The Hafidiya () was a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

in Morocco between 1907 and 1908 in which Abd al-Hafid seized power from his brother Abdelaziz. Abd al-Hafid started his movement in

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakes ...

in the aftermath of the

Algeciras Conference The Algeciras Conference of 1906 took place in Algeciras, Spain, and lasted from 16 January to 7 April. The purpose of the conference was to find a solution to the First Moroccan Crisis of 1905 between France and Germany, which arose as Germany ...

, the French occupation of

Oujda Oujda ( ar, وجدة; ber, ⵡⵓⵊⴷⴰ, Wujda) is a major Moroccan city in its northeast near the border with Algeria. Oujda is the capital city of the Oriental region of northeastern Morocco and has a population of about 558,000 people. It ...

and of Casablanca and the gaining the support of Amazigh leaders in the south. The ''

Ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

'' of Fes supported Abdelhafid only with an unprecedented

Conditioned Bay'ah The Conditioned Bay'ah (; January 5, 1908) or the Bay'ah of Fes was a ''bay'ah'' contract of the conditional support of the people of Fez, Morocco, Fes for Abd al-Hafid of Morocco, Abd al-Hafid as List of rulers of Morocco, sultan of Morocco in th ...

, or pledge of allegiance.

Background

The

of 1906 had the effect of dividing Moroccans into supporters of either the Sultan Abdelaziz or his brother Abd al-Hafid into those calling for reform for ''

jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...

'', respectively. In May 1907, after France had occupied

, the southern aristocrats, led by the head of the Glaoua tribe, Si Elmadani El Glaoui, invited Abd al-Hafid, an elder brother of Abdelaziz and viceroy at

, to become sultan, and on August 16, 1907, after the bombardment and occupation of Casablanca, Abdelhafid was proclaimed sovereign in Marrakesh with all of the usual formalities. In September, Abd-el-Aziz arrived at

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populati ...

from Gez and endeavoured to secure the support of the European powers against his brother. From

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, he accepted the ''grand cordon'' of the ''

Légion d’honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

'' and was later enabled to negotiate a loan. That was seen as leaning to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and aroused further opposition to his rule.

Conditioned ''Bay'ah''

In January 1908, the ''

'' of Fes led by

Muhammad al-Kattani Muhammad Bin Abdul-Kabir Al-Kattani (محمد بن عبد الكبير الكتاني; from 1873 - May 4, 1909), also known by his ''kunya'' Abu l-Fayḍ () or simply as Muhammad Al-Kattani, was a Moroccan Sufi ''faqih'' (scholar of Islamic la ...

declared Abdelaziz deposed and they imposed a conditioned '' bay'ah'' on Abd al-Hafid. The conditions for support included him to resume ''

'', liberate

and

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, end the ''protégé'' system, restrict Europeans to port cities and consult the ''ummah'' in all major decisions.

Battle of Marrakesh

The

Battle of Marrakech The Battle of Marrakesh was a central battle in the Hafidiya, in which Abd al-Hafid seized power from his brother Abd al-Aziz, fought outside Marrakesh, Morocco on August 19, 1908. A battalion led by Abd al-Aziz departed from Rabat and was amb ...

took place on August 19, 1908 when supporters of Abd al-Hafid destroyed the ''mahallah'' of Abdelaziz on the road from Rabat to Marrakesh. Abdelaziz fled to

, then occupied by the French.

Press

The French

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

-language propaganda newspaper ''

Es-Saada ''es-Saada'' ( ''Happiness''; November 7, 1904 - December 27, 1956) was an arabophone weekly newspaper published in Morocco that served as the mouthpiece of the French government. The newspaper was financed by France, originally printed at the Fre ...

'' supported Abdelaziz and attacked supporters of Abd al-Hafid, including Ma al-'Aynayn and Muhammad Bin Abd al-Kabir al-Kattani. With French encouragement, supporters of Abdelaziz founded ''as-Sabaah'' () in Tangier in 1904. In early 1908, Abd al-Hafid's Makhzen purchased ''

Lisan al-Maghrib ''Lissan-ul-Maghreb'' () was a Moroccan arabophone newspaper established in Tangier in 1907. It was founded by two Lebanese brothers, Faraj-Allah Namor and Artur Namor. It famously printed the , as well as open letters to Abdelaziz and then A ...

'' (), an arabophone newspaper; it was run by two Lebanese brothers, Faraj-Allah and

Artur Namor Artur is a cognate to the common male given name Arthur, meaning "bear-like," which is believed to possibly be descended from the Roman surname Artorius or the Celtic bear-goddess Artio or more probably from the Celtic word ''artos'' ("bear"). Ot ...

, and it printed open letters to Abdelaziz and then Abd al-Hafid. In 1908, Abd al-Hafid ordered the creation of the newspaper '' al-Fajar'' (), which would promote his views.'' It published its first edition on June 27, 1908.''''

Aftermath

The countries signatory to the Treaty of Algeciras informed Abd-al-Hafid in a letter dated September 14, 1908 that they would not recognize him as the legitimate head of Morocco unless he complied with the terms of the treaty signed by his predecessor.{{Cite web , last=شادي , first=ياسين , date=2022-01-19 , title=البيعة الحفيظية , url=https://www.democraticac.de.w0124385.kasserver.com/?p=80030 , access-date=2022-04-28 , website=المركز الديمقراطي العربي , language=ar

References

History of Morocco 1900s in Morocco Military coups in Morocco Civil wars