Meknes


Meknes is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco, located in northern central Morocco and the sixth largest city by population in the kingdom. Founded in the 11th century by the Almoravids as a military settlement, Meknes became capital of Morocco under the reign of Sultan Moulay Ismaïl, son of the founder of the Alaouite dynasty. Moulay Ismaïl turned Meknes into an impressive city in Spanish-Moorish style, surrounded by high walls with great doors, where the harmonious blending of the Islamic and European styles of the 17th century Maghreb are still evident today. The city recorded a population of 632,079 in the 2014 Moroccan census. It is the seat of Meknès Prefecture and an important economic pole in the region of Fès-Meknès.

Etymology

Meknes is named after a Berber tribe which, was known as Miknasa in the medieval North African documents.

History

A Berber tribe called the Miknasa, originally from the Tunisian south, settled here in the 9th century.
The Almoravids founded a fortress in Meknes during the 11th century. It resisted the Almohads rise, and was thus destroyed by them, only to be rebuilt in a larger size with mosques and large fortifications. Under the Merinids it received further madrasas, kasbahs and mosques in the early 14th century, and continued to thrive under the Wattasid dynasty. Meknes saw its golden age as the imperial capital of Moulay Ismail following his accession to the Sultanate of Morocco.
A little known fact of Meknes is that when Moulay Ismail selected it to be the capital city of his empire he actually used European and North American Christian slaves to carry out the work.
The Sale corsairs terrorised the Atlantic and Mediterranean and seized an estimated number close to 1 million seafaring Christian men and women over a 100 year period.
Moulay Ismail actually closed the Moroccan slave markets when he came to power – however, this was not for the benefit of the slaves. It was so that he could keep all slaves for his own purpose and set them to work on this colossal palace city.
According to the ICOMOS Heritage at Risk report of 2000, the historic city of Meknes contains insufficient drainage systems, and as a result, suffers from inundation and leakage in certain areas.

Geography

Meknes is located in a strategic position in the heart of Morocco. To its south and south-east are the rich cedar forests and mountains of the Middle Atlas mountains with the cities Ifrane and Azrou; and more to the south are the rich oases of Tafilalt. To the west are the two largest metropolitan areas of Morocco: Casablanca and Rabat. To the north is the mountainous north of Morocco with the cities of Tangier and Tétouan. Oujda and Fes lie east of Meknes.

Climate

Meknes has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate with continental influences. Its climate is similar to inland southern Portugal and some areas of southern Spain. The temperatures shifts from cool in winter to hot days in the summer months of June–September. Afternoon temperatures generally rise 10–14 °C above the low on most days. The winter highs typically reach only in December–January, whereas night temperatures average..
It rarely snows in Meknes.

Districts - Quartiers (in French)

Prefecture

Meknes is the seat of the prefecture of Meknès, which consists of 6 municipalities and 15 rural communes.

Main sights

The following map depicts some of the monuments in the old Medina and a general view over the old and new parts of Meknes.

Médina - Historic City

The ruins of the Roman town of Volubilis, another UNESCO World Heritage Site are about half an hour to the north.

Mosques

Some of the historic mosques in Meknes include:
The Grand Mosque
The Grand Mosque of Meknes covers about 3,500 square meters and was founded in the 12th century by the Almoravids. It has 11 gates and 143 arcades, a very old and historic library was established by the Marinids. The Grand Mosque is situated in front of the Madrasa Bou Inania.
Néjjarine Mosque
Néjjarine Mosque built in the 11th century by Almoravids, located in the old medina. Actually the mosque is closed due to some maintenance work.
Zitouna Mosque
This is a very old mosque, built during the reign of Sultan Moulay Ismaïl in the 17th century.

Madrasas

Madrasa Bou Inania
Established by the Marinid sultan Abu al-Hasan and construction was completed by his son Abu Inan in 1345.

Towers

Borj Belkari
This tower was built in the 17th century as a part of the Ismailian walls built by Sultan Moulay Ismaïl.
Since 2003 this tower holds the museum of pottery.
The Museum houses pottery collections of the Rif and the anterior Rif regions arranged in both chronological and thematic groupings and the fabrication procedures of Rif pottery from the prehistoric period to the present.
The visit starts on the right of the entrance with archaeological ceramic finds in order to better appreciate the current pottery in the museum. It finishes with a reconstruction of a pottery workshop.
The permanent collection is composed of pre historic, vintage and Islamic pottery, and of pottery from different geographical zones of Morocco.
The first section presents the history of the ceramics of the Rif and the pre-Rif periods distributed in three halls. The visitor has the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the characteristics of prehistoric ceramics, through the observation of several shapes, modelled or crafted and enriched with decoration.
A second hall displays the pottery of ceramics that date back to the pre-Islamic period, and a third hall houses Islamic ceramics, especially green ceramics.
As for the second section, it is entirely devoted to the current and old workshops of pottery.the pottery and ceramic pottery comes from five regions, are displayed.

