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. Bugeaud, attempting to complete the French conquest of Algeria, instigated the battle without a declaration of war in order to force negotiations concerning Moroccan support for the Algerian resistance leader Abd el Kader to conclude on terms favorable to the French.
Battle of Isly | |||||||
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Part of the First Franco-Moroccan War | |||||||
Battle of Isly, oil painting by Horace Vernet | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
France | Sultanate of Morocco | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Thomas Robert Bugeaud | Mohammed (IV) | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
11.000 soldiers | 20.000-25.000 cavalry | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
27 killed 99 wounded[1] |
800 killed 11 cannons |
Bugeaud, who recovered the Moroccan commander's tent and umbrella (equivalent to capturing a military standard in European warfare), was made Duke of Isly for his victory.
The day following the battle, the Bombardment of Mogador started.[2]
Notes
- Pierre Montagnon, The conquest of Algeria: The seeds of discordie, 2012.
- E.J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936, Volume 9 Martijn Theodoor Houtsma p.550