The Shihabs were generally not religious and embraced their faith nominally, some were Sunni Muslims or Druze, and later other members became Maronite Catholics.
This led to a rivalry over succession between his brothers Ahmad and Mansur, while Mulhim and his nephew Qasim sought to prevent either from assuming control over the emirate.
When Mulhim died in 1759, Qasim became the administrator of Chouf district, although after paying a bribe, this authority was transferred to Ahmad and Mansur.
Emir Mansur prevailed by 1763, and Yusuf fled the Chouf to Mukhtara, the headquarters of the powerful Druze Jumblatt clan.
He failed to arrive and support Uthman Pasha when the latter attempted to launch an invasion of Galilee, but was routed by Zahir's forces at the Battle of Lake Hula.
Yusuf sought to compensate for this loss by launching a campaign against the Metawalis at Nabatieh, but was routed by the Zaydani-Metawali alliance, losting some 1,500 of his Druze soldiers.
In order to prevent further encroachments in Lebanon by Zahir, Emir Yusuf requested the assistance of Jezzar Pasha, an Ottoman officer.
[10] Jezzar Pasha soon consolidated his own rule in Beirut and ignored agreements he had made with Emir Yusuf regarding the latter's authority in the city.
[7] Thus, Emir Yusuf requested help from his erstwhile enemy, Zahir al-Umar, via his uncle Mansur who he had previously struggled against and replaced.
[10] Zahir accepted the request and had his Russian allies bombard Beirut by sea on Yusuf's behalf until Jezzar surrendered and fled.
However, Jezzar Pasha ignored this order and took over Beirut in 1776 with the demand that Emir Yusuf pay three years worth of miri tax.
[13] Emir Yusuf and his brothers Sid Ahmad and Effendi engaged in a long power struggle during the late 1770s and 1780s.
In 1780, Effendi was killed in an attack his forces launched to assassinate Emir Yusuf's top confidant, Sa'ad al-Khuri.
The new alliance between Jezzar, Isma'il, Sayyid Ahmad and the Jumblatts forced Emir Yusuf to flee Mount Lebanon for the Jabal al-Ansariyah.
[18] Following his 1788 defeat, Emir Yusuf appealed to the Druze clans for safety in return for surrendering authority over Mount Lebanon.
Bashir Shihab II, a distant cousin and ally of Ali al-Shihab, was given official control over Mount Lebanon by Jezzar Pasha in September 1789.