Economy

Meknes is an economic centre in Morocco with various products from three sectors, which makes the city economically competitive and attractive for investment.

Competitiveness

A December 2015 World Bank report classified Meknes as one of the three most competitive cities in Africa. Two of those three competitive African cities are Moroccan: Meknes and Tangier.

Agriculture

Meknes is considered to be the capital of agriculture in Morocco. And the Saïss plain is one of the most fertile and rich plains in Morocco and Meknes is the centre of this plain.
Each year Meknes holds the International Agriculture Show in Morocco since April 2006. This agriculture show has an area of more than 250000 square meters, with more than 60 countries participating, and more than 1200 exhibitors.
The lands around Meknes area are known to be fertile and productive. The high elevation, fertility and the fresh water of those lands favor the cultivation of fruits and vegetables, most notably: peaches, nectarines, prunes, apples, potatoes, onions and garlic. Meknes is also known for its olives and olive oil. Livestock raising, particularly sheep and cattle, is widespread. Meknes has large industrial units for milk and dairy production that fulfill the most of the needs of the region.

Industry

Industry in Meknes is of light type, most of it is related to food processing especially in the Commune of Mejjat, and chemical and para-chemical industry in other industrial zones like the Agropolis industrial and agribusiness zone. Add to those the textile and metallic manufacturing which are old industries in the city.
The year 2016 marks a new era of new industry in the city of Meknes, it includes electrical wire, embedded systems, and automotive parts production companies.

Major Companies

Meknes Agropolis

Agropolis is Morocco's first competitive. cluster dedicated to agribusiness. Its unique geographical location in central Morocco, together with its agricultural potential, makes it an attractive, rapidly developing platform.
Agropolis welcomes investors in a first-class environment offering infrastructure that meets international norms as well as a wide range of real estate services, notably equipped plots of land and delegated management possibilities at competitive rates.
Meknes Agropolis is the ideal ecosystem to implement a project focused on agribusiness, logistical activities and marketing, packaging units, tertiary activities, training and R&D.
The first phase of the project has a land surface of 130 ha. The Agropolis Zone is 12 km from Meknes and 2.5 hours drive from Casablanca. Casablanca Port is 246 km far from Agropolis and Tanger-Med Port is 382 km away.

Services

Most of the services products in Meknes are related to Tourism due to the history of the old city district -Meknes Médina-.
Of Morocco's four Imperial Cities, Meknes is possibly the least well-known – not as large as Rabat, as fashionable as Marrakech, or as famous as Fez – and you might say that this is to its advantage as you will find this historic place quieter and more laid back than its sister cities. It is an enchanting place to visit, with winding narrow streets, a classic medina and grand buildings that hail back to its time as the capital of Morocco. Nearby are the Roman ruins of Volubis and the tomb of Moulay Idriss – two of the most important historical sites in the kingdom. But Meknes is also a modern, lively city with a vibrant nightlife, plenty of bars and a welcoming attitude towards visitors.

Transport

Road

The geographical location of the city of Meknes makes it one of the important transport hubs in Morocco. The city is accessed via the A2 expressway with two exits, one to the east of the city and another to the west.

Rail

Two train stations are located in the new city district of Meknes, with trains each hour to the east, west, and north of Morocco.
Operated by ONCF, the following table lists destinations reachable via Meknes railway stations :
As mentioned above, Meknes city has two train stations, and their names are: Meknes Railway Station and Meknes Amir Abdul Qadir Railway Station. All the mentioned trains cited in the previous table stop by the former station; and except the first row of the table, all the remaining trains stop by the latter station.

Air

The nearest airport is Fes-Saïss Airport accessible only by road transport.
Otherwise, Mohammed V Airport in Casablanca, with more international flights and destinations, is conveniently accessible by train.

Public Transport

Public transport in Meknes is managed by the urban commune and it consists of:
Meknes is home to the public Moulay Ismail University, with actually the following faculties, schools and institutions divided among three campuses in the cities: Meknes, Errachidia and Khenifra.
in Meknes:
in Errachidia:
in Khenifra:
In addition to Moulay Ismail University, numerous private institutes for higher education exist in Meknes.

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Meknes is twinned with: