The Arabic name Ə♥ ⇢ ad-Dār-Bayê is the translation of the Portuguese Casabranca and Spanish Casablanca names which literally mean "the white house", referring to the ruins of a whitewashed house that used to bait the Iberian sailors navigate have around.

It was an active port of the Berghouata kingdom, the first unified Berber state in the region, originating from the city (which is also called Anfa, meaning in Berber "the hill").

Prehistory

Morocco is known worldwide for its prehistoric heritage through its numerous sites of ancient and recent prehistory discovered at the beginning of the last century and which have revealed human remains Atlanthropes, modern men of the Mousterian and the Atérien, graves and necropolises, etc. Morocco occupies a special place in the reflections on cultural exchanges and movements of populations during the different periods of Prehistory between Saharan Africa and Europe.

The region of Casablanca is rich in paleolithic sites preserved in a stratigraphic series of coastlines whose archeological and anthropological remains have brought to the fore the Paleolithic and the first settlements of Morocco in its regional and African context.

The discovery of prehistoric sites was made possible by the economic expansion of the city in the early ^20th century and the expansion of its port which required the opening since 1907 of several quarries which revealed an exceptional prehistoric heritage.

Among the main prehistoric sites of Casablanca are those located outside the city in the Lissasfa region discovered in 1995 and the site of Ahl al Oughlam in 1985 (former Deprez quarry) considered to be the richest Negogen site in North Africa in which were discovered about 108 meters below the level of the sea of caves associated with an old cliff shore forming part of the gigantic geological staircase that rises from the present coast to the plateau of Mohammed-V airport. This site contains the richest fauna of North Africa by far: more than sixty different species have been recorded and dated in the vicinity of 2.5 Ma, a fauna represented by the large groups of vertebrates such as fish, reptiles (giant turtle, lizards, snakes, crocodiles, etc.), birds (ostrich, penguin and other seabirds), carnivorous mammals (hyper-bodied) riddled, a sand canine feline, mustelids, canids, a walrus and a bear, the oldest in Africa) of herbivorous mammals (an elephant, a mastodon, a sweat, a bovine giraffe, antelopes, a hipparion, a rhinoceros, gazelles and a monkey), several rodents and monkeys insectivores. On this site, no human presence was reported most likely due to its late arrival in the area.

The second prehistoric site of Casablanca is Sidi Abderrahmane, located about 5 miles southwest of the city center between the Hay Hassani neighborhood and the coastline near Sidi Abderrahmane in cave or open-air deposits on the localities of Cap Chatelier. This site has an exceptional character and heritage significance due to its abundance of Acheulian tools combined with a rich fauna of mammals and human bones of different periods. Sidi Abderrahmane-extension and Sidi Al Khadir-Hélaoui were searched from 1978 to 1982, and from 1988 in the quarries of Thomas and Oulad Hamida, notably in the Bear and Rhinoceros caves.

In 1991, the search of the rhinoceros cave yielded several species of mammals reported to the Middle Acheulean (about 600,000 years), this cave is considered to be the richest in North Africa (for this period of the Middle Pleistocene), thanks to the presence of eight skulls more or less complete of white rhinoceros (which is nevertheless the most exceptional discovery of the deposit), hence the name of the cave of the rhinoceros attributed to it. This large number of rhinoceros remains suggests a hunting strategy implemented by the hominids. Subsequently, the extension and cleaning of Thomas 1's career in 1993 showed the presence of a hippopotamus-dominated fauna; bifaces used for animal-stripping, large butchery and fracking of bones were found. Studies place these discoveries between the ancient Acheulean around 1 Ma and the magnetic reverse Brunhes-Matuyama that ended about 700,000 years ago. The city is home to the oldest prehistoric occupation of the country, thanks to the discoveries made in the Thomas 1 career in a level (L)^[unclear].

The first discovery of a hominid in Casablanca was that in 1955 of "the Man of Sidi Abderrahmane" represented by a mandibular fragment in the cave of shores now destroyed. The Man of the Quarry Thomas 1, represented by a hemi-mandible, was discovered in 1969 and discovered in 1972 the Man of the Quarry Oulad Hamida 1 (ex-Thomas 3) represented by remains of Homo rhodesiensis in the form of a part of the face, the upper maxilla and several isolated teeth found in a cave that is now destroyed. Between 1994 and 2008, human remains of the Middle Pleistocene dating from 500,000 to 700,000 belonging to the Atlanthropus, the evolved Homo erectus or the archaic Homo sapiens were found in Thomas’ career, including one incisive, 3 premolars and one mandibular. This discovery elevates Thomas' career to the same level as the Melka Kunture complexes in Ethiopia and Atapuerca in Spain in the study of the period when European and African types diverge.

The foundation of Anfa

Detail of an engraving representing Anfa in 1572.

