Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SOUTHERN ATLANTIC COAST
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Tiznit
POP 53,600
South of the Souss Valley and at the western end of the Anti Atlas, Tiznit is an old walled
medina town surrounded by modern development. It was originally the site of a cluster of
forts that were encircled in the 19th century by some 5km of pisé wall. It quickly became a
trade centre and remains a provincial capital and centre for Berber jewellery, with a souq
devoted to the silver stuff. This slow-paced and authentic spot, with its dusty medina lanes
and conservative but friendly inhabitants, is a convenient stopoff en route between the Anti
Atlas and Atlantic Coast.
History
In 1881 Sultan Moulay al-Hassan (1873-94) founded Tiznit as a base from which to assert
his authority over the rebellious Berber tribes of the south. To do this, he built the town's
perimeter walls. Jewish silversmiths were moved into the town and they gave it a reputa-
tion for silver workmanship.
However, Tiznit remained embroiled in local sedition, and was a centre of dissent against
the 1912 treaty that turned Morocco into a French and Spanish protectorate. This resistance
movement was led by El-Hiba, the so-called 'Blue Sultan' from the Western Sahara, who
earned his nickname for always wearing his Saharawi veil.
Following Sultan Moulay Hafid's capitulation to the French at the Treaty of Fès, El-Hiba
proclaimed himself sultan here in 1912. The southern tribes rose to support him and El-
Hiba marched north at the head of an army of men from the Tuareg and Anti Atlas tribes.
They were welcomed as liberators in Marrakesh, but much of the army was slaughtered by
the French as it moved towards Fez. El-Hiba retreated to Taroudannt, then Tiznit, then up
into the Anti Atlas, where he pursued a campaign of resistance against the French until his
death in 1919.
