Moulay Ismail

Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif (c. 1645–1727) succeeded his brother Moulay Rashid in 1672, inheriting a fractured realm plagued by rebellious tribes and European coastal enclaves. Through ruthless determination and organizational genius, he established the Jaysh al-Bukhari, an elite professional standing army of 150,000 African warriors sworn on Sahih al-Bukhari to the Sultan alone.

Ismail drove the British out of Tangier (1684) and the Spanish out of Larache (1689) and Asilah. He transformed Meknes into an awe-inspiring imperial Versailles of the Orient, complete with forty kilometers of monumental walls, twenty grand gates (including Bab Mansour), the Heri es-Souani granaries, and the vast Bassin de l'Agdal. He ruled with an iron hand for fifty-five years.