The origin of Anfa's creation remains a mystery. According to Léon the African (1490-1550), it was founded by the Romans at the time of the province of Maurétanie tingitane, and was used as a stopover to the Purpurary Islands of Essaouira (Roman coins were actually discovered in 1926 in the neighborhood of the Black Rocks, without however that a permanent commercial activity during the Antiquity could not be proved). There are also hypotheses that Anfa was a port in the kingdom of Maurétanie, and was even the basis of an expedition led by Juba II to Madeira and the Canary Islands, but no archeological excavations have come to support these theories so far. According to the Spanish columnist Luis del Mármol Carvajal (1524-1600), the origin of Anfa is Phoenician or at least Carthaginian. For the Moroccan historian and statesman Abu El Kacem Zayani (1734-1833), the city was founded by the Berber ethnic group of the Zenets.

It is highly likely that it was an active port of the Berghuata kingdom, a theocratic and tribal Berber state based on a kharidjism-inspired religion that has resisted successive attacks for more than four centuries (from the Idrissides to the Almoravids). It is the Almohades who will destroy this kingdom definitively and end the existence of its particular religion, and then import Bedouin Hilemian tribes from Ifriqiya to replace the Bermudian Berber tribes affiliated with the Berghouata, which will bring the name of the Tamesna region in Chaouia. Anfa was cited by the geographer Al Idrissi in the ^twelfth century as one of the main ports of the Atlantic facade of the Maghreb al-Aqsa, rich in its commercial relations with Andalusia. Under the reign of the Almohades and then under the Merinides it developed to a certain prosperity, to the point of sheltering a medersa built by the Sultan Abu Inan Faris (1348-1358) and being visited by the Grenadine intellectual and politician Ibn al-Khatib. This rise was hampered by the Portuguese raid of 1468 decided by King Alphonse V. The Portuguese commanded by Infant Don Ferdinand destroyed Anfa on the grounds that the city was home to an important pirate base that would venture to the mouth of the Tagus and thus to Lisbon. Léon the African deplores in the sixteenth century the sacking of Anfa, which was, he said, a very large city beautifully built, which had once had large gardens giving fruit in abundance sold to Fez, and whose inhabitants enjoyed a certain richness and had among them famous scholars.

Only ruins will remain, then an outpost periodically occupied by pirates and privateers of Salé who frequently use the anchorage of Anfa. But also by local tribes, according to the testimony of Dutch admiral and governor of the Dutch East Indies Laurens Reael in 1627, as well as by the Portuguese who are attributed a building called Portuguese Prison whose remains were reused during the time of the French protectorate, to decorate the Lyautey Park (now Park of the Arab League). After the definitive departure of the Portuguese, the Alawite Sultan Mohammed III, anxious to develop the Moroccan Atlantic coast, raised a new city from 1760. Anfa, renowned as Dar al-Baida, like the palaces of the ruler in Meknes and Marrakech, acquired ramparts, fortified bastions (Sqala), mosques (Ouled al Hamra), all the attributes of a classic Moroccan city, and was placed under the administration of a pasha. Like Mogador (now Essaouira) and Fédala (Mohammédia), but on a smaller scale, it was destined for international trade. It was also used as a grain attic for the whole province, the site now called Mers-Sultan once housing the sultanian grain silo managed by the makhzen.

From 1781 the Spanish translation of Casa Blanca was used. On that date, Italian traders from Venice, the Chiapas brothers, brought out for the first time cargo of cereals from the new port built on the orders of Mohammed III. Their case was taken up in 1788 by the Spanish company Cinco-Grémios, which had a monopoly on the export of wheat from Chaouïa through this port and thus spread the use of the name Casablanca abroad.

The Spanish settled in numbers from the beginning of the ^nineteenth century (the Spanish consulate was established in 1799, then a church in the medina, managed by Spanish Catholic clerics of the Franciscan order), then joined by other Europeans, notably the British, the French, the Belgians and the Germans, who obtained the creation of national consulates in Casablanca during the 1860s. To this European population was added an increasingly large Sephardic Jewish community, which served as a intermediary for foreign trading houses located in the various ports of the Moroccan coast. In 1877, as part of a major inspection trip to the Christian Empire, Sultan Hassan I stayed in Casablanca, where he granted a number of official hearings, including one to Italian Ambassador Scovasso.

The Casablanca insurgency and the bombing of the city

A postcard of the French battleship Glory bombing the city of Casablanca, 1907.

In July 1907, a French company, the Compagnie Maroc, a subsidiary of Schneider, operated a small train "Decauville" for the construction of the port which was reduced, at the time, to a simple base that could not be used in bad weather. The path runs along the Sidi Beliout cemetery and its sanctuary, which disturbs the serenity of the place. A popular riot led by members of the Oulad Hriz tribe broke out against European workers and nine of them were killed. France sent troops to restore order, and the Chaouia tribes took control of the city, ousted the Makhzen authority, and looted the city's Jewish quarter. In retaliation, Casablanca was bombed on August 5 by Admiral Philibert's squadron, which captured the Si Boubker Ben Bouzid pasha. The French army bombed the city from several warships between 5 and 7 August 1907; a French squadron arrived on 7 August and landed a unit commanded by General Drude. His successors the generals of Amade and Moinier gradually occupied the Atlantic plains of Chaouia and Doukkalas, which would open the road to Fez, capital of the Christian Empire, and the conquest of Morocco by the west.

