Abd al-Qadir

`Abd al-Qādir al-Jazā'irī (6 September 1808 - 26 May 1883, in Arabic عبد القادر الجزائري) was an Algerian Islamic scholar, Sufi, political and military leader who led a struggle against the French invasion in the mid-nineteenth century, for which he is seen as an Algerian national hero.

Name

He is often referred to only as `Abd al-Qādir, since al-Jazā'iri means simply "the Algerian". His name can be variously transliterated as Abd al-Kadir, Abdel Kader, Abdelkader, etc.

He is also often given the titles Amir, prince, and Shaykh.

Early years

He was born in the town of Muaskar in the area of Oran. His father was a shaykh in the Qadiri sufi order of Islam. In his childhood he learned to memorize the Qur'an and was well trained in theological and linguistic studies, having an education far better than that of his peers. In 1825 he set out for the Muslim pilgrimage, hajj, with his father. While in Mecca he encountered Imam Shamil; the two spoke at length on different topics. He also traveled to Damascus and Baghdad, and visited the graves of famous Muslims such Shaykh Ibn Arabi. This experience cemented his religious enthusiasm. On his way back to Algeria, he was impressed by the reforms carried out by Muḩammad `Ali in Egypt. He returned to his homeland a few months before the arrival of the French.

French invasion and resistance

In 1830, Algeria was invaded by France; French colonial domination over Algeria supplanted what had been domination in name only by the Ottoman Empire. Within two years, `Abd al-Qādir was made an amir and with the loyalty of a number of tribes began a rebellion against the French. He was effective at using guerrilla warfare and for a decade, up until 1842, scored many victories. He often signed tactical truces with the French, but these did not last. His power base was in the western part of Algeria, where he was successful in uniting the tribes against the French. He was noted for his chivalry; at one occasion released his French captives simply because he had insufficient food to feed them.

However, `Abd al-Qādir was eventually forced to surrender. The French armies grew large, and brutally suppressed the native population and practiced a scorched-earth policy. `Abd al-Qādir's failure to get support from eastern tribes, apart from the Berbers of western Kabylie, also contributed to the quelling of the rebellion. On December 21, 1847, after being denied refuge in Morocco (strangely parallelling Jugurtha's career two thousand years earlier), `Abd al-Qādir was forced to surrender. Two days later, his surrender was made official to the French Governor-General of Algeria, Henri d'Orléans, duc d'Aumale. `Abd al-Qādir was exiled to France, in violation of the promise that he would be allowed to go to Alexandria or Acre, on the faith of which he had surrendered.

Life in exile

`Abd al-Qādir and his family were detained in France, first at Toulon, then at Pau, being in November 1848 transferred to the château of Amboise. There he remained until October 1852, when he was released by Napoleon III on taking an oath never again to disturb Algeria. The amir then took up his residence in Brusa, moving in 1855 to Damascus. While in Damascus he befriended Lady Jane Digby and Richard and Isabel Burton. In July 1860, conflict between the Druze and Maronites of Mount Lebanon spread to Damascus, and local Muslims attacked the Christian quarter, killing over 3,000 persons. `Abd al-Qādir and his personal guard saved large numbers of Christians, bringing them to safety in his house and in the citadel. For this action the French government, which granted the amir a pension of 4000 Louis, bestowed on him the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur.

He thereafter devoted himself to writing and philosophy until his death in Damascus in 1883. There is a Mosque in Constantine, Algeria dedicated to him. He was buried in Damascus in the same mausoleum as Ibn Arabi until his remains were returned to Algeria in the 1970's, after Algerian independence.

Legacy

The famous raï song, Abdel Kader made famous by Khaled is about Abd al-Qadir al-Jazairi.
The town of Elkader, Iowa was named in his honor.^*

External link

Abd Al-Kadir's Struggle For Truth

Algerian people | History of Algeria | Sufis | 1808 births | 1883 deaths