Muhammad I ar-Rashid was the third leader of the Husainid Dynasty

Husainid Dynasty

The Husainid Dynasty is the former ruling dynasty of Tunisia originally of Cretan origin. They came to power under Al-Husayn I ibn Ali at-Turki in 1705 replacing the Muradid Dynasty. After taking power the Husainids ruled as Beys with succession to the throne determined by age with the oldest...

 and the ruler of Tunisia from 1756 until his death.

Biography

Muhammad had been named heir apparent

Heir apparent

An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....

 by his father, Husayn I, Bey of Tunis, in 1725. In 1735 his father was ousted by his nephew Ali I Pasha, who in 1735 named Muhammad as governor of Sousse

Sousse

Sousse is a city in Tunisia. Located 140 km south of the capital Tunis, the city has 173,047 inhabitants . Sousse is in the central-east of the country, on the Gulf of Hammamet, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. The name may be of Berber origin: similar names are found in Libya and in...

.

With the help of the dey of Algiers, in 1756 Muhammad attacked Tunis

Tunis

Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....

 and overthrew Ali. The division of the booty caused however strife between Muhammad and the Algerian commander, the dey of Constantine

Constantine, Algeria

Constantine is the capital of Constantine Province in north-eastern Algeria. It was the capital of the same-named French département until 1962. Slightly inland, it is about 80 kilometres from the Mediterranean coast, on the banks of Rhumel river...

. Muhammad fled to the fortified city of Bardo

Bardo

The Tibetan word Bardo means literally "intermediate state" - also translated as "transitional state" or "in-between state" or "liminal state". In Sanskrit the concept has the name antarabhāva...

, while brother Ali

Ali II ibn Hussein

Ali II ibn Hussein was the fourth leader of the Husainid Dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 1759 until his death in 1782....

 went to Sfax

Sfax

Sfax is a city in Tunisia, located southeast of Tunis. The city, founded in AD 849 on the ruins of Taparura and Thaenae, is the capital of the Sfax Governorate , and a Mediterranean port. Sfax has population of 340,000...

 to raise troops. In the meantime the Turkish garrison of Tunis, with the support of the Algerians, set up a revolutionary government, establishing a terror regime which lasted for several weeks.

The rebellers, backed by Algerian troops, besieged him, but were defeated by Ali's disciplined and better organized forces. The Algerians were convinced to return to their homeland after the payment of a large indemnity and of a yearly tribute.

Thenceforth Muhammad and Ali reigned jointly, the latter succeeding to the throne after Muhammad's death in 1759.