French protectorate

In 1912, Sultan Moulay Abd al-Hafid signed the treaty of Fez and established the French protectorate in Morocco. The protectorate led by Marshal Hubert Lyautey, general resident until 1925, was translated for Casablanca by the construction of one of the largest ports in Africa and by its urban explosion, disciplined by the plans of Henri Prost, then Michel Ecochard for the European city, while Auguste Cadet drew the new medal and the area reserved for the "indigenous" city of Bousbir.

Casablanca was home to Morocco's largest European community (it is estimated that Europeans made up about 60% of the Casablancan population). The modern city center and the residential districts of Anfa, Longchamp and Oasis were mainly home to French families with settlers, civil servants and industrialists, while the Spanish (including many anti-Francophones from 1936), Corsicans and Italians concentrated in the popular districts of Maârif, Burgundy and Roches Noires. There were also, but in smaller numbers, Swiss, Anglo-Saxons (British and American), Armenians, Greeks and a few white Russians. Moroccans, for their part, were divided between the old medina, the new medina (Habous neighborhood) and the numerous slums that began to appear in Ben M'sick and the Central Carriers.

Just after the end of World War II and following Sultan Mohamed V's speech in Tangier, the city was at the heart of Morocco's national claim for independence. From 1947 onwards, and especially from the 1950s, many upheavals and unrest began in Casablanca life (beginning with the deadly clashes between the Moroccan population and the Senegalese gunmen on April 7, 1947), as well as the attack on the Casablanca Central Market on Christmas Day 195 3, causing 18 European deaths and that of 14 July 1955 in Mers-Sultan.

The port during the Second World War

Port of Casablanca in 1915.

The port of Casablanca, considered to be the first port of Morocco from 1920 onwards, also became, in 1925, the first stop of the Latecère airlines (the future Aeropostale) connecting Toulouse to Dakar.

The Pluto minesweeper exploded in the town's port on September 13, 1939, destroying the ship and killing 186 people.

The city was also a strategic port during the Second World War, when it hosted the conference in Casablanca (Anglo-American summit in 1943).

The Casablanca conference

Casablanca Conference (1943), President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill.

General Charles de Gaulle shaking General Henri Giraud's hand in front of Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill (Casablanca conference January 17, 1943).

The Casablanca Conference (1943) took place at the Anfa Hotel from 14 to 24 January 1943 in order to prepare the Allied strategy after the defeat of the German-Japanese Axis and the reorganization of the liberated Europe. The conference, sometimes called the Anfa conference because of the location of the hotel where it took place, was decided by US President Franklin Roosevelt and UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who invited Joseph Stalin, who declined the offer, and French generals Henri Giraud and Charles de Gaulle.

Giraud, who ruled France's North and West Africa in his capacity as "commander-in-chief civil and military" (See the political situation in liberated France), accepted Roosevelt's request without hesitation.

Decisions were made at the conference about the invasion of Sicily (Operation Husky), the planning of the Normandy landings, and the material assistance to the USSR. Another objective pursued was to reconcile De Gaulle and Giraud and thus unify the command of free France. The conference concluded that the war should continue until the unconditional surrender of the Third Reich and his Italian and Japanese allies is achieved.

The port after World War II

In early May 1961, the mortal remains of Marshal Lyautey were brought from the mausoleum of Rabat and embarked on the cruiser Colbert at the port of Casablanca.

Contemporary History

After independence in 1956, the city became the locomotive of the country, and the symbol of a modern, dynamic and open Morocco. Casablanca today looks like many places to a vast construction site, the city is currently full of exuberance. It is a real cross-road and a national and international crucible for people of all origins.

The main division of the inhabitants of Casablanca is that of their socio-economic status. The wealthy have luxury cars and houses and private education. In contrast, in the poorest neighborhoods, any education is a privilege in itself.

That being said, many plans and plans for the future development of the city are underway and even actively started. These projects include projects to eradicate slums, build an efficient transportation system, and expand the highway system.

In March 1965, demonstrations by high school students protesting a law limiting the age of access to high schools were violently repressed: hundreds of young people are killed in a few days.

The June 1981 riots

Despite fierce opposition from Moroccan trade unions and opposition political parties (notably the Socialist Union of People's Forces), the government is canceling promises to raise wages imposed by high inflation (12.5%) and rising commodity prices. The Democratic Confederation of Labor (CDT) and the Moroccan Union of Labor (UMT) are calling for the cancelation of all increases in basic necessities and the CDT sets a seven-day time limit before launching a general strike. Tensions continue and strikes on June 18 and 20 turn into riots.

It is in this context that the army invests the city, that tanks besiege the streets and that helicopters fly over the city. The state of siege is officially proclaimed and pressure is marked by torture of protesters and live bullets.

Riots erupt in most of Casablanca's popular neighborhoods: the Ancient Medina, Derb Sultan, Ain Chock, Sbata, Ben Msik, Sidi Othman, Bournazel, Hay El-Mohammadi, Ain Sbaa, El-Bernoussi, etc. Many symbols of wealth and repression are targeted by rioters (bank agencies, luxury cars, police stations and vehicles, auxiliary forces offices, etc.).

