Battle of Isly
The Battle of Isly (Arabic: معركة إيسلي) 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, mainly fighters from the tribes of Beni Snassen, but also from the Beni Angad and Beni Oukil; under Muhammad, son of the Sultan of Morocco, Abd al-Rahman. 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 who demanded the Sultan of Morocco to withdraw support for Abd el-Kader.
| Battle of Isly | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Franco-Moroccan War | |||||||
Battle of Isly, oil painting by Horace Vernet. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| France | Morocco | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Thomas Robert Bugeaud Joseph Vantini |
Abd al-Rahman Muhammad IV | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 10,400 soldiers | 45,000 soldiers | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
27 killed 99 wounded |
800 killed 1,500 wounded 11 artillery | ||||||
Battle of Isly Location of the Battle of Isly | |||||||
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.