Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Battle of Tangier (1437)

Shortcuts: Differences, Similarities, Jaccard Similarity Coefficient, References.

Difference between Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Battle of Tangier (1437)

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi vs. Battle of Tangier (1437)

Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Ziyan al-Wattasi (died 1448) (abū zakarīyā' yaḥyā ben ziyān al-waṭṭāsī أبو زكرياء يحيى بن زيان الوطاس. was a vizier of the Marinid sultan of Fez, regent and effective strongman ruler of Morocco from 1420 until 1448. He is the founder of the Wattasid dynasty of viziers and later sultans, and as such often designated as Yahya I in Wattasid lists. He was also known by his nickname Lazeraque (the wall-eyed), as found in Portuguese chronicles. The Wattasids (or Banu Wattas) were a Moroccan Berber clan related to the Marinid sultans of Morocco.C.E. Bosworth, The New Islamic Dynasties, (Columbia University Press, 1996), 48. They were traditionally established in the Rif, holding the citadel of Tazuta as their base. The Portuguese capture of Ceuta in 1415 had taken the Moroccans by surprise. In 1418, the Marinid sultan Abu Said Uthman III of Morocco led an army to recover it, but the siege failed. This led to widespread disaffection with the sultan and instability in the Marinid state. This culminated in a coup in Fez in 1420 (sometimes dated 1419), in which the sultan Abu Said Uthman III was assassinated, leaving behind only a one-year-old child, Abu Muhammad Abd al-Haqq II as son and heir, supported by Abu Zakariya. A succession struggle broke out immediately as other pretenders quickly emerged. Opportunistically, the Nasrid rulers of Granada and the Abdalwadids of Tlemcen intervened, each sponsoring different candidates for the Moroccan throne. At the time, Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi was serving as the long-time governor of Salé for the Marinids. Hearing the news of the sultan's assassination, Abu Zakariya hurried from Salé and seized control of the royal palace of Fez, proclaiming the orphan child Abd al-Haqq as the new Marinid sultan and appointing himself his regent and chief minister (vizier). Abu Zakariya's intervention had been facilitated by the old Marinid palace bureaucracy, who feared the other candidates would deliver Morocco to foreign domination. But the writ of Abu Zakariya did not extend much beyond the palace. Refusing to recognize the Wattasid minister, Morocco quickly descended into disorder and strife. Granadan and Tlemcen interventions and intrigues continued, regional governors seized control of their districts, selling and re-selling their allegiance to the highest bidder, Sufi-inspired religious radicals drummed up mobs to seize control of urban centers and take to the field, while rowdy rural nomads, the Hilalian Bedouin tribesmen, availed themselves of the general breakdown of law and order to launch a series of bandit raids on smaller towns and settlements. With Morocco in disorder, pressure on the Portuguese in Ceuta was lifted, (save for the occasional makeshift puritan column that marched up to the walls of Ceuta to demand a trial of arms). The Portuguese used this respite to entrench themselves firmly in Ceuta. Anarchy would continue to prevail in Morocco for the next several years, as Abu Zakariya struggled to defeat the string of pretenders and stich the country back together, in the name of the young Marinid child-sultan. The Marinid sultan Abd al-Haqq II came of age by 1436, but Abu Zakariya Yahya refused to step down from the regency. Sensing a new political crisis was brewing, the Portuguese thought it an opportune moment to take another bite out of Morocco and began organizing an expedition to seize the Moroccan citadel of Tangier. The Portuguese expeditionary force, personally commanded by Portuguese prince Henry the Navigator, landed in August 1437. But he was unable to take the well-fortified city. For Abu Zakariya Yahya, the Portuguese attack turned out to be a political opportunity. Appealing for national unity to expel the foreign intruders, forces were dispatched from all corners of Morocco, placing themselves at the disposal of the Wattasid mayor. Abu Zakariya led a massive army to Tangiers, and quickly encircled the Portuguese siege camp by early October 1437. The Portuguese expeditionary force was starved into submission, and, on October 15, Prince Henry agreed to a treaty to deliver Ceuta back to Morocco, in return for being allowed to withdraw his army unmolested. The victory over the Portuguese at Tangier turned Abu Zakariya from reviled regent to national hero overnight. Sufi activists who had long led the grassroots opposition the regent, now rallied for him. Rivals and regional governors quickly came back under the fold. Any ideas that the Marinid sultan Abd al-Haqq II might have about dismissing his now-popular and powerful minister were shelved. Abu Zakariya was able to cement and extend his power over Morocco. The astute Abu Zakariya celebrated the triumph by erecting the magnificent shrine of Zaouia Moulay Idriss II in Fez, over the alleged tomb of Idriss II (the founder of the Idrisid dynasty back in 807). The remains of Idris II was long-assumed to be buried with his father Idris I in Moulay Idriss (near Volubilis), but popular belief and reverence had switched when an uncorrupted body was discovered at the new location around 1307. Hoping to tap into the popular Idrisid cult, Abu Zakariya's ensured religious authorities and the living members of the Idrisid family confirmed it. Thus, in a way, the new tomb of Idris II served also as a monument to Abu Zakariya's triumph at Tangier. In the end, the Portuguese refused to fulfill the treaty, and allowed their hostages, including the royal Ferdinand the Saint Prince, to rot in Moroccan captivity, rather than give up Ceuta. Ferdinand would die in 1443. But this did not diminish Abu Zakariya's new prestige. After the long years of anarchy and disorder, a bit of a springtime prevailed over Morocco after 1437. Abu Zakariya continued ruling Morocco until his death in 1448. His popularity and power was still strong enough to secure the appointment of his nephew, Ali ibn Yusuf, to succeed him as the new all-powerful Wattasid vizier of Morocco, for the dissolute and increasingly irrelevant Marinid sultan Abd al-Haqq II. Abu Zakariya's own son, Yahya ibn Abi Zakariya would succeed his cousin as vizier in 1458. In the Portuguese chronicles of Frei João Álvares and Ruy de Pina, Abu Zakariya is referred to as Lazeraque, a nickname which Álvares explains was "because of his wall-eyes, his proper name was Bazaquary, of the generation called Benvotaçy, by his father related to the Marinids, and by his mother, descended from Christians.". Álvares, who was imprisoned alongside Ferdinand in Fez, impugns Abu Zakariya's personal character mercilessly, a person of 'low' background, who seized power by malice and deception, who brutally broke the Marinid nobility and kept the sultan in thrall, universally feared, but nonetheless disarmed his opponents with the affectation of mildness, piety and courtesy. The 1437 Battle of Tangier, sometimes referred to as the Siege of Tangiers, refers to the attempt by a Portuguese expeditionary force to seize the Moroccan citadel of Tangier, and their subsequent defeat by the armies of the Marinid sultanate of Morocco.

