Marrakech history

Marrakech is one of Morocco's four Imperial Cities, along with Méknes, Fes and Rabat. It was founded around 1062 by the Berber Almoravids and soon became the capital of an Islamic empire that reached from central Spain to West Africa.

The rule of Yousef Ben Tachfine blessed Marrakech with its legendary walls, several mosques, fine gardens and palaces. The Almoravid conquest of southern Spain led to an exchange of culture investing this remote desert enclave with the cosmopolitan atmosphere of Andalucia, something that it has retained a feel for to this day.

The architectural influence of the Almohads was strong. Many of the city's best-known landmarks, such as the mosques Koutoubia and El Mansour, date from their conquest, as do the vast mud walls that encase the medina.

Morocco was colonised by the French in the early 20th century. French influence lingers on in the wide boulevards of Guéliz and its few remaining art deco villas, most notably landscape painter Jacques Majorelle's stylish cobalt blue retreat in the Jardin Majorelle. But the most significant legacy of this colonial rule is the French language, which is still spoken by all educated Moroccans.

After WWII, a vast array of pleasure-seekers, ranging from the glamorous to the distinctly insalubrious, left their mark on Marrakech. Winston Churchill, Yves Saint Laurent and the Rolling Stones rubbed shoulders with American beat writers, hippies and a new breed of curious visitors anxious to see what all the fuss was about.