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About

 Sultan Abu Hammu Moussa II

patron

Tlemcen 

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AN101352.jpg

place

mosque

Timeline: Zayyanid {1235-1555}

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Algeria

<div>This funeral mosque was built by Sultan Abu Hammu Moussa II in 1363-4/765 AH. It bears the name of the holy man Sidi Brahim al-Masmoudi who was buried near the monument in 1401/804 AH. Subsequently, the area around the mosque served as a royal cemetery by the Zayyanid dynasty.</div><div> </div>The plan of this mosque is similar to those of <a href="https://archnet.org/sites/5389" target="_blank" data-bypass="true">Sid El Haloui</a> and <a href="https://archnet.org/sites/5390" target="_blank" data-bypass="true">Sidi Bu Medyan</a>. The prayer hall is divided into five naves perpendicular to the qibla wall. However, the mosque of Sidi Brahim is much more sober in terms of decoration, which is limited to the mihrab and the dome that precedes it. <div> </div><div>The courtyard arches collapsed in 1993 requiring massive restorations that lasted until 2003, when the mosque was reopened to the public.</div>

Construction

brick

gypsum

stucco

wood

ceramic

lime

rammed earth

Amine Kasmi

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Mosque Sidi Braham, Tlemcen

Mosque of Sidi Brahim

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Crispin Paine

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35 mm color slide

Tlemcen - Mosquée Sidi Brahim

Mosquée de Sidi Brahim

Mosquée de Sidi Braham

مسجد سيدي براهم

مسجد سيدي إبراهيم 

For more information see: <a href="https://www.archnet.org/collections/2376" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Timeline: Zayyanid</a> The Zayyanids ('Abd al-Wadids, Banu Zayyan, or Banu 'Abd al-Wad) were an Amazigh (Berber) dynasty that ruled the northwestern part of the central Maghreb (present-day&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/collections/1617" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Algeria</a>) from 1236 to 1555 (633-962 AH). The Zayyanid dynasty was founded by Yaghmorasan lbn Zayan who was governor of&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/authorities/4007" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tlemcen</a>&nbsp;under the&nbsp;<a href="http://archnet.org/timelines/48/period/Almohad/year/1130" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Almohads</a>, before declaring autonomy and making the city his own capital. The territory controlled by the Zayyanids was marked by moving borders, depending on the strength or weakness of the ruling sultan. Yet, at its height, the kingdom extended from the present-day Algerian-Moroccan borders to the city of Bejaia.The Zayyanids' rule falls into two parts separated by a short period (1337-1359/738-760 AH) during which the kingdom came under the control of the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/timelines/48/period/Marinid/year/1310" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Marinids</a>. During the first period (1236-1337/633-738 AH), it was the tribe of Banu 'Abd al-Wad that gave its name to the first branch of the dynasty then called 'Abd al-Wadid. In the second period (1359-1555/760-962 AH), the second branch was called the Zayyanids after Yaghmorasan Ibn Zyan, the founder of the dynasty. However, both names refer to the same reigning family and are used interchangeably. The sultans of the first branch left remarkable traces of their rule, which some survived until modern times. First, they undertook important works to transform Tlemcen into a capital worthy of its new status. During his reign, the founding Sultan Yaghmorasan built the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/19409" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">minaret of Agadir</a>, and that of the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/14956" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Great Mosque of Tlemcen</a>, of which he also extended the prayer hall and courtyard. He laid the foundations of a new fortified palatial complex,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.archnet.org/sites/16019" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">al-Mechouar</a>, which became the official residence of the Zayyanid sultans. Yaghmorasan's son Abu Said Uthman built the sumptuous&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/9170" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mosque of Sidi Bel-Hasan</a>&nbsp;that, unfortunately, suffered from several damaging fires. The fifth sultan Abu Tashfin constructed many buildings, including three palaces in al-Mechouar, the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/authorities/4007/media_contents/118149" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sahridj al-Kebir</a>&nbsp;(great basin), and the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/17021" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Madrasa al-Tashfiniya</a>, which attracted students from different parts of the Maghreb. It should be noted that the Zayyanid capital became a center of intense intellectual activity. The great historian Ibn Khaldun (Abd al-Rahman) taught at the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/8898" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Madrasa of Sidi Abu Madyan</a>. His brother Yahya Ibn Khaldun was the historiographer of the sultans of Tlemcen and died in this same city. The Zayyanids did much to encourage the intellectual life of their capital by building several madrasas (five