Asilah () is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of
Morocco
Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
, about south of
Tangier
Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...
. Its ramparts and gateworks remain fully intact.
History
The town's history dates back to 1500 B.C., when
Phoenicia
Phoenicians were an Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples, ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syria, Syrian ...
ns occupied a site called Silis, Zili, Zilis, or Zilil (, , or , ) which is being excavated at Dchar Jdid, some NE of present Asilah; that place was once considered to be the Roman stronghold Ad Mercuri, but is now accepted to be
Zilil. The town of Asilah itself was originally constructed by the shia
Idrisid dynasty
The Idrisid dynasty or Idrisids ( ') were an Arabs, Arab Muslims, Muslim dynasty from 788 to 974, ruling most of present-day Morocco and parts of present-day western Algeria. Named after the founder, Idris I of Morocco, Idris I, the Idrisids were ...
,
and Umayyad caliph
Al-Hakam II
Al-Hakam II, also known as Abū al-ʿĀṣ al-Mustanṣir bi-Llāh al-Hakam b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān (; 13 January 915 – 1 October 976), was the Caliph of Córdoba. He was the second Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus, and son of Abd-al-R ...
rebuilt the town in 966.
[ The Portuguese conquered the city in 1471 and built its fortifications, but it was abandoned because of an economic debt crisis in 1549.] In 1578, Sebastian of Portugal
Sebastian ( ; 20 January 1554 – 4 August 1578) was King of Portugal from 11 June 1557 to 4 August 1578 and the penultimate Portuguese monarch of the House of Aviz.
He was the son of João Manuel, Prince of Portugal, and his wife, Joanna of Aus ...
used Asilah as a base for his troops during a planned crusade that resulted in Sebastian's death, which in turn caused the Portuguese succession crisis of 1580
The Portuguese succession crisis of 1580 () emerged as a result of the disappearance of young King Sebastian I of Portugal in the Battle of Alcácer Quibir in 1578 and the death without issue of his successor and great-uncle Henry I in 1580. A ...
. The Portuguese kept hold of the town but in 1589 the Saadians briefly regained control of Asilah, but then lost it to the Spanish.
In 1692, the town was taken by the Moroccans under the leadership of Moulay Ismail
Moulay Ismail Ibn Sharif (, – 22 March 1727) was a Sultan of Morocco from 1672 to 1727, as the second ruler of the 'Alawi dynasty. He was the seventh son of Moulay Sharif and was governor of the province of Fez and the north of Morocco from ...
. Asilah served then as a base for pirate
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...
s in the 19th and 20th centuries, and in 1829, the Austrians punitively bombarded the city due to Moroccan piracy.
From 1912 to 1956, it was part of Spanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate in Morocco was established on 27 November 1912 by a treaty between France and Spain that converted the Spanish sphere of influence in Morocco into a formal protectorate.
The Spanish protectorate consisted of a norther ...
. A major plan to restore the town was undertaken in 1978 by its mayor, Mohamed Benaissa. Benaissa and painter Mohamed Melehi
Mohammed Melehi (; 12 November 1936 – 28 October 2020) was a Moroccan painter associated with the School of Fine Arts of Casablanca#Casablanca School, Casablanca school, a modernist art movement active in the 1960s in Morocco.
Early life
Mele ...
were instrumental in organizing an art festival, the ''International Cultural Moussem of Asilah'', that starting in 1978 began generating tourism income. It is credited with having promoted urban renewal in Asilah, and is one of the most important art festivals in the country. It played a role in raising the average monthly income from $50 in 1978 to $140 in 2014. The festival features local artwork and music and continues to attract large numbers of tourists.
Asilah is now a popular seaside resort, with modern holiday apartment complexes on the coast road leading to the town from Tangier
Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...
.[ The old neighborhoods are restored and painted white, and the wealthy from ]Casablanca
Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...
have their weekend getaways here.[
]
Culture
While tourism dominates, Asilah has been said to offer a good introduction to the culture of Morocco. The International Cultural Festival called ''Moussem'' and held in August, features jazz and Moroccan music as well as art exhibitions. It was co-founded by the artist Mohamed Melehi
Mohammed Melehi (; 12 November 1936 – 28 October 2020) was a Moroccan painter associated with the School of Fine Arts of Casablanca#Casablanca School, Casablanca school, a modernist art movement active in the 1960s in Morocco.
Early life
Mele ...
from the Casablanca Art School and politician Mohamed Benaissa. The festival is also the occasion for workshops for international artists, including mural
A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage.
Word mural in art
The word ''mural'' ...
paintings, as the medina's houses are painted with new murals every year.
