El Jadida – A Visit to Old Portuguese Mazagan
Battered by strong Atlantic winds and crashing waves are a series of impressive, yet decaying, Portuguese fortifications along Morocco’s Atlantic coastline. Once imposing locales these cities were once the crown jewels of an oversea empire that stretched from the Americas to India. Yet today, they are but dying fortresses slowly sinking into the sea. Despite the proud lineage these compatriots, they have not rebounded as tourist attractions for western tourists, even with their registry with UNESCO.
One of these cities, the imposing citadel town of El Jadida (Mazagan) is on a direct train line from Casablanca, yet still remains relatively undiscovered despite its history as a Hollywood filming location in the 1950’s. Welcome to the crown of Portuguese North Africa, the venerable Marzagan.
Table of Contents
- Geography
- A Brief History
- Exploring Modern El Jadida
- Exploring Old Marzagan
- What to Visit Nearby?
- Conclusion
Geography
Located in Morocco’s tumultuous (and barren) Atlantic coast ninety kilometers south of Casablanca, El Jadida’s climate can be rather unpredictable. When I first arrived the town was enveloped in a thick fog hanging over the decaying port, one that could could be cut with a knife if one so desired. Its position on the African cost made it an ideal stopoff for European ships heading south towards the cape.
Remember at this time Casablanca did not exist and this expanse of coastline was nothing but a arid plain. Today the nearby resort of Sidi Bouzid is known for its beaches and is popular with middle class Moroccans and other Arab tourists. Be aware that the quality of the water has been affected by the town’s industrial development.
Layout
The old town consists of a star shaped outer wall, along with a land gate facing east and a sea gate facing west. The other entrances into the old town have been sealed. At the center was a castle like bastion (now a mosque). Outside of this old town you will find the new city, built long after the Portuguese town was abandoned.
A Brief History
Although the town has had a storied pass, it has fallen on hard time in recent years. In this section a bit of the towns story shall be revealed.
Portugese Mazagão
The Kingdom of Portugal seized what was then a town called al-Breyja in 1502. This settlement was rather unremarkable until 1514 when the wall of Mazagão (as it was known in the Portuguese language) were erected. Marzagan displayed during this period a remarkable amount of town planning. This early colonial settlement displays the importance of this stretch of coastline to the Portuguese explorers in West Africa on the route to India.
Alawite Conquest and Kingdom of Morocco
In 1769, the Portuguese were driven out of Morocco by the Alawite Sultan. It was in fact their last foothold in the country, the others having fallen out of their hands. The colony was evacuated to Brazil and the Governor’s Bastion was destroyed. They named their settlement in the Americas Nova Mazagão. The Arabs refereed to the city as al-Mahdouma (‘The Ruined’), at it largely stayed that way until the 19th century when Abd al-Rahman, the Sultan of Morocco ordered a mosque built over the governor’s bastion and the city rebuilt. The city was renamed to al-Jadida, meaning ‘The New’.
Exploring Modern El Jadida
If coming from Casablanca you will likely arrive at the El Jadida train station. This well maintained station is far on the outskirts of the city but not to worry. Taxi’s will be waiting to pick up passengers and take them downtown. It is a cheap cab fair so no worries!
Modern El Jadida has to put it bluntly seen better days. A few stately buildings from the European occupation remain but many of the streets are dirty and poverty is endemic. Yet I found the people to be relatively friendly.
Among the few buildings of note in the new town are the Grand Mosque (not to be confused with the Grand Mosque in the old town). At its fear is the old market of El Jadida.
Along the south side of the port you will find a large square with a solar quadrant facing the fishing port.
One of the last buildings of note in the new town is the stunning Mohamed Afifi Theater!
Exploring Old Marzagan
The old city of Marzagan is both extremely easy to navigate and infuriatingly difficult to get around in. Let me explain, the square area of the old town is quite small. From the main gate (where the Governor’s Bastion once stood), to the to sea gate your path is linear. This is the old towns main street. Yet outside of this all houses are connected by a maze of diagonally placed narrow and winding streets that can be disorienting at time. These are the most interesting streets in the old town, known for their colored buildings but this will be discussed later.
City Streets, Mosque, Cathedral and Cistern
When entering in though the walls you will find an old Latin inscription along with a coat of arms. On a nearby placard you will find information relating to the city’s UNESCO inscription.
The first sight to greet you is the old Portuguese Cathedral, the Church of the Assumption (or Church of Our Lady of Assumption). This 16th century catholic structure is a rare sight outside of the major colonial centers in Muslim majority Morocco.
After passing the cathedral you will find the main street of the city where shops are located. There is a lack of cafe’s here unfortunately but if stuck there are a few places to site in the side alley. This rationally laid street dates from the French Protectorate.
