Author
Ali bin Abdullah Al-Rifi (craft teacher).
Author Original
علي بن عبد الله الريفي معلم الصنعة
Publication Date
Almohad period: 6th century AH / 12th century AD. Alawite period: 11th century AH / 17th century AD
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;31;ar
Library Location
The Kasbah is located at the mouth of Wadi Sebou, on the Atlantic Ocean, 12 km from the city of Kenitra, Kenitra, Morocco.
Date
Almohad period: 6th century AH / 12th century AD. Alawite period: 11th century AH / 17th century AD
Notes
The navigable mouth of Wadi Sebou, which connected the Atlantic Ocean with the rich Western Plain, and opened passage to Fez and into the country, was of the utmost strategic importance in the Middle Ages, both military and commercial. Mersa Maamoura was probably the first town to be founded in this place in the AH 4th century / AD 10th century. In the AH 6th century / AD 12th century, the Almohad sultan, Abd al-Mu’min, established marine workshops there, where Using excellent wood found in the surrounding forests. This small city of Maamoura remained a center for economic exchanges with Europe until the 10th century AH / 16th century AD. In the year 921 AH / 1515 AD, the Portuguese occupied the places and fortified them, and called it the Maamoura of Saint John, but their occupation of it lasted only 47 days. In the 11th century AH / 17th century AD, after the Maamoura was An important center for pirates, independent of the central authority, Maamoura was forcefully occupied by the Spaniards, who built, on a rocky outcropping overlooking the mouth of the river, a castle they called “St. On the adjacent forest. Within the walls of the castle, Mawla Ismail built a real kasbah that included a house for the governor, (Dar al-Makhzen), a mosque, a barracks for the soldiers, a school, a hotel, stables, and a pyramid. The Alaouite Sultan also repaired the wall of the Spanish Wall, by strengthening the southern facade with prominent defensive towers and deep moats, while preserving the three towers located on the northern facade. He opened in the wall a huge door of carved stone, which contained It is called the New Gate, within the band that surrounds the entrance opening built in the form of a transcendent arch. The door is topped with a double window, and is fortified by two huge rectangular and prominent towers, crowned with pyramidal merlons. The door connects to the Kasbah through a winding corridor, which includes seats and a staircase that enables access to the two floors and to the balcony that dominates the river mouth and the surrounding areas. The governor’s house was a real palace, spacious and greatly decorated; It is entered through a finely carved and decorated stone door, which leads to a courtyard extended by a covered corridor leading to the residence. Surrounding the wide courtyard, paved with multi-colored tiles that are still visible in some places, are four halls distinguished by their doors with multi-lobed arches, divided by two small columns into three openings. The palace was surrounded by a garden and a bathroom. Nearby is the commander’s house, which is smaller, from which the carved door with lintels can be seen. The sculpture. There is also a circular building inside the Kasbah that was used as an ammunition warehouse for the Spanish. Outside the Kasbah, traces of a small circular Spanish fort that used to watch the river remain, as well as traces of large warehouses built by Mawla Ismail, extending along a length of approximately 300 meters on both sides of the road.
Sample Text
Kamal Lakhdar “Kasbah of Mahdia” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;31;ar
