Yusuf Shihab of the Tripoli region remained supportive of the Ottomans. Owing largely to the conflict between Zahir and the Druze emirs of Mount Lebanon, the Druze of the Galilee did not fare well under Zahir and his Zaydani clan. In the oral traditions of the Galilee's Druze, Zahir's reign was synonymous with oppression. During this period, many Druze villages were destroyed or abandoned, and there was a partial Druze exodus from the Galilee, especially from the villages around Safed, to the Hauran. Family Zahir had five wives during his lifetime. His marriages were politically advantageous, helping to seal his rule over areas he captured and consolidate relationships with Bedouin tribes, local clans, or urban notables. His first wife was the daughter of the Damascene religious notable, Sayyid Muhammad al-Husayni. Among his other wives was a woman from the Sardiyya tribe, and the daughters of the of Bi'ina and Deir al-Qassi. Zahir had eight sons from his wives, and according to Tobias Smollett, a daughter as well. His sons, from eldest to youngest, were Salibi, Ali, Uthman, Sa'id, Ahmad, Salih, Sa'd al-Din and Abbas. His daughter Nijma was married to Karim al-Ayyubi, who was a cousin of Zahir. By 1773, Zahir had a total of 272 children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. As Zahir consolidated his power and reduced external threats to his rule in the 1760s, his sons aspired for more influence and ultimately fought against their father and each other in order to secure their place as Zahir's successor. Besides support from elements of the Zaydani clan, Zahir's sons maintained their own power bases, largely derived from their mothers' clans, and also made their own alliances with other powerful actors in the region. Zahir was victorious in the many conflicts he had with his sons, but their frequent dissent weakened his rule and contributed to his downfall. Before his sons' rebellions, Zahir had eliminated other relatives who challenged his power. Legacy Zahir's rule radically changed the urban landscape of the Galilee. With the restoration and refortification of Acre and the establishment of the secondary port city of Haifa, the Galilee's ties with the Mediterranean world were significantly strengthened. Following his death, his successor Jazzar Pasha maintained the cotton monopoly Zahir had established and the Galilee's economy remained almost completely dependent on the cotton trade. The region prospered for decades, but with the rise of cotton production in the southern United