Mohammed Al Burtughali (1505-1524): Morocco’s Wattasid Sultan Raised by the Portuguese

In this episode we look at the strange and little known reign of Mohammed Al Burtughali : the Moroccan Wattasid sultan who spent his childhood as a Portuguese hostage and returned to rule a sultanate in shambles. Caught between Iberian expansion, Sufi-led resistance and the collapse of Wattasid authority all over the country his story raises deeper questions about what it means to lead the ruins of empire.

SOURCES

- Les Wattasides, une dynastie de transition by Mohamed Mezzine

- Histoire du Maroc by J. Brignon, Abdelaziz Amine, Brahim Boutaleb, …

- Histoire du Maroc by Daniel Rivet

- Leon l’African’s “Description de l’Afrique”

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