Abd al-Haqq II

Abd al-Haqq II (Abd al-Haqq ibn Uthman Abu Muhammad; 1419–1465) was Marinid Sultan of Morocco from 1420 to 1465.

Abd al-Haqq II and Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi · Abd al-Haqq II and Battle of Tangier (1437) · See more »

Ceuta

Ceuta (also;; Berber language: Sebta) is an Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa, separated by 14 kilometres from Cadiz province on the Spanish mainland by the Strait of Gibraltar and sharing a 6.4 kilometre land border with M'diq-Fnideq Prefecture in the Kingdom of Morocco.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Ceuta · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Ceuta · See more »

Conquest of Ceuta

The conquest of Ceuta by the Portuguese on 21 August 1415 marks an important step in the beginning of the Portuguese Empire in Africa.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Conquest of Ceuta · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Conquest of Ceuta · See more »

Emirate of Granada

The Emirate of Granada (إمارة غرﻧﺎﻃﺔ, trans. Imarat Gharnāṭah), also known as the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada (Reino Nazarí de Granada), was an emirate established in 1230 by Muhammad ibn al-Ahmar.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Emirate of Granada · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Emirate of Granada · See more »

Ferdinand the Holy Prince

Ferdinand the Holy Prince (Fernando o Infante Santo; 29 September 1402 – 5 June 1443), sometimes called the "Saint Prince" or the "Constant Prince", was an infante of the Kingdom of Portugal.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Ferdinand the Holy Prince · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Ferdinand the Holy Prince · See more »

Fez, Morocco

Fez (فاس, Berber: Fas, ⴼⴰⵙ, Fès) is a city in northern inland Morocco and the capital of the Fas-Meknas administrative region.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Fez, Morocco · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Fez, Morocco · See more »

Frei João Álvares

Frei João Álvares (Torres Novas, 1400 – Paço de Sousa c. 1490) was a 15th-century Portuguese friar of a military Order, chronicler and writer.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Frei João Álvares · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Frei João Álvares · See more »

Idris II of Morocco

Idris II (791-828), (إدريس الثاني) was the son of Idris I, the founder of the Idrisid dynasty in Morocco.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Idris II of Morocco · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Idris II of Morocco · See more »

Idrisid dynasty

The Idrisids (الأدارسة) were an Arab-Berber Zaydi-Shia dynasty of Morocco, ruling from 788 to 974.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Idrisid dynasty · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Idrisid dynasty · See more »

Kingdom of Portugal

The Kingdom of Portugal (Regnum Portugalliae, Reino de Portugal) was a monarchy on the Iberian Peninsula and the predecessor of modern Portugal.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Kingdom of Portugal · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Kingdom of Portugal · See more »

