The history of the Kasbah of Agadir
The Kasbah of Agadir Oufella, a historic fortress built in 1572 to protect the port of Agadir, has played a strategic role over the centuries. 90% destroyed during the 1960 earthquake, only its southern wall resisted, preserving a trace of its grandeur. Recently restored, the kasbah is now accessible via a cable car, allowing visitors to discover this emblematic site of Moroccan history.
In 1505, the Portuguese Joao Lopes founded a trading post in Agadir, as well as a fortress named Santa Cruz, to protect the port. The chosen site, at the location of the now disappeared district of Founti (a reference to the source of abundant fresh water of excellent quality which was there), is squeezed between the shore and the hill.
After numerous battles, the Sharif of Souss managed to dislodge the Portuguese.
In 1572, learning that the king of Portugal was arming a fleet in Lisbon, and fearing the return of the Portuguese to Agadir, the sultan strengthened the place by building an important kasbah at the top of the hill overlooking the bay. While the workers work on building the fortress, the sultan sends 2,000 renegades and 4,000 Turkish cavalrymen to ensure their protection. He employs so many people that the work is completed in 7 months. He then installed a garrison of 100 men there.
The Kasbah had a store, a mosque and an enclosure which enclosed all the buildings.
The development of sugar cane in the Souss allowed considerable growth in the area.
But the Great Plague fell on the city in 1596, for 12 years. The boats no longer dock. It’s the end of sugar cane cultivation in Souss.
After the capture of the kasbah by the prince of Tazeroualt, trade resumed.
In 1731, a severe earthquake hit the city. The Alawite sultan (from Arabic alawī, “descendant of Ali”) Moulay Abdallah restores the kasbah with the participation of the Dutch. Above the entrance door to the Casbah, we can still see the inscription in Dutch “Vreest God ende eert den Kooning” which means: “Fear God and honor your king”.
In 1755, the great earthquake which destroyed Lisbon affected the city of Agadir.
Then Agadir declined for a century and a half because of the pre-eminence given to the port of Essaouira, because the sultan wanted to punish the Souss rebelling against his authority.
After the signing of the protectorate between France and Morocco in 1912, the kasbah of Agadir Oufella became the headquarters of the French military command.
On June 14, 1913, the Maghzen flag and the French flag were raised on the kasbah bastion.
The earthquake of February 29, 1960
On February 29, 1960 at 11:41 p.m., an earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale struck Agadir. Toll: more than 15,000 dead and more than 25,000 injured.
On the mountain, the Kasbah districts of Agadir Oufella and Founty are completely destroyed. But the day before the earthquake, there should have been only a little less than a thousand people at the Agadir Oufella kasbah. Indeed, it had been abandoned in favor of the development of the new city of Agadir at its feet. In the aftermath of the disaster, Sovereign Mohammed V addressed his people in a historic speech.
The fortress is more than 90% destroyed. Ruined buildings are razed for safety reasons. Only the southern wall remained, bearing witness to past greatness. The entrance door is restored using photos taken before the earthquake. The lower part has preserved the memory of the saadian arches, while the upper part recalls the alaouite imprint with the characteristic merlons of the kasbahs of this dynasty.
Sixty years after the earthquake, a decision was taken to breathe new life into this symbolic place in the history of Morocco. The objective is to allow visitors to discover the site and meditate there.