Al-Husayn I ibn Ali at-Turki (1669 – 13 March 1740) was the founder of the Husainid Dynasty

Husainid Dynasty

The Husainid Dynasty is the former ruling dynasty of Tunisia originally of Cretan origin. They came to power under Al-Husayn I ibn Ali at-Turki in 1705 replacing the Muradid Dynasty. After taking power the Husainids ruled as Beys with succession to the throne determined by age with the oldest...

, which ruled Tunisia

Tunisia

Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...

 until 1957.

Biography

Husayn was of Cretan

Crete

Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...

 origin, although it is not known for sure whether Greek

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 or Turkish

Turkish people

Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

. His name Al Turki (At-Turki) suggests however a Turkish origin.

In 1702 the janissary

Janissary

The Janissaries were infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops and bodyguards...

 commander Ibrahim Sharif

Ibrahim Sharif

Ibrahim Sharif al-Sayed is a Sunni Arab opposition political activist in Bahrain, currently serving as the General Secretary of the secular liberal National Democratic Action Society . He succeeded former General Secretary Abdulrahman al-Nuaimi, who fell into a coma in April 2007 and died in 2011...

, of whom he was lieutnant, expelled the Muradid Dynasty

Muradid Dynasty

The Muradid Dynasty was a dynasty which ruled over Tunisia from 1613 to 1705.-History:The dynasty was founded by Murad Bey, a janissary of Corsican origin. Ramdan Bey, ruler of Tunis, had sponsored the Corsican Murad since his youth. After Ramdan's death in 1613, Murad then followed his...

 from Tunis. Three years later, after Sharif had been captured by the Dey of Algiers

Algiers

' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...

, he took control of the Turkish army in Tunis and, on 12 July 1705, had himself proclaimed Bey of Tunis. he had one of his close relatives proclaimed dey

Dey

Dey was the title given to the rulers of the Regency of Algiers and Tripoli under the Ottoman Empire from 1671 onwards...

by the Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

 diwan

Divan

A divan was a high governmental body in a number of Islamic states, or its chief official .-Etymology:...

, an act which increased his popularity amongst the Turkish janissaries, and he was also able to gain support from his Tunisian subjects; however, his entourage was mostly composed of Mamluk

Mamluk

A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...

s. Husayn's first councillor was a Frenchman from Toulon

Toulon

Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....

, a literate man who had helped him in gaining the power.

A pious man, he imposed a unity upon the country, divided into numerous different ethnicities, under the aegis of Islam and its traditions. He built numerous edifices dedicated to religion and religious studies (madrasas), such as the Madrasahs of the Dyers (1727) and al-Husseyniah in Tunis, as well as the mosque of Le Bardo

Le Bardo

Le Bardo is a Tunisian city west of Tunis. As of 2004, the population is 73,953.Built by the Hafsid dynasty in the 15th century, the name Bardo comes from the Spanish word "pardo" meaning a garden. Bardo became a residence of the Tunis court in the 18th century...

 and other madrasas in the country's mainland (Kairouan

Kairouan

Kairouan , also known as Kirwan or al-Qayrawan , is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia. Referred to as the Islamic Cultural Capital, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city was founded by the Arabs around 670...

, Sfax

Sfax

Sfax is a city in Tunisia, located southeast of Tunis. The city, founded in AD 849 on the ruins of Taparura and Thaenae, is the capital of the Sfax Governorate , and a Mediterranean port. Sfax has population of 340,000...

, Sousse

Sousse

Sousse is a city in Tunisia. Located 140 km south of the capital Tunis, the city has 173,047 inhabitants . Sousse is in the central-east of the country, on the Gulf of Hammamet, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. The name may be of Berber origin: similar names are found in Libya and in...

 and Nafta

Nafta, Tunisia

Nefta is a town and oasis in Tunisia, close to the Algerian border, and just north of the Chott el Djerid.-Religious significance:...

).

In 1726 he ordered the construction of El Jedid Mosque

El Jedid Mosque

El Jedid Mosque is a mosque in Tunis, Tunisia, located in Medina area of the city.The mosque was built in 1726 under the order of the sovereign Al-Husayn I ibn Ali at-Turki, founder of the Husaynid dynasty. It is part of an architectural complex which consists of the mosque, a madrasah and...

 in Tunis.

Husayn tried to establish a succession to the title of bey for his sons Muhammad and Ali (born in 1710 and 1712, respectively). His nephew Ali Pasha

Abu l-Hasan Ali I

Abu l-Hasan Ali I was the second leader of the Husainid Dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 1735 until his death.-Biography:He was a grandson of Ali Turki, governor of Kef, and the nephew of Husayn I Bey. After the latter came to power in 1705, he was appointed governor of Sousse and then named...

, who had been plotting against him and had been therefore put under surveillance by Husayn, was able to escape and revolted, with the help of local tribes and of the Dey of Algiers. The latter invaded Tunisia and defeated Husayn the battle of Smindja (4 September 1735), the latter forced to flee to Sousse, while his troops in Tunis capitulated. Husayn was captured and beheaded on 13 September 1740.