War against the Wattasids and Portuguese After the death of his father,
Abu Abdallah al-Qaim in 1517, Mohammed al-Shaykh (together with his brother,
Ahmad al-Araj) took command of the war of the Saadi against the
Portuguese. They conquered
Marrakesh in 1524. In 1527, the
Treaty of Tadla was agreed upon between the Saadians and the
Wattasids, following the Wattasid defeat in the
Battle of Wadi al-Abid. Both dynasties agreed on their respective territorial control, which was separated by the
Tadla region.
War against the Ottomans , the walls of which he built. The capital was then moved to
Marrakesh after its conquest in 1524. After reorganizing his army after the Ottoman example, he succeeded in conquering
Fez in 1549, causing the downfall of the
Wattasids. In the conquest of Fez he again used European artillery, which he had also used in the
Fall of Agadir in 1541. He then provided an army to his son, who was able to conquer
Tlemcen in 1550, and throw out the Spanish-backed
Zayyanid Sultan of Tlemcen. After the fall of Fez,
Ksar-el-Kebir and
Asila; the Portuguese were ousted in 1550. Finally, only
Ceuta (1415–1668),
Tangier (1471–1661) and
Mazagan (1502–1769) remained in Portuguese hands. With help of the Ottomans, the Wattasids under
Ali Abu Hassun were able to conquer Fez once more in early 1554; but that conquest was short-lived, and Mohammed al-Shaykh was able to vanquish the last
Wattasids at the
Battle of Tadla, and recapture the city of Fez in September 1554. During the Ottoman
Siege of Oran (1556), Mohammed, who was allied with the Spanish, managed to capture Tlemcen from the Ottomans. ==Notes==