Many of the houses of Asilah feature ''mashrabiya
A ''mashrabiya'' or ''mashrabiyya'' () is an architectural element which is characteristic of traditional Islamic architecture, architecture in the Islamic world and beyond. It is a type of projecting oriel window enclosed with carved wood latti ...
'' (oriel window
An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supported by corbels, bracket (architecture), brackets, or similar cantilevers, an oriel window generally projects from an ...
s). The main cultural center is the Centre Hassan II des Rencontres Internationales (housed in a former Spanish barracks).
Due to its proximity to Spain, the cuisine in Asilah is described as Ibero-Moroccan with notable foods including paella
Paella (, , , , ; ) is a rice dish originally from the Valencian Community. ''Paella'' is regarded as one of the community's identifying symbols. It is one of the best-known dishes in Spanish cuisine.
The dish takes its name from the wide, sha ...
, anchovies
An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water.
More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...
, and other seafood with both Moroccan and Valencian Valencian can refer to:
* Something related to the Valencian Community ( Valencian Country) in Spain
* Something related to the city of Valencia
* Something related to the province of Valencia in Spain
* Something related to the old Kingdom of ...
influences.
Notable landmarks
The medina
The old walled town (medina
Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...
) of Asilah is well-preserved and dates mostly from the Portuguese occupation (15th–16th centuries) and afterwards. The medina has been extensively restored and its buildings are typically painted white, with occasionally blue or green, in addition to many of the murals created during the International Cultural Festival. Though the Portuguese rebuilt its outline of walls, it has the typical maze-like layout and alleys of an old Moroccan city.
File:Assilah.jpg, View of the medina from the sea pier.
File:Asilah.jpg, Street in the medina.
File:Asilah marabout.jpg, Street and marabout's tomb in the medina.
File:Assilah Waterfront1.jpg, Promenade/street along the sea walls.
File:L'art de la ville Asilah.jpg, Mural in Asilah.
File:Carrelage et peinture - Asilah.jpg, Wall art in Asilah.
File:Asilah (36890237955).jpg, Mural featuring Arabic calligraphy
Arabic calligraphy is the artistic practice of penmanship, handwriting and calligraphy based on the Arabic alphabet. It is known in Arabic language, Arabic as ''khatt'' (), derived from the words 'line', 'design', or 'construction'. Kufic is the ...
.
File:Marocco-4000A1000-A-1005.jpg, Mural in Asilah
File:Alleys of the city of Asilah 700.jpg, Alleys of the city of Asilah
Walls and towers
The walls of Asilah were first built by the Almohads
The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb).
The Almohad ...
and then restored and reinforced by the Marinids and the Wattasids
The Wattasid dynasty (, ''al-waṭṭāsīyūn'') was a ruling dynasty of Morocco. Like the Marinid dynasty, its rulers were of Zenata Berber descent. The two families were related, and the Marinids recruited many viziers from the Wattasids. Th ...
. However, after the Portuguese took the city in 1471 they rebuilt the walls, making them more resistant to artillery
Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
, and modified the outline of the city, shrinking its perimeter for easier control. The current walls thus date almost entirely from the Portuguese occupation, with the possible exception of some parts of the seaside walls. There are two main gates in the walls, ''Bab Homar'', in the mid-southern part of the walls, and ''Bab al-Qasaba'', at the eastern end of the walls where the kasbah
A kasbah (, also ; , , Maghrebi Arabic: ), also spelled qasbah, qasba, qasaba, or casbah, is a fortress, most commonly the citadel or fortified quarter of a city. It is also equivalent to the term in Spanish (), which is derived from the same ...
(citadel) was once located. A rectangular tower in distinct Portuguese style, known as ''Borj al-Hamra'' ("Red Tower") or the Al-Qamra Tower, stands near the kasbah and overlooks an open square.
File:Muralha de Arzila 1.jpg, Seaside walls.
File:Asilah bastion.jpg, Sea bastion at western end of the medina.
File:Asilah bab homar.jpg, Bab Homar gate.
File:Asilah bab homar coat of arms.jpg, Portuguese coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
still visible above Bab Homar gateway.
File:Muralha de Arzila 2.jpg, Bab al-Qasaba (Gate of the Kasbah).
File:Assilah Fort.JPG, Borj al-Hamra or Al-Qamra Tower, overlooking city square.
File:Tower in the medina of Asilah.jpg, Borj al-Hamra or Al-Qamra Tower.
Grand Mosque of Asilah
The Grand Mosque of Asilah is located inside the former kasbah (citadel), at the eastern end of the medina. It was built under Moulay Ismail
Moulay Ismail Ibn Sharif (, – 22 March 1727) was a Sultan of Morocco from 1672 to 1727, as the second ruler of the 'Alawi dynasty. He was the seventh son of Moulay Sharif and was governor of the province of Fez and the north of Morocco from ...
soon after the city was retaken for Morocco at the end of the 17th century. Moulay Ismail charged the new governor of Tangier, Ali ibn Abdallah Errifi, with building the mosque; however, it's possible that it was his son, Ahmed Errifi, who actually carried out the construction. It has an octagonal minaret
A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...
, a feature common to some parts of northern Morocco but not in the rest of the country. With its whitewash
Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...
ed walls and minaret, its decoration is quite plain compared to other mosques built by the Errifis at the same time (such as the Kasbah Mosque in Tangier). Like other Moroccan mosques, it is open to Muslims only.
File:Assilah 05.jpg, Grand Mosque and minaret.
File:Mesquita em Asilah (2).jpg, Entrance of the Grand Mosque.
Raisuli Palace
This restored palace is in the mid-northern part of the medina, alongside the sea walls. It was built in 1909 by Moulay Ahmed er-Raisuni (also known as Raisuli), a local rogue and pirate who rose to power and declared himself pasha
Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...
of the region. He rose to notoriety and wealth partly through kidnappings and ransoms, including of several Westerners who wrote about him afterwards. The palace has been restored and reveals some of the luxury in which Raisuli lived. It includes a lavish reception room with ''zellij
Zellij (), also spelled zillij or zellige, is a style of mosaic tilework made from individually hand-chiseled tile pieces. The pieces were typically of different colours and fitted together to form various patterns on the basis of tessellations, ...
'' tilework, carved stucco
Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...
, and painted wood like in other Moroccan palaces. The reception room also gives access to a large loggia
In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior Long gallery, gallery or corridor, often on an upper level, sometimes on the ground level of a building. The corridor is open to the elements because its outer wall is only parti ...
and terrace overlooking the sea. Raisuli infamously claimed that he executed convicted murderers by forcing them to jump from this terrace onto the sea rocks below.
Sidi Mansour cemetery
At the far western end of the medina is a Portuguese bastion
A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fire from the ...
extending out to sea, which is a popular spot for locals and tourists at sunset. In the angle between the bastion and the sea walls is a platform upon which is a small enclosed cemetery. It includes two small structures, the domed Marabout
In the Muslim world, the marabout () is a Sayyid, descendant of Muhammad (Arabic: سـيّد, Romanization of Arabic, romanized: ''sayyid'' and ''sidi'' in the Maghreb) and a Islam, Muslim religious leader and teacher who historically had the f ...
(mausoleum) of Sidi Ahmed ibn Moussa (also known as Sidi Ahmed el-Mansour and Sidi Mansour) and, across from it, the mausoleum of his sister, Lalla Mennana. Between these structures, the ground is covered with other graves which are covered in colourful ceramic
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...
tiles.
File:Asilah sea cemetery2.jpg, View of the cemetery's platform on the shore.
File:Cemetery in Asilah.jpg, View of the graves.
Church of San Bartolome
Located in the new city outside the medina, this Roman Catholic Church was built by Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
Franciscans
The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor being the largest conte ...
in 1925. It is still used as a convent today and is one of the few churches in Morocco allowed to ring in public for Sunday mass. Its architecture is a mix of Spanish Colonial and Moorish styles.
File:San bartolome church asilah.jpg, Church exterior.
File:Interior de uma igreja católica em Asilah.jpg, Church interior.
Kahal Synagogue and Jewish cemetery
Kahal Synagogue
Kahal () is a moshav near Highway 85 in northern Israel. Located on the border of the Upper Galilee and Lower Galilee, north of Sea of Galilee and just northwest of Tabgha, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mevo'ot HaHermon Regional Council
...
built in 1824 and dilapidated for years, it was restored and reopened in 2022 along with the Mikveh
A mikveh or mikvah (, ''mikva'ot'', ''mikvot'', or (Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazic) ''mikves'', lit., "a collection") is a bath used for ritual washing in Judaism#Full-body immersion, ritual immersion in Judaism to achieve Tumah and taharah, ...
and hammam
A hammam (), also often called a Turkish bath by Westerners, is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited from the model ...
. There is also a Jewish cemetery near the medina.
Notable people
*Mouhamed El Bouanani (b. 1929), poet
*Ahmed Abdessalam Bakkali (1932–2010), diplomat, writer and translator
*Mehdi Akhrif (b. 1948), writer and translator
*Nora Skalli (b. 1974), actress
References
Citations
Bibliography
* .
* .
{{Authority control
Port cities and towns on the Moroccan Atlantic Coast
Roman sites in Morocco
Populated places in Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima
Populated places established in the 2nd millennium BC
1912 establishments in the Spanish Empire
1956 disestablishments in the Spanish Empire