Half way down the main street you will find the main bastion of the old fort of Marzagan. One of the towers have been transformed into the Grand Mosque.
If you look closely you will still be able to see the original towers in the design.
You will also find the entrance to the Portuguese Cistern here at this location. The most popular attraction in town, it is a separate entry free but is well worth it. Forgotten by time, it was rediscovered by a villager by chance. The vaulted building was constructed in 1514 as a warehouse or possibly an armory. The square room measures thirty four meters by thirty four meters and is supported by impressive vaulted ceiling connected to inter-spaced pillars. This perfectly symmetrical construction is renowned for the thin pool of water that sets on the floor. The distinctive reflective pool was made use of in many Hollywood films including Othello (1952) by Orson Welles.
In the maze of streets around the old town you will find many remnants of colonial era buildings. These have clearly seen better days but still project an aura of grandeur.
One of my favorite parts of the old town was to photograph the beautiful old doorways located in the alleyways.
The alleyways themselves could be quite striking with many of the buildings being painted in bright colors.
Here are a few more pictures of the old town streets.
Located in the south west corner of the old town you will find my favorite building, the old United States Consulate. This stunning stone structure stands apart in its monumentality and well kept condition.
The inside of the building is now a mix of Neo-moorish and European architecture centered around a courtyard with hard stone floors, laced with pretty mosaics recessed an inch below the floorline.
I loved the building (and its long faded charm) so much that I stayed for a traditional Moroccan mint tea.
After finishing, I asked the lady at the desk if she could show us around the building and tell us a little about it. I’m glad I did as it is an interesting and storied structure.
From the main hall I was escorted into the yard. The often used building has shown signs of its wear. Paint is a little faded and tile worn but it looks well kept giving the a cozy charm only obtained through time, time for the building to be well worn and loved.
We also got to go up to the roof for a great view of the old town.
City Walls, Seagate and Bastions
El Jadida’s main attraction is the massive curtain wall that you can walk along. Built for protection from both European and non-European threats. Looking at the condition of the fortification today, one could be excused for not viewing them as forward thinking and modern, but at the time of their construction these were a cutting edge construction.
The 250mx300m fortress was designed in a star shape, the latest in renaissance defense designed. To offset increasingly effective projectile, it boasted slightly inclined walls. These massive constructions are 8m high with a thickness of 10m. There was for a time five bastions (along with the central fort but at present the fortification has been reduced to four bastions (since the Governor’s Bastion (main entrance) was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1769. The four operating bastions are the Angel Bastion in the east, St Sebastian in the north, St Antoine in the west, and the Holy Ghost Bastion in the south.
One of the main points of entry is the ramp near the sea gate. From here you will be afforded a great view of the seaborne entrance to the city, now used by dog loves that want to give their pooch a swim but don’t want to leave the old town to do so!
From here you can walk along the perimeter of the structure, granting you unparalleled views of the surrounding city. This will give you a great vantage point of the new town or what is truly Arab El Jadida.
Along the length of the wall you will find large public spaces where the moat would have been. It was filled in during the French Protectorate along with other modification made to modernize the city/
The bastions will have a few cannons adorning it, giving it some flavor. These are surprisingly Portuguese era originals.
Here are a few more pictures of this eastern section of wall facing the main part of the new town. Below the walkways you will find sealed off passages, some of which are now sealed gates.
Prominent along this section of the skyline is the tower of the Portuguese church and the Grand mosque.
Most prominent in these city defenses is the southern Bastion along the sea, just a few meters from the sea gate. Jutting out into the sea it is the most formidable of obstacles.
The tower sits elevated above the others and features many smaller towers and bastions with arrow and gun slits looking down and both the sea and the landward side.
Directly south-east of this bastion, heading towards the landward side of the walls you will see one of the last remains of the massive moat that separated the citadel from land.
The elevated part of the bastion feels set among itself and from here you will get a great view of the city and its many civic buildings.
One of my favorite bastions is the one in the north west corner of the fortress. It holds another one of the access points for the wall and is host to a tower and a giant pit that was probably once a gate. From above the defenders could rain down deadly projectiles on their assailants if they had breached the gate.
What to Visit Nearby?
Azemmour
The old jewish village of Azemmour is a quaint village with a wall of whitewashed homes riving up from the riverbed it is built upon. This is particularly close to El Jadida (one train stop) yet cab drivers may not take you here. I recommend the train.
Safi
Another one of Morocco’s old Portuguese citadel towns, Safi has grown into an important fishing and industrial port. Although a little rough around the edges it is worth a visit.
Conclusion
Although a little rough around the edges, El Jadida is safe and a joy to walk around. Although the walls have seen better days, they stand thick and ready for battle as they would have in day of old. This industrial port town surely is worth at least a day of your time.
