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name	Fez List of cities in Morocco>City| image_skyline = {hide}Photomontage	From the top down: University of al-Qarawiyyin>Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque/University, gates of the Royal Palace, and Fes el Bali {{aka{edih} the Medina of Fez.| image_seal = | seal_size =| image_shield =| shield_size =| image_blank_emblem =| blank_emblem_type =| blank_emblem_size =| motto = | image_map =| mapsize =| map_caption =| image_map1 =| mapsize1 =| map_caption1 =| pushpin_map = Morocco#Africa| pushpin_label_position = left| pushpin_relief = yes| pushpin_mapsize =| pushpin_map_caption = Location of Fez within Morocco	34	36	05	12	region:MA-Fes_type:city (1,100,000)|display=inline,title}}| subdivision_type = Country	Morocco}}	Regions of Morocco>Region| subdivision_name1 = Fès-Meknès| established_title = Founded| established_date = 789| established_title2 = | established_date2 =| established_title3 = | established_date3 =| founder = Idrisid dynasty| government_footnotes =| government_type =| leader_title = Mayor| leader_name = Abdeslam Bekkali| leader_title1 = Governor | leader_name1 = Said Zniber| area_footnotes =| area_magnitude =| area_total_km2 =| area_total_sq_mi =| area_land_km2 = | area_land_sq_mi =| area_water_km2 =| area_water_sq_mi =| area_water_percent =| area_urban_km2 = 320| area_urban_sq_mi =| area_metro_km2 =| area_metro_sq_mi =	“Fez, Morocco” {{Webarchive>url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807130235weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=601411&cityname=Fez-Morocco |date=2020-08-07 }} Weatherbase.| elevation_m = 414| elevation_ft = | population_total = 1112072| population_as_of = 2014| population_footnotes = | population_density_km2 =| population_density_sq_mi =| population_urban =| population_density_urban_km2 =| population_density_urban_sq_mi =| population_metro =| population_density_metro_km2 =| population_density_metro_sq_mi =	List of cities in Morocco>2nd in Morocco| population_density_blank1_km2 =| population_density_blank1_sq_mi = | population_blank2_title = Demonym| population_blank2 = Fassi| postal_code_type = | postal_code =| area_code = +212 (53)| website =| image_dot_map =| dot_mapsize =| dot_map_caption =| dot_x =| dot_y =	Central European Time>CET| utc_offset = +1| timezone_DST =| utc_offset_DST =| blank_name =| blank_info =	embed = yes| designation1 = WHS	Fes el Bali>Medina of Fez| designation1_date = 1981		TITLE=MEDINA OF FEZ – UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE CENTRE	ACCESS-DATE=2017-09-20	ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20170919192617/HTTP://WHC.UNESCO.ORG/EN/LIST/170, live, | designation1_criteria = iii, iv| designation1_type = Cultural| designation1_free1name = Region	List of World Heritage Sites in the Arab States>Arab States| designation1_meaning of name =}}| official_name =}}Fez or Fes ({{IPAc-en|f|É›|z}}; ) is a city in northern inland Morocco and the capital of the Fès-Meknès administrative region. It is the second largest city in Morocco, with a population of 1.11 million, according to the 2014 census.WEB,rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/165548/, Note sur les premiers résultats du Recensement Général de la Population et de l’Habitat 2014, fr, Haut Commissariat au Plan, High Commission for Planning, 8, 20 March 2015, 9 October 2017, 7 November 2017,www.rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/165548/," title="web.archive.org/web/20171107134710www.rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/165548/,">web.archive.org/web/20171107134710www.rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/165548/, live, Located to the northwest of the Atlas Mountains, it is surrounded by hills and the old city is centered around the Fez River (Oued Fes) flowing from west to east. Fez has been called the “Mecca of the West” and the “Athens of Africa”. It is also considered the spiritual and cultural capital of Morocco.Founded under Idrisid rule during the 8th–9th centuries CE, Fez initially consisted of two autonomous and competing settlements. Successive waves of mainly Arab immigrants from Ifriqiya (Tunisia) and al-Andalus (Spain/Portugal) in the early 9th century gave the nascent city its Arab character. After the downfall of the Idrisid dynasty, other empires came and went until the 11th century when the Almoravid Sultan Yusuf ibn Tashfin united the two settlements into what is today’s Fes el-Bali ({{Literal translation|Old Fes}}) quarter, {{Aka}} Medina of Fez. Under Almoravid rule, the city gained a reputation for religious scholarship and mercantile activity.Fez reached its zenith in the Marinid era (13th–15th centuries), regaining its status as political capital. Numerous new madrasas and mosques were constructed, many of which survive today, while other structures were restored. These buildings are counted among the hallmarks of Moorish and Moroccan architectural styles. In 1276 the Marinid sultan Abu Yusuf Yaqub also founded the royal administrative district of Fes Jdid ({{Literal translation|New Fez}}), where the Royal Palace (Dar al-Makhzen) is still located today, to which extensive gardens were later added. During this period the Jewish population of the city grew and the Mellah (Jewish quarter) was formed on the south side of this new district. After the overthrow of the Marinid dynasty, the growth of Fez stalled and the city subsequently competed with Marrakesh for political and cultural influence. It became the capital again under the ’Alawi dynasty up until 1912.The city consists of two old medina quarters, Fes el-Bali and Fes Jdid, and the much larger modern urban area founded during the French colonial era. The Medina of Fez is listed as a World Heritage Site and is one of the world’s largest and oldest urban pedestrian zones (car-free areas). It contains the University of al-Qarawiyyin which was founded in 857 and is the oldest continuously functioning institute of higher education in the world. It also contains the Chouara Tannery from the 11th century, one of the oldest tanneries in the world. Etymology The name of the city in Arabic is Fās (or in traditional Maghrebi script), from which the English names Fez, Fès, and Fas are derived. According to some traditions, the city’s name comes from the Arabic word Faʾs, meaning pickaxe. Various legends have been reported to explain this etymology. One tells the story of a gold pickaxe found on site during the city’s construction, while another claims that Idris I used a silver and gold pickaxe to dig alongside his workers.BOOK, Gaudio, Attilio,books.google.com/books?id=yczpWGhXj2kC, Fès: Joyau de la civilisation islamique, Les Presses de l’Unesco: Nouvelles Éditions Latines, 1982, 2-7233-0159-1, Paris, fr, 2021-11-17, {{Rp|26}}BOOK, Bressolette, Henri,books.google.com/books?id=kNzeCwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1, A la découverte de Fès, L’Harmattan, 2016, 978-2-343-09022-1, Fondation de Fès El Bali par Idriss Ier et Idriss II, 2021-11-17, BOOK,books.google.com/books?id=3SapTk5iGDkC, Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia, 2007, ABC-CLIO, 978-1-57607-919-5, Dumper, Michael R. T., 151, Stanley, Bruce E., Another account reported by Ibn Abi Zar claims that an ancient city named “Sef” had previously existed on the site and that Idris I reversed the letters of this name to create the name “Fes”.{{Rp|26–27}}During the rule of the Idrisid dynasty (788 to 974), Fez consisted of two cities: Fās, founded by Idris I,BOOK, Place Names in Africa: Colonial Urban Legacies, Entangled Histories, Bigon, Liora, 2016, Springer, 978-3-319-32485-2, 83, en, and al-Ê¿Ä€liyá, founded by his son, Idris II. During this period the capital city was known as al-Ê¿Ä€liyá, with the name Fās being reserved for the separate site on the other side of the river; no Idrisid coins have been found with the name Fez, only al-Ê¿Ä€liyá and al-Ê¿Ä€liyá Madinat Idris. It is not known whether the name al-Ê¿Ä€liyá ever referred to both urban areas. The two cities were united in 1070 and the name Fās was used for the combined site.BOOK, O’Meara, Simon M.,etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf, An architectural investigation of Marinid Wattasid Fes Medina (674–961/1276–1554) in terms of gender, legend and law, University of Leeds, 2004, 19–20, en, PhD thesis,etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf," title="web.archive.org/web/20181102071616etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf,">web.archive.org/web/20181102071616etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf, 2 November 2018, History {{For timeline|Timeline of Fez}} Foundation and the Idrisids File:Fes.JPG|thumb|View of Fes el-Bali and the minaret of the left|alt=refer to captionThe city was first founded in 789 as Madinat Fas on the southeast bank of the Jawhar River (now known as the Fez River) by Idris I, founder of the Idrisid dynasty. Idris I was an Hasanid Sharif from Arabia who was forced to flee the Hejaz after a failed revolt against the Abbasid Caliphate, eventually moving to northern Morocco and conquereing much of the area.A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period, Jamil M. Abun-Nasr, 1987, pp. 51–52BOOK, Fage, J. D.,books.google.com/books?id=bs0tAQAAIAAJ, The Cambridge History of Africa, Clark, Desmond J., Oliver, Roland, 1975, Cambridge University Press, 978-0-521-20981-6, 526, en, His son, Idris II,“Fes”. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. 3 Mar. 2007 built a settlement called al-Ê¿Ä€liyá on the opposing river bank in 809 and moved his capital here from Walili (Volubilis).{{Rp|35}}{{Rp|35}}BOOK, Rivet, Daniel, Histoire du Maroc: de Moulay Idrîs à Mohammed VI, Fayard, 2012, fr, {{Rp|83}} The early population was composed mostly of Berbers, along with hundreds of Arab warriors from Kairouan who made up Idris II’s entourage.{{Rp|35, 41}}{{Rp|82}}Arab immigration to Fez increased afterwards. Andalusi families of mixed Arab and Iberian descent,{{Google books |id=6tFvlaM1LmgC |pages=55, 463 |title=The Places Where Men Pray Together }} who were expelled from Córdoba after a rebellion in 817–818 against al-Hakam I, were one major component of the immigrant population. These families mainly settled in Madinat Fas.{{Rp|46–47}} These two waves of immigrants gave the city its Arabic character and would subsequently give their name to the districts of {{Ill|’Adwat Al-Andalus|ar|عدوة الأندلسيين|italic=y}} and {{Ill|’Adwat al-Qarawiyyin|ar|عدوة القرويين|italic=y}}.BOOK, Abun-Nasr, Jamil M.,books.google.com/books?id=jdlKbZ46YYkC&q=moinier+hiba&pg=PA370, A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period, 1987, Cambridge University Press, 978-0-521-33767-0, en, {{Rp|51}} The city also had a prominent Jewish community, probably consisting of Zenata Berbers who had previously converted to Judaism, as well as a small remaining Christian population for a time. The Jews were especially concentrated in a northeastern district of al-Ê¿Ä€liyá, known as Funduq el-Yihoudi (near the present-day Bab Guissa gate).{{Rp|42–44}}File:2008-03-25 Universität al-QarawÄ«yÄ«n.jpg|left|thumb|Interior of the Qarawiyin MosqueQarawiyin MosqueFollowing the death of Idris II in 828 the region was divided among his sons. The eldest, Muhammad, received Fez, but some of his brothers attempted to break away from his leadership, resulting in an internecine conflict. Although the Idrisid realm was eventually reunified and enjoyed a period of peace under Ali ibn Muhammad and Yahya ibn Muhammad, it fell into decline again in the late 9th century.BOOK, Eustache, D., Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd, Brill, 2012, Bearman, P., IdrÄ«sids, Bianquis, Th., Bosworth, C.E., van Donzel, E., Heinrichs, W.P., File:الأنيس المطرب بروض القرطاس في أخبار ملوك المغرب وتاريخ مدينة فاس (page 10 crop).jpg|thumb|A page from a 16th-century manuscript of Rawḍ al-Qirṭās, a book about the history of Fes under the Idrisids, Banu Zanata, Almoravids, Almohads and (Marinid Sultanate|Marinids]].{{Citation |last=Witkam |first=Jan Just |title=Inventory of the Oriental Manuscripts of the Library of the University of Leiden |date=2007 |url=http://www.islamicmanuscripts.info/inventories/leiden/or01000.pdf |publisher=Ter Lugt Press |access-date=2023-05-23 |archive-date=2023-05-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528191206www.islamicmanuscripts.info/inventories/leiden/or01000.pdf |url-status=live }}WEB,hdl.handle.net/1887.1/item:3324568, AnÄ«s al-Muá¹­rib bi-Rawḍat al-Qirṭās fÄ« akhbār mulÅ«k al-MaÄ¡rib wa-MadÄ«nat Fās – Or. 17 | Digital Collections, 1887.1/item:3324568, |alt=refer to caption)In the 10th century, the city was contested by the Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba and the Fatimid Caliphate of Ifriqiya (Tunisia), who ruled the city through a host of Zenata clients.{{Rp|88–91}}{{Rp|63–64, 74–75}} The Fatimids took the city in 927 and expelled the Idrisids definitively, after which their Miknasa (one of the Zenata tribes) were installed there. The city, along with much of northern Morocco, continued to change hands between the proxies of Córdoba and the proxies of the Fatimids for many decades. Following another successful invasion by Buluggin ibn Ziri in 979 and a brief period of Fatimid control, the forces of Al-Mansur of Cordoba managed to retake the region again, expelling the Fatimids permanently. From 980 (or from 986BOOK, Le Tourneau, Roger, Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd, Terrasse, Henri, Brill, 2012, Bearman, P., Fās, Bianquis, Th., Bosworth, C.E., van Donzel, E., Heinrichs, W.P., ), Fez was ruled by a Zenata dynasty from the Maghrawa tribe, who were allies of the Caliphate of Córdoba. They maintained this control even after the Caliphate’s collapse in the early 11th century and until the arrival of the Almoravids.