Marrakech Today

Marrakech Menara In 1147 the Almohads, proponents of orthodox Islam and tribal Masmouda from the High Atlas, took the city. The last Almoravids were killed except those who went into exile in the Balearic Islands (family Banu Ghania). As a result almost all the monuments were destroyed. The Almohads built many palaces and religious buildings, such as the famous Koutoubia mosque built on the ruins of a palace Almoravid, and twin sister of the Giralda in Seville and the Hassan Tower (unfinished) in Rabat. The Casbah housed the residence Caliphate (since the reign of Abd al-Mumin the ruler had the title of Almohad caliph, rivaling the far eastern caliphate of the Abbasids), decorated with a hospital that drew the Andalusian physician Ibn Tufayl. Majestic of all the Casbah mansourienne, named after the caliph Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur, are still the beautiful Bab Agnaw. Marrakech was so worthy to house the capital of the major power of the Muslim West Mediterranean at the time, the Almohad empire that encompassed the area between Cordoba (Al Andalus) and Tripoli (Libya).

Marrakech is one of the university cities of Morocco. The University Qadi Iyad is the largest in the region. More recently a high school visual arts (ESAV) was created in partnership between the Foundation and Dar Bellarj the University of Marrakech, the city offering support for training in film and television. Marrakech also organizes the International Festival of Film.Marrakech was founded in the year 1062 (year of the Hegira 454), by Abu Bakr Ibn Omar, sovereign and cousin Youssef Ibn Tachfin.

The name comes from Marrakech Tamazight "dying" which means "country" and "Akouche" which mean "god" giving the land of god. Another etymology gives the interpretation of "land parcours1. "

Soon, in Marrakech, led the Almoravids, pious and austere scholars from warriors of the desert, many mosques and madrassas (Koranic schools of theology) were built and a commercial center for the Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africa . Marrakech is growing rapidly and established itself as a cultural and religious influence. Palaces were built and adorned also with the help of Andalusian craftsmen from Cordoba and Seville, which led to the Umayyad style characterized by domes and arches carved lobed. This Andalusian influence merged with the elements or Saharan West Africa and was synthesized in a completely original design tailored to the specific environment of Marrakech. It became the capital of the Almoravid emirate stretching from the shores of Senegal to central Spain and the Atlantic coast to Algiers. The city was then fortified by the son of Ibn Tachfin Youssef, Youssef Ben Ali, who had built 1122-1123 to the ramparts still visible.

To fuel the park and the extensive gardens, irrigation system was built and refined.Marrakech, by cultural influence attracted many writers and artists from including Andalusia, including the famous philosopher Averroes of Cordoba, known for his commentaries on Aristotle. In 1269, Marrakech was conquered by the nomadic Zenata the expense of the last Almohades. Occurs when the advent of the Marinids, while Marrakesh fell to some lethargy, and its decline resulted in the loss of its status as capital for the benefit of his great rival, Fez. In the early sixteenth century, Marrakech became the capital of the kingdom, having been the seat of the emirs Hintata. She quickly reestablished its peak, especially during the reign of the Saadian Sultans, Mohammed El Mahdi and Ahmed al-Mansur Saadi. Thanks to the fortune amassed by the Sultans, Marrakech was embellished, the ruined monuments were restored and sumptuous palaces built. El Badi Palace built by Ahmed al-Mansur, was a replica of the Alhambra, made with the most precious materials from Italy (marble), Sudan (gold dust), India (porphyry) and even of China (jade). The Badi also struck by his contemporaries "Qubbat Jujjaj al," his "glass dome" made of translucent glass. But all this was to disappear, dismantled by order of Sultan Moulay Ismail to 1695. This palace was primarily designed for lavish receptions offered to the ambassadors from Spain, England and the Ottoman Empire, recognizing the Saadian Morocco as a powerful force whose area of ??influence reached the borders of Niger and Mali , gold producing region. During the reign of the Saadian dynasty, Marrakesh regained its role as a point of contact between the Maghreb, the Mediterranean sub-Saharan Africa and the world, through the caravan routes. The Biennial Arts in Marrakech, born in 2005 is the most important event of contemporary art in Morocco. Contemporary art is now a private museum in Marrakech. This is the museum of the palm, a private collector and due to the creator of perfumes Abderrazzak Benchaabane. The Museum of the palm the visitor a collection of paintings, photographs, sculptures and installation of Moroccan and foreign artists. The collection shows the work of sixty artists of today and those of Pariya [What?] Just after the Great War. Marrakech is home to the first private university campus of the kingdom which has several schools such as the Graduate School of Management ESG, Euromed and Vatel. The man of letters has devoted much of his life to learn, know and make known the Arab world. Installed many years to Marrakech, he chose to end his life. To preserve his memory, the embassies of Poland and England have decided to renovate his tomb, which was dilapidated. Thursday, January 5, 2011 at 4:00 p.m., held a commemoration ceremony at the Christian cemetery of Marrakech, in the presence of many Moroccan and Polish art world, the Polish Ambassador in Rabat, Mr. Witold Spirydowicz , the representative of the British Embassy and the vice chairman of the council of Marrakech, who talked about Marrakech as popular destination for lovers of art and culture from all backgrounds. Romuald Landau joined England in the First World War, leaving his homeland, Poland.Two of his books, devoted to composer and politician Ignacy Paderewski and the Polish Marshal Jozef Pilsudski, allowed him to keep in touch with his roots. It is quà the end of the war, Landau moved to Marrakech and devotes his art to writing books on the Kings Mohammed V and Hassan II, with whom he shared the desire for independence from Morocco. His work has also focused on religion, literature and architecture of his new home. Well aware of the Arab issues, the author taught a while in California, Department of Islamic Studies College of the Pacific in Stockton. Romuald Landau, also an educator, art critic and sculptor, leaves behind a large number of books on Morocco, which should be better known. IN magical, fascinating, captivating, Jemaa El Fna seduces and provokes both. Place of unlikely encounters, secrets declared or undeclared, festive entertainment, trade and commerce, it is the largest open-air theater in the world.

If Jemaa El Fna is one of the most famous places of the world, not only because it fascinates its visitors since the dawn of time, but also because it is steeped in history. It's over the centuries as legends have shaped his identity, interspersed with mysteries, secret alcoves where mingled with state secrets, where the fate of anonymous crossed that of the kings. If its origins are unclear, historians all agree that they coincide with the founding of Marrakech. Nevertheless, it is now