Abstract
Diplomatic studies have evolved significantly during the past decades, with scholars and researchers showing an increasing interest for medieval societies beyond Europe, especially in the Muslim world. For this last case, while the Almohads and Mamluks have been well-studied, the Berber powers (Hafsids, Marinids, ʿAbdelwadīds) that succeeded the Almohads in the Muslim West remain underexplored. This study seeks to fill this gap within a fragmented historiography often influenced by analytical biases. A dominant "relations" based approach prioritizes Crown of Aragon–Maghreb exchanges, portraying post-Almohad states as peripheral and reducing their diplomacy to economic interactions. Even recent studies, despite expanding their focus, still emphasize Christian relations as the main framework for analysis. Another bias, the segmentation of actors, originally influenced by nationalist perspectives, continues to shape research on post-Almohad diplomacy, preventing a comprehensive analysis by isolating each power and creating documentary challenges. In the 1980s, Atallah Dhina attempted a broader study of the Muslim West, but his analysis remained unbalanced. As a result, despite some recent publications, very few studies have been dedicated specifically to examining the diplomatic practices of these states.
This project addresses those historiographical gaps by jointly studying the diplomacy of post-Almohad Maghreb states — the Hafsids of Ifriqiya (1228–1574), the Marinids of Fez (1244–1465), and the ʿAbdelwadīds of Tlemcen (1235–1556) — from their 13th-century break from Almohad rule until the end of the 14th century, within the distinct Muslim West, encompassing al-Andalus and the Maghreb. By adopting a synchronic and thematic approach — incorporating historical anthropology, literature, prosopography, and codicology — this research seeks to move beyond the constraints of a diachronic perspective, which is often hindered by documentary gaps.
Despite their rivalries, the Hafsids, ʿAbdelwadīds, and Marinids shared diplomatic practices shaped by Almohad traditions and the Andalusian legacy. Maghribi chroniclers highlight commonalities in negotiations, ambassador selection, diplomatic gifts, and poetry. Their administrations, especially in chancery (kitāba) and finance, were dominated by an Andalusian elite, fostering political and cultural exchange. These factors have inspired a connected approach to overcome historiographical biases and nationalist limitations. Given source constraints, research should prioritize diplomatic interactions within the Muslim West, as records on Christian exchanges remain scarce.
Our work draws on diplomatic letters, treaties, chronicles, literary anthologies, and travel accounts. To analyse negotiation dynamics beyond official documents, we incorporate Hafsid, ʿAbdelwadīd, and Marinid chronicles, acknowledging their partisan biases within a connected history approach. Diplomatic activity also has a theoretical basis, supported by encyclopaedic works, administrative and jurisprudential treatises. Additionally, biographical dictionaries provide crucial insights into diplomatic personnel. Our study integrates connected history and a synchronic approach while employing multiple thematic scales to address documentation challenges and reconcile fragmented sources. This methodological diversity maximizes available records, opening new research perspectives on diplomatic activity. Thus, focusing on "diplomatic practices", we analyse operations and key figures as well as the personnel responsible for these operations.
The study is divided in two parts: the first is devoted to the field of chancellery (kitāb) and examines the epistolary exchanges between the post-Almohad rulers, with other Muslim rulers and with the crown of Aragon according to various approaches. The second part also based on a diversification of approaches is devoted to the field of negotiation, diplomatic encounters and ambassadors.
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