Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of Graph Search.
Concept
Moha ou Said
Summary
Moha ou Said El Wirrawi (died 5 March 1924) was a Moroccan tribal leader who opposed French rule of the protectorate of Morocco. He formerly served as a caïd of the Moroccan sultans and fought for Sultan Abdelaziz against Bou Hmara in 1905. After the Treaty of Fes and the start of the French protectorate he opposed the French through military action. He participated in several battles with French forces in the Zaian War but was eventually forced into the High Atlas mountains where he died in action in 1924. His followers continued to resist the French over the next ten years.
Moha was an Amghar (tribal chief) of his Berber tribe, the Ait Ouirra, before getting appointed as a local representative of authority in El-Ksiba by the caid of the Ait Ouirra, Ibn Hammu. After showing his competence and his commitment in subduing the revolting Berber tribes, he was appointed a caïd (a local governor with almost absolute power) for the Moroccan sultan, with responsibility for the Aït Seri Berber tribal confederation. As a caid he expanded his authority and included the Ait Oum El Bekht and Ait Ou Said Ou Ali tribes in his territory. He held Kasbah Tadla as his provincial capital. In 1905 he served in the army of Sultan Abdelaziz which fought against, Bou Hmara, a pretender based at Taza. After the start of the Hafidiya mouvement, he joined Abd al-Hafid knowing that Abdelaziz's rule would inevitably end.
Ou Said was described by the French as an "influential war chief" and was held in good standing by tribesmen across the Middle Atlas region. Together with Mouha ou Hammou Zayani, leader of the Zaian confederation and Ali Amhaouch, a Darqawa Islam religious leader, he formed the so-called "Berber trinity" which opposed French rule in the Middle Atlas through military action. Ou Said was initially open to a negotiated settlement with the French authorities but pressure from pro-war chiefs and the fear of ridicule from his tribesmen had forced his hand.
In February 1914 Ou Said attacked a French post established by Colonel Gueydon at Oued Zem, north-west of Kasbah Tadla.
Official source
About this result
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.