Abdelkader ibn Muhieddine (6 September 1808 – 26 May 1883; Arabic: عبد القادر ابن محيي الدين ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Muḥyiddīn), known as the Emir Abdelkader or Abdelkader El Djezairi, was an Algerian religious and military leader who led a struggle against the French colonial invasion in the mid-19th century. An Islamic scholar and Sufi who unexpectedly found himself leading a military campaign, he built up a collection of Algerian tribesmen that for many years successfully held out against one of the most advanced armies in Europe. His consistent regard for what would now be called human rights, especially as regards his Christian opponents, drew widespread admiration, and a crucial intervention to save the Christian community of Damascus from a massacre in 1860 brought honours and awards from around the world. Within Algeria, his efforts to unite the country against foreign invaders saw him hailed as the "modern Jugurtha and his ability to combine religious and political authority has led to his being acclaimed as the "Saint among the Princes, the Prince among the Saints.
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Abdelkader was born near the town of Mascara in 1808,[4] to a family of religious belief. His father, Muhieddine (or "Muhyi al-Din") al-Hasani, was a muqaddam in a religious institution affiliated with the Qadiriyya Sufi order of Islam and claimed descendance from Muhammad, through the Idrisids. Abdelkader was thus a sharif, and entitled to add the honorary patronymic al-Hasani ("descendant of al-Hasan") to his name.
He grew up in his father's zawiya, which by the early nineteenth century had become the centre of a thriving community on the banks of the Oued al-Hammam river. Like other students, he received a traditional education in theology, jurisprudence and grammar; it was said that he could read and write by the age of five. A gifted student, Abdelkader succeeded in reciting the Qur'an by heart at the age of 14, thereby receiving the title of hafiz; a year later, he went to Oran for further education. He was a good orator and could excite his peers with poetry and religious diatribes.
In 1825, he set out on the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, with his father. While there, he encountered Imam Shamil; the two spoke at length on different topics. He also traveled to Damascus and Baghdad, and visited the graves of noted Muslims, such as Shaykh Ibn Arabiand Sidi Abd-el-Kader El Jilani named also El-Jilali in Algeria. This experience cemented his religious enthusiasm. On his way back to Algeria, he was impressed by the reforms carried out by Muhammad Ali in Egypt.[citation needed] He returned to his homeland a few months before the arrival of the French.
.............................French invasion and resistance الغزو الفرنسي
نجاح الامير عبد القادر 1830-1837Early success (1830–1837)
In 1830, Algeria was invaded by France; French colonial domination over Algeria eventually supplanted domination by the Ottoman Empire and the Koulouglis. There was a lot of pent-up resentment against the Ottomans when the French arrived, and due to numerous rebellions in the early 19th century, the Algerians could not oppose the French at all initially. When the French Africa Army reached Oran in January 1831, Abdelkader's father was asked to lead a harassment campaign against them; Muhieddine called for a jihad and he and his son were among those involved in early attacks below the walls of the city.
It was at this point that Abdelkader came to the fore. At a meeting of the western tribes in the autumn of 1832, he was elected Emir, or Commander of the Faithful (following his father's refusal of the position on the grounds that he was too old). The appointment was confirmed five days later at the Great Mosque of Mascara. Within a year, through a combination of punitive raids and careful politics, Abdelkader had succeeded in uniting the tribes in the region and in reestablishing security – his area of influence now covered the entire Province of Oran. The local French commander-in-chief, General Louis Alexis Desmichels, saw Abdelkader as the principal representative of the area during peace negotiations, and in 1834 they signed the Desmichels Treaty, which ceded near-total control of Oran Province to Abdelkader. For the French, this was a way of establishing peace in the region while also confining Abdelkader to the west; but his status as a co-signatory also did much to elevate him in the eyes of the Berbers and of the French.Using this treaty as a start, he imposed his rule on the tribes of the Chelif, Miliana, and Médéa. The French high command, unhappy with what they now saw as the unfavorable terms of the Desmichels Treaty, recalled General Desmichels and replaced him with General Trezel, which caused a resumption of hostilities. Abdelkader's tribal warriors met the French forces in July 1834 at the Battle of Macta, where the French suffered an unexpected defeat. France's response was to step up its pacification campaign, and under new commanders the French won several important encounters including the Battle of Sikkak. But political opinion in France was becoming ambivalent towards Algeria, and when French General Thomas Robert Bugeaud was deployed to the region in April 1837, he was "authorized to use all means to induce Abd el-Kader to make overtures of peace". The result, after protracted negotiations, was the Treaty of Tafna, signed on 30 May 1837. This treaty gave even more control of interior portions of Algeria to Abdelkader, but with the recognition of France's right to imperial sovereignty. Abdelkader thus won control of all of Oran and extended his reach to the neighbouring province of Titteri and beyond.
