Fez - Morocco Travel Guide, Tours, Tourism, Vacations HD World Travel https://www.youtube.com/user/World1Tube Fès or Fez is the third largest city of Morocco, with a population of approximately 1 million (2010). It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region. The city has two old medinas, the larger of which is Fes el Bali. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is believed to be one of the world's largest car-free urban areas. Al-Qarawiyyin, founded in AD 859, is the oldest continuously functioning madrasa in the world. The city has been called the "Mecca of the West" and the "Athens of Africa". History Etymology Until the Almoravid rule in the 11th century, Fes consisted of two separate cities or medinas: Madinat Fas and Al-'Aliya, the former being founded by Idris I, the latter by his son, Idris II. During Idrisid rule the capital city was known as Al-'Aliya, with the name Fas being reserved for the separate site on the other side of the river: no Idrisid coins have been found with the name Fes, only al-'Aliya and al-'Aliya Madinat Idris. It is not known whether the name al-'Aliya was ever used to refer to both medinas. It wasn't until 1070 that the two agglomerations were united and the name Fas was used for both sites. The name is probably taken from the word Fazaz, the old Berber name for the Middle Atlas mountains near the city. The name is also attested as that of a Berber tribe living just south of Fes. Today, Ait Fazaz is the name of a small town just west of Meknes. Foundation and the Idrisids Further information: Fes el Bali The city was founded on a bank of the Jawhar river by Idris I in 789, founder of the Zaydi Shi'ite Idrisid dynasty. His son, Idris II (808), built a settlement on the opposing river bank. These settlements would soon develop into two separate, walled and largely autonomous sites, often in conflict with one another: Madinat Fas and Al-'Aliya. In 808 Al-'Aliya replaced Walili as the capital of the Idrisids. Arab emigration to Fez, including 800 Andalusi families of Berber descent[7] in 817--818 expelled after a rebellion against the Umayyads of Córdoba, and 2,000 Arab families banned from Kairouan (modern Tunisia) after another rebellion in 824, gave the city a more Arabic character than other cities of the region. The Andalusians settled in Madinat Fas, while the Tunisians found their home in al-'Aliya. These two waves of immigrants would subsequently give their name to the two sites: 'Adwat Al-Andalus and 'Adwat al-Qarawiyyin. An important aspect of the city's population was of North-African Berber descent, with rural Berbers from the surrounding countryside settling the city throughout this early period, mainly in Madinat Fas (the Andalusian quarter) and later in Fes Jdid. Upon the death of Idris II in 828, the dynasty's territory was divided among his sons, and the eldest, Muhammad, received Fes. The newly fragmented Idrisid power would never again be reunified. During Yahya ibn Muhammad's rule in Fes the Kairouyine mosque, one of the oldest and largest in Africa, was built and its associated Al-Qarawiyyin Madrasa was founded (859).[10] Comparatively little is known about Idrisid Fes, owing to the lack of comprehensive historical narratives from this period and the fact that little has survived of the architecture and infrastructure of early Fes (Al-'Aliya). The sources that mention Idrisid Fes, describe a rather rural one, not having the cultural sophistication of the important cities of Al-Andalus and Ifriqiya. In the 10th century the city was contested by the Caliphate of Córdoba and the Fatimids of Tunisia, who ruled the city through a host of Zenata clients. The Fatimids took the city in 927 and expelled the Idrissids, after which their Miknasa were installed there. The Miknasa were driven out of Fes in 980 by the Maghrawa, their fellow Zenata, allies of the Caliphate of Córdoba. It was in this period that the great Andalusian ruler Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir commissioned the Maghrawa to rebuild and refurnish the Al-Kairouan mosque, giving it much of its current appearance. According to the Rawd al-Qirtas and other Marinid era sources, the Maghrawi emir Dunas Al-Maghrawi filled up the open spaces between the two medinas and the banks of the river dividing them with new constructions. Thus, the two cities grew into each other, being now only separated by their city walls and the river flowing through them. His sons fortified the city to a great extent. This could not keep the Almoravid emir Ibn Tashfin from conquering the city in 1070, after more than a decade of battling the Zenata warriors in the area and constant besieging of the city. ======================= Fez Travel Guide, Morocco Travel, Fez Tours, Morocco Tours, Vacation Fez, Vacations Morocco, Tourism Fez, Tourism Morocco, History Fez, History Morocco

• published: 01 Feb 2014
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