2003 and 2007 suicide bombings

The city's recent history is marked by a series of terrorist suicide bombings. The deadliest ones were on May 16, 2003, which left 45 dead and dozens injured.

In 2007, several suicide attacks again hit Casablanca, without making civilian casualties. On March 11, a suicide bomber blew himself up in an internet cafe. A month later, on April 10, three more attacks hit the Hay Farah neighborhood. On April 14, two men blew themselves up again at Bd Moulay Youssef.

Geographic Location

Casablanca seen from the plane.

Casablanca is located on the plain of the Chaouia, a region that has historically been an agricultural region and to date one of the main agricultural centers of the country. Its position on the Atlantic coast allows it access to maritime resources (mainly related to fishing). The only forest area surrounding the city is that of Bouskoura, which was planted in the ^20th century and consists mainly of eucalyptus, pine and palm trees^{[ref. necessary]}.

Relief, geology or hydrography

Climate

The Casablanca sea shore.

Casablanca has a Mediterranean climate with a strong Csb-like oceanic tendency, which is particularly pleasant. Its location on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean gives it mild and relatively humid winters, as well as moderately hot summers without rainfall. The annual average temperature is 18.88 °C, and the annual rainfall is 426.1 mm.

During winter, frost is almost absent: the lowest temperature ever recorded is -2.7 °C. In summer, temperatures are generally pleasant when the wind blows from the sea. On the other hand, when there is an episode of earth wind (Moroccan equivalent to sirocco), the city can record scorching temperatures for a few days. Thus, the maximum temperature recorded is 40.5 °C.

Environment

The Casablancan ledge.

Casablanca is suffering the environmental consequences of the lack, until recently, of quality public transport, its polluting industrial activity, the low number of green spaces and the poor application of municipal regulations.

The site of Dar Bouazza, the last wetland in Casablanca, is threatened with extinction by the projects of real estate developers.

Air

Thirteen air quality measuring stations are located in Casablanca. Casablanca is the most polluted city in Morocco: in 2014, air pollution reached 2.5 times WHO standards and 16% of residents had asthma. 30% of air pollution is caused by transportation and 80% of vehicles are diesel-powered.

Water

Ain Diab Beach.

The Um Errabiâ wadi provides 50% of the drinking water needs of the Grand Casablanca. Water management in Casablanca is carried out by the Lyonnaise des eaux de Casablanca (Lydec), a subsidiary of the multinational Suez.

The surface waters of the Casablanca region are generally degraded. The daily water consumption in 2011 is about 386,000 m³/day.

Since 2015, 100% of wastewater has been cleaned up.

The beaches of Casablanca are marked by heavy pollution and sand looting by construction contractors.

Waste

Casablanca's hospital and industrial sectors produce just over 1,000 tons and 90,000 tons of untreated waste each year. The bathing waters are polluted between the Black Rock and Mohammedia neighborhoods.

However, selective sorting was first introduced in 2012.

Casablanca had 3,359,818 inhabitants in 2014, making it one of the most populous cities in the Maghreb.

The region of Grand Casablanca, including the cities of Mohammédia, Ain Harrouda and the two provinces of Médiouna and Nouaceur, has a population of about 4.3 million (2014) over 1,615 km². It was merged with the provinces of Settat, Benslimane, and Berrechid in 2015, to give birth to a larger region called Casablanca-Settat (6.9 million inhabitants, based on the 2014 census).

Quarters

Anfa Boulevard.

The names of the following neighborhoods (inherited from the period of protectorate) are not formalized nowadays but still appear on published city maps that are sold as those of telephone and postal information (yellow and white pages in particular). Some of the areas below are not part of the city of Casablanca itself, but rather towns on the outskirts of the city.

Architecture and town planning

View of the old town.

Casablanca 2000

The old medina.

Casablanca developed from the medina and the first basin of the port, mainly from 1920. The town planner Henri Prost drew the first extensions between 1917 and 1922. When he left Morocco in 1923, most of Casablanca's structure was defined.

In the 1950s, architect Michel Ecochard led the town planning department of the French protectorate for 6 years and drew up a new plan for the extension and organization of the city.

The medina is the historic heart of the city. It is surrounded by a wall and eight doors, the most famous of which is the Marrakech Gate, at the southern entrance to the old town. Close to the Bab Marrakech is the Clock Tower, in front of the small gate of Bab es Souk. La Sqala's cafe overlooks the entrance to the port. It was originally a fortified Portuguese point in the wall.

To the east of the medina lies the Art Deco district, which was the European quarter of the city under the French protectorate. It is home to several monumental compositions that give a particular style to the city: the administrative square, the arab league park, the large boulevards planted with palm trees, etc.

To the west of the medina, you will find the popular Burgundy neighborhood and, on the seashore, the great Hassan-II mosque and embankments to be built soon. A little further along, the corniche, its restaurants and its beaches, in front of the hill of Anfa, the residence of the most affluent categories.

