Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
Many desert caravans passed through this outpost before Almoravid Berber leader
Youssef ben Tachfine and his savvy wife Zeinab recognised its strategic potential, and
built ramparts around the encampment in AD 1062. The Almoravids established the city's
khettara
(underground irrigation system) and signature pink mudbrick architecture. But
when Almohad warriors stormed the city, they left only the plumbing and the Koubba
Ba'adiyn intact. Almohad Yacoub el-Mansour remodelled Marrakesh with a fortified kas-
bah, glorious gardens,
qissariat
(covered markets), a rebuilt Koutoubia and a triumphal
gate (Bab Agnaou). But the Almohads soon lost their showpiece to the Merenids, who
turned royal attention to Meknès and Fez.
