Fes

Fes or Fez (Arabic: فاس‎ Fās, Tifinagh: ⴼⴰⵙ) is the second largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of approximately 1 million (2010). It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region.

Fes, the former capital, is one of the country's four "imperial cities," the others being Rabat, Marrakech and Meknes. It comprises three distinct parts, Fes el Bali (the old, walled city), Fes-Jdid (new Fes, home of the Mellah) and the Ville Nouvelle (the French-created, newest section of Fes).

Fes el Bali is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its medina, the larger of the two medinas of Fes, is believed to be the world's largest contiguous car-free urban area. The University of Al-Karaouine, founded in AD 859, is the oldest continuously functioning university in the world. The city has been called the "Mecca of the West" and the "Athens of Africa".^[3]

History

The city was founded on a bank of the Fez River by Idris I in 789, founder of the Zaydi Shi'ite Idrisid dynasty. His son, Idris II (808).^[4], continued the building on the opposing river bank.

Arab emigration to Fes, including 800 Al-Andalusian families expelled after a rebellion in Córdoba in 817–818, and other 2,000 families banned from Kairouan (modern Tunisia) after another rebellion in 824, gave the city a definite Arab character. 'Adwat Al-Andalus and 'Adwat al-Qarawiyyin, the two main quarters of Fes, got their names after these two waves of Arab immigrants to the new city.^[5] During Yahya ibn Muhammad's rule the Kairouyine mosque, one of the oldest and largest in Africa, was built, together with the associated University of Al-Karaouine was founded (859).^[6]

After Ali ibn Umar (Ali II) came to power, the Berber tribes of Madyuna, Gayatha and Miknasa, which were Sufrite Kharijites, formed a common front against the Idrisid. When they had defeated Ali's armies, they occupied Fes. They were driven out of the city by Yahya ibn Al-Qassim, who declared himself Ali's successor.^[7]

The city was populated by Muslims from elsewhere in North Africa and the Middle East, Moriscos (especially after the Spanish conquest of Granada in 1492). Many Jews did also settle in the city, in their own quarter, the Mellah. Before that, most of the city's population was of Berber descent, with rural Berbers from the surrounding countryside settling the city throughout its history, mainly in the Andalusian quarter and later in the 'new city' of Fes.^[8]

The two halves of Fes were united in 1069, after the destruction of the wall dividing them. Although the capital was moved to Marrakech and Tlemcen under the Almoravids, Fes remained the scientific and religious center, where both Muslims and Christians from Europe came to study. In 1250 it regained its capital status under the Marinid dynasty.

In 1465 a large massacre of Jews was caused by Arab riots.^[9])

In the Early Modern Age, the Ottoman Empire came close to Fes after the conquest of Oujda in the 16th century. In 1554 the Wattasid Dynasty took Fes with the support of the Turks, and the city became a vassal of the Ottomans, who finally conquered it in 1579 under sultan Murad III.^[10]

The Ottoman power in North Africa focused on threats posed by the Habsburg Spain and the Portuguese Kingdom. As a result, Fes was not under pressure from the Ottoman rulers. The conquest of Fes was the catalyst for the move of the capital city of the Saadi Dynasty to Marrakech. Early in the 17th century the town returned to Moroccan control under Ahmad al Mansur.^[11]

After the fall of the Saadi Dynasty (1649), Fes was a major trading post of the Barbary Coast of North Africa. Until the 19th century it was the only source of Fez hats (also known as the tarboosh). Then manufacturing began in France and Turkey as well. Originally, the dye for the hats came from a berry that was grown outside the city, known as the Turkish "kızılcık" or Greek "akenia" (Cornus mascula). Fes was also the end of a north-south gold trading route from Timbuktu. Fes was also a prime manufacturing location for leather goods such as the Adarga.

The city became independent in 1790, under the leadership of Yazid (1790–1792) and later, of Abu´r-Rabi Sulayman. In 1795 control of the city returned to Morocco. Fes took part in a rebellion in 1819-1821, led by Ibrahim ibn Yazid, as well as in the 1832 rebellion led by Muhammad ibn Tayyib.

Fes was again the capital of Morocco until 1912, when most of Morocco came under French control and Rabat was chosen as the capital of the new colony. Rabat remained the capital even when Morocco achieved independence in 1956. While many of the original inhabitants of Fes have since emigrated, and the Jewish quarter has been emptied of its Jewish population. This has led to a stagnation of the city's economy.

Despite the traditional character of most of the city, there is also a modern section, the Ville Nouvelle, or "New City". Today that is a bustling commercial center. The popularity of the city has increased since the King of Morocco took a computer engineer from Fes, Salma Bennani, as his wife.

Climate

Fes has a Mediterranean climate. Located by the Atlas Mountains, Fes has a seasonal climate, shifting from cool and sometimes rain in the winter to dry and hot days in the summer months between July and September. The nights are always cool (or colder in winter), with daytime temperatures generally rising to about 9-14 C° every day. The winter highs typically reach only 16 °C (61 °F) in December–January (see weather-table below).

Main sights

Fes is becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination and many non-Moroccans are now restoring traditional houses (riads and dars) as second homes in the Fes medina. The most important monuments in the city are:

• Bou Inania Madrasa
• Al-Attarine Madrasa
• University of Al-Karaouine
• Zaouia Moulay Idriss II
• Dar al-Magana
• Aben Danan Synagogue

Transport

The city is served by Saïss Airport. It also has an ONCF train station with lines east to Oujda and west to Tanger and Casablanca.^[12]

Notable residents

• Muhammad XII of Granada, last Moorish king of Al-Andalus.
• Jamal Fakir, French international rugby league player.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Fes is twinned with:

• Montpellier, France, since 1961
• Strasbourg, France, since 1961
• Florence, Italy, since 1961
• Kairouan, Tunisia, since 1965
• Saint Louis, Senegal, since 1979
• Córdoba, Andalusia, Spain, since 1982
• Coimbra, Portugal^[13]
• Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, since 2003
• Lahore, Pakistan
• Suwon, South Korea, since 2003
• İzmir, Turkey, since 1995^[14]
• Puebla, Mexico
• Jerusalem, since 1982. (The twinning was signed with the Palestinian Authority)^[15]

Partnerships

• Kraków in Poland (since 1985)^[16]

Notes

See also

• Treaty of Fez
• Book by Roger Le Tourneau (English translation by Besse Clement), Fez in the Age of the Marinides, Oklahoma University, editions 1961 and 1974 (latter ISBN 0806111984).
• Article by Julian Vigo. "The Renovation of Fes’ medina qdima and the (re)Creation of the Traditional", Writing the City, Transforming the City, New Delhi: Katha, edition 2006.
• The Open International Project Competition for Lalla Yeddouna, A Neighborhood in the Medina of Fez, announced in September 2010 in collaboration with the Union International des Architectes (UIA) and the Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC), to renew the area and upgrade the living and working standards of the artisans in the medina. The approach of the project is probably one of the most ambitious for an Arab medina and therefor of exemplary character (www.projectcompetition-fez.com). The Open International Project was won by the London based architecture practice Mossessian & Partners.

External links

• Official government website of the city
• Fes travel guide from Wikitravel
• Fes Portal at Ville Fes
• complexe culturel de fes complexe culturel de fes, Morocco
• The portal of Fes at Fes-City
• The Fes Festival: Sacred Music From Around The World – audio report by NPR