New state الدولة الجديدة
The period of peace following the Treaty of Tafna benefited both sides, and the Emir Abdelkader took the opportunity to consolidate a new functional state, with a capital in Tagdemt. He played down his political power, however, repeatedly declining the title of sultan and striving to concentrate on his spiritual authority The state he created was broadly theocratic, and most positions of authority were held by members of the religious aristocracy; even the main unit of currency was named the muhammadiyya, after the Prophet.
He first military action was to move south into the Sahara and at-Tijini. Next, he moved east to the valley of the Chelif and Titteri, but was resisted by the Bey of Constantine, Hajj Ahmed. In other actions, he demanded punishment of the Koulouglis of Zouatna for supporting the French. By the end of 1838, his rule extended east to Kabylie, and south to Biskra, and to the Moroccan border.[1] He continued to fight at-Tijini and besieged his capital at Aïn Madhi for six months, eventually destroying it.
Another aspect of Abdelkader that helped him lead his fledgling nation was his ability to find and use good talent regardless of its nationality. He would employ Jews and Christians on his way to building his nation. One of these was Léon Roches. His approach to the military was to have a standing army of 2,000 men supported by volunteers from the local tribes. He placed, in the interior towns, arsenals, warehouses, and workshops, where he stored items to be sold for arms purchases from England. Through his frugal living (he lived in a tent), he taught his people the need for austerity and through education he taught them concepts such as nationality and independence
Imprisonment and exile السجن و النفي
Abdelkader and his family and followers were detained in France, first at Fort Lamalgue in Toulon, then at Pau, and in November 1848 they were transferred to the château of Amboise. Damp conditions in the castle led to deteriorating health as well as morale in the Emir and his followers, and his fate became something a cause célèbre in certain circles. Several high-profile figures, including Émile de Girardin and Victor Hugo, called for greater clarification over the Emir's situation; future prime minister Émile Ollivier carried out a public opinion campaign to raise awareness over his fate. There was also international pressure. Lord Londonderry visited Abdelkader in Amboise and subsequently wrote to then-President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (whom he had known during the latter's exile in England) to appeal for the Emir's release.
Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte (later the Emperor Napoleon III) was a relatively new president, having come to power in the Revolution of 1848while Abdelkader was already imprisoned. He was keen to make a break with several policies of the previous regime, and Abdelkader's cause was one of them. Eventually, on 16 October 1852, Abdelkader was released by the President and given an annual pension of 100,000 francs on taking an oath never again to disturb Algeria. He then took up residence in Bursa, today's Turkey, moving in 1855 to Amara District in Damascus. He devoted himself anew to theology and philosophy, and composed a philosophical treatise, of which a French translation was published in 1858 under the title of Rappel à l'intelligent, avis à l'indifférent, and again in 1977 under the title of Lettre aux Français. He also wrote a book on the Arabian horse.
While in Damascus he befriended Jane Digby as well as Richard and Isabel Burton. Abdelkader's knowledge of Sufism and skill with languages earned Burton's respect and friendship; his wife Isabel described him as follows:
Image and legacy الارث
From the beginning of his career, Abdelkader inspired admiration not only from within Algeria, but from Europeans as well, even while fighting against the French forces. "The generous concern, the tender sympathy" he showed to his prisoners-of-war was "almost without parallel in the annals of war", and he was careful to show respect for the private religion of any captives.
In 1843 Marshal Soult declared that Abd-el-Kader was one of the three great men then living; the two others, Imam Shamil and Muhammad Ali of Egypt also being Muslims. Currently he is respected as one of the greatest of his people.
The town of Elkader in Iowa in the United States is named after Abdelkader. The town's founders Timothy Davis, John Thompson and Chester Sage were impressed by his fight against French colonial power and decided to pick his name as the name for their new settlement in 1846.
In 2013, the American film director Oliver Stone announced the pending production of a filmed biopic called The Emir Abd el-Kader, to be directed by Charles Burnett.
The Abd el-Kader Fellowship is a postdoctoral fellowship of The Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia.
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