Bombardment of Mogador
Encyclopedia
The Bombardment of Mogador took place in August 1844, when French Navy
forces under the Prince de Joinville attacked the Moroccan city of Mogador, modern Essaouira
, and the island facing the city, Mogador island
. The campaign was part of the First Franco-Moroccan War
. It followed the failed Larache expedition
of 1765.
's Abd-El-Kader against France
. Following several incident at the border between Algeria and Morocco, and the refusal of Morocco to abandon its support to Algeria.
The bombardment of Mogador was preceded by the Bombardment of Tangiers
by the same fleet on 6 August 1844, and the Battle of Isly
by Maréchal Bugeaud on 14 August 1844.
Mogador was an important harbour, the first seaport of Morocco, with constant relations with Europe, and had about 15,000 inhabitants, 4,000 of whom were Jews
, and 50 Christian traders.
, Jemmapes...), 3 frigates (Belle Poule
, Groenland...), 4 bricks
(Argus, Volage, Rubis, Cassard), 3 corvettes (Pluton, Vestte..), 2 avisos (Phare, Pandour). The fleet included a large proportion of steam paddleships, but most of the firepower came from traditional ships of the line.
Mogador was defended by 40 guns at the northern "Scala da la Kasbah
", 24 guns at the harbourside Scala de la Marine. Mogador island
however was defended by 5 batteries, armed with between 6 and 70 English bombards.
The French fleet arrived in the Bay of Mogador on August 11, 1844, but the weather was so bad that they had to wait, breaking their anchors and unable to communicate even between themselves. Once the weather abated, the French Navy first took up firing positions on 15 August. They were fired upon by the Moroccan batteries first upon taking their positions. After one hour, the French batteries responded, and exchanges lasted for about 3 hours. The batteries of the city were silenced one by one, but the batteries on Mogador island remained active, requiring a landing to clear them out.
The French, numbering 500 men under the orders of Duquesne and Bouet, occupied Mogador island
, which was barely populated and only built with a mosque
, a prison and a few forts.
All the batteries were taken and 400 Moroccans were captured in the Mosque
of the island after heavy fighting, led by their commander Larbi Torrés. The French were able to release about 50 to 60 state prisoners. The French landing force had 14 killed and 64 wounded in the action.
The city of Mogador was further bombarded from Mogador island, which was only 1.5 kilometers away. Altogether, the city was bombarded for 26 hours. A large proportion of the houses were destroyed by the bombardment.
The city had been evacuated by its inhabitants. Chiadma
and Haha populations from the countryside seized the opportunity to invade the city and loot it for 40 days. Joinville reported that the city was under fire, that the Berbers had routed Imperial troops, and that they had taken possession of the city.
On August 17, 1844, Joinville sent the following dispatch to the Ministry of the Navy:
was evacuated in exchange for the Moroccan prisoners that were wounded (the French Consul had already left a month before). The English Consul and his family were immediately transferred to the ship Warspite, which had been accompanying the French fleet.
On the same day, the Véloce was dispatched to Maréchal Bugeaud with the healthy Moroccan prisoners, as well as with the flags taken to the Moroccans, which were deposited with great ceremony at the Invalides on 2 September 1844.
The war was formally ended September 10, 1844, with the signing of the Treaty of Tangiers
, in which Morocco agreed to arrest and outlaw Abd al-Qādir, reduce the size of its garrison at Oujda
, and establish a commission to demarcate the border. The French forces evacuated Mogador on September 16, 1844.
The border, which is essentially the modern border between Morocco and Algeria, was agreed in the Treaty of Lalla Maghnia.
Following the signature of the treaty, on 4 July 1845, the Véloce brought back the 123 Moroccan prisoners, and remitted them.
The conflict increased tensions between France and the United Kingdom, which were considered by some to be on the brink of war.
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
forces under the Prince de Joinville attacked the Moroccan city of Mogador, modern Essaouira
Essaouira
Mogador redirects here, for the hamlet in Surrey see Mogador, Surrey.Essaouira is a city in the western Moroccan economic region of Marrakech-Tensift-Al Haouz, on the Atlantic coast. Since the 16th century, the city has also been known by its Portuguese name of Mogador or Mogadore...
, and the island facing the city, Mogador island
Mogador island
Mogador island is the main island of the Iles Purpuraires in front of Essaouira. It is about 3 kilometers long and 1.5 kilometers wide, and lies about 1.5 kilometers from the opposite beach of Essaouira....
. The campaign was part of the First Franco-Moroccan War
Franco-Moroccan Wars
The Franco-Moroccan War consisted of a series of conflicts fought between France and its colonial administrators on one side, and the sultanate of Morocco on the other....
. It followed the failed Larache expedition
Larache expedition
The Larache expedition occurred in June 1765 when French Navy troops attacked the Moroccan city of Larache following a bombardment of Salé and Rabat...
of 1765.
Background
The bombardment was a consequence of Morocco's alliance with AlgeriaAlgeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
's Abd-El-Kader against France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Following several incident at the border between Algeria and Morocco, and the refusal of Morocco to abandon its support to Algeria.
The bombardment of Mogador was preceded by the Bombardment of Tangiers
Bombardment of Tangiers
The Bombardment of Tangiers took place on 6 August 1844, when French Navy forces under the Prince de Joinville attacked the Moroccan city of Tangiers. The campaign was part of the First Franco-Moroccan War....
by the same fleet on 6 August 1844, and the Battle of Isly
Battle of Isly
The Battle of Isly was fought on August 14, 1844 between France and Morocco, near the Isly River. French forces under Marshal Thomas Robert Bugeaud routed a much larger, but poorly organized, Moroccan force under Mohammed, son of sultan Abderrahmane of Morocco...
by Maréchal Bugeaud on 14 August 1844.
