Ahmed I Bey, the Jews enjoyed prosperity. His successor, Muhammad II ibn al-Husayn, inaugurated his reign in 1855 by abolishing the drudgery imposed upon the Jews; the qaid Joseph Scemama, with whom the bey was on very intimate terms, probably used his influence in behalf of his coreligionists. That year, however Mohammed Bey had a Jew named Batto Sfez executed for blasphemy. This execution aroused both Jews and Christians, and a deputation was sent to Napoleon III, asking him to intervene on their behalf. After two years of diplomatic negotiations a man-of-war was sent to enforce the demands of the French government. Mohammed Bey yielded, and issued a constitution, according to which all Tunisians, without distinction of creed, were to enjoy equal rights. The following articles of this constitution were of special interest to the Jews: (§ 4) "No manner of duress will be imposed upon our Jewish subjects forcing them to change their faith, and they will not be hindered in the free observance of their religious rites. Their synagogues will be respected, and protected from insult." (§ 6) "When a criminal court is to pronounce the penalty incurred by a Jew, Jewish assessors shall be attached to the said court." The constitution was abrogated in 1864 in consequence of a revolution, which entailed great suffering on several Jewish communities, especially on that of Sfax; but the constant fear of foreign interference rendered the government very circumspect in its treatment of the Jews. French Protectorate (1881–1956) The Jews of Tunisia felt much safer under the French protectorate. Contact with the French colonizers of Tunisia and the official presence of the French facilitated the assimilation of the Jews of Tunisia to French culture and their emancipation. Relying on the French revolutionary promise of Liberté, égalité, fraternité, the Jews hoped for a better life and were very receptive to the new French influences, though they had a Christian European source. For the generation born under the protectorate, the French language replaced Judeo-Arabic as the mother tongue of the Jews of French Tunisia. Additionally, more Jewish children began attending state schools throughout the country, which slowly lead to the diffusion of French culture and lifestyle within the Jewish community. World War II Following the armistice in June 1940, the French Protectorate of Tunisia became part of Vichy France, the new French state ruled by collaborationist Marshal Philippe Pétain during France's occupation by