Description of the attraction
The Essaouira Fortress is one of the main attractions of the popular Moroccan resort city of Essaouira, which lies on the Atlantic coast. The peculiar charm of the city makes this settlement one of the most beautiful places in Morocco.
The first settlers who lived in this area were the Phoenicians (VII century BC). In the XV century. the Portuguese settled in the city, who built their citadel here, calling it Mogador. The building played an important military and commercial role, from here the Portuguese traded with all the countries of the African continent. At the same time, the city was really rebuilt in the middle of the XVIII century. Sultan Muhammad II of the Alawite dynasty, who decided to make him a naval base. By his order, the French architect Theodore Cornu, who had previously created several fortresses in Languedoc, developed a city plan, according to which the settlement was built.
Those fortress walls that can be seen today were built in 1756. At the same time, the building was named after the settlement - Essaouira. In 1912, the French renamed the fortress Mogador again, and in 1956, after gaining independence, it was returned to its former name Essaouira.
The fortress of Essaouira is surrounded by powerful walls with beveled battlements, the main task of which was to protect the local population from pirate raids from the sea. Externally, these walls are similar to classical European fortifications, while the inside of them was made in the style of traditional Muslim architecture. There are several fortress gates within the walls of the citadel. The main gate leads to the medina of Essaouira.
The fortification consists of two fortifications (bastions) - one of which is in the south and the other in the north. The northern bastion looks especially interesting, where there is a 200-meter platform with ancient Spanish cannons, from which the sea coast was once shelled. From here you can see the waves crashing against the rocks and the famous Purple Islands. It was here that the famous director Orson Welles filmed Othello in 1949.