The heart of the city, including the medina, the business center, most of the hotels and foreign consulates, is bordered by the Zerktouni boulevard marked in the middle by the two towers of the Twin Center designed by architect Ricardo Bofill.

Administrative break

The city of Casablanca is one of the two prefectures of the region of Casablanca-Settat. It consists of 8 prefectures of boroughs and 16 boroughs.

Walis, prefectural governors and municipal elected officials

Walis of Grand Casablanca

List of presidents of the city council

Twin Center, Mohammed-Zerktouni Boulevard.

The Kingdom's first major modern port was built in Casablanca in 1912. This great historical turning point affected the city's destiny in many ways. The entire economic development of the region, thus intensified by the port activity, drained in particular domestic and foreign investments. This gave birth to the economic capital of the kingdom, dynamic and modern, which we know today.

This city, the country's leading industrial hub, with more than one-third of the country's industrial facilities, accounts for 55% of the productive units, and nearly 60% of the industrial workforce. Casablanca accounts for 50% of Morocco's value-added and attracts 48% of investments. Alone, it employs 39% of Morocco's labor force, accounts for 35% of national electricity consumption, and absorbs 1.231 million tons of cement. The ports of Casablanca and Mohammédia account for 55% of the external trade, and its airport receives 51% of the passengers.

Avenue des FAR (Royal Armed Forces).

This dynamic region has an undeniable appeal for investors, as well as for young people looking for a comfortable and modern living environment.

The Kingdom and Maghreb's largest financial center, it accounts for 30% of the banking network and almost all of Morocco's banks and insurance headquarters; it is also the headquarters of many national and international companies as well as multinational companies for the North and West Africa regions.

A financial hub project, Casablanca Finance City in the city, plans to create an international business district by 2016. More than one million square meters of offices are already reserved in the future skyscrapers of the new city.

Casablanca is also the national capital of the informal economy in Morocco. This economy was estimated (in 2018, by the EMGC) at 170 billion dirhams (EUR 14.96 billion), 20% of GDP outside agriculture, 10% of formal imports, 40 billion dirhams of lost revenue for the State, 2.4 million jobs.

Casablanca in the top 10 of Africa's richest cities

In September 2018, Casablanca announced a wealth of $42 billion (nearly 400 billion dirhams). The Africa Wealth 2018 report on wealth in Africa published by New World Wealth (South African Research Group) and AfrAsia Bank places Casablanca at ninth place in its ranking of Africa's richest cities.

The price per square meter in 2018 is $1,500 (average price for an apartment or villa of 200 to 400 square meters).

Region

Stock Exchange

The Casablanca Stock Exchange (BVC) is the official stock market in Morocco. Created on November 7, 1929, under the name of the Securities Listing Office, the Casablanca Stock Exchange has undergone three successive reforms: the first in 1967, the second in 1986 and the third in 1993. It is one of the most dynamic in Africa and ranks first in the Maghreb, second in Africa after those of Johannesburg and the Arab world after that of Riyadh with a capitalization of 90 billion dollars.

The Casablanca Stock Exchange has 81 listed companies and 19 stock exchange companies.

Port of Casablanca

port of Casablanca.

The jetties of the port of Casablanca symbolize the dynamism of the second port of the African continent, from which the cargo of cereals and above all phosphates from which Morocco is the second largest producer departs.

The port of Casablanca is one of the largest artificial ports in the world and the largest port in North Africa. It is also the Royal Navy's largest naval base.

With 54% of the national port traffic, it is the first port in Morocco. In 2009, it processed more than 20 million tons of goods and 879,000 containers.

Major port projects are underway, including a 3^th container terminal at the port of Casablanca, which will increase capacity to 1.6 million TEUs.

Architecture

• The Hassan-II mosque, built between 1986 and 1993. It is the largest minaret (210m), and — after those of Mecca and Medina — the third largest mosque in the world;
• the district of Habous (where it is located) or new medina with its craft shops;
• the former medina (Bab Marrakech);
• the Corniche and its beaches "Aïn Diab";
• Morocco Mall is Africa's largest mall, and one of the world's largest. It has the world's third musical fountain;
• Twin Center Casablanca: two twin towers of 28 floors and 115 meters high including a shopping center of 130 shops on 3 levels, in the heart of Maârif;
• the island of Sidi Abderrahman;
• the numerous "Art Deco" façades, notably along Boulevard Mohammed-V and Boulevard du 11-January;
• Villa des Arts museum;
• Mohammed-V Square: Around this square stands the wilaya of Casablanca, whose Tuscan-inspired campanile attracts attention, as well as the Arabo-Andalusian-inspired palace of justice and a large fountain;
• Arab League Park and Yasmina Park;
• the central market;
• the Sacred Heart Church of Casablanca;
• the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes in Casablanca;
• Derb Ghallef: a large flea market, a sort of Ali Baba cave in the open air;
• Maârif, the shopping district par excellence in Casablanca and Morocco;
• Megarama, the largest film complex in Morocco and Africa;
  Sidi Abderrahman Island.
• Festival du Boulevard des Jeunes Musicians, annual music concert festival in Casablanca;
• Casablanca Festival, an annual festival organized by the municipality;
• Prince-Moulay-Abdellah passage in the city center;
• the place of the United Nations where you can appreciate the Wilaya building and its clock, the court of 1^st instance to the back and opposite the musical fountain bordered by the Customs Building and the general treasury;
• the Mahkama of Habous currently shared between the headquarters of the region and the court just opposite the Habous neighborhood;
• the large post office a few meters from the musical fountain;
• the Bank Al Maghrib building.

As Morocco's economic center, Casablanca is a major transportation hub for the entire country, or even for the northern part of the African continent.

Airports

Casablanca is served by the Maghreb's largest airport, Mohammed-V airport, located about 9 miles south of the city. It is served by more than 50 regular airlines that connect it to more than 80 destinations. In 2012, it processed approximately 7.2 million passengers and over 50,000 tons of cargo. It is the hub of Moroccan airlines, Royal Air Maroc and Air Arabia. He was voted best African airport in 2018 according to the International Council of Airports' ASQ program but also the worst airport in the world in 2017 by the Spanish travel agency eDreams.

Casablanca has a second aerodrome, the Casablanca Tit Mellil aerodrome, reserved exclusively for private and regional flights. The former Casablanca-Anfa airport has been closed to traffic and decommissioned since 2007. Its vast land of 350 hectares is the subject of a major urban development project.

Railways

Trains at Casa-Voyageurs station.

Casablanca is particularly well connected to the Moroccan railway network of the ONCF, allowing you to reach the country's main cities without connecting. The city has two main stations, Casa-Voyageurs and Casa-Port. These two stations record passenger traffic of approximately 8 million passengers per year^{[ref. necessary]}. The city has several other small stations, usually served only by commuter or regional trains and serving particular areas.

Casa-Port railway station.

Casablanca is served by the fast commuter trains (TNR), an RER-type network that constitutes the ONCF's regional reference rail service and which, after a great success on the Casa-Port-Rabat relationship (and its extension to Kénitra) has gradually been extended to other routes.

With the opening of the LGV Tangier - Kénitra line, scheduled for 2018, the Casa-Voyageurs station will be the terminus of high-speed trains from Tangier (estimated journey time of 2 h 10). In a later phase of the Moroccan high-speed project and an extension of the TGV south of Kénitra, a new Casa Sud station could be created in the Anfa district^{[ref. necessary]}. On November 15, 2018 Emmanuel Macron and Mohammed VI inaugurate the TGV line that will link Tangier to Casablanca from the end of November 2018.

Road transport

Casablanca has a 22 km long urban expressway that serves the city on an east-west axis, as well as a 33.5 km bypass which gives rise to three major roads in the country: the A3 motorway connecting Casablanca to Rabat, the A5 motorway connecting the city to El Jadida and the A7 motorway connecting Casablanca to Agadir via Marrakech. The city is thus the country's most important motorway hub.

Between 2001 and 2014, the number of vehicles in Casablanca quadruples: the city has grown from 400,000 to 1.4 million cars.

Public transport

Tram

Casablanca tram train.

Launched on December 12, 2012, after only two years of work, the first line of the Casablanca tram links Sidi Moumen to the east with Ain Diab and the Faculties district to the west, via the city center. This is a fork line with a length of 31 km and 48 stations in total. By 2015, 250,000 daily travelers are expected.

The first tram line was not thought of as a means of transport, but was accompanied by an urban ambition, including the treatment of the roads and the urban development of all the areas crossed, the rehabilitation of buildings and the "pedestrianization" of several roads in the city center.

Metro

A metropolitan project in the economic capital of Morocco emerged in the 1970s, before being abandoned. The project was re-discussed in 2013 as the city faces major traffic problems. However, it was frozen in 2014 and replaced by a network that is expected to include 4 tram lines and 3 high-level bus (HNS) lines by 2022.

Bus

The group of private companies responsible for the management of bus transport in the city of Casablanca since 2004 is M'Dina Bus. The group is composed of the Caisse de dépôt et de gestion (34%), the company RATP Développement (20%) and the Moroccan affiliate Transinvest (46%).

Taxis

Given the lack of mass transport, taxis play a major role in mobility in the Casablancan agglomeration. The taxi fleet includes nearly 15,000 vehicles, carrying nearly 1.2 million people a day.

There are two types of taxis:

• the "red taxis", also called "small taxis": they are used as a means of transport for travel within the urban perimeter. They accept up to three passengers at a time. They are the only ones with a meter and the minimum price for a trip is 7.50 Dhs per day and 10 Dhs in the evening (after 8 pm). Red taxis are constantly circulating in the city and form a large part of all Casablancan traffic;
• the "white taxis", also called "grand taxis": These are usually old Mercedes over 30 years old, or the new Dacia Lodgy that gradually replace the old Mercedes, which circulate on fixed lines that very often connect the city center to the peripheral areas. They have a capacity of 6 passengers, in addition to the driver (that is 7), this capacity being allowed by the installation of a seat between the driver and the passenger (old Mercedes). Some "big taxis" (white or green-pistachio) make long distance journeys.

