“The distant land where the sun goes down”, was the name of Morocco in the early Islamic culture, which meant that the country was the westernmost in the Islamic world.
For centuries, Morocco, Africa, has attracted people seeking adventurous or exotic experiences. For many travelers, a visit to Morocco means the first contact with Africa, Islam or the third world. Experiences that can be both shocking and upsetting.
According to commit4fitness, Morocco offers contrast-rich experiences. Here are dramatic mountain areas, long sandy beaches, deserts and a fascinating people’s life.
Most Swedes who visit Morocco do not go further than the sandy beaches of Agadir. Some visit the legendary city of Marrakech. Few travel around the country.
My round trip was rich in experiences, upsetting, shocking and more dramatic than I could dream of when I planned the trip.
In addition to having many interesting historical experiences, meeting a varied nature, an interesting people’s life and making a short mountain hike in the High Atlas, I was threatened with life in Fez, asked if I wanted to get married on two occasions in Meknes, and ended up as one of few Westerners in the middle of an angry anti-American / anti-Israeli demonstration with thousands of participants. Morocco is not always an easy-going country, but exciting.
The itinerary went mainly to “The Royal Cities”, but also included a detour to the High Atlas.
Morocco history in brief
History of Morocco, before Christ
8,000 – 7,000 Berber ancestors immigrate from the east
about 1,000 Phoenicians arrive
about 400 Berber tribes join forces and found the Kingdom of Mauritania
200 The Roman city of Volubilis was founded
Morocco history, older
430 – 533 Vandals conquer North Africa
705 Musa ibn Nosair conquers Morocco. Islam is spreading among the Berbers
711
Muslim Berbers, led by Tariq ibn Ziyad, defeat the Visigoths in Guadalete and begin the conquest of Spain
789 Idris I founds Fez and creates the first Moroccan dynasty
793 – 828 Reigns Idris II
859 Construction of the al-Qarawiyin Mosque in Fez begins
929 Abd ar-Rahman III establishes an independent caliphate in Cordoba, Spain
1062 Yusuf ibn Tashufin founds Marrakech and begins to expand the Almoravid Empire
1086 The Spanish king Alfonso VI is defeated in Badajos
1107 – 1143 Andalusian culture gains a foothold in Morocco
1130 – 1163
Abd al-Moomin, the first almohadic caliph, conquers North Africa, all the way to Tripoli
1195 Yaqub al-Mansur defeats the Castilians at Alacros
1212 Alfonso VIII of Castile defeats Muhammad al-Nasser at Las Navas de Tolosa
1212 – 1269 Decline of the Almohads, gradual loss of territories in al-Andalus (Spain)
1248 – 1286 Abu Yahia, succeeded by Abu Yaqub Yusuf, founds the Marine Dynasty
1331 – 1349 The Marine Dynasty reaches its peak during Abu al-Hassan
1415 The Portuguese prince Henry the Navigator conquers Ceuta in northern Morocco
1420 The Marinids come under the rule of the Wattasides
1465 The Wattasides take all power from the Marines
1497 – 1508 When the Christians conquered Granada, Spain entered northern Morocco
1509 Sadi begins its campaigns to drive out the Europeans
1525 The Sadducees take Marrackeh, which becomes their capital
1578 – 1603 Ahmed al-Mansur, one of Morocco’s foremost rulers, rules
1631 – 1636 Mawlay Sharif in Tafilat rebels against the moral decay of the Sadducees
1664 – 1672 Mawlay Rashid rules and founds the Alawite dynasty
1672 – 1727
The Alawites reach their peak under the rule of Mawlay Ismail. Meknes will be the capital
1757 – 1790 Sidi Muhammad ben Abd Allah rules and appoints Rabat as his capital
1844 Mawlay Abd ar-Rahman is defeated by the French at the Battle of Isly
1860 Spain occupies Tetouan
1873 – 1893 Mawlay Hassan I tries to drive the French out of Morocco
1880 Madrid Conference sanctioning foreign presence in Morocco
1911 French troops enter Fez
1912 Protocol agreements are written through the Fez Treaty
1921 – 1926 Revolt in Rifatlas
1927
Sultan Muhammad ben Yusuf takes the throne and later calls himself Muhammad V
1930
Before the French “Dahir berbere”, which means that a special legal system applies in Berber areas. Morocco thus becomes a divided country
1934
A Moroccan nationalist movement proposed cautious reforms in the country, which was rejected by the French
1937 The Moroccan nationalist movement is banned by the French
1943
The Independence Party (Istiqlal) was formed, which with the support of the Sultan demanded full independence and a democratic constitution
1944 An independence manifesto is published
1951 France supports an uprising led by Marrakech’s Pascha al-Glaoui
1953
France deposes Muhammad V, who is forced into exile to Madagascar. The Istiqlal Independence Party is banned
1955 The royal family returns from exile
Morocco history, modern
1956
Morocco became independent and the Spanish protectorate in the north and Tangier were incorporated into the country
1957
Sultan Mohammed ibn Yusuf assumed a royal title with the regent name Mohammed V. The Rif region resisted the king, but was brutally crushed by the military led by Crown Prince Hassan
1958 Tangier and the Spanish enclave of Tarfaya are returned to Morocco
1961 Death of Muhammad V. Hassan II is crowned new king
1962 The country’s first constitution is adopted
During the 1960s and 1970s, domestic politics was marked by antagonisms between the king and the democratic opposition. The first parliamentary elections this year ended in a stalemate between the royal coalition and the opposition. After the election, opposition politicians were arrested and many of them were tortured and sentenced to death. The king resigned as prime minister
1965
The king issued a state of emergency after prolonged social discontent and unrest and regained all power.
Socialist leader Ben Barka was abducted and killed in Paris, according to the Moroccan regime
1971, 1973
On two occasions during these years, the king was subjected to assassination attempts by senior officers. The leaders of the coups were executed and 58 younger officers involved were isolated in a secret desert prison, Tazmamart
1972 A new constitution was adopted
1975
Moroccan invasion of Western Sahara when Spain withdrew from the area. The Popular Front Polisario claims the area
1981 Great unrest in Casablanca
1984
According to unofficial information, more than a hundred people were killed when government troops bombed demonstrations against planned price increases. The government withdrew the proposal but about 1,800 people were arrested
1991
Agreement on fire ends with Polisario
The 28 survivors, out of 58, officers imprisoned in the 1971 and 1973 coups were released
Conservative Istiqlal and the Left Party Socialist Union Socialist Union (USFP) launched a joint campaign for the distribution of political power
1992 The proposal for a new constitution rejected by the opposition was adopted in a referendum
1993
The first elections in nine years were held. Royal and right-wing center-right parties won a reassuring majority due to the fact that a third of the seats in parliament were not directly elected by the people
1996
The constitution was changed and a bicameral parliament, where the lower house was to be elected in general elections, was established
1997
In Morocco’s first “free and fair” election, loyalists lost their majority. For the first time since independence, a government-formation came from the democratic opposition. The king appointed the 74-year-old USFP leader, and previously imprisoned human rights activist Abderrahman Youssoufi as prime minister of a seven-party center-left coalition
1999
King Hassan II died in July. His son, Muhammad VI, is appointed new king. The new king promises to fight poverty in the country, investigate previous human rights violations and compensate the victims. About 8,000 prisoners, many Islamists, were released and more than 30,000 had their sentences reduced. Well-known dissidents or their relatives were allowed to return to Morocco. The Islamists are being strengthened
