Abdelkader El Djezairi

Emir Abdelkader El Djezairi عـبـد الـقـادر الـجـزائـري
Photographed by Étienne Carjat in 1865
Native name	عـبـد الـقـادر الـجـزائـري
Birth name	Abdelkader ibn Muhieddine al-Hasani-
Born	(1808-09-06)September 6, 1808 Guetna, Regency of Algiers, Ottoman Empire
Died	May 26, 1883(1883-05-26) (aged 74) Damascus, Damascus Vilayet, Ottoman Empire
Buried at	Mausoleum of Ibn Arabi, Damascus
Rank	Emir
Battles/wars	Battle of Macta Battle of Sidi-Brahim
Awards	Legion of Honour (Grand Cross) Order of Pius IX First Class of the Order of the Medjidie Order of the Redeemer (Grand Cross)

Abdelkader ibn Muhieddine (6 September 1808 – 26 May 1883), (Arabic: عبد القادر ابن محيي الدين‎‎ ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Muḥyiddīn), known as the Emir Abdelkader or Abdelkader El Djezairi, was an Algerian "Sharif" religious and military leader who led a struggle against the French colonial invasion in the mid-19th century. An Islamic scholar and Sufi who unexpectedly found himself leading a military campaign, he built up a collection of Algerian tribesmen that for many years successfully held out against one of the most advanced armies in Europe. His consistent regard for what would now be called human rights, especially as regards his Christian opponents, drew widespread admiration, and a crucial intervention to save the Christian community of Damascus from a massacre in 1860 brought honours and awards from around the world. Within Algeria, his efforts to unite the country against foreign invaders saw him hailed as the "modern Jugurtha," and his ability to combine religious and political authority has led to his being acclaimed as the "Saint among the Princes, the Prince among the Saints".

The name "Abdelkader" is sometimes transliterated as "ʿAbd al-Qādir", "Abd al-Kader", "Abdul Kader" or other variants, and he is often referred to as simply the Emir Abdelkader (since El Djezairi just means "the Algerian"). "Ibn Muhieddine" is a patronymic meaning "son of Muhieddine", and "al-Hasani" is an honorary patronymic indicating his descent from Hasan ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad. He is also often given the titles emir "prince", and shaykh "sheik".

Abdelkader was born near the town of Mascara in 1808, to a family of religious aristocracy. His father, Muhieddine (or "Muhyi al-Din") al-Hasani, was a muqaddam in a religious institution affiliated with the Qadiriyya Sufi order of Islam and claimed descendance from Muhammad, through the Idrisids. Abdelkader was thus a sharif, and entitled to add the honorary patronymic al-Hasani ("descendant of al-Hasan") to his name.