
7 That did not prevent her majesty's government from expressing dismay at how the defense of French interests had mushroomed from a quick securing of the Algerian border into a full-scale occupation of Tunisia and its placement under French protection. Like the bey, top officials in the British foreign office also had not regarded a formal protectorate as necessary, even though they had made clear to the French for some time prior to the spring 1881 invasion that Queen Victoria's government harbored "no jealousy" with regard to French interests in Tunisia. 6 But nothing he did could satisfy the French, who forced his hand on 12 May the resulting Treaty of Ksar Said (Bardo Treaty) established the protectorate without mentioning the word.

5 Later that spring, when the French used the Khmirs' activities on the Tunisia-Algeria border as an excuse for intervention, the bey protested French military encroachment on his territory, even sending his own troops to try to quiet the Khmirs himself. In reply, the bey repudiated the charges and declined the offer as unnecessary. Arguing that the bey's independence would be better safeguarded by France, the Quai-d'Orsay had offered to "protect" the bey in February 1881. In an effort to capitalize on these dynamics, French leaders had tried to convince Muhammad al-Sadiq Bey that the Ottoman sultan was scheming to install a pasha in Tunis, as had been done in Tripoli. 4 The trouble was that the sultan, like the bey, increasingly confronted challenges from those same Western European powers and struggled himself to maintain control of his many provinces. In the late nineteenth century, however, as Western powers scrambled to divvy up the African continent in a "new" phase of imperial acquisition, older forms of empire such as Ottoman suzerainty began to look more attractive to the bey. 3 By brokering these arrangements, the bey had deliberately sought the support of European powers as counterweights to the sultan. 2 Similar to agreements by the same name that the Ottoman sultan had entered into with European states in other parts of the empire, these treaties granted European governments the right to judge their subjects under their own laws and thereby avoid their subjection to Islamic law, which was perceived to be prejudicial. 1 In fact, the bey was caught between two imperial systems that clashed in the late-nineteenth-century Mediterranean: the Ottoman Empire and the New Imperialism.Ĭlaiming autonomy from the Ottoman sultan, the beys had cultivated relationships with Western European governments and their consular representatives for decades, even negotiating separate capitulations treaties with them. Nonetheless, he clung to what remained of his autonomy. In part because of that war (and the cost of raising a Tunisian army raised in defense of the Ottomans), Muhammad al-Sadiq Bey had found his finances under international receivership for over a decade. After all, he already had a protector in the Ottoman sultan-albeit one from whom he had long asserted his independence and whose ability to protect any of his regents had been compromised by the Crimean War and its aftermath. Or at least the bey of Tunis did not think so. Engaging music, sound effects and fantastic graphics.There was never supposed to be a protectorate. High score, playing statistics, achievements and multiplayer ELO-ranking. Empires including the Roman Empire, Carthage, Persia, Celts and Inca amongst others. Map editor and a central server to host and distribute player-modded bundles. Map scenarios including Europe, Colonization, Asian Empires, World Conquest and many more. Diplomacy management of economy & population. Cross-platform multiplayer & hotseat-Play including co-op team games. Challenging AI for single player games based on a genetic algorithm. Turn-based grand strategy game with maps & nations from all over the world. Are you ready for the challenge? Will your place be in the history books or in the mud? Assemble your armies, take on the world and achieve greatness in this epic historical strategy game. You forge alliances and together you take on your enemies. You do your best to keep your population happy. Range of functionality is comprised of expansion, diplomacy and managing your nation's finances and economy. Form alliances and fight co-op style with the AI and other players for ultimate victory. Wage colossal wars solo, against the AI, or take on your gaming friends in cross-platform multiplayer games. From Rome to Asian nations, you create your own warring experience. Command your armies in one of the many ancient and medieval countries including the Roman Empire, the Inca, France, Russia, Japan or the Chinese Dynasties. Age of Conquest is a turn-based grand strategy wargame.
