Emirate of Banu Talis

Banu Talis was a Hawwara Dynasty, which appeared in Libya in 1228 and established the city of Bani Walid as its capital.

Rise
The dynasty was founded by the scholar Sheikh Ahmed bin Muhammad bin Ali bin Abdullah bin Al-Rashid bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qayrawani, who was born in the Tunisian city of Mahdia and then moved to Kairouan, where he received his education. It was also said that he was Andalusi by birth.

Stories differ about the reason behind Ibn Talis' exodus to Tripoli. Some sources claim that Abd al-Dar took refuge there on the run after a dispute that occurred between him and some scholars of Kairouan who conspired with the Sultan against him. He and those with him fled across the sea to Tripoli. Other sources claim that he was assigned to Tripoli by the ruling Hafsid dynasty.

In any case, Sheikh Ibn Talis arrived in Wadi Bani Walid in 1228. The Hawwara Berber and Hilali Arab residents of the region gathered around him (perhaps due to his noble Qurashi lineage). He became a major force in the country.

He then made several reforms in the region. He dug between 300 and 360 wells, and built several palaces, including the famous "Ibn Talis Palace", which he used as the seat of power.

He also built several zawiyas, and the emirate flourished during his reign. Trade, agriculture, and pottery making spread, and prominent scholars appeared, whose fame spread throughout North Africa and Sub-Saharan Sudan, such as Sheikh "Abdul Salam al-Fitouri", known as "Abdul Salam al-Asmar", to whom students come from all over Libya, Tunisia, Mali (Timbuktu), Chad, and others.

The influence of the emirate extended during their reign from the borders of Cyrenaica in the east to Tajoura region in the west, and from the sea in the north to mainland Fezzan in the south, but its power was concentrated on or near the coast in the cities of: Bani Walid, Sirte, Tarhuna, Misrata, Zliten and Masalata. And the Mujahid Sheikh “Abdul Wahid Al-Doukali”, who was a student of the scholar "Ibn Tlis" himself, and Sheikh "Karim Al-Din Al-Barmouni" and many others. Sheikh Ibn Tellis died at the age of 53 and was buried in his hometown of Kairouan.

Fall
The emirate suffered from foreign invasion more than once, the first of which was the Spanish invasion in 1510 AD, which targeted the city of Masalata, the cultural capital of the emirate, and the Banu Tellis were able to repel this occupation under the leadership of Sheikh "Abdul Wahid Al-Doukali."

Then there was the Ottoman Turkish invasion during the reign of the last prince, "Ali II", who resisted them for 26 years before they invaded in 1603 AD with an army of 10,000 fighters supported by some local tribes. As for the emirate's headquarters in Qasr Bin Talis, it was destroyed, the city was completely burned, and most of the members of the ruling family were killed, and after that an unknowen sheikhdom ruled.

Those who remained alive fled to the southwest of the city of Tripoli and became part of a tribal alliance there known as "Burshfana", in which they are numbered to this day and are known as the "Awlad Talis" tribe.

List of rulers
The rulers who succeeded Sheikh Ahmed in ruling are:

1- Ahmed bin Muhammad bin Ali bin Abdullah bin Al-Rashid bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qayrawani

2- Ali bin Ahmed bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qurashi.

3- Hamouda bin Ali bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qurashi

4- Diab bin Hamouda bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qurashi

5- Ghalib bin Diab bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qurashi

6- Ali II bin Ghalib bin Talis Al-Abdari Al-Qurashi