Almoravid dynasty

The Almoravid dynasty was a Berber Muslim ruling house that built an empire across the Maghreb and al-Andalus in the 11th and 12th centuries.

Sanhaja: A confederation of Berber peoples that inhabited parts of the western Sahara and Maghreb. The Almoravids emerged from Sanhaja groups, especially the Lamtuna.
Yusuf ibn Tashfin: An Almoravid ruler who expanded the dynasty's empire across the Maghreb and into al-Andalus. His campaigns and government transformed a regional movement into an imperial state.
Ali ibn Yusuf: An Almoravid ruler who succeeded Yusuf ibn Tashfin and governed from 1106 to 1143. His long reign saw both the empire's consolidation and growing pressure from internal and external rivals.
Siege of Aghmat: An Almoravid campaign that brought the important Moroccan town of Aghmat under their control. Control of Aghmat helped establish the movement's position in southern Morocco.
Almohad Caliphate: A North African and Iberian empire founded by the Almohad movement, which defeated the Almoravids. The Almohads inherited much of the Almoravid realm after overthrowing the dynasty.
Lamtuna: A Sanhaja Berber group whose members helped establish Almoravid power. The dynasty's founders drew their base and early military strength from this group.
Marrakesh: A city in present-day Morocco founded in the eleventh century and made the Almoravid capital. The dynasty used Marrakesh as its political center and base for western expansion.
Abu Bakr ibn Umar: An early Almoravid leader who campaigned in the Sahara and helped establish the movement's power. He was among the movement's first military leaders before Yusuf ibn Tashfin became dominant.
Conquest of Marrakesh: The Almoravid capture of Marrakesh, which became the dynasty's principal capital. The new capital marked the shift from a reform movement to a regional ruling power.
Great Mosque of Tlemcen: A historic mosque in Tlemcen, Algeria, whose surviving fabric includes Almoravid-era construction. Its architecture preserves material evidence of Almoravid authority in the central Maghreb.

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