Battle of Smala
Encyclopedia
The Battle of the Smala was fought in 1843 between France
and Algeria
n resistance fighters during the French conquest of Algeria
. The French, led by Henri d'Orléans, Duc d'Aumale
, raided the encampment (known as a smala or zmelah) of Algerian resistance leader Abd al-Qadir on 16 May 1843, while al-Qadir was absent on a raiding expedition. The 500 French cavalrymen surprised the camp defenders, who fired a single volley before scattering. More than 3,000 of al-Qadir's followers (out of a camp population of 30,000) were captured, as were many of his possessions, including his warchest and a library valued at £5,000. Three days later, another 2,500 followers were captured.
Al-Qadir fled to Morocco
later that year, triggering French pressure on Morocco and the advent of the First Franco-Moroccan War in 1844. He was eventually captured in 1847, ending major Algerian resistance to the French colonial occupation.
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...
and Algeria
Algeria
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...
n resistance fighters during the French conquest of Algeria
French conquest of Algeria
The French conquest of Algeria took place between 1830 and 1847. Using an 1827 diplomatic slight by Hussein Dey, the ruler of the Ottoman Regency of Algiers, against its consul as a pretext, France invaded and quickly seized Algiers in 1830, and rapidly took control of other coastal communities...
. The French, led by Henri d'Orléans, Duc d'Aumale
Henri d'Orléans, duc d'Aumale
-Bibliophile:He was a noted collector of old manuscripts and books. His library remains at Chantilly.-Death:By his will of the June 3, 1884, however, he had bequeathed to the Institute of France his Chantilly estate, including the Château de Chantilly, with all the art-collection he had collected...
, raided the encampment (known as a smala or zmelah) of Algerian resistance leader Abd al-Qadir on 16 May 1843, while al-Qadir was absent on a raiding expedition. The 500 French cavalrymen surprised the camp defenders, who fired a single volley before scattering. More than 3,000 of al-Qadir's followers (out of a camp population of 30,000) were captured, as were many of his possessions, including his warchest and a library valued at £5,000. Three days later, another 2,500 followers were captured.
Al-Qadir fled to Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
later that year, triggering French pressure on Morocco and the advent of the First Franco-Moroccan War in 1844. He was eventually captured in 1847, ending major Algerian resistance to the French colonial occupation.