Kasbah An-Nouar

The Kasbah An-Nouar or Kasbah Filali is a walled district and former military enclosure in the old medina of Fez, Morocco. Its name means "citadel of the flowers", but it is sometimes also referred to as Kasbah Filala and Kasbah Chorfa. It is one of several fortified military enclosures or kasbahs that were built around the old city of Fez across different periods.

The foundation of the kasbah reportedly dates to the Almohad period when Muhmmad al-Nasir (12th century) rebuilt the fortifications of Fez. It is likely that it took its present form, however, during the 'Alawi period, when it acquired its association with the Filala (settlers from the Tafilalt region).

The Almohads under Abd al-Mu'min conquered Fez in 1145 after a difficult siege in which the inhabitants had put up fierce resistance. In retaliation for this opposition and to prevent future resistance, Abd al-Mu'min ordered all the walls and fortifications of Fez to be demolished. Eventually, however, given the city's central economic importance and its role as a military base for northern Morocco, the fourth Almohad caliph, Muhammad al-Nasir (1199–1213), built a new circuit of city walls as well as two citadels or kasbahs in the west of the city. The decision to fortify the city at this time may also have been due to the Almohads' serious defeat at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, which rendered the empire more vulnerable.

One of these new kasbahs was the Kasbah An-Nouar, erected in an area adjacent to the western gate of Bab Mahrouk (which was also built at this time). The other, Kasbah Bou Jeloud, was built nearby to the south on the site of the former Almoravid citadel near Bab Bou Jeloud. The Kasbah Bou Jeloud is no longer fortified today but was of notable importance for being the residence of the governor of Fez at various periods (including at the beginning of the 20th century).

The defensive system of Fez continued to evolve, however. The Marinids, who succeeded the Almohads in the 13th century and made Fez their capital and residence, found the existing military citadels insufficient for their own purposes. Instead, they built the new palace-city of Fes el-Jdid to the west, outside the old city (Fes el-Bali), with its own walls and bastions.

Text adapted from “Kasbah An-Nouar” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Kasbah An-Nouar ranks #5,577 of 8,133 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #25 of the 37 mapped in Morocco. 6 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. See how Morocco compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