according to Leo Africanus). The important place held by men of knowledge is illustrated by the fact that scholars were buried in the royal cemetery, along with other members of the ruling family. Another indicator of prosperity is the large numbers of European merchants who came to the kingdom seeking sub-Saharan gold. Tlemcen became the crossroads of trade between Western Mediterranean Europe and the states of sub-Saharan Africa through the commercial development of gold. The European merchants came mostly from Catalonia, Aragon, Genoa, Venice, and Marseille; and lived in an individualized neighborhood, al-Qaysariya, which contained caravanserais and churches. For most of its history, the dynasty was in an almost permanent state of war with its Marinid and&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/timelines/48/period/Hafsid/year/1231" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hafsid</a>&nbsp;neighbors. In fact, the weakness of the Zayyanid military kept the integrity of the state fragile throughout its history. The ruling sultans did not always succeed in protecting the provinces or even their capital from threats of the Marinids who besieged the city several times. The first long siege lasted a little over eight years (1299-1307/698-707 AH), during which the Marinid sultan Abu Yaqub Yusuf ordered the construction of a city, west of Tlemcen, that he named&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/9168" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">al-Mansura</a>&nbsp;and in which he established his residence. In 1307/707 AH, Abu Yaqub Yusuf was assassinated. His successor immediately ended the siege and returned to the Marinid capital, Fes. Under the reign of Abu al-Hasan, the Marinids once again besieged Tlemcen between 1335/735 AH and 1337/737 AH and succeeded in becoming masters of the city for nearly a quarter of a century. During this period, Abu al-Hasan built the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/5390" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mosque of Sidi Bu Medyan</a>. His son Abu Inan Faris built the&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/5389" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mosque Sid El Haloui</a>. These Marinid edifices had in common that they were all dedicated to Andalusian mystics, and were all located outside the walls of the Zayyanid capital. In 1359/760 AH, the Zayyanid dynasty was restored by Abu Hammu Moussa II (1359-1389/760-791 AH) who managed to drive out the Marinids. He continued the building work of his ancestors towards the embellishment of the kingdom's capital. He raised the funeral&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/sites/19410" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mosque of Sidi Brahim</a>&nbsp;who was adjoined to a madrasa called al-Yacoubiya, named after Abu Yacoub father of this sultan. However, the Zayyanids never regained their former splendor and glory. After Abu Hammu Moussa II, the rulers of Tlemcen, too busy preserving their power, did not bring any improvements to the kingdom. The century and a half, during which the dynasty continued to exist, was marked by a gradual weakening of the central authority. Most of the kingdom's cities became independent until the authority of the Zayyanids was limited to the capital and its surroundings. Noteworthy during this period of decline was the immigration of Andalusian Muslim and Jewish families to the Maghreb, fleeing the Christian Reconquista, many of whom took refuge in Tlemcen, bringing culture and traditions. In the early sixteenth century, the Zayyanids were caught up in the conflict between Spaniards and&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/timelines/48/period/Ottoman/year/1299" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ottomans</a>. The definitive taking of Tlemcen by the Ottomans, in 1555/960 AH, marked the end of the dynasty. The last Zayyanid sultan, Moulay Hasan, died of the plague in&nbsp;<a href="https://archnet.org/authorities/3871" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Oran</a>&nbsp;in 1560/967 AH. --<a href="http://archnet.org/authorities/7041" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Amine Kasmi</a>,&nbsp;Department of Architecture, University of Tlemcen SOURCES:Brosselard, Charles. Memoire epigraphique et historique sur les tombeaux des emirs Beni Zeiyan et de Boabdil, dernier roi de Grenade, decouverte a Tlemcen. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1976.Et-Tenessy Mohammed, Histoire des Beni-Zeiyan, rois de Tlemcen, 2 vols. trans. by Jean-Joseph-Leandre Barges, Paris: Duprat, 1852 and 1887.Ibn Khaldun, Yahya. Histoire des Beni 'Abd el-Wad, rois de Tlemcen jusqu'au regne d'Abou H'ammou Mousa II, 2 vols. trans. by Alfre Bel. Algiers: Imp. Orientale Pierre Fontana, 1903 and 1911.Khelifa, Abderrahmane. Tlemcen, capitale du Maghreb central. Algiers: Colorset, 2011.Lawless, Richard I. "Tlemcen, Capital City of the Abd al-Wadids: A Study of the Functions of a Medieval Islamic." Islamic Quarterly 18 (1974).Lawless, Richard I. and Gerald H. Blake. Tlemcen: Continuity and Change in an Algerian Islamic Town. London: Bowker, 1976.Leo Africanus, Johannes (1556). Description de l'Afrique, tierce partie du monde. trans. by A. Epaulard. Paris: Adrien-Maisonneuve, 1956.Levi-Provencal, Evariste. "Abd al-Wadids." In Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. 1, B. Lewis, V. L. Menage, Ch. Pellat, and J. Schacht (eds), 5th Edition. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1986.

Mosque of Sidi BrahimTlemcen, Algeria

Mosque of Sidi Brahim
Tlemcen, Algeria