Skiredj Library of Tijani Studies
The esteemed judge and scholar Sidi Ahmed Skiredj was raised in an environment rich in knowledge and Sufi spirituality, receiving his education in the city of Fez. He married for the first time in 1902 to Dame Fatima, daughter of Sidi Al-Makki Ben Chekroun, with whom he had a son, Abdelkrim. However, he became severely ill during his son’s birth, and his wife faced significant difficulties during labor. In 1909, he moved to Tangier to work at the Dar Niyaba (House of Representation), but he struggled to adapt to the city’s unique atmosphere and left the position shortly after. In 1910, he married his cousin’s daughter in Tetouan and had a son named Mohammed, though he later divorced her at her father’s request (his uncle).
Throughout his career, Sidi Ahmed Skiredj sought out encounters and collaboration with various scholars and spiritual leaders. Among his most significant journeys was his visit to Meknes, where he met the leader of the Alaouite chorfas, Moulay Abderrahman Ben Zidan, and wrote "Al-Rihla Al-Zaydaniya" (The Zaydani Journey). He also traveled to Oran at the invitation of his friend, the jurist Sidi Al-Habib Ben Abdelmalek, and documented the details of this journey in his work "Al-Rihla Al-Habibiya Al-Wahraniya" (Journey to Oran). He additionally accompanied the noble Sidi Mahmoud Tijani, grandson of Cheikh Sīdī Aḥmad al-Tijānī (Sidi Mahmoud, son of Sidi Mohamed Bachir, son of Sidi Mohamed Habib, son of Cheikh Sīdī Aḥmad al-Tijānī, may Allah be pleased with him), on a journey through several cities of Morocco. However, he was forced to return to Fez before completing this trip and recorded the events in his book, "Ghayat al-Maqsoud bi Al-Rihla ma’a Sidi Mahmoud" (The Supreme Purpose of the Journey with Sidi Mahmoud).
Sidi Ahmed Skiredj held numerous positions, including that of secretary to the pasha of Tangier, and later as the superintendent of the Habous (religious endowments) of Fez el-Jedid. He was also chosen by the Moroccan government to represent the country in a mission to congratulate King Hussein on the independence of the Hejaz, a journey he recounted in his book "Al-Rihla Al-Hijaziya" (The Journey to the Hejaz). In 1919, he was appointed as the judge of Oujda but requested to be relieved of his duties due to the lack of support for the principles of justice and virtue. He subsequently served at the Supreme Court of Rabat, followed by appointments as judge of El Jadida and Settat, positions he held until his death in Marrakech in 1944.