Mulai Ahmed el Raisuni (known as Raisuli to most English speakers, also Raissoulli) (d. reportedly at the end of April 1925^[1]) was the Sharif (descendant of Mohammed) of the Riffian Berber tribe in Morocco at the turn of the 19th/20th Century, and considered by many to be the rightful heir to the throne of Morocco. While regarded by foreigners and the Moroccan government as a brigand, some Moroccans considered him a heroic figure, fighting a repressive, corrupt government, while others considered him a thief. He was considered by many as "The last of the Barbary Pirates" (though his actions were limited to the land). He was born in the village of Zinat in the late 1860s, although an exact birthdate has not been confirmed; due to this and his reportedly handsome visage, one of his other nicknames was "the Eagle of Zinat".

Contents 1 The Perdicaris Incident 2 Portrayal in popular culture 3 References 4 External links

[edit] The Perdicaris Incident

In 1904, Mulai Ahmed er Raisuni was propelled onto the international stage during what was to be known as the "Perdicaris Incident." This is when he kidnapped the Greek-American expatriate Ion Perdicaris and his stepson Cromwell Varley and held them for ransom. While the most famous of his many exploits, the kidnapping of Perdicaris and Varley was part of a larger campaign against the Sultan Abdelaziz of Morocco, whom Raisuli saw as corrupt and beholden to European powers. Several years prior to the incident, he had been arrested by the Pasha of Tangier, Abd-el-Rahman Abd-el-Saduk (his distant relative), and chained to a wall for four years until he was released by sympathetic guards. Raisuli had previously kidnapped several British, French, and Spanish emissaries, holding some for ransoming, and killing others. His most famous victim prior to Ion Perdicaris was Sir Harry "Caid" Maclean, a British army officer serving as a military aide to the Sultan's army, whom Raisuli ransomed for ƒ20,000 from the British government ^[2]. Raisuli was widely known for his chivalry and respectful attitude towards his hostages; he pledged Ion Perdicaris that he would defend him from any harm, and was known to have befriended many of his other hostages. However, towards those who were not worthy of ransom, or the emissaries of the Pasha and the Sultan, he was known for cruelty, once burning out a Moroccan emissary's eyes with heated copper coins, and returning the head of another to the Pasha in a basket of melons.

After a near-confrontation between the government of Morocco and troops of the United States of America, Raisuli received his ransom money and concessions; he was appointed Pasha of Tangier. However, Raisuli was ousted from the post in 1906 due to supposed corruption and cruelty to his subjects; a year later he was again declared an outlaw by the Moroccan government. For years, Raisuli continued to antagonize the Moroccan government with his tactics of brigandage and banditry, even after Abdelaziz's forced abdication. In 1912 he led several Rif tribes in an unsuccessful but bloody revolt against the Spanish. In September 1922^[3], he submitted to the Spanish authorities and subsequently was one of Spanish leaders in the Rif War of the 1920's until he was captured by Abd el Krim. He was reportedly dead by the end of April 1925, having suffered from dropsy for several years, although rumors of his survival persisted for years. He is still regarded as a folk hero by many in Morocco, although his reputation is mixed at best.

[edit] Portrayal in popular culture

He was portrayed by Sean Connery in the heavily fictionalized 1975 film The Wind and the Lion, which was filmed in Spain by the American director John Milius. Milius drew largely on an American Heritage magazine article by Barbara W. Tuchman^[4], as well as a full-length biography of Raisuli written by Rosita Forbes: The Sultan of the Mountains: The Life Story of the Raisuli^[5], published the year of Raisuli's reputed death.

[edit] References

1. ^ TIME Magazine Article of 17 August 1925
2. ^ http://www.yacout.info/Caid-Maclean_a114.html Page on Maclean
3. ^ The Encyclopedia of World History; 2001
4. ^ "Perdicaris Alive or Raisuli Dead!", American Heritage August 1959; later republished in Tuchman's compilation book Practicing History: Selected Essays (1981), pp. 104-117
5. ^ Amazon.com page on Forbes' book

[edit] External links

• The Capital Century: 1904: 'Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead!'
• Brief Time Magazine Article from 1925
• Testimonial of Walter Harris, kidnapped by Raisuli in 1903, on Virtual Tangier