Fes el Bali

Fès El Bali
UNESCO World Heritage site
The Bab Bou Jeloud gate, leading into the old medina of Fez
Location Fez, Morocco
Part of Medina of Fez
Criteria Cultural: (ii)(v)
Reference 170-001
Inscription 1981 (5th Session)
Area 220 ha (540 acres)
Coordinates 34°3′40″N 4°58′40″W / 34.06111°N 4.97778°W / 34.06111; -4.97778Coordinates: 34°3′40″N 4°58′40″W / 34.06111°N 4.97778°W / 34.06111; -4.97778
Location of Fes el Bali in Morocco
The old medina of Fez.

Fes el Bali (Arabic: فاس البالي‎) (English: Old Fez) is the oldest walled part of Fez, Morocco. Fes el Bali was founded as the capital of the Idrisid dynasty between 789 and 808 AD.[1] Besides being famous for having the oldest university in the world, the University of Al-Karaouine, Fes el Bali, with a total population of 156,000, is also believed to be the biggest car-free urban area in the world.[2]

UNESCO listed Fes el Bali as a World Heritage Site in 1981 under the name Medina of Fez. The World Heritage Site includes Fes el Bali's urban fabric and walls as well as a buffer zone outside of the walls that is intended to preserve the visual integrity of the location.[3]

Fes el Bali is, along with Fes Jdid and the French-created Ville Nouvelle or “New Town”, one of the three main districts in Fez.

History

The leather tanneries in Fez.

As the capital for his newly acquired empire, Idris ibn Abdallah chose to build a new town on the right bank of the Fez river in 789 CE. Many of the first inhabitants were refugees fleeing from an uprising in Cordoba (modern-day Spain) [4] However, in 809 CE his son, Idris II, decided to found a capital of his own on the opposite bank of the Fez River. There were many refugees who decided to settle in the new city this time too, however this time they fled from an uprising in Kairouan (in modern Tunisia).[4]

Even though they were only separated by a relatively small river the cities developed separately and became two individual cities until they were unified in the 11th century by the Almoravids.

One good example of how the refugees contributed to making Fez flourish during the early years is the University of Al-Karaouine that was built by a Tunisian refugee in 859 CE. It is considered the oldest university in the world.[1]

Under the Almoravids, Fez lost its status as a capital when the Almoravids created Marrakech, which they made their capital.

The Almoravids destroyed large parts of Fes el Bali but managed to create modern-day Fes el Bali when they united the twin cities by tearing down that separated them and by building bridges across the Fez river.

During Almohad rule, Fez was a thriving merchant city, even though it was not a capital, and even became the largest city in the world during that time, with approximately 200,000 people living there.[5]

After defeating the Almoravids in Morocco, the Marinids moved the capital from Marrakech back to Fez.[6] This marked the beginning of the greatest period of the history for Fes el Bali.[6] When the Marinids moved the capital to Fez in 1276 they started building a new town outside the old city walls. At first it was called the white city,[6] but after a while it got a new name: Fes Jdid, or new Fez. This is when Fes el Bali, or the old Fez, got its name too.

Most of the principal monuments in Fes el Bali were built under Marinid rule. In the 14th century a mellah was added to the urban fabric.

Threats

According to the UNESCO there are two main threats to this World Heritage Site:

  • An ever-increasing population in an already dangerously overpopulated area and the uncontrolled urban development which is a result of that.[1]
  • The deterioration of the buildings [1]

Because of the vulnerability of the site the State has adopted a special plan to care for this world heritage site and every building and monument it contain.[1] The aim is to prevent houses from collapsing, increase sustainable tourism and to safeguard everything.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Medina of Fez". whc.unesco.org.
  2. ↑ "7 car-free cities".
  3. ↑ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Medina of Fez". whc.unesco.org.
  4. 1 2 "History of Fes". www.macalester.edu.
  5. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=hEvCpNW2qBwC&pg=PA252 Morocco 2009 (p.252)
  6. 1 2 3 "Fes, Morocco, Time Line of Morocco History, Morocco Weather Information; Latitude 34 North - Cities". www.lat34north.com.
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