Hotels in Fez-Boulemane, Morocco

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Riad / Dar

Fez-Boulemane

Fes (Fès in French) is the third largest city in Morocco, after Casablanca and Rabat, with a population of around one million inhabitants. It is one of the four so-called "imperial cities" (the others are Marrakech, Meknes and Rabat) and it’s separated into three parts, Fes el Bali (the old, walled city), Fes-Jdid (home of the Mellah), and the Ville Nouvelle (the newest section).

The Medina of Fes el Bali is believed to be the largest contiguous car-free urban area in the world and is classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site.

History The city was founded at opposite banks of the Fes River by Idris I, in 789. Arab emigration mostly from al-Andalus gave the city a definite Arab character. It was populated by Muslims from elsewhere in North Africa, the Middle East, Moriscos, as well as many Jews, who had their own quarter, or Mellah, in the city. It is believed to have been the largest city in the world from 1170 to 1180.

Later, in 1649, it became the center of the Alaouite Dynasty and a major trading post of the Barbary Coast of North Africa. Fes was the capital of Morocco at various times in the past, the last such period ending in 1912 when most of the country came under French control and Rabat was chosen to be the capital of the new colony.