After the death of the dey Ahmed Chabane, the Divan of Algiers named multiple pretenders but were killed the same day by the Janissaries who couldn't agree who to elect.

On August 6, the Janissaries were wandering in the streets as they found Hadj Ahmed in front of his house sewing slippers.

Hadj ahmed accepted the conditions imposed by the constitution of 1672, and ruled Algiers with an iron fist as he spread fear around the capital.

The letters of the French diplomats M. Laurence and M. Lemaire depict him as a capricious, insecure and such a strange behavior similar to complete madness.

He was so insecure, in fact, he filled the capital with spys, and he was paranoid even of the idea of going out the Jenina palace[fr] to go pray at the Mosque.