Green spaces

The Arab League Park.

The city of Casablanca lacks a lot of green space. Casablancans have only 1.5 m² of green space per person, while the World Health Organization recommends 12 m² per person.

Casablanca has about five parks. The biggest are the Arab League Park, Murdoch Park and the Horticultural Gardens.

Sports

Casablanca hosted the 1983 Mediterranean Games, the 1988 African Cup of Nations and the 2018 African League of Nations, as well as the 1989 Francophonie Games.

Football

Players of both clubs at the Casablanca Derby.

The city has the two largest clubs in Morocco and two of the largest in Africa:

• Wydad Athletic Club (red color);
• Raja Club Athletic (green color).

The emblem of Wydad is the star and crescent of the moon that form the basis of the symbol of Islam. The old medina district was the home of the red club supporters.

The emblem of the Raja is the eagle. Originally, the Derb sultane neighborhood was the core supporters of the Green Club.

This rule is no longer necessarily respected. This way, supporters of both teams can be found within the same family.

These two big clubs have always produced the best players of the national team (Salaheddine Bassir, Abdelmajid Dolmy, Baddou Zaki, Aziz Bouderbala, Mustapha Haddaoui, Noureddine Naybet, Petchou, etc.).

In addition to these two legendary teams, other clubs are also located in the White House:

• TAS de Casablanca, the third most popular club in the city, founded in 1947 and evolving at Larbi Zaouli stadium;
• Rachad Bernoussi;
• Majd Al Madina;
• Racing from Casablanca;
• Olympic in Casablanca;
• Star of Casablanca;
• Wafa Sidi Moumen;
• Association Anouar Casa.

Casablanca Derby

The two legendary jerseys of the Casablanca derby.

This is a very popular derby in Morocco, and Africa, on the other hand, so that during these high-profile meetings, Moroccans from all over the country come to support their favorite team, despite the distance. The Raja and Wydad Casablanca clubs are seen as eternal rivals.

The Casablanca derby pits the two biggest clubs in Casablanca and Morocco: the Wydad and the Raja. It takes place at the Mohammed-V stadium and in most cases at a closed window and in front of 45,000 supporters. This is a very popular derby in Morocco, and in Africa, so that at these high-profile meetings Moroccans from all over the country come to support their favorite team, despite the distance. The Raja and Wydad Casablanca clubs are seen as eternal rivals.

The derby's audience has been ranked among the best in the world thanks to the show offered by the ultras of the two camps (tifos, songs, banners, fireworks, clashes, counter-clashes, etc.).

There is a fierce rivalry between WAC and RCA supporters. Casablanca derby matches usually lead to exceptional days in the city as the main stadium (Mohammed-V stadium) is located in the center of the city. This rivalry leads to acts of violence and hooliganism between the supporters of the two clubs. During the regional matches, street brawls erupted between the two groups' most fervent supporters.

Tennis

Hicham Arazi.

The Moroccan Tennis Tournament is a professional ATP Tour male tennis tournament named in honor of the former King of Morocco Hassan II. Its first edition dates back to 1986. He disputes on land at the Al Amal complex in Casablanca, and is endowed with €370,000.

Amongst the top ten are the Austrian Thomas Muster (future world ^#1) in 1990 and the Moroccan Hicham Arazi in 1997 and Younès El Aynaoui in 2002 and the French Gilles Simon in 2008 as well as the former world number 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero in 2009 followed by ^No 2 Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka in 2010.

The only players to have won the tournament twice consecutive are Roldan in 1992 and 1993 and Andujar in 2011 and 2012.

Located in Casablanca, the al-Amal complex hosts the annual Moroccan Tennis Tournament competition. The complex is also used for Davis Cup matches.

The surface of its courts is clay.

Facilities at the complex

• Central court with 5,500 seats.
• 14 short annexes, including 2 in quick.
• Hosts a school and a tennis academy.
• Swimming pool, restaurants, gym.

Basketball

The city has several top basketball clubs: the basketball section of the Wydad de Casablanca (the second most-titled club with 10 national titles), the TS Casablanca, the Circle Casablanca, the Raja Casablanca, the basketball section and the Alliance Sports Casablanca (Morocco's first championship club).

Handball

The club of the Rabita de Casablanca is the country's most famous. The Wydad and Raja also have a handball section that operates in the national championship.

Rugby

Casablanca has several rugby union clubs in the Moroccan rugby union championship: the RAMO de Casablanca, the COC Casablanca and the University Racing de Casablanca.

Education

The region of Grand Casablanca is one of the most important academic and educational centers in the Maghreb. Each year, more than 27,000 young graduates from universities, major schools and vocational training centers feed the labor market.

The Grand Casablanca counts:

• Two universities:
  • 2 faculties of legal, economic and social sciences;
  • 3 Faculties of Arts and Humanities;
  • 2 faculties of science;
  • 1 Faculty of Technical Sciences;
  • 1 medical school;
  • 1 Faculty of Dentistry;
  • 1 Higher School of Technology;
  • 1 school of architecture;
  • 2 schools of economics (ISCAE, ENCG).
• Six major engineering schools;
• 1 Civil Aviation Meteorology Center;
• a dozen higher schools of business and management, among the most renowned in the Maghreb and West Africa;
• 80 public vocational training centers and institutes;
• the largest French high school administered by the SCAC, Lyautey high school;
• more than 400 private vocational training centers and institutes.