Marinid dynasty

The Marinid dynasty (Berber: Imrinen, المرينيون Marīniyūn) or Banu abd al-Haqq was a Sunni Muslim dynasty of Zenata Berber descent that ruled Morocco from the 13th to the 15th century.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Marinid dynasty · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Marinid dynasty · See more »

Morocco

Morocco (officially known as the Kingdom of Morocco, is a unitary sovereign state located in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is one of the native homelands of the indigenous Berber people. Geographically, Morocco is characterised by a rugged mountainous interior, large tracts of desert and a lengthy coastline along the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Morocco has a population of over 33.8 million and an area of. Its capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca. Other major cities include Marrakesh, Tangier, Salé, Fes, Meknes and Oujda. A historically prominent regional power, Morocco has a history of independence not shared by its neighbours. Since the foundation of the first Moroccan state by Idris I in 788 AD, the country has been ruled by a series of independent dynasties, reaching its zenith under the Almoravid dynasty and Almohad dynasty, spanning parts of Iberia and northwestern Africa. The Marinid and Saadi dynasties continued the struggle against foreign domination, and Morocco remained the only North African country to avoid Ottoman occupation. The Alaouite dynasty, the current ruling dynasty, seized power in 1631. In 1912, Morocco was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with an international zone in Tangier, and regained its independence in 1956. Moroccan culture is a blend of Berber, Arab, West African and European influences. Morocco claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, formerly Spanish Sahara, as its Southern Provinces. After Spain agreed to decolonise the territory to Morocco and Mauritania in 1975, a guerrilla war arose with local forces. Mauritania relinquished its claim in 1979, and the war lasted until a cease-fire in 1991. Morocco currently occupies two thirds of the territory, and peace processes have thus far failed to break the political deadlock. Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive and legislative powers, especially over the military, foreign policy and religious affairs. Executive power is exercised by the government, while legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives and the Assembly of Councillors. The king can issue decrees called dahirs, which have the force of law. He can also dissolve the parliament after consulting the Prime Minister and the president of the constitutional court. Morocco's predominant religion is Islam, and the official languages are Arabic and Berber, with Berber being the native language of Morocco before the Arab conquest in the 600s AD. The Moroccan dialect of Arabic, referred to as Darija, and French are also widely spoken. Morocco is a member of the Arab League, the Union for the Mediterranean and the African Union. It has the fifth largest economy of Africa.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Morocco · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Morocco · See more »

Prince Henry the Navigator

Infante D. Henrique of Portugal, Duke of Viseu (4 March 1394 – 13 November 1460), better known as Prince Henry the Navigator (Infante Dom Henrique, o Navegador), was a central figure in the early days of the Portuguese Empire and in the 15th-century European maritime discoveries and maritime expansion.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Prince Henry the Navigator · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Prince Henry the Navigator · See more »

Regent

A regent (from the Latin regens: ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state because the monarch is a minor, is absent or is incapacitated.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Regent · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Regent · See more »

Rui de Pina

Rui (or Ruy) de Pina (1440–1522) was a Portuguese chronicler.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Rui de Pina · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Rui de Pina · See more »

Siege of Ceuta (1419)

The Siege of Ceuta of 1419 (sometimes reported as 1418) was fought between the besieging forces of the Marinid Sultanate of Morocco, led by Sultan Abu Said Uthman III, including allied forces from the Emirate of Granada, and the Portuguese garrison of Ceuta, led by Pedro de Menezes, 1st Count of Vila Real.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Siege of Ceuta (1419) · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Siege of Ceuta (1419) · See more »

Tangier

Tangier (طَنجة Ṭanjah; Berber: ⵟⴰⵏⴵⴰ Ṭanja; old Berber name: ⵜⵉⵏⴳⵉ Tingi; adapted to Latin: Tingis; Tanger; Tánger; also called Tangiers in English) is a major city in northwestern Morocco.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Tangier · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Tangier · See more »

Vizier

A vizier (rarely; وزير wazīr; وازیر vazīr; vezir; Chinese: 宰相 zǎixiàng; উজির ujira; Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu): वज़ीर or وزیر vazeer; Punjabi: ਵਜ਼ੀਰ or وزير vazīra, sometimes spelt vazir, vizir, vasir, wazir, vesir or vezir) is a high-ranking political advisor or minister.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Vizier · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Vizier · See more »

Wattasid dynasty

The Wattasid dynasty (ⵉⵡⴻⵟⵟⴰⵙⴻⵏ, Iweṭṭasen; الوطاسيون, al-waṭṭāsīyūn) was a ruling dynasty of Morocco.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Wattasid dynasty · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Wattasid dynasty · See more »

Zaouia Moulay Idriss II

The Zaouia of Moulay Idriss II is a zaouia (a shrine and religious complex; also spelled zawiya) in Fez, Morocco.

Abu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi and Zaouia Moulay Idriss II · Battle of Tangier (1437) and Zaouia Moulay Idriss II · See more »