Muhammad VI al-Habib ( ar, محمد الحبيب باي, ), commonly known as Habib Bey (13 August 1858 in Le Bardo – 13 February 1929 in Carthage) was the sixteenth Husainid Bey of Tunis, reigning from 10 July 1922 until 11 February 1929. His father was Mohamed el-Mamoune Bey, the younger child of Hassine II Bey who had died young in 1861 without ruling when Habib was only three years old, and his mother was a Circassian odalisque named Fatma. His uncle Muhammad III as-Sadiq took charge of his education and married him to the niece of his

Grand Vizier Grand vizier ( fa, وزيرِ اعظم, vazîr-i aʾzam; ota, صدر اعظم, sadr-ı aʾzam; tr, sadrazam) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. The office of Grand Vizier was first ...

Mustapha Ben Ismaïl Mustapha Ben Ismaïl ( ar, مصطفى بن اسماعيل; born around 1850 in Bizerte and died in 1887 in Istanbul)Ammar Mahjoubi, Khaled Belkhodja et Abdelmajid Ennabli, ''Histoire générale de la Tunisie'', Vol. III « Les temps modernes », ...

, his favourite courtier and mainstay of authority in the Regency of Tunis. Made Bey al-Mahalla (Heir Apparent) on 12 May 1906, he succeeded his cousin Muhammad V an-Nasir on 8 July 1922. He was made a Divisional General in the beylical army on the same day he became Bey al Mahalla and was promoted to Marshal when he succeeded to the throne. Throughout his reign he did not seek to hinder the authorities of the French protectorate, in contrast to the approach of his predecessor. He came to the throne deeply in debt and without any support owing to his coming from a branch of the family that was not close to power. He therefore remained reliant on the good graces of the French Resident General, Lucien Saint. Nevertheless, the aftermath of the First World War saw a change in relations between France and its colonies. About 80,000 Tunisians, mostly conscripted, had served in the French army, and about 20,000 had been killed or wounded. The Ottoman Empire, which until its dissolution had been the nominal suzerain of the Beys of Tunis, no longer existed. Ideas of

self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a ''jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It stat ...

were growing, and the Tunisian national movement regrouped in 1922 with the foundation of the

Destour The Constitutional Liberal Party ( ar, الحزب الحر الدستوري, '), most commonly known as Destour, was a Tunisian political party, founded in 1920, which had as its goal to liberate Tunisia from French colonial control. History ...

party. The French authorities took a number of political initiatives, establishing consultative councils including the Grand Council and regional (caïdat) councils and introducing

new laws The New Laws (Spanish: ''Leyes Nuevas''), also known as the New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians (Spanish: ''Leyes y ordenanzas nuevamente hechas por su Majestad para la gobernación de las Indias y buen t ...

allowing some Tunisians to acquire French nationality. These initiatives galvanised the

ians, prompting Habib Bey to advise Abdelaziz Thâalbi to leave the country if he continued to oppose them. Habib Bey took part in the inauguration of the Grand Mosque of Paris in July 1926 along with Mouley Youssef of Morocco. He was also the first Tunisian ruler to have his name included in Friday prayers, replacing the Ottoman caliph. Lucien Saint invited him and his sons Azzedine Bey and

Lamine Bey Muhammad VIII al-Amin ( ar, محمد الثامن الأمين; 4 September 1881 – 30 September 1962) commonly known as Lamine Bey ( ar, الأمين باي), was the last Bey of Tunis (15 May 1943 – 20 March 1956),Werner Ruf, ''Introduction ...

to make a private visit to Marignac in July 1923 and again the following year. He bought the

palais Zarrouk Palais () may refer to: * Dance hall, popularly a ''palais de danse'', in the 1950s and 1960s in the UK * ''Palais'', French for palace **Grand Palais, the Grand Palais des Champs-Elysées ** Petit Palais, an art museum in Paris * Palais River i ...

in Carthagehttp://www.persee.fr/doc/etaf_0768-2352_1974_mon_1_1 p.288 accessed 1/5/2017 where he lived, by the sea, until his death. He was buried in the Tourbet el Bey in the medina of Tunis. He was succeeded by

Ahmed Bey Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ve ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muhamad 06 El-Habib El-Habib, Muhamad 6 El-Habib, Muhamad 6 Muhamad 6 el-Habib Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Tunisian royalty Tunisian people of Circassian descent