In addition, Casablanca has performed well against the national average in terms of education, education and medical coverage.

Lycees

• Al-Kindi High School;
• Moustapha Maani High School;
• Tazi High School;
• Lycée Groupe scolaire Bourgogne;
• Imam Malik High School;
• Lycée Le Cèdre;
• Ibn Al-Yassamine High School;
• Ibn al-Awam High School;
• High School Group of Anfa M'hammed Bennis;
• Ziryab High School;
• Abu Chouaib Doukali High School;
• Moulay-Abdallah High School;
• Abdelkrim Lahlou High School;
• El Waha High School;
• Al Khansaa High School;
• Al Khawarizmi High School;
• Chawki High School;
• Ibn Al Khattab High School;
• Ibn Zaydoune High School;
• Jaber Ibnou Hayan High School;
• Lyautey High School;
• American High School of Casablanca;
• Lycée La Résidence;
• Maïmonide High School;
• Malaika School;
• el-Manal school;
• Mohammed-V high school;
• Mohammed-VI high school;
• Anis High School;
• Lycée Louis-Massignon;
• Wallada High School;
• Imam Al Boukhari High School;
• Elbilia High School;
• Lycée Romandie;
• Malaika High School;
• Moulay Driss High School 1^st;
• Hassan-II High School;
• Lina School Group High School;
• Pascal Type Mission School;
• international school ORT de Casablanca;
• Oued Eddahab High School;
• Lycée La Pléiade;
• Ibnou chouhaide High School;
• Mokhtar es-Soussi high school;
• Al Jabr School;
• Jaâfar El Fassi El Fihri High School;
• Moulay smail high school;
• Léon the African High School;
• Lahlou Institute;
• Ibn Toumert High School;
• instituto español Juan Ramón Jiménez;
• scuola Paritaria Enrico Mattei;
• Abdelaziz El Fechtali High School;
• Tariq Ibn Zyad High School;
• Ibn Al-Haitham High School;
• Lycée L'Etoile Filante;
• Addoha 2 school group;
• high school The escalade school.

Universities

Hassan-II University has several faculties:

• the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences;
• the Ben M'sick Faculty of Science;
• the Faculty of Arts and Humanities Ben M'sick;
• the Faculty of Science Aîn Chock;
• the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy;
• the Faculty of Dentistry Aîn Chock;
• Faculty of Arts and Humanities Aîn Chock.
• Mohammed VI University also has several faculties:
• medical school;
• the faculty of dentistry;
• the faculty of nursing and health technologies.

As well as the Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering.

A Pharmacy Faculty will also be open in the academic year 2017-2018.

Large Schools

Some of the city's major schools:

• Casablanca Central School (ECC);
• Mohammed VI International Civil Aviation Academy (AIAC);
• Senior Management and Technology Institute (MATCI);
• HEM Business School (HEM);
• EM Lyon Business School;
• Hassania School of Public Works (EHTP);
• National School of Line Pilots (ENPL);
• National Higher School of Electricity and Mechanics (ENSEM);
• Higher School of Textile and Clothing Industries (ESITH);
• National School of Business and Management in Casablanca (ENCGC);
• Graduate School of Technology in Casablanca (ESTC);
• Graduate School of Fine Arts in Casablanca (ESBAC);
• Royal Naval School (ERN);
• Graduate School of Information Systems Engineering (HEISI);
• Moroccan School of Engineering Sciences (EMSI);
• Higher Institute for Maritime Studies (ISEM);
• Higher Institute for Business Trade and Administration (ISCAE);
• Supinfo International University (ESI);
• Graduate School of Architecture in Casablanca (EAC);
• National School of Arts and Crafts in Casablanca (ENSAM);
• Higher Institute of Applied Engineering (IGA);
• SKEMA Business School (School of Knowledge Economy and Management);
• Toulouse Business School;
• ESCA School of Management;
• Specialized Institute of Applied Technology (ISTA);
• Graduate School of Design and Visual Arts (ESDAV);
• School of Engineering in Industrial Systems (EIGSI).

Places of worship are mainly Muslim mosques. Casablanca also has Christian churches and temples, belonging to the Archdiocese of Rabat (Catholic Church), the Evangelical Church in Morocco (the world communion of reformed churches) and the Greek Orthodox Church. Among the places of Jewish worship, the Beth-El synagogue is the most famous.

The Hassan-II mosque was built in Casablanca between 1986 and 1993. It is the second largest minaret in the world (210 m) and the fourth largest mosque in the world after those of Mecca, Medina, and Algiers.

A photograph of the mythical film, Casablanca.

• The Megarama, a cinema complex located in the Ain Diab district, is the largest cinema in Africa with 14 cinemas.
• Casablanca Sport Plazza, located in California, is the