-Malik’s name as he re-joined the ranks. But… no one knew the Sultan’s secret...
which was, that he was dying… Suffering from either the plague or camp fever,
the progress of the disease was accelerated by horse riding for several hundred kilometres
in a forced march to reach the battlefield. Only the Sultan’s brother and his faithful
Jewish doctor knew the true personal cost that the Sultan would pay and, reaching the
limit of his skills, the doctor could only use his art to give the Sultan another day
or two of vigour, urging him to rest. But Abd al-Malik refused to retire to his
tent, insisting that there must not be even a hint of suspicion about his illness, in
order to preserve the morale of the troops. Knowing he had little time left, he embraced
his brother Ahmad, with whom he experienced decades of exile and spilled blood at Lepanto
and Tunis, and told him “to fight, conquer, or die!” There was no more time to waste. Artillery of the two armies sounded off in
full force, but needed to spend a couple of hours drawing closer to find the range. Then an hour before noon, the whole
Crusader army knelt together, as one, in one last prayer. When they rose, the Portuguese elite shock
cavalry leapt forth first on King Sebastian’s command, followed by the Castillian crack
infantry regiment. The King, though vastly outnumbered, decided
to utilize his superior troops and strike decisively in order to avoid being overwhelmed
by the enemy, knowing that his elite shock cavalry could singlehandedly break and rout
an enemy army many times their numbers. As the ground trembled under the hooves of the Crusader cavalry, Moroccan arquebusiers fired! Although their volleys were effective, the
long reload time allowed Sebastian's crack troops to close the distance! As the Crusaders flung themselves into al-Malik's
center the Moroccan division in the front was broken instantly. The second line could not hold the Crusader
charge and was pushed back, and as the Castilian infantry joined the fighting the Moroccan
center was thrown into confusion. al-Malik leapt forward with his bodyguards
to help prevent the line from faltering, signalling the third line to reinforce the center. As the unstoppable Crusader heavy cavalry
hacked through the enemy center, the Muslims held on by a thread and it seemed like their
cohesion would break at any moment. Leading from the front, al-Malik and his regiment
of experienced bodyguards, helped by the counter-attack of Berber infantry from the third line, finally
blunted the brave Crusader assault. And now, seeing that Sebastian's best troops
were locked in ferocious fighting with his center, the Sultan gave the signal to his
brother! Waves of tribal horsemen emerged from behind
the small gentle hills and undulated land of the valley, led by Ahmad al-Mansur. The impetus of the seemingly stunned Crusader
cavalry had gone, as the gravity of the situation became clear with nearly 20,000 tribal horsemen
now surging forward. The elite Christian troops began fighting
their way back towards the main line, to escape al-Malik's trap, realizing that their forward
push was now in vain. The Sultan ordered his infantry to envelop
the Crusader vanguard and with his personal regiment of bodyguards he disengaged from
the fighting to join his brother's cavalry attack that was bearing down on the Portuguese
defensive square. Sebastian and his officers encouraged the
men, knowing that what was soon to come would be a fight to the death. Meanwhile in the Crusader vanguard, some of
the Castillian elite infantry was trampled as the heavy cavalry was trying to retreat,
and their situation was becoming increasingly desperate, with Moroccan troops now coming
from all sides. But Sebastian replied by launching a cavalry
attack of his own. As the Portuguese infantry parted to allow
the mounted knights to pass through, the King led his nobles and their retinues, as well
as the cavalry contingent of the deposed Sultan Abdallah Mohammed, directly towards al-Malik's
banner, knowing that if he could strike the Sultan down the battle would be won! Sebastian smashed into al-Malik's contingent! The ferocious charge allowed the King's retinue
to cut their way through to within a few meters of the Sultan, who used the last ounce of
his strength to draw his sword and join the fighting. Blows were traded back and forth, and for
a few moments the fate of Morocco hung in the balance, as one by one the Islamic standards
fell around the Sultan. But the steadfast bodyguards held their ground
and managed to rally around their leader! Sebastian's audacious attack was broken. Over the next several hours, regiments of
al-Malik's dragoons came in wave after wave, firing their arquebuses at the Portuguese
square. They were trained to gallop towards the enemy
and just before hitting the pikes their horses would pirouette, enabling their riders to
shoot at point-blank range before riding back out of harm’s way to reload and renew the
attack. The Portuguese put up a valiant fight, as
the pikemen held their ground and arquebusiers shot deadly volleys at the incoming enemy,
cutting down nearly 7,000 Moroccan troops. But as the hours passed their numbers dwindled
and their ammunition dried up. Sebastian was seen fighting in person, and
despite being wounded he carried on inspiring his men to hold their ground. It is said that three horses were slain from
under him and that his bodyguards were reduced to but a few men. At some point in the battle, the King too
fell while fighting. By dusk, 8000 Christian troops lay dead on
the field, and 15,000 were captured, with less than a hundred managing to escape the
carnage, including the former Sultan Mohammed, who either died during the battle or drowned
in the river whilst trying to flee. With blood on his white garments, Adb al-Malik
stood victoriously, looking every bit the leader his people needed. Yet he was close to collapsing. His robes were hiding the fact that he was
strapped to his saddle, as he would otherwise not have been able to ride his horse in battle. With the disease that was about to kill him
it was miraculous that he found the strength to take active part in the fighting. Moments later, with the battle still ongoing,
Sultan Abd al-Malik closed his eyes, drew his last breath, before gently slumping forward
in his saddle… Three kings fell on that August 4th 1578. As the few survivors trickled in, the news of the defeat paralyzed the kingdom of Portugal and would have disastrous consequences. The country was deeply in debt and unable
to pay for crippling financial reparations demanded by the Morocco venture. Almost every noble family suffered a slain
family member, while some families were entirely extinguished as a result of the battle. To make matters worse, after King Sebastian’s
death the House of Aviz, which had ruled Portugal for 200 years, was overthrown by a Castilian
military invasion. The dethroned sultan Mohammed II was reportedly
thrown in the river from his horse while he was trying to flee the battle, although it
is possible that he was killed in the fighting. Meanwhile, Sultan Abd al-Malik was succeeded
by his brother Ahmad al-Mansour, who went on to rule Morocco for the next 25 years,
becoming the most famous of all Saadi rulers. Ahmad was a highly influential figure in both
Europe and Africa in the 16th century. The powerful army he had built up and Morocco’s
key strategic position made him an important power player during the late Renaissance period. He was described by his contemporaries as
a man of profound Islamic learning, a true love of books, calligraphy and mathematics,
and he was known as a connoisseur of mystical texts, as well an avid participant in scholarly
discussions. In many ways, his reign ushered a golden period
in the history of Morocco.
