El Mechouar Palace

El Mechouar Palace
قصر المشوار
General information
Location Tlemcen, Algeria
Mechouar Palace

Mechouar Palace (Arabic: قصر المشور‎) or the Zianide Royal Palace is a historic palace in the city of Tlemcen, Algeria. The palace is situated in the middle of the city, and formerly constituted a part of the greater Mechouar Castle (Arabic: قلعة المشور‎) which no longer exists except for the palace and the outer wall. The adjacent mosque, Mechouar Mosque, no longer exist on its original form as well except for its minaret.[1] It was one of the main sights during the selection of Tlemcen as the Capital of Islamic Culture in 2011.[2][3]

Methodology

The name of the palace "Mechouar" was decided upon consultation by the Sultan Amir al-Muslimin among his viziers and officers.[2] Mechouar in general sense could designate a place for consultation traditionally established in the Maghrebi region (Arabic: mushawara), where government of sultan's affairs are managed.[4]

History

Hallway of the palace

Mechouar Castle was first established by Yusuf ibn Tashfin of Almoravid Empire during his conquest of Agadir.[2] The palace was later turned into the official residence of Zayyanids, the kings of the Kingdom of Tlemcen by Yaghmurasen Ibn Zyan.[1] Originally, the castle contained four main palaces; Dar al-Malik (Arabic: دال الملك‎), Dar Abu Fahr (Arabic: دار ابي فهر‎), Dar al-Surur (Arabic: دار السرور‎), and Dar al-Raha (Arabic: دار الراحة‎).[2] The castle was surrounded by the wall reaching five meters with path for soldiers on top. It was originally made of adobe but later refurbished by stone during the French colonial era.

The castle contained different suites for kings depending on the season. The summer suite was built by marble which cooled down the temperature, while the winter room was made of stones which made the suite warm throughout the winter. Inside the summer suite was the secret alley to the adjacent mosque, which used by the kings during the prayer time in order to move between the mosque and the palace unseen from the public. The alley could accommodate horses. The entire wall of the suites and palace was decorated with Islamic calligraphy, inscribing one sentence repeatedly which wrote "The splendor of God...the king that is in God" ("العزُّ القائم بالله.. الملك القائم بالل"). Aside from the mosque, the castle contained hamam, houses and Islamic gardens.[2] The architectural achievement of the castle was praised by the renowned geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi in the 16th century and Muhammad al-Tansi.

Later during the Ottoman rule, several rooms were destroyed by the Ottoman Algerian Bey during the uprising in Tlemcen against their rules. After 1843, French occupational forces took over the palace by force, destroying some other remaining parts of the palace in the process.[5] The Algerian religious and military leader Emir Abdelkader had stayed in the palace for four full years during the negotiations with French regarding the Treaty of Tafna, but he got out once the treaty was breached by the French forces. During the French occupation, the castle was converted into a military barracks, and the palace was converted into a military hospital after several parts of the historical heritage were destroyed.[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 جامع ومئذنة المشور. Museum with no Frontiers. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "قلعة المشور” .. معلمٌ تاريخيٌّ يروي فصولا من حكم ملوك تلمسان. Al-Watan. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  3. ↑ Capitals is Islamic Culture 2011. ISESCO. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  4. ↑ Abadie, Louis (1994-01-01). Tlemcen, au passé retrouvé (in French). Editions J. Gandini. ISBN 9782906431027.
  5. ↑ محمد بن عمروالطمار الروابط الثقافية بين الجزائر والخارج، الشركة الوطنية للنشر والتوزيع الجزائر 1983، ص. p.243.

Bibliography

  • Bourouiba, R., Apports de l'Algérie à l'architecture arabo-islamique, Algiers, 1986.
  • Marçais, G., Tlemcen, 'Les villes d'art célèbres' (collection), Paris, 1950; Blida, 2004.

Coordinates: 34°31′30″N 1°10′59″E / 34.5251°N 01.1831°E / 34.5251; 01.1831

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