Mogador was an important harbour, the first seaport of Morocco, with constant relations with Europe, and had about 15,000 inhabitants, 4,000 of whom were Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
, and 50 Christian traders.
Bombardment
The French fleet consisted of 15 ships, including 3 ships of the line (SuffrenFrench ship Suffren (1824)
The Suffren was a 90-gun Ship of the line of the French Navy named in honour of Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, lead ship of her class.The Suffren was the first ship of the line built with straight sides....
, Jemmapes...), 3 frigates (Belle Poule
French ship Belle Poule (1828)
The Belle-Poule was a 60-gun frigate of the French Navy, famous for bringing the remains of Napoléon from Saint Helena back to France in what became known as the retour des cendres....
, Groenland...), 4 bricks
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
(Argus, Volage, Rubis, Cassard), 3 corvettes (Pluton, Vestte..), 2 avisos (Phare, Pandour). The fleet included a large proportion of steam paddleships, but most of the firepower came from traditional ships of the line.
Mogador was defended by 40 guns at the northern "Scala da la Kasbah
Kasbah
A kasbah or qassabah is a type of medina, Islamic city, or fortress .It was a place for the local leader to live and a defense when a city was under attack. A kasbah has high walls, usually without windows. Sometimes, they were built on hilltops so that they could be more easily defended...
", 24 guns at the harbourside Scala de la Marine. Mogador island
Mogador island
Mogador island is the main island of the Iles Purpuraires in front of Essaouira. It is about 3 kilometers long and 1.5 kilometers wide, and lies about 1.5 kilometers from the opposite beach of Essaouira....
however was defended by 5 batteries, armed with between 6 and 70 English bombards.
The French fleet arrived in the Bay of Mogador on August 11, 1844, but the weather was so bad that they had to wait, breaking their anchors and unable to communicate even between themselves. Once the weather abated, the French Navy first took up firing positions on 15 August. They were fired upon by the Moroccan batteries first upon taking their positions. After one hour, the French batteries responded, and exchanges lasted for about 3 hours. The batteries of the city were silenced one by one, but the batteries on Mogador island remained active, requiring a landing to clear them out.
Occupation of Mogador island
Mogador island
Mogador island is the main island of the Iles Purpuraires in front of Essaouira. It is about 3 kilometers long and 1.5 kilometers wide, and lies about 1.5 kilometers from the opposite beach of Essaouira....
, which was barely populated and only built with a mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
, a prison and a few forts.
All the batteries were taken and 400 Moroccans were captured in the Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
of the island after heavy fighting, led by their commander Larbi Torrés. The French were able to release about 50 to 60 state prisoners. The French landing force had 14 killed and 64 wounded in the action.
The city of Mogador was further bombarded from Mogador island, which was only 1.5 kilometers away. Altogether, the city was bombarded for 26 hours. A large proportion of the houses were destroyed by the bombardment.
Entering the city of Mogador
On 16 August, 600 troops were able to enter the harbour and city of Mogador, where they spiked the guns, destroyed the powder, sunk the ships in the harbour, and demolished the last defenses of the city with no resistance. They did not however proceed to the center of the city, as it was considered unnecessary.The city had been evacuated by its inhabitants. Chiadma
Chiadma
Chiadma is a tribe located in the Morocco, dwelling mainly at the Atlantic coast in the region between Safi and Essaouira. They mainly speak Moroccan Arabic with a special accent...
and Haha populations from the countryside seized the opportunity to invade the city and loot it for 40 days. Joinville reported that the city was under fire, that the Berbers had routed Imperial troops, and that they had taken possession of the city.
On August 17, 1844, Joinville sent the following dispatch to the Ministry of the Navy:
Conclusion
On 17 August, the English Consul William WillshireWilliam Willshire
William Willshire also known as William Wiltshire , was British Vice Consul to Mogadore , Morocco from 1814 until 1844, before being assigned to the Consularship of Adrianople in 1845, until his death in 1851....
was evacuated in exchange for the Moroccan prisoners that were wounded (the French Consul had already left a month before). The English Consul and his family were immediately transferred to the ship Warspite, which had been accompanying the French fleet.
On the same day, the Véloce was dispatched to Maréchal Bugeaud with the healthy Moroccan prisoners, as well as with the flags taken to the Moroccans, which were deposited with great ceremony at the Invalides on 2 September 1844.
The war was formally ended September 10, 1844, with the signing of the Treaty of Tangiers
Treaty of Tangiers
The Treaty of Tangiers was signed on September 10, 1844 whereby Morocco officially recognized Algeria as part of the French Empire. The advent of the treaty came after the defeat of Morocco in the First Franco-Moroccan War . A second treaty in 1860 forced Morocco to cede Sidi Ifni to the Spanish...
, in which Morocco agreed to arrest and outlaw Abd al-Qādir, reduce the size of its garrison at Oujda
Oujda
Oujda is a city in eastern Morocco with an estimated population of 1 million. The city is located about 15 kilometers west of Algeria and about 60 kilometers south of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the Oriental Region of Morocco and the birthplace of the current Algerian president,...
, and establish a commission to demarcate the border. The French forces evacuated Mogador on September 16, 1844.
The border, which is essentially the modern border between Morocco and Algeria, was agreed in the Treaty of Lalla Maghnia.
Following the signature of the treaty, on 4 July 1845, the Véloce brought back the 123 Moroccan prisoners, and remitted them.
The conflict increased tensions between France and the United Kingdom, which were considered by some to be on the brink of war.