Sultan Moulay Ismaïl of Morocco was nearly killed by a lion in his royal park, reportedly slaying the beast himself with a dagger in a dramatic show of courage. Whether true or embellished, the tale served to reinforce his image as a powerful ruler both at home and abroad. Did you know that Sultan Moulay Ismaïl of Morocco was nearly devoured by an Atlas lion? Nicknamed «the warrior king», the sultan earned his reputation not only by defeating human enemies, but also by taking down the king of the jungle himself. The story emerged from the intricate world of Moroccan diplomacy with France during Moulay Ismaïl's reign (1672–1727), a time when lions played a prominent symbolic and political role. These majestic beasts were sent as diplomatic gifts by the Moroccan king and his envoys—living emblems of power, sovereignty, and fearlessness. In 1699, Moroccan ambassador Abdellah bin Aicha, Sultan Moulay Ismail's envoy to France, had become the talk of Versailles and Paris. Intercepted letters revealed that his brother had sent him «a little suckling lion cub». «It was perhaps to complete the gifts that the Marquis de Breteuil saw 'displayed in a wardrobe of the King: they were three lion skins of extraordinary size'», writes historian Bernard Rosenberger in his book «Lions, Saints, and Sultans in Morocco». The lion slayer One of those skins, he wrote, came from a lion wounded in the flank, the result of a dramatic, near-fatal incident involving Sultan Moulay Ismaïl himself: «The ambassador (Ben Aicha) told me on the way that it was the King, his master, who had killed him with a dagger blow by a rather unusual incident». The story goes that the Sultan was walking in his royal park when a domesticated lion, stirred by a flock of sheep, suddenly attacked. The guards tried to push the animal away with the ends of their rifles, but the lion charged. «It threw itself on the King, placing one claw on his shoulder and another on his hip. One of his wives supported him by pressing her back to his, giving him the chance to draw his dagger and pierce the lion in the side. The guards then finished it off with rifle shots». Despite the dramatic rescue, the Sultan was seriously wounded under his arm. This incident was likely referenced later when a Moroccan ambassador reproached Louis XIV for failing to inquire about the Sultan's health. Alternate Interpretations A very different version of events appears in a Jewish document dated 5459 (1698–1699). In this account, the Sultan allegedly had four Christian captives thrown to lions in his presence. During the spectacle, one of the lions is said to have turned on Moulay Ismaïl, possibly at the desperate urging of one of the prisoners, and nearly devoured him. To the Moroccan court and foreign diplomats, the lion came to symbolize Moulay Ismaïl's unmatched courage and authority. Whether entirely true or embellished, the tale of the Sultan and the lion served a powerful political purpose: reinforcing his legitimacy at home and impressing foreign courts.
