Battle of Agueddin
The Battle of Agueddin took place between the Emirate of Abdelkader in Algeria and the Alaouite Dynasty of Morocco in December 1847.
Background
was outlawed in Morocco following the 1844 Treaty of Tangiers. This led to a series of confrontations between him and the Moroccan forces in which even an assassin had been sent in an attempt to kill him, these tensions ultimately led to the Battle of Oued Aslaf which resulted in an Algerian victory.On 10 December 1847, when Emir Abdelkader's camp was situated in Agueddin, he was warned of a Moroccan army of 50,000 men split into three divisions led by the two sons of the Moroccan sultan Abd al-Rahman Moulay Mohammed and Moulay Soliman.
Battle
On the 11th of December Emir Abdelkader gathered 1,200 cavalry and 800 infantry and prepared for battle. At night camels that were covered with halfa, which had been dipped in tar and pitch were driven in the front of the column. After marching for two hours, Abdelkader encountered the first Moroccan division, he then set fire to the halfa covered camels and they plunged against the Moroccan cavalry. The Moroccans were bewildered, terrified and ultimately defeated, abandoning their tents, arms and baggage. Emir Abdelkader advanced and surprised and defeated the second Moroccan division in the same manner as the first.Emir Abdelkader advanced on to the third division where he was checked by heavy fire, as a result he withdrew and took position. By mid-day 5,000 Moroccan cavalrymen set out to attack Abdelkader who calmly waited for them. When they were at charging distance he led his men to attack them, ploughing through them and shaking them off using a skillful combination of assault and retreat Abdelkader was successful.