{{Rp|16}}{{Rp|91}}Fez continued to grow under Zenata control, even though conflicts between its two settlements, Madinat Fas and al-Ê¿Ä€liyá, flared up during periods of political rivalry. Ziri ibn Atiyya, the first ruler of the new dynasty, had a troubled reign.{{Rp|50}} However, Ibn Atiyya’s descendant Dunas ibn Hamama, ruling between 1037 and 1049, was responsible for improving the city’s infrastructure.JOURNAL, Madani, Tariq, 1999, Le réseau hydraulique de la ville de Fès, Archéologie islamique, 8–9, 119–142, He developed much of Fez’s water supply system, which has largely survived up to the present day.JOURNAL, Marcos Cobaleda, Maria, Villalba Sola, Dolores, 2018, Transformations in medieval Fez: Almoravid hydraulic system and changes in the Almohad walls, The Journal of North African Studies, 23, 4, 591–623, 10.1080/13629387.2017.1371596, 219625871, Other structures built in his time included hammams (bathhouses), mosques, and the first bridges over the Oued Bou Khrareb (mostly rebuilt in later eras).{{Rp|51}}BOOK, Gaillard, Henri,archive.org/details/unevilledelisla00gailgoog, Une ville de l’Islam: Fès, J. André, 1905, Paris, 32, WEB, La magnifique rénovation des 27 monuments de Fès – Conseil Régional du Tourisme (CRT) de Fès,visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/, 2020-03-31, fr-FR, 2021-02-27,visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/," title="web.archive.org/web/20210227004933visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/,">web.archive.org/web/20210227004933visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/, live, The two cities became increasingly integrated: the open space between the two was filled up by new houses and up to six bridges across the river allowed for easier passage between them.{{Rp|36}} A decade after Dunas, between 1059 and 1061, the two cities were ruled separately by two brothers who were rival Zenata emirs that fought with each other: al-Ê¿Ä€liyá was controlled by an emir named Al-Gisa and Madinat Fas was controlled by Al-Fetouh. Both brothers fortified their respective shores, and their names have been preserved in two of the city’s gates to this day: Bab Guissa (or Bab Gisa) in the north and Bab Ftouh in the south.{{Rp|31}}{{Rp|50, 53, 110}} Almoravids, Almohads and Marinids In 1069–1070 (or possibly a few years later), Fez was conquered by the Almoravids under Yusuf ibn Tashfin. In the same year of this conquest, Yusuf ibn Tashfin unified Madinat Fas and al-Ê¿Ä€liyá into one city. The walls dividing them were destroyed, bridges connecting them were built or renovated, and a new circuit of walls was constructed that encompassed both cities. A kasbah (Arabic term for “citadel“) was built at the western edge of the city (just west of Bab Bou Jeloud today) to house the city’s governor and garrison.{{Rp|53}} Although the capital was moved to Marrakesh under the Almoravids, Fez acquired a reputation for Maliki legal scholarship and remained an important centre of trade and industry.{{Rp|52–54}}{{Rp|17–18}} Almoravid impact on the city’s structure was such that Yusuf ibn Tashfin is sometimes considered to be the second founder of Fez.{{Google books |id=Rfxoq5MzHa4C |title=The Almoravids and the Meanings of Jihad|pages=43, 51 }}File:Fes medina walls DSCF3737.jpg|thumb|Remains of the city walls on the north side of Fes el-Bali, which were rebuilt during the AlmohadAlmohadIn 1145 the Almohad leader Abd al-Mu’min besieged and conquered the city during the Almohad overthrow of the Almoravids. Due to the ferocious resistance they encountered from the local population, the Almohads demolished the city’s fortifications.{{Rp|55}} However, due to Fez’s continuing economic and military importance, the Almohad caliph Ya’qub al-Mansur ordered the reconstruction of the ramparts.BOOK, Gaillard, Henri,archive.org/details/unevilledelisla01gailgoog, Une ville de l’Islam: Fès, J. André, 1905, Paris, {{Rp|36}}{{Rp|606}} The walls were completed by his successor Muhammad al-Nasir in 1204,{{Rp|36}} giving them their definitive shape and establishing the perimeter of Fes el-Bali to this day.{{Rp|56}}BOOK, Métalsi, Mohamed, Fès: La ville essentielle, ACR Édition Internationale, 2003, 978-2-86770-152-8, Paris, {{Rp|19}} The Almohads built the Kasbah Bou Jeloud on the site of the former Almoravid kasbah{{Rp|56}} and also built the first kasbah occupying the site of the current Kasbah an-Nouar.{{Rp|72}}{{Rp|109}} Not all the land within the city walls was densely inhabited; much of it was still relatively open and was occupied by crops and gardens used by the inhabitants.{{Rp|19}} During the 12th century, the city was one of the largest in the world,{{Google books |id=hEvCpNW2qBwC |title=Morocco 2009|page=252 }}BOOK, Roth, Norman,books.google.com/books?id=8edQAwAAQBAJ&dq=Fez+largest+cities+in+the+world&pg=PA479, Medieval Jewish Civilization: An Encyclopedia, 2014-04-08, Routledge, 978-1-136-77155-2, en, with an estimated population of 200,000. By 1200, Fez and Cairo had probably become the largest Muslim cities.BOOK, Coatsworth, John,books.google.com/books?id=rBh2BgAAQBAJ&dq=By+1200%2C+Fez+and+Cairo+had+probably+become+the+largest+Muslim+cities&pg=PA267, Global Connections, Cole, Juan, Hanagan, Michael P., Perdue, Peter C., Tilly, Charles, Tilly, Louise, 2015-03-16, Cambridge University Press, 978-0-521-19189-0, en, File:Medersa Bouinania (588782572).jpg|left|thumb|The Bou Inania Madrasa, the most important madrasa built by the MarinidsMarinidsIn 1250, Fez regained its status as the capital under the Marinid dynasty. The city reached its golden age in the Marinid period.BOOK, O’Meara, Simon M.,etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf, An architectural Investigation of Marinid and Wattasid Fes Medina (674–961/1276–1554), in Terms of Gender, Legend, and Law, University of Leeds, 2004, 2012-02-25,etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf," title="web.archive.org/web/20181102071616etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf,">web.archive.org/web/20181102071616etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/348/1/uk_bl_ethos_426809.pdf, 2018-11-02, live, {{Rp|16}}{{Rp|61–78}}{{Rp|20}} In 1276, an anti-Marinid revolt resulted in a massacre of the Jewish community that was stopped by the intervention of the ruler Abu Yusuf Ya’qub.{{Google books |id=1eqtODKlq1cC |page=459 |title=Roudh el-Kartas: Histoire des souverains du Maghreb }} Following the revolt, Abu Yusuf Yaqub founded Fes Jdid as the new administrative and military centre. Under the Marinids, many of the principal monuments in the medina were built and the city established its reputation as an important intellectual centre.{{Rp|61–78}}{{Google books |id=9JQ3AAAAIAAJ |pages=605, 896 |title=Encyclopedia of Islam }} Between 1271 and 1357 seven madrasas were built, which are among the best examples of Moroccan architecture and some of the most richly decorated monuments in Fez.BOOK, Marçais, Georges, L’architecture musulmane d’Occident, Arts et métiers graphiques, 1954, Paris, {{Rp|285–289, 291–293}}{{Rp|312–314}}File:Jews of Fez.jpg|thumb|Jews of Fez photographed in the 1900s. The MellahMellahThe Jewish quarter of Fez, the Mellah, was created in Fes Jdid at some point during the Marinid period. The exact date and circumstances of its formation are not firmly established,JOURNAL, García-Arenal, Mercedes, 1987, Les BildiyyÄ«n de Fès, un groupe de néo-musulmans d’origine juive, Studia Islamica, 66, 66, 113–143, 10.2307/1595913, 1595913, BOOK, Rguig, Hicham, Maroc médiéval: Un empire de l’Afrique à l’Espagne, Louvre éditions, 2014, 978-2-35031-490-7, Lintz, Yannick, Paris, 452–454, Quand Fès inventait le Mellah, Déléry, Claire, Tuil Leonetti, Bulle, but many scholars date the transfer of the Jewish population from Fes el-Bali to the new Mellah to the 15th century, a period of political tension and instability. In particular, Jewish sources describe the transfer as a consequence of the rediscovery of Idris II’s body in the heart of the city in 1437, which caused the surrounding area—if not the entire city—to acquire a holy (haram) status, requiring that non-Muslims be removed from the area.BOOK, Zafrani, H., Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd, Brill, Bearman, P., Mallāḥ, Bianquis, Th., Bosworth, C.E., van Donzel, E., Heinrichs, W.P., JOURNAL, Gilson Miller, Susan, Petruccioli, Attilio, Bertagnin, Mauro, 2001, Inscribing Minority Space in the Islamic City: The Jewish Quarter of Fez (1438–1912), Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 60, 3, 310–327, 10.2307/991758, 991758, BOOK, Ben-Layashi, Samir,books.google.com/books?id=4Hp0DwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1, Sites of Jewish Memory: Jews in and From Islamic Lands, Maddy-Weitzman, Bruce, Routledge, 2018, 978-1-317-75160-1, Abramson, Glenda, Myth, History, and Realpolitik: Morocco and its Jewish Community, The Moroccan Jewish community had initially consisted of indigenous local Jews (known as the Toshavim) but these were joined by Western Sephardic Jews fleeing from the Iberian Peninsula (known as the Megorashim) in subsequent generations, especially after the 1492 expulsion of Jews from Spain and 1496 expulsion of Jews from Portugal.BOOK, Chetrit, Joseph, Maroc médiéval: Un empire de l’Afrique à l’Espagne, Louvre éditions, 2014, 978-2-35031-490-7, Lintz, Yannick, Paris, 309–311, Juifs du Maroc et Juifs d’Espagne: deux destins imbriqués, Déléry, Claire, Tuil Leonetti, Bulle, The 1465 Moroccan revolt overthrew the last Marinid sultan. In 1472 the Wattasids, another Zenata dynasty which had previously served as viziers under the Marinid sultans, succeeded as rulers of Morocco from Fez.{{Rp|114–115}}BOOK, Bosworth, Clifford Edmund,books.google.com/books?id=mKpz_2CkoWEC&q=new+islamic+dynasties, The New Islamic Dynasties: A Chronological and Genealogical Manual, Edinburgh University Press, 2004, 978-0-7486-9648-2, The Waṭṭāsids, They perpetuated the structure of the Marinid state and continued its policies, but were unable to control all of Morocco.{{Rp|15}}{{Rp|207–209}} They did not contribute significantly to the physical fabric of Fez.BOOK, O’Meara, Simon, Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three, Brill, 2013, 978-90-04-25267-7, Fleet, Kate, Fez, 1873-9830, Krämer, Gudrun, Matringe, Denis, Nawas, John, Rowson, Everett, Saadis and ‘Alawis File:Borj Nord DSCF2747.jpg|thumb|Borj Nord, a SaadiSaadiIn the 16th century the Saadis, a dynasty claiming prophetic heritage, rose to power in southern Morocco and challenged the Wattasids. Around the same time, the Ottoman Empire came close to Fez after its conquest of Algeria. In January 1549, the Saadi sultan Mohammed ash-Sheikh took Fez and ousted the last Wattasid sultan Ali Abu Hassun. The Wattasids later retook the city in 1554 with Ottoman support, but this reconquest was short-lived and later that same year the Wattasids were decisively defeated by the Saadis.{{Rp|157}} The Ottomans attempted to invade Morocco after the assassination of Mohammed ash-Sheikh in 1558, but were stopped by his son Abdallah al-Ghalib at the Battle of Wadi al-Laban north of Fez.{{Rp|158}} After the death of Abdallah al-Ghalib a new power struggle emerged. Abd al-Malik, Abdallah’s brother, captured Fez with Ottoman support and ousted his nephew Abu Abdullah from the throne. This led to the Battle of Wadi al-Makhazin (also known as Battle of the Three Kings) in which Abd al-Malik’s army defeated an invading Portuguese army, ensuring Moroccan independence. Abd al-Malik was killed during the battle and was succeeded by Ahmad al-Mansur (r. 1578–1603).BOOK, Véronne, Chantal de la, Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd, Brill, 2012, Bearman, P., SaÊ¿dids, Bianquis, Th., Bosworth, C.E., van Donzel, E., Heinrichs, W.P., The Saadis, who used Marrakesh again as their capital, did not lavish much attention on Fez, with the exception of the ornate ablutions pavilions added to the Qarawiyyin Mosque’s courtyard during their time.BOOK, Terrasse, Henri, La Mosquée al-Qaraouiyin à Fès; avec une étude de Gaston Deverdun sur les inscriptions historiques de la mosquée, Librairie C. Klincksieck, 1968, Paris, {{Rp|70}} Perhaps as a result of persistent tensions with the city’s inhabitants, the Saadis built a number of new forts and bastions around the city which appear to have been aimed at keeping control over the local population.{{efn|They were located on higher ground overlooking Fes el-Bali, from which they would have been easily able to bombard the city with canons. These include the Kasbah Tamdert, just inside the city walls near Bab Ftouh, the fortressess of Borj Nord to the north and Borj Sud to the south, and the bastions of Borj Sheikh Ahmed, Borj Twil, and Borj Sidi Bou Nafa’ to the west. These fortifications were mostly built by Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur in the late 16th century. Their design is influenced by European (probably Portuguese) military architecture in the gunpowder age.{{Rp|79–80}}{{Rp|37}}BOOK, Salmon, Xavier, Marrakech: Splendeurs saadiennes: 1550–1650, LienArt, 2016, 978-2-35906-182-6, Paris, {{Rp|92}}}}After the long reign of Ahmad al-Mansur, the Saadi state fell into civil war between his sons and potential successors. Fez became a rival seat of power for a number of brothers vying against other family members ruling from Marrakesh. Both cities changed hands multiple times until the internecine conflict finally ended in 1627.BOOK, Bosworth, Clifford Edmund,books.google.com/books?id=mKpz_2CkoWEC&q=new+islamic+dynasties, The New Islamic Dynasties: A Chronological and Genealogical Manual, Edinburgh University Press, 2004, 978-0-7486-9648-2, The Sa’did Sharifs, Despite the reunification of the realm after 1627, the Saadis were in full decline and Fez had already suffered considerably from the repeated conquests and reconquests during the conflict. In 1641, Muhammad al-Haj of the Sanhaja Dilā’ Sufi order occupied Fez.BOOK, Gottreich, Emily, Jewish Morocco: a history from pre-Islamic to postcolonial times, 2020, 978-1-83860-361-8, London, I.B. Tauris, 1139892409, {{Rp|page=88}} The time was particularly difficult for Fessi Jews.{{Rp|page=88}}File:Fes Castle Court.png|thumb|Patio of Moulay Rashid (17th century) inside the Royal Palace of FezRoyal Palace of FezIt was only when the founder of the ’Alawi dynasty, Moulay Rashid, took Fez in 1666 that the city saw a revival and became the capital again, albeit briefly.{{Rp|25}} Moulay Rashid set about restoring the city after a long period of neglect. He built the Kasbah Cherarda (also known as the Kasbah al-Khemis) to the north of Fes Jdid in order to house a large part of his tribal troops.{{Rp|84}}{{Rp|25}} He also restored or rebuilt what became known as the Kasbah an-Nouar, which became the living quarters of his followers from the Tafilalt region (the ‘Alawi dynasty’s ancestral home).{{Rp|84}}{{Rp|72–73}} Moulay Rashid also built a large new madrasa, the Cherratine Madrasa, in 1670.After Rashid’s death, Fez underwent another dark period. Moulay Isma’il, his successor, apparently disliked the city—possibly due to a rebellion there in his early reign—and chose nearby Meknès as his capital instead.{{Rp|84}} Although he did restore or rebuild some major monuments in the city, such as the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II, he also frequently imposed heavy taxes on the city’s inhabitants and sometimes even forcibly transferred parts of its population to repopulate other cities in the country.{{Rp|84–85}} After his death, Morocco was plunged into anarchy and decades of conflict between his sons who vied to succeed him. Fez suffered particularly from repeated conflicts with the Udayas (or Oudayas), a guich tribe (vassal tribe serving as a garrison and military force) previously installed in the Kasbah Cherarda by Moulay Isma’il. Sultan Moulay Abdallah, who reigned intermittently during this period and used Fez as a capital, was initially welcomed in 1728–29 as an enemy of the Udayas, but relations between him and the city’s population quickly soured due to his choice of governor. He immediately built a separate fortified palace in the countryside, Dar Dbibegh, where he resided instead. For nearly three more decades the city remained in more or less perpetual conflict with both the Udayas and the ‘Alawi sultans.{{Rp|85–86}}Starting with the reign of Moulay Muhammad ibn Abdallah, between 1757 and 1790, the country stabilized and Fez finally regained its fortunes. Although its status was partly shared with Marrakesh, it remained the capital of Morocco for the rest of the ‘Alawi period up to the 20th century.{{Rp|88}}{{Rp|25–26}} The ‘Alawis continued to rebuild or restore various monuments and undertook a series of extensions to the Royal Palace.JOURNAL, Bressolette, Henri, Delaroziere, Jean, 1983, Fès-Jdid de sa fondation en 1276 au milieu du XXe siècle,www.hesperis-tamuda.com/Downloads/1980-1989/Hesp%C3%A9ris-Tamuda%201982-1983.pdf, Hespéris-Tamuda, 245–318, 2021-09-29, 2021-09-29,web.archive.org/web/20210929184201/https://www.hesperis-tamuda.com/Downloads/1980-1989/Hesp%C3%A9ris-Tamuda%201982-1983.pdf, live, The sultans and their entourages also became more and more closely associated with the elites of Fez and other urban centers, with the ulama (religious scholars) of Fez being particularly influential. After Moulay Slimane’s death, powerful families from Fez became the main players of the country’s political and intellectual scene.{{Rp|242–247}}The Tijani Sufi order, started by Ahmad al-Tijani (d. 1815), has had its spiritual center in Fez since al-Tijani moved here from Algeria in 1789.{{Rp|244}} The order spread quickly among the literary elite of North West Africa and its ulama had significant religious, intellectual, and political influence in Fez and beyond.JOURNAL, Brigaglia, Andrea, 2013–2014, Sufi Revival and Islamic Literacy: Tijaniyya Writings in Twentieth-Century Nigeria,www.academia.edu/9668574, Annual Review of Islam in Africa, en, 12, 1, 2019-11-18, 2021-09-03,web.archive.org/web/20210903085646/https://www.academia.edu/9668574, live, Until the 19th century the city was the only source of fezzes (also known as the tarboosh).File:New mechouar.jpg|thumb|The New Mechouar, created by Moulay Hassan I in the late 19th century at the northern entrance to Fes Jdid and the Royal Palace; on the left is the entrance to the alt=refer to captionThe last major change to Fez’s topography before the 20th century was made during the reign of Moulay Hassan I (1873–1894), who finally connected Fes Jdid and Fes el-Bali by building a walled corridor between them.{{Rp|89}}{{Rp|25–26}} New gardens and summer palaces, used by the royals and the capital’s high society, were built within the corridor, such as the Jnan Sbil Gardens and the Dar Batha palace.{{Rp|89–90}} Moulay Hassan also expanded the old Royal Palace itself, extending its entrance up to the current location of the Old Mechouar while adding the New Mechouar, along with the Dar al-Makina, to the north. The expansion separated the Moulay Abdallah neighbourhood to the northwest from the rest of Fes Jdid.Fez played a central role in the Hafidhiya, the brief civil war that erupted when Abdelhafid challenged his brother Abdelaziz for the throne. The ulama of Fez, led by the Sufi modernist Muhammad Bin Abdul-Kabir Al-Kattani, offered their conditioned support to Abd al-Hafid, which turned the tide of the conflict.BOOK, Miller, Susan Gilson., A history of modern Morocco, 2013, Cambridge University Press, 978-1-139-62469-5, New York, 855022840, WEB, 2017-06-12, الكتاني، ثمن البيعة المشروطة,zamane.ma/ar/%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%83%d8%aa%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%8a%d8%8c-%d8%ab%d9%85%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a8%d9%8a%d8%b9%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d8%b4%d8%b1%d9%88%d8%b7%d8%a9/, 2020-06-25, زمان, ar, 2020-04-10,web.archive.org/web/20200410054055/https://zamane.ma/ar/%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%83%d8%aa%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%8a%d8%8c-%d8%ab%d9%85%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a8%d9%8a%d8%b9%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d8%b4%d8%b1%d9%88%d8%b7%d8%a9/, Abdelaziz was defeated in the Battle of Marrakesh in 1908.{{Rp|76–78}} Abdelhafid’s reign soon deteriorated and in early 1911 the sultan was besieged in Fez by the tribes of the Middle Atlas. Abdelhafid appealed for French help and a French force under Colonel {{Interlanguage link|Charles Émile Moinier|fr|Charles Émile Moinier}} arrived in Fez on May 21 and established a command centre at Dar Dbibegh.{{Rp|313}}{{Rp|78}} Colonial period File:Abdication of Abd al-Hafid of Morocco (1912, Le Petit Journal).jpg|thumb|left|upright|The abdication of Abd al-HafidAbd al-HafidIn 1912, French colonial rule was instituted over Morocco following the Treaty of Fes. One immediate consequence was the 1912 riots in Fez, a popular uprising which included deadly attacks targeting Europeans as well as native Jewish inhabitants in the Mellah, followed by an even deadlier repression.BOOK, Gershovich, Moshe, French Military Rule in Morocco: colonialism and its consequences, Routledge, 2000, 0-7146-4949-X, Pre-Colonial Morocco: Demise of the Old Mazhkan,books.google.com/books?id=KkcM5c48hBIC&pg=PA40, BOOK, H. Z. (J. W.) Hirschberg, A history of the Jews in North Africa: From the Ottoman conquests to the present time, edited by Eliezer Bashan and Robert Attal,books.google.com/books?id=idEUAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA319, 1981, BRILL, 90-04-06295-5, 318, The first French resident general, Hubert Lyautey, decided to move the administrative capital of the Protectorate to Rabat in 1912–1913, which has remained the capital ever since.BOOK, Pennell, C.R., Morocco: From Empire to Independence, Oneworld Publications, 2003, 978-1-85168-634-6, {{Rp|149}}JOURNAL, Théliol, Mylène, 2014-01-30, Aménagement et préservation de la médina de Rabat entre 1912 et 1956,journals.openedition.org/emam/548?lang=en, Les Cahiers d’EMAM (Études sur le Monde Arabe et la Méditerranée), fr, 22, 47–70, 10.4000/emam.548, 1969-248X, free, 2021-09-30, 2021-10-28,web.archive.org/web/20211028171218/https://journals.openedition.org/emam/548?lang=en, live, BOOK, Rabinow, Paul,books.google.com/books?id=nC2GDwAAQBAJ&dq=rabat+capital+1913&pg=PA296, French Modern: Norms and Forms of the Social Environment, University of Chicago Press, 2014, 978-0-226-22757-3, 296, en, A number of social and physical changes took place during this period and across the 20th century. Starting under Lyautey, one important policy with long-term consequences was the decision to largely forego redevelopment of existing historic walled cities in Morocco and to intentionally preserve them as sites of historic heritage, still known today as “medinas”. Instead, the French administration built new modern cities (the Villes Nouvelles) just outside the old cities, where European settlers largely resided with modern Western-style amenities. This was part of a larger “policy of association” adopted by Lyautey which favoured various forms of indirect colonial rule by preserving local institutions and elites, in contrast with other French colonial policies that had favoured “assimilation”.JOURNAL, Wagner, Lauren, Minca, Claudio, 2014, Rabat retrospective: Colonial heritage in a Moroccan urban laboratory, Urban Studies, 51, 14, 3011–3025, 10.1177/0042098014524611, 2014UrbSt..51.3011W, 145686603, JOURNAL, Holden, Stacy E., 2008, The Legacy of French Colonialism: Preservation in Morocco’s Fez Medina, APT Bulletin, 39, 4, 5–11, BOOK, Jelidi, Charlotte, Fès, la fabrication d’une ville nouvelle (1912–1956), ENS Éditions, 2012, The also became known as Dar Dbibegh by Moroccans, as the former palace of Moulay Abdallah was located in the same area.(File:Fes City Modern (lightened).jpg|thumb|A street in the modern Ville Nouvelle (“New City“) of Fez|alt=refer to caption)The creation of the separate French to the west had a wider impact on the entire city’s development. While new colonial policies preserved historic monuments, they stalled urban development in heritage areas. Scholar Janet Abu-Lughod has argued that these policies created a kind of urban “apartheid” between the indigenous Moroccan urban areas, who were forced to remain stagnant in terms of urban development and architectural innovation, and the new, mainly European-inhabited planned cities, which expanded to occupy lands formerly used by Moroccans outside the city.BOOK, Abu-Lughod, Janet, African Themes: Northwestern University Studies in Honor of Gwendolen M. Carter, Northwestern University Press, 1975, Abu-Lughod, Ibrahim, 77–111, Moroccan Cities: Apartheid and the Serendipity of Conservation, BOOK, Abu-Lughod, Janet, Rabat: Urban Apartheid in Morocco, Princeton University Press, 1980, {{Rp|165–166}} This separation was partly softened, however, by wealthy Moroccans who started moving into the during this period.BOOK, Aouchar, Amina, Fès, Meknès, Flammarion, 2005, 192–194, {{Rp|26}} By contrast, the old city (medina) of Fez was increasingly settled by poorer rural migrants from the countryside.{{Rp|26}}Fez also played a role in the Moroccan nationalist movement and in protests against the French colonial regime. Many Moroccan nationalists received their education at the Al-Qarawiyyin University and some of their informal political networks were established thanks to this shared educational background.BOOK, Wyrtzen, Jonathan,books.google.com/books?id=VC1UCwAAQBAJ, Making Morocco: Colonial Intervention and the Politics of Identity, Cornell University Press, 2016, 978-1-5017-0424-6, {{Rp|140, 146}} In July 1930, the students and other inhabitants protested against the Berber Dahir, decreed by the French authorities in May of that year.JOURNAL, Hart, David M., 1997, The Berber Dahir of 1930 in colonial Morocco: then and now (1930–1996), The Journal of North African Studies, 2, 2, 11–33, 10.1080/13629389708718294, {{Rp|143–144}} In 1937, the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque and R’cif Mosque were rallying points for demonstrations against a violent crackdown on Moroccan protesters in the nearby city of Meknes, which ended with French troops being deployed across Fes el-Bali, including at the mosques themselves.BOOK, Abun-Nasr, Jamil,books.google.com/books?id=jdlKbZ46YYkC&pg=PP1, A history of the Maghrib in the Islamic period, Cambridge University Press, 1987, 0-521-33767-4, Cambridge, {{Rp|387–389}}{{Rp|168}} Towards the end of World War II, Moroccan nationalists gathered in Fez to draft a demand for independence which they submitted to the Allies on January 11, 1944. This resulted in the arrest of nationalist leaders followed by the violent suppression of protests across many cities, including Fez.BOOK, Aouchar, Amina, Fès, Meknès, Flammarion, 2005, {{Rp|255}} Post-independence era After Morocco regained its independence in 1956, many of the trends begun under colonial rule continued and accelerated. Much of Fez’s bourgeois classes moved to the growing metropolises of Casablanca and the capital, Rabat.{{Rp|26}}BOOK, Istasse, Manon, Living in a World Heritage Site: Ethnography of Houses and Daily Life in the Fez Medina, Palgrave Macmillan, 2019, 978-3-030-17450-7, {{Rp|40}} The Jewish population was particularly depleted, either moving to Casablanca or emigrating to countries like France, Canada, and Israel. Although the population of the city grew, it did so only slowly up until the late 1960s, when the pace of growth finally accelerated.{{Rp|216}} Throughout this period Fez nonetheless remained the country’s third largest urban center.{{Rp|26}}{{Rp|216}} Between 1971 and 2000, the population of the city roughly tripled from 325,000 to 940,000, making it the second largest city in Morocco.{{Rp|376}} The became the locus of further development, with new peripheral neighbourhoods–with inconsistent housing quality–spreading outwards around it. In 1963 the University of Al-Qarawiyyin was reorganized as a state university,Lulat, Y. G.-M.: (iarchive:isbn 9780313320613/page/154/mode/2up|A History Of African Higher Education From Antiquity To The Present: A Critical Synthesis), Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005, {{ISBN|978-0-313-32061-3}}, pp. 154–157 while a new public university, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, was founded in 1975 in the . In 1981, the old city, consisting of Fes el-Bali and Fes Jdid, was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.WEB, Medina of Fez,whc.unesco.org/en/list/170/, live,web.archive.org/web/20200423051019/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/170/, 2020-04-23, 2021-09-29, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, en, Social inequalities and economic precarity were accentuated during the repressive reign of King Hassan II and the period known as the Years of Lead (roughly 1975–1990).{{Rp|170}} Fez was strongly affected by unemployment and lack of housing. Austerity measures led to several riots and uprisings across other cities during the 1980s. On December 14, 1990, a general strike was called and led to protests and rioting by university students and youths in Fez. Buildings were burned and looted, including the , a luxury hotel overlooking Fes el-Bali and dating to the time of Lyautey. Thousands were arrested and at least five were killed. The government promised to investigate and raise wages, though some of these measures were dismissed by the opposition.{{Rp|377}}NEWS, 1990-12-17, 33 Dead in 2-Day Riot in Morocco Fed by Frustration Over Economy (Published 1990), en-US, The New York Times, Reuters,www.nytimes.com/1990/12/17/world/33-dead-in-2-day-riot-in-morocco-fed-by-frustration-over-economy.html, live, 2021-01-10,web.archive.org/web/20210214180837/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/17/world/33-dead-in-2-day-riot-in-morocco-fed-by-frustration-over-economy.html, 2021-02-14, 0362-4331, WEB, 1990-12-16, 5 Die, 127 Hurt as Worst Riots in 7 Years Sweep Morocco City,www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-12-16-mn-9259-story.html, 2021-01-10, Los Angeles Times, 2021-02-14,web.archive.org/web/20210214090422/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-12-16-mn-9259-story.html, live, BOOK, Bidwell, Robin, Dictionary Of Modern Arab History, Routledge, 1998, 978-0-7103-0505-3, 146, Fez Riots (1990), Today Fez remains a regional capital and one of Morocco’s most important cities. Many of the former notable families of Fez still make up a large part of the country’s political elite.BOOK, Hiel, Elizabeth, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World, Oxford University Press, 2009, 978-0-19-986125-5, Fez, It is also a major tourism destination due to its historical heritage. In recent years efforts have been underway to restore and rehabilitate the old medina, ranging from the restoration of individual monuments to attempts to rehabilitate the Fez River.WEB, La magnifique rénovation des 27 monuments de Fès – Conseil Régional du Tourisme (CRT) de Fès,visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/, 2021-01-10, fr-FR, 2021-02-27,visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/," title="web.archive.org/web/20210227004933visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/,">web.archive.org/web/20210227004933visitefes.com/la-magnifique-renovation-des-27-monuments-de-fes/, live, WEB, Facelift helps Morocco’s Old City of Fez lure tourists {{!, |url=https://thearabweekly.com/facelift-helps-moroccos-old-city-fez-lure-tourists|access-date=2021-01-10|website=AW|language=en|archive-date=2021-01-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210113055946thearabweekly.com/facelift-helps-moroccos-old-city-fez-lure-tourists|url-status=live}}WEB, Revitalization of the Fez River: A Reclaimed Public Space {{!, Smart Cities Dive|url=https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/ex/sustainablecitiescollective/revitalization-fez-river-reclaimed-public-space/171636/|access-date=2020-03-31|website=www.smartcitiesdive.com|language=en-US|archive-date=2020-09-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916183245www.smartcitiesdive.com/ex/sustainablecitiescollective/revitalization-fez-river-reclaimed-public-space/171636/|url-status=live}}WEB, 2014-03-20, Aziza Chaouni presents a 2014 TED Talk on her efforts to uncover the Fez River in Morocco,www.daniels.utoronto.ca/news/2014/03/20/aziza-chaouni-presents-2014-ted-talk-her-efforts-uncover-fez-river-morocco, 2020-03-31, Daniels, en, 2020-06-27,web.archive.org/web/20200627192051/https://www.daniels.utoronto.ca/news/2014/03/20/aziza-chaouni-presents-2014-ted-talk-her-efforts-uncover-fez-river-morocco, live, Geography Location File:Fez-Sunset on the old city (16955000775).jpg|thumb|300px|The walled district of Fes el-BaliFes el-BaliThe city is divided between its historic medina (the two walled districts of Fes el-Bali and Fes Jdid) and the now much larger Ville Nouvelle (New City) along with several outlying modern neighbourhoods. The old city is located in a valley along the banks of the Oued Fes (Fez River) just above its confluence with the larger Sebou River to the northeast.{{Rp|32}} The Fez River takes its sources from the south and west and is split into various small canals which provide the historic city with water. These in turn empty into the Oued Bou Khrareb, the stretch of the river which passes through the middle of Fes el-Bali and separates the Qarawiyyin quarter from the Andalusian quarter.{{Rp|232–235}}The new city occupies a plateau on the edge of the Saïs plain. The latter stretches out to the west and south and is occupied largely by farmland. Roughly 15 km south of Fes el-Bali is the region’s main airport, Fes-Saïs. Further south is the town of Sefrou, while the city of Meknes, the next largest city in the region, is located to the southwest.BOOK, The Rough Guide to Morocco, Rough Guides, 2019, 12th, 158–181, BOOK, Aouchar, Amina, Fès, Meknès, Flammarion, 2005, 123, Climate Northwest of the Middle Atlas mountains, Fez has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification Csa) with a strong continental influence, shifting from relatively cool and wet in the winter to dry and hot days in the summer months between June and September. Rainfall can reach up to {{convert|800|mm|0|abbr=on}} in good years. The winter highs typically reach around {{convert|15|°C|0|abbr=on}} and winter lows average about {{convert|4.5|C|0|abbr=on}} in December–January. Frost is not uncommon during the winter period. The summer highs peak in July and August at approximately {{convert|34.5|C|0|abbr=on}} with average lows of {{convert|18|C|0|abbr=on}}. The highest and lowest temperatures ever recorded in the city are {{convert|46.7|°C|0|abbr=on}} and {{convert|-8.2|°C|0|abbr=on}}, respectively.Snowfall on average occurs once every 3 to 5 years. Fez recorded snowfall in three straight years in 2005, 2006 and 2007.WEB,www.aemet.es/en/conocermas/publicaciones/detalles/guia_resumida_2010, Guía resumida del clima en España (1981–2010) – Agencia Estatal de Meteorología – AEMET. Gobierno de España, 2014-09-13,www.aemet.es/en/conocermas/publicaciones/detalles/guia_resumida_2010," title="web.archive.org/web/20121118081428www.aemet.es/en/conocermas/publicaciones/detalles/guia_resumida_2010,">web.archive.org/web/20121118081428www.aemet.es/en/conocermas/publicaciones/detalles/guia_resumida_2010, 2012-11-18, WEB,voodooskies.com/weather/morocco/fes/monthly/temperature,voodooskies.com/weather/morocco/fes/monthly/temperature," title="web.archive.org/web/20151006064153voodooskies.com/weather/morocco/fes/monthly/temperature,">web.archive.org/web/20151006064153voodooskies.com/weather/morocco/fes/monthly/temperature, 2015-10-06, Voodoo Skies – Fes Monthly Temperature weather history, October 6, 2015, {{Weather box	Fès–Saïs Airport), altitude: {{convert>579	abbr=on}} 1991–2020| metric first = yes| single line = yes| Jan record high C = 25.0| Feb record high C = 30.5| Mar record high C = 33.3| Apr record high C = 37.8| May record high C = 41.3| Jun record high C = 44.0| Jul record high C = 46.7| Aug record high C = 45.7| Sep record high C = 42.8| Oct record high C = 37.5| Nov record high C = 32.3| Dec record high C = 27.0| year record high C = 46.7| Jan high C = 16.0| Feb high C = 17.3| Mar high C = 19.9| Apr high C = 22.0| May high C = 26.4| Jun high C = 31.2| Jul high C = 35.1| Aug high C = 35.1| Sep high C = 30.3| Oct high C = 26.1| Nov high C = 20.2| Dec high C = 17.2| year high C = 24.7| Jan mean C = 9.9| Feb mean C = 10.9| Mar mean C = 13.3| Apr mean C = 15.2| May mean C = 19.0| Jun mean C = 23.1| Jul mean C = 26.5| Aug mean C = 26.8| Sep mean C = 22.9| Oct mean C = 19.4| Nov mean C = 14.1| Dec mean C = 11.2| year mean C = 17.7| Jan low C = 3.7| Feb low C = 4.4| Mar low C = 6.6| Apr low C = 8.3| May low C = 11.5| Jun low C = 14.9| Jul low C = 17.9| Aug low C = 18.3| Sep low C = 15.6| Oct low C = 12.6| Nov low C = 8.1| Dec low C = 5.2| year low C = 10.6| Jan record low C = -8.2| Feb record low C = -5.3| Mar record low C = -2.5| Apr record low C = -0.5| May record low C = 0.0| Jun record low C = 4.9| Jul record low C = 8.5| Aug record low C = 9.2| Sep record low C = 5.9| Oct record low C = 0.0| Nov record low C = -1.4| Dec record low C = -5.0| year record low C = -8.2| precipitation colour = green| Jan precipitation mm = 60.1| Feb precipitation mm = 54.3| Mar precipitation mm = 59.2| Apr precipitation mm = 54.7| May precipitation mm = 38.2| Jun precipitation mm = 11.1| Jul precipitation mm = 1.1| Aug precipitation mm = 4.9| Sep precipitation mm = 22.1| Oct precipitation mm = 53.9| Nov precipitation mm = 66.1| Dec precipitation mm = 62.0| year precipitation mm = 487.7| Jan precipitation days = 6.7| Feb precipitation days = 6.5| Mar precipitation days = 6.9| Apr precipitation days = 6.3| May precipitation days = 4.7| Jun precipitation days = 1.7| Jul precipitation days = 0.4| Aug precipitation days = 1.0| Sep precipitation days = 2.4| Oct precipitation days = 5.1| Nov precipitation days = 6.5| Dec precipitation days = 6.5| year precipitation days = 54.7| Jan sun = 210.6| Feb sun = 201.1| Mar sun = 244.0| Apr sun = 246.5| May sun = 278.0| Jun sun = 315.0| Jul sun = 338.0| Aug sun = 320.4| Sep sun = 282.5| Oct sun = 245.5| Nov sun = 205.2| Dec sun = 199.8| year sun =| Jan percentsun = 60| Feb percentsun = 55| Mar percentsun = 58| Apr percentsun = 62| May percentsun = 64| Jun percentsun = 71| Jul percentsun = 79| Aug percentsun = 77| Sep percentsun = 75| Oct percentsun = 64| Nov percentsun = 60| Dec percentsun = 60| year percentsun =	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration>NOAA (sun 1981–2010)WEB,www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Morocco/CSV/FesSAIS_60141.csv, World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991–2020, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 5 October 2023, 5 October 2023,web.archive.org/web/20231005221712/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Morocco/CSV/FesSAIS_60141.csv, live, WEB,www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1981-2010/RA-I/Morocco/WMO_Normals_ASCII_60141.csv, World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1981–2010, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 10 November 2021, 9 April 2022,web.archive.org/web/20220409222537/https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1981-2010/RA-I/Morocco/WMO_Normals_ASCII_60141.csv, live,		PUBLISHER=WEATHER ATLAS	ARCHIVE-DATE=MARCH 2, 2017	URL-STATUS=LIVE, }}{| class=“wikitable mw-collapsible” style="width:100%;text-align:center;line-height:1.2em;margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto”
11.0	13.0	14.0	13.0	11.0	10.0	Ultraviolet index	4	8	10	10	6	3

Demographics

(File:Cafe Life - Ville Nouvelle (New City) - Fez - Morocco.jpg|thumb|Men at a Café, Fez|alt=refer to caption)According to the 2014 national census, the population of the city of Fez was 1,112,072, which includes the municipalities of Fez proper and Méchouar Fès Jdid (New Fès). Most of the population was Moroccan, but it also included 3,515 resident foreigners, making up 4.2 percent of the foreigner population of Morocco.NEWS, El Masaiti, Amira, 2017-12-19, In just Ten Years, Foreign Population in Morocco Increased by 63%, Morocco World News,www.moroccoworldnews.com/2017/12/236762/foreign-population-morocco, 2023-11-07, 2023-11-07,web.archive.org/web/20231107000358/https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2017/12/236762/foreign-population-morocco, live, The predominant religion in Fez is Islam.{{Citation |title=Morocco |date=2023-11-14 |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/morocco/ |work=The World Factbook |access-date=2023-11-29 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |language=en}} In the past the city had a large Jewish population, but as of 2001, less than 200 Jewish people remain.JOURNAL, Kosansky, Oren, 2001, Reading Jewish Fez: On the Cultural Identity of a Moroccan City,hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.4750978.0008.305, Journal of the International Institute, 8, 3, 2027/spo.4750978.0008.305, 1558-741X,

Language

The main spoken language in Fez is Arabic Darija (), a vernacular variety of Arabic. Like the inhabitants of other historical urban centers in Morocco, Ahl Fes ( “the people of Fes,” referring especially to old elite families) speak their own distinct dialect of Darija.JOURNAL, Hachimi, Atiqa, 2012-05-23, The urban and the urbane: Identities, language ideologies, and Arabic dialects in Morocco, Language in Society, 41, 3, 321–341, 10.1017/s0047404512000279, 144607607, 0047-4045, This Fessi dialect has traditionally been regarded as a prestige dialect over other forms of Moroccan Darija—particularly those seen as rural or ’arÅ«bi ( “of the rural Arabs“)—due to its “association with the socio-economic power and dominance that its speakers enjoy at the national level,” in the words of linguist Mohammed Errihani.JOURNAL, Errihani, Mohammed, 2016-07-28, Language and social distinction: speaking Darija* with the right accent, The Journal of North African Studies, 21, 5, 741–764, 10.1080/13629387.2016.1212706, 147855077, 1362-9387, The Fessi dialect has traditionally had distinctive linguistic features. On the phonological level, these include the stereotypical use of a postalveolar approximant (like the American pronunciation of /ɹ/ in the word “red“) in the place of a trilled [r] for /ر/, or a pharyngealized glottal stop or voiceless uvular plosive in the place of a voiced velar plosive (g]) for /Ù‚/. On the morphosyntactic level, gender distinction in pronouns and verb inflections is neutralized in the second person singular.Many of these features were shared with the other “pre-Hilalian” dialects in the region.BOOK, Heath, Jeffrey, Jewish and Muslim Dialects of Moroccan Arabic, Routledge, 2002, 978-0-415-56778-7, {{Rp|5, 24}}{{Efn|“Pre-Hilalian” in this context refers to dialects believed to descend from the Arabic spoken in the region prior to the arrival of the Banu Hilal and the Banu Ma’qil tribes that began in the 12th century. After this event, “Hilalian” dialects became dominant in the rural regions of central Morocco and are a major component of wider Moroccan Arabic today.{{Rp|2–10}}}} However, due to social and demographic changes that started in the 20th century such as mass rural migration into the city and the departure of most of the city’s old urban elites to Casablanca, these old linguistic features are no longer dominant in the speech of Arabic speakers in Fez today.BOOK, Hachimi, Atiqa,books.google.com/books?id=DdCWpuRrAogC&dq=fez+languages&pg=PT70, The Languages of Urban Africa, Bloomsbury, 2011, 978-1-4411-5813-0, Mc Laughlin, Fiona, The story of old urban vernaculars in North Africa, {{Rp|5, 24}} Prior to the departure of most Jewish residents in the second half of the 20th century, the Jewish community in Fez also spoke an Arabic dialect similar to the rest of city.{{Rp|24}}{{Efn|There are competing theories about the historical roots of Moroccan Jewish dialects of Arabic. Some scholars argue that they were strongly influenced by Andalusi Arabic dialects (which were similar to North African dialects) brought by Jewish refugees from Spain after 1492, while other scholars argue that these same refugees mostly spoke Judeo-Spanish when they arrived and eventually adopted existing Arabic dialects in the cities.{{Rp|10–12}}}}Modern Standard Arabic and Berber (Tamazight) are Morocco’s two official state languages, although French is also widespread as a language of government and law.WEB, Languages in Morocco, Miscellaneous in Morocco,www.expat.com/en/guide/africa/morocco/17694-languages-in-morocco.html, 2021-09-20, Expat, en, 2021-09-20,web.archive.org/web/20210920220335/https://www.expat.com/en/guide/africa/morocco/17694-languages-in-morocco.html, live, WEB, Moroccan Arabic – Darija {{!, Qalam wa Lawh Center for Arabic Studies|url=https://www.qalamcenter.com/moroccan-arabic?lang=fr|access-date=2021-09-20|website=Qalam Wa Lawh|language=fr|archive-date=2021-09-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921022107www.qalamcenter.com/moroccan-arabic?lang=fr|url-status=live}} The primary language of the literary traditions of Fes is Arabic. While the daily spoken language is Darija (the Moroccan Arabic dialect), many people also speak French fluently. English is increasingly being learned by younger generations. Berber dialects are commonly spoken in the countryside around the city.WEB, What language is spoken in Fez Morocco?,archinfos.com/library/lecture/read/181838-what-language-is-spoken-in-fez-morocco, 2021-09-20, archinfos.com, 2021-11-01,web.archive.org/web/20211101190912/https://archinfos.com/library/lecture/read/181838-what-language-is-spoken-in-fez-morocco,

Economy

(File:Fez Peddler.jpg|thumb|Produce peddler in the Old Medina of Fes|alt=A man selling produce from a cart on the side of a street)Historically, the city was one of Morocco’s main centers of trade and craftsmanship. The tanning industry, for example, still embodied by tanneries of Fes el-Bali today, was a major source of exports and economic sustenance since the city’s early history.JOURNAL, Le Tourneau, Roger, Paye, L., 1935, La corporation des tanneurs et l’industrie de la tannerie à Fès,www.hesperis-tamuda.com/fr/index.php/archives/archives-1939-1930/150-hesperis-tamuda-1935, Hespéris, 21, 167–240, 2020-09-21, 2020-09-16,www.hesperis-tamuda.com/fr/index.php/archives/archives-1939-1930/150-hesperis-tamuda-1935," title="web.archive.org/web/20200916235230www.hesperis-tamuda.com/fr/index.php/archives/archives-1939-1930/150-hesperis-tamuda-1935,">web.archive.org/web/20200916235230www.hesperis-tamuda.com/fr/index.php/archives/archives-1939-1930/150-hesperis-tamuda-1935, live, Up until the late 19th century, the city was the only place in the world which fabricated the fez hat. The city’s commerce was concentrated along its major streets, like Tala’a Kebira, and around the central bazaar known as the Kissariat al-Kifah from which many other souqs (markets) branched off.{{Rp|112, 122–129}}{{Rp|52–56}} The crafts industry continues to this day and is still focused in the old city, though largely reliant on tourism.Today, the city’s surrounding countryside, the fertile Saïss plains, is an important source of agricultural activity producing primarily cereals, beans, olives, and grapes, as well as raising livestock.WEB, Business in Fez, Othman Benjelloun (Morocco),www.hauniversity.org/en/Maroc-Fes.shtml, 2020-09-21, Africa EENI Global Business School & University, en, 2020-09-30,web.archive.org/web/20200930212643/https://www.hauniversity.org/en/Maroc-Fes.shtml, live, Tourism is also a major industry due to the city’s UNESCO-listed historic medina. Religious tourism is also present due to the old city’s many major zawiyas (Islamic shrines), such as the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II and the Zawiya of Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani, which attract both Moroccan and international (especially West African) pilgrims.JOURNAL, Berriane, Johara, 2015, Pilgrimage, Spiritual Tourism and the Shaping of Transnational ‘Imagined Communities’: the Case of the Tidjani Ziyara to Fez,arrow.tudublin.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1104&context=ijrtp, International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage, 3, 2, 2020-09-21, 2020-07-23,web.archive.org/web/20200723195502/https://arrow.tudublin.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1104&context=ijrtp, live, The city and the region still struggle with unemployment and economic precarity.WEB, 2019-03-13, Fez-Meknes,oxfordbusinessgroup.com/morocco-2019/fez-meknes, 2020-09-21, Oxford Business Group, en, 2020-10-30,web.archive.org/web/20201030064559/https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/morocco-2019/fez-meknes, live,

Government

Two municipalities (Arabic: , French: ) in the {{ill|Fez Prefecture|ar|عمالة فاس}} (Arabic: ) make up the city of Fez. Most of Fez is administered as the municipality of Fez, while the neighborhood of Fes Jdid is administered separately as the municipality of Méchouar Fès Jdid. Outside of the city, there are also three rural municipalities in the prefecture, Aïn Bida, Oulad Tayeb, and Sidi Harazem.WEB,www.region-fes-meknes.ma/fr/provinces/fes/, Fès, fr, Region of Fès-Meknès, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,www.region-fes-meknes.ma/fr/provinces/fes/," title="web.archive.org/web/20211016190604www.region-fes-meknes.ma/fr/provinces/fes/,">web.archive.org/web/20211016190604www.region-fes-meknes.ma/fr/provinces/fes/, live, The municipality of Fez has an area of {{convert|94|km2}} and recorded a population of 1,091,512 in the 2014 Moroccan census.WEB,rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/166326/, Population Légale des Régions, Provinces, Préfectures, Municipalitiés, Arrondissements et Communes du Royaume d’Aprés les Résultats du RGPH 2014, ar, fr, High Commission for Planning, 8 April 2015, 1 May 2022,web.archive.org/web/20220501112845/https://rgph2014.hcp.ma/file/166326/, It is divided into six arrondissements ():{| class=“wikitable sortable“|+Arrondissements of the municipality of Fez bgcolor=“#efefef“! Arrondissement! AreaBOOK, Signoles, Pierre, Territoires et politiques dans les périphéries des grandes villes du Maghreb, 425, 431,books.google.com/books?id=YaELEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA431, Éditions Karthala, 2014, 978-2-8111-1328-5, 2021-10-16, ! Population(2014)! Population(2004)! Change! Population density(2014)Agdal21.0abbr=on|sortable=on}}142407dec=1|invert=on}}142407km2|sqmi}}El Mariniyine13.5abbr=on|sortable=on}}209494dec=1|invert=on}}209494km2|sqmi}}Fès-Médina2.2abbr=on|sortable=on}}70592dec=1|invert=on}}70592km2|sqmi}}Jnan El Ouard16.3abbr=on|sortable=on}}201011dec=1|invert=on}}201011km2|sqmi}}Saiss20.5abbr=on|sortable=on}}207345dec=1|invert=on}}207345km2|sqmi}}Zouagha20.5abbr=on|sortable=on}}260663dec=1|invert=on}}260663km2|sqmi}}The municipality of Fez is governed by a 91-member council, elected by direct universal suffrage every six years.WEB,www.mapfes.ma/fr/abdeslam-bekkali-du-rni-elu-president-du-conseil-communal-de-fes/, Abdeslam Bekkali du RNI, élu président du Conseil communal de Fès, fr, Maghreb Arabe Press, MAP, 2021-09-20, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,www.mapfes.ma/fr/abdeslam-bekkali-du-rni-elu-president-du-conseil-communal-de-fes/," title="web.archive.org/web/20211016190603www.mapfes.ma/fr/abdeslam-bekkali-du-rni-elu-president-du-conseil-communal-de-fes/,">web.archive.org/web/20211016190603www.mapfes.ma/fr/abdeslam-bekkali-du-rni-elu-president-du-conseil-communal-de-fes/, live, REPORT, Le rôle des élus au sein des communes du Maroc: vers une gouvernance locale plus proche des citoyens,www.oecd.org/mena/governance/le-role-des-elus-au-sein-des-communes-du-maroc.pdf, fr, 28, OECD, 2017, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,web.archive.org/web/20211016190604/https://www.oecd.org/mena/governance/le-role-des-elus-au-sein-des-communes-du-maroc.pdf, live, The arrondissements of Zouagha and Marininyine elect 17 councillors each; Jnane El Ward and Saiss elect 16 councillors each; Agdal elects 13, and Fès-Médina elects 12.WEB,leseco.ma/lapolitique/fes-bekkali-prend-les-renes-de-la-mairie.html, Fès: Bekkali prend les rênes de la mairie, fr, 2021-09-15, LesEco.ma, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,web.archive.org/web/20211016190604/https://leseco.ma/lapolitique/fes-bekkali-prend-les-renes-de-la-mairie.html, live, Executive power is wielded by a president and ten vice-presidents, which are elected by the council.WEB, Benabdellah, Yahya,www.medias24.com/2021/09/20/abdeslam-bekkali-rni-elu-nouveau-maire-de-fes/, Abdeslam Bekkali (RNI) élu nouveau maire de Fès, fr, {{ill, Médias 24, fr, |date=2021-09-20 |access-date=2021-10-16 |archive-date=2021-10-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016190603www.medias24.com/2021/09/20/abdeslam-bekkali-rni-elu-nouveau-maire-de-fes/ |url-status=live }} In 2021, Abdeslam Bekkali, a member of the National Rally of Independents (RNI), succeeded Driss Azami El Idrissi as the new president of the municipality of Fez.NEWS, Kasraoui, Safaa, RNI’s Abdeslam Bekkali Becomes New Mayor of Fez,www.moroccoworldnews.com/2021/09/344513/rnis-abdeslam-bekkali-becomes-new-mayor-in-fez, Morocco World News, 2021-09-20, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,web.archive.org/web/20211016190602/https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2021/09/344513/rnis-abdeslam-bekkali-becomes-new-mayor-in-fez, live, The municipality of Méchouar Fès Jdid consists of the neighborhood of Fes Jdid in the old city and forms an enclave within the municipality of Fez. Established in 1992, it is only {{convert|1.6|km2}} in extent,REPORT, Jettou, Driss, Rapport d’activités relatif à l’exercice 2013: Volume II, Livre III,www.courdescomptes.ma/upload/MoDUle_20/File_20_170.pdf, 47, Court of Accounts of Morocco, 2021-10-16, 2021-04-04,www.courdescomptes.ma/upload/MoDUle_20/File_20_170.pdf," title="web.archive.org/web/20210404054021www.courdescomptes.ma/upload/MoDUle_20/File_20_170.pdf,">web.archive.org/web/20210404054021www.courdescomptes.ma/upload/MoDUle_20/File_20_170.pdf, and recorded a population of 20,560 in the 2014 census. The municipality possesses a special administrative status as the location of a royal palace (the Dar al-Makhzen or méchouar), one of four such municipalities (French: communes des méchouars) in Morocco. The other three are located in Casablanca, Marrakesh, and Rabat. These four municipalities are governed by special provisions that do not apply to ordinary municipalities.JOURNAL, Es-Sallak, Nada, Histoire urbaine de la ville de Fès et Pouvoirs politiques,journals.usj.edu.lb/interaxxions/article/view/612/518, InteraXXIons, 1, 25–40, 2021-06-14, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-16,web.archive.org/web/20211016190605/https://journals.usj.edu.lb/interaxxions/article/view/612/518, The subdivisions of Fez Prefecture are grouped into two electoral districts, North Fez and South Fez, each of which elects four members to the House of Representatives. North Fez consists of the arrondissements of El Mariniyine, Fès-Médina, and Zouagha and the municipality of Méchouar Fès Jdid. South Fez consists of the other three arrondissements of Agdal, Jnan El Ouard, and Saiss, and the three rural municipalities outside the city of Fez.WEB,lematin.ma/journal/2011/Ambiance-electorale-a-Fes_Sur-un-air-de-changement/159310.html, Ambiance électorale à Fès: Sur un air de changement, 2011-11-25, Le Matin (Morocco), Le Matin, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-17,web.archive.org/web/20211017050615/https://lematin.ma/journal/2011/Ambiance-electorale-a-Fes_Sur-un-air-de-changement/159310.html, live, WEB, Benabdellah, Yahya,www.medias24.com/2021/09/17/legislatives-2021-qui-a-ete-elu-dans-votre-circonscription-17-cartes-interactives/, Législatives 2021: qui a été élu dans votre circonscription ? (17 cartes interactives), fr, 2021-09-17, Médias 24, 2021-10-16, 2021-10-17,web.archive.org/web/20211017050623/https://www.medias24.com/2021/09/17/legislatives-2021-qui-a-ete-elu-dans-votre-circonscription-17-cartes-interactives/, live,

Landmarks

Medina of Fez

The historic city of Fez consists of Fes el-Bali, the original city on both shores of the Oued Fes (River of Fez), and the smaller Fez Jdid, founded on higher ground to the west in the 13th century. It is distinct from Fez’s now much larger Ville Nouvelle (new city). Fes el-Bali is the oldest continuously inhabited walled city in the Arab world,WEB, Salameh, Ramy, 2016-05-27, Fez celebrates Morocco’s women through sacred music,www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2016/5/27/fez-celebrates-moroccos-women-through-sacred-music, 2023-08-06, Al Jazeera English, Al Jazeera, en, 2023-08-06,web.archive.org/web/20230806083421/https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2016/5/27/fez-celebrates-moroccos-women-through-sacred-music, live, and one of the largest and oldest urban pedestrian zones (car-free areas) in the whole world.BOOK, Zeunert, Joshua,books.google.com/books?id=BlW6DQAAQBAJ, Landscape Architecture and Environmental Sustainability: Creating Positive Change Through Design, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2017, 978-1-350-03382-5, en, BOOK, Roquet, Vincent,books.google.com/books?id=XV8vDgAAQBAJ, Urban Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement: Linking Innovation and Local Benefits, Bornholdt, Luciano, Sirker, Karen, Lukic, Jelena, World Bank Publications, 2017, 978-1-4648-0981-1, 91, en, Livelihood Restoration for Informal Urban Occupations: Examples from Morocco and Pakistan, BOOK,books.google.com/books?id=hEvCpNW2qBwC&dq=largest+car-free+area+in+the+world&pg=PA253, The Report: Morocco 2009, Oxford Business Group, 2009, 978-1-907065-07-1, 253, en, It is the site of the famous Qarawiyyin University and the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II, the most important religious and cultural sites, while Fez el-Jdid is the site of the 195 acre Royal Palace,WEB, The 10 Best Royal Palace of Fez (Fes Dar el-Makhzen) Tours & Tickets 2021 {{!, Viator|url=https://www.viator.com/Fez-attractions/Royal-Palace-of-Fez-Dar-el-Makhzen/d22151-a23104|access-date=2021-10-20|website=www.viator.com|language=en|archive-date=2021-10-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211020070840www.viator.com/Fez-attractions/Royal-Palace-of-Fez-Dar-el-Makhzen/d22151-a23104|url-status=live}} still used by the King of Morocco today. These two historic cities are linked together and are usually referred to together as the “medina” of Fez, though this term is sometimes applied more restrictively to Fes el-Bali only.{{efn|Medina is the Arabic word for “city”, which in former French colonies in North Africa is also used to refer to the old part of a city, as the French largely generally built new cities (Ville Nouvelles) next to them and left the historic cities intact.WEB, What does Medina mean?,www.definitions.net/definition/Medina, 2021-10-20, www.definitions.net, 2021-10-20,web.archive.org/web/20211020071607/https://www.definitions.net/definition/Medina, live, }}Fez is becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination and many non-Moroccans are now restoring traditional houses (riads and dars) as second homes in the medina. In 1981, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated Medina of Fez a World Heritage site, describing it as “one of the most extensive and best conserved historic towns of the Arab-Muslim world.” It was the first site in Morocco to be granted this status.WEB, Morocco,whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ma, 2021-09-29, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, en, 2023-02-17,web.archive.org/web/20230217015210/https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ma, live, {{wide image|Panorama of Fes (5364676502).jpg|1200px|align-cap=center|Panoramic view of Fes el-Bali|alt=refer to caption}}

Places of worship

(File:Inside of a mosque in Fes (5364764412).jpg|thumb|Interior of the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II in Fes el-Bali|alt=Interior of the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II showing elaborate decorative architecture)File:Slat El Fassiyine Synagogue 18022021 007.jpg|alt=Interior of the Al Fassiyin Synagogue showing pillars and a chandelier|thumb|Interior of the Al-Fassiyin SynagogueAl-Fassiyin SynagogueThere are numerous historic mosques in the medina, some of which are part of a madrasa or zawiya. Among the oldest still standing today are the Mosque of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 857 and subsequently expanded,WEB, Qantara – The al-QarawÄ«yÄ«n Mosque,www.qantara-med.org/public/show_document.php?do_id=308&lang=en, 2021-09-29, www.qantara-med.org, 2021-09-30,web.archive.org/web/20210930000059/https://www.qantara-med.org/public/show_document.php?do_id=308&lang=en, live, the Mosque of the Andalusians founded in 859–860,WEB, Jami’ al-Andalusiyyin,archnet.org/sites/1722, 2021-09-29, Archnet, 2021-01-11,web.archive.org/web/20210111003908/https://archnet.org/sites/1722, live, BOOK, Terrasse, Henri,books.google.com/books?id=oPL-zQEACAAJ, La mosquée des Andalous à Fès, Les Éditions d’art et d’histoire, 1942, Paris, fr, {{Rp|7}} the Bou Jeloud Mosque from the late 12th century,JOURNAL, Terrasse, Henri, 1964, La mosquée almohade de Bou Jeloud à Fès, Al-Andalus, 29, 2, 355–363, and possibly the Mosque of the Kasbah en-Nouar (which may have existed in the Almohad period but was likely rebuilt much laterBOOK, Le Tourneau, Roger,books.google.com/books?id=_t9yAAAAMAAJ, Fès avant le protectorat: étude économique et sociale d’une ville de l’occident musulman, Société Marocaine de Librairie et d’Édition, 1949, Casablanca, fr, ). The very oldest mosques of the city, dating back to its first years, were the Mosque of the Sharifs (or Shurafa Mosque) and the Mosque of the Sheikhs (or al-Anouar Mosque); however, they no longer exist in their original form. The Mosque of the Sharifs was the burial site of Idris II and evolved into the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II that exists today, while the al-Anouar Mosque has left only minor remnants.{{Rp|33}}A number of mosques from the important Marinid era, when Fes Jdid was created to be the capital of Morocco, include the Great Mosque of Fez el-Jdid from 1276, the Abu al-Hasan Mosque from 1341,Abu al-Hassan Mosque {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111003948archnet.org/sites/1721 |date=2021-01-11 }}. Retrieved January 22, 2018. the Chrabliyine Mosque from 1342,archnet.org/library/places/one-place.jsp?place_id=1675" title="web.archive.org/web/20131006045900archnet.org/library/places/one-place.jsp?place_id=1675">Fez. Archnet. Retrieved January 23, 2018. and the al-Hamra Mosque from around the same period.BOOK, Salmon, Xavier, Fès mérinide: Une capitale pour les arts, 1276–1465, Lienart, 2021, 978-2-35906-335-6, 92, The Bab Guissa Mosque was also founded in the reign of Abu al-Hasan (1331–1351), but modified in later centuries.BOOK, Le Maroc andalou: à la découverte d’un art de vivre, Touri, Abdelaziz, Benaboud, Mhammad, Boujibar El-Khatib, Naïma, Lakhdar, Kamal, Mezzine, Mohamed, Ministère des Affaires Culturelles du Royaume du Maroc & Museum With No Frontiers, 2010, 978-3-902782-31-1, 2nd, Other major mosques from the more recent ‘Alawi period are the Moulay Abdallah Mosque, built in the early to mid-18th century with the tomb of Sultan Moulay Abdallah,{{Rp|391}} and the R’cif Mosque, built in the reign of Moulay Slimane (1793–1822).JOURNAL, El Mghari, Mina, 2017, Tendances architecturales de la mosquée marocaine (XVIIème-XIXème siècles), Hespéris-Tamuda, LII (3), 229–254, The Zawiya of Moulay Idris II and the Zawiya of Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani include mosque areas as well, as do several other prominent zawiyas in the city.{{Rp|118–131}}WEB, Mezzine, Mohamed, Mulay Idris Mausoleum,islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;isl;ma;mon01;20;en, 2021-09-29, Discover Islamic Art – Virtual Museum, 2021-10-19,islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;isl;ma;mon01;20;en," title="web.archive.org/web/20211019024905islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;isl;ma;mon01;20;en,">web.archive.org/web/20211019024905islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;isl;ma;mon01;20;en, live, {{Rp|132–133}} The also includes many modern mosques, the largest of which is the Imam Malik Mosque which opened in 1994.WEB, Mosquée Imam Malik,www.madein.city/fes/fr/places/mosquee-imam-malik-19003/, 2021-02-12, www.madein.city, fr, 2021-02-27,web.archive.org/web/20210227221328/https://www.madein.city/fes/fr/places/mosquee-imam-malik-19003/, live, WEB, 2021-04-21, La mosquée Imam Malik, un joyau architectural au cÅ“ur de la capitale spirituelle,www.mapfes.ma/fr/la-mosquee-imam-malik-un-joyau-architectural-au-coeur-de-la-capitale-spirituelle/, 2021-10-20, MapFes, fr-FR, 2021-10-20,www.mapfes.ma/fr/la-mosquee-imam-malik-un-joyau-architectural-au-coeur-de-la-capitale-spirituelle/," title="web.archive.org/web/20211020225839www.mapfes.ma/fr/la-mosquee-imam-malik-un-joyau-architectural-au-coeur-de-la-capitale-spirituelle/,">web.archive.org/web/20211020225839www.mapfes.ma/fr/la-mosquee-imam-malik-un-joyau-architectural-au-coeur-de-la-capitale-spirituelle/, WEB, Fès {{!, Masjid Tunis|url=https://archnet.org/authorities/3657/sites/16838|access-date=2021-02-12|website=Archnet|archive-date=2021-09-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210902001346archnet.org/authorities/3657/sites/16838|url-status=live}}Elsewhere, the Jewish quarter (Mellah) is the site of the 17th-century Al-Fassiyin Synagogue and Ibn Danan Synagogue, as well multiple other lesser-known synagogues, though none of them are functioning today. According to the World Jewish Congress there are only 150 Moroccan Jews remaining in Fes.WEB,www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/about/communities/MA, World Jewish Congress, World Jewish, Congress, World Jewish Congress, 2021-01-12, 2019-04-02,www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/about/communities/MA," title="web.archive.org/web/20190402004157www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/about/communities/MA,">web.archive.org/web/20190402004157www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/about/communities/MA, live, The Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, the only Catholic church in Fez, was established in 1919 or 1920, during the French colonial period. The current building was constructed in 1928 and expanded in 1933. Today it is part of the Archdiocese of Rabat, and it was most recently restored in 2005.WEB, Audurier Cros, Alix, L’Église St François d’Assise, Fes, Maroc,www.afa-asso.net/AFA-1/EgliseFes-histoire.pdf, live,www.afa-asso.net/AFA-1/EgliseFes-histoire.pdf," title="web.archive.org/web/20191207215256www.afa-asso.net/AFA-1/EgliseFes-histoire.pdf,">web.archive.org/web/20191207215256www.afa-asso.net/AFA-1/EgliseFes-histoire.pdf, 2019-12-07, WEB, Diocèse de Rabat,www.dioceserabat.org/paroisses, 2021-01-12, www.dioceserabat.org, 2020-07-11,www.dioceserabat.org/paroisses," title="web.archive.org/web/20200711124719www.dioceserabat.org/paroisses,">web.archive.org/web/20200711124719www.dioceserabat.org/paroisses, live, WEB, Église de Saint François d’Assise,www.gcatholic.org/churches/africa/58840.htm, 2021-01-12, GCatholic, 2020-08-11,www.gcatholic.org/churches/africa/58840.htm," title="web.archive.org/web/20200811221856www.gcatholic.org/churches/africa/58840.htm,">web.archive.org/web/20200811221856www.gcatholic.org/churches/africa/58840.htm, live,

Madrasas

File:Al-Attarine Madrasa YAC 2017.jpg|thumb|alt=Interior facade of Al-Attarine Madrasa, showing ornate decorationThe al-Qarawiyyin was established in 857 by Fatima al-Fihri, originally as a mosque, now a university.BOOK, Terrasse, Henri, La mosquée des Andalous à Fès, Les Éditions d’art et d’histoire, 1942, Paris, {{Rp|9}}BOOK, Bloom, Jonathan M., Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700–1800, Yale University Press, 2020, {{Rp|40}} It is the oldest existing and continually operating degree-awarding educational institution in the world according to UNESCO and Guinness World Records.WEB,www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/3000/oldest-university, Oldest higher-learning institution, oldest university, Guinnessworldrecords.com, 22 August 2018, 7 October 2014,www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/3000/oldest-university," title="web.archive.org/web/20141007183911www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/3000/oldest-university,">web.archive.org/web/20141007183911www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/3000/oldest-university, live, The Marinid dynasty devoted great attention to the construction of madrasas following the Maliki school, resulting in the unprecedented prosperity of the city’s religious institutions. The first madrasa built during the Marinid era was the Saffarin Madrasa in Fes el-Bali by Sultan Abu Yusuf in 1271.Kubisch, Natascha (2011). “Maghreb – Architecture” in Hattstein, Markus and Delius, Peter (eds.) Islam: Art and Architecture. h.f.ullmann.{{Rp|312}} Sultan Abu al-Hasan was the most prolific patron of madrasa construction, completing the Al-Attarine, Mesbahiyya and Sahrij Madrasas. His son Abu Inan Faris built the Bou Inania Madrasa, and by the time of his death, every major city in the Marinid Empire had at least one madrasa. The library of al-Qarawiyyin, which holds a large collection of manuscripts from the medieval era, was also established under Marinid rule around 1350.{{Rp|148}} It is widely believed to be the oldest library in the world that is still open.NEWS, Shaheen, Kareem, 2016-09-19, World’s oldest library reopens in Fez: ‘You can hurt us, but you can’t hurt the books’, en-GB, The Guardian,www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/sep/19/books-world-oldest-library-fez-morocco, 2023-08-06, 0261-3077, 2019-04-29,web.archive.org/web/20190429125939/https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/sep/19/books-world-oldest-library-fez-morocco, live, The largest madrasa in the medina is Cherratine Madrasa, which was commissioned by the ‘Alawi sultan Al-Rashid in 1670 and is the only major non-Marinid foundation besides the Madrasa of al-Qarawiyyin.archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=2569" title="web.archive.org/web/20121217001705archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=2569">Shiratin Madrasa. Archnet. Retrieved January 23, 2018.

Tombs and mausoleums

File:Zaouiya Tidjaniya de Fès - grille.jpg|thumb|upright|Interior of the mausoleum of Ahmad al-Tijani (d. 1815) in the alt=Interior of the mausoleum of Ahmad al-Tijani showing chandeliers, a decorated gate, and archwaysLocated in the heart of Fes el-Bali, the Zawiya of Moulay Idris II is a zawiya (a shrine and religious complex; also spelled zaouia), dedicated to and containing the tomb of Idris II (or Moulay Idris II when including his sharifian title) who is considered the main founder of the city of Fez.BOOK, A history of the Maghrib in the Islamic period, Abun-Nasr, Jamil, Cambridge University Press, 1987, 0-521-33767-4, Cambridge, {{Rp|51}} Another well-known and important zawiya is the Zawiyia of Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani, which commemorates Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani, the founder of Tijaniyyah tariqa from the 18th century.Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani Zawiya {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112010106archnet.org/sites/1737 |date=2021-01-12 }}. Archnet. Retrieved January 22, 2018. A number of zawiyas are scattered elsewhere across the city, many containing the tombs of important Sufi saints or scholars, such as the Zawiya of Sidi Abdelkader al-Fassi, the Zawiya of Sidi Ahmed esh-Shawi, and the Zawiya of Sidi Taoudi Ben Souda.BOOK, Vimercati Sanseverino, Ruggero,books.openedition.org/cjb/498, Fès et sainteté, de la fondation à l’avènement du Protectorat (808–1912): Hagiographie, tradition spirituelle et héritage prophétique dans la ville de Mawlāy IdrÄ«s, Centre Jacques-Berque, 2014, 979-10-92046-17-5, Rabat, 2020-06-15,web.archive.org/web/20200817151441/https://books.openedition.org/cjb/498, 2020-08-17, live, {{Rp|579}}BOOK, Skali, Faouzi,books.google.com/books?id=yMgzlpUrZV0C&pg=PP1, Saints et sanctuaires de Fés, Marsam, 2007, 978-9954-21-086-4, {{Rp|62, 149}}The old city contains several major historic cemeteries which stand outside the walls of Fes el-Bali, namely the cemeteries of Bab Ftouh (the most significant), Bab Mahrouk, and Bab Guissa. Some include marabouts or domed structures, containing the tombs of local Muslim saints (often considered Sufis), for example the Marabout of Sidi Harazem in the Bab Ftouh Cemetery.{{Rp|114, 468, 604}} The ruins of the Marinid Tombs, built during the 14th century as a necropolis for the Marinid sultans, are close to the Bab Guissa Cemetery.BOOK, Métalsi, Mohamed, Fès: La ville essentielle, ACR Édition Internationale, 2003, 978-2-86770-152-8, Paris, fr, {{Rp|8}}

Fortifications

(File:Fes-Morocco 59.jpg|alt=refer to caption|thumb|City walls of Fez (northern section).)The entire medina of Fez was heavily fortified with crenelated walls with watchtowers and gates, a pattern of urban planning which can be seen in Salé and Chellah as well.Penell, C.R. (2013), Morocco: From Empire to Independence; Oneworld Publications. pp. 66–67.{{ISBN?}} The oldest sections of the walls today, on the north side of Fes el-Bali, date back to the Almohad period.{{Rp|36}} The gates of Fez, scattered along the circuit of walls, were guarded by the military detachments and shut at night. Some of the main gates have existed, in different forms, since the earliest years of the city.{{Rp|40–58}} The oldest gates today, and historically the most important ones of Fes el-Bali, are Bab Mahrouk (in the west), Bab Guissa (in the northeast), and Bab Ftouh (in the southeast).{{Rp|56, 109, 123, 126, 138, 142}}{{Rp|36–41}} The main gates of Fes Jdid include Bab Dekkakin, Bab Semmarine, and Bab al-Amer. In modern times, the function of gates became more ceremonial rather than defensive, as reflected by the 1913 construction of the decorative Bab Bou Jeloud gate at the western entrance of Fes el-Bali by the French colonial administration.{{Rp|42}}Several forts were constructed along the defensive perimeters of the medina during different time periods. A “kasbah” in the context of Maghrebi region is the traditional military structure for fortification, military preparation, command and control. Some of them were occupied as well by citizens, certain tribal groups, and merchants. Throughout the city’s history, 13 kasbahs were constructed.نفائس فاس العتيقة : بناء 13 قصبة لأغراض عسكرية {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128001836assabah.ma/70643.html |date=2021-01-28 }}. Assabah. Retrieved January 11, 2018. Among them is the Kasbah an-Nouar, the Kasbah Tamdert, and the Kasbah Cherarda.{{Rp|36–37}}{{Rp|105–108}} The Saadis also built a number of bastions and forts in the late 16th century including Borj Nord and its sister fort, Borj Sud.[http://www.discoverislamicart.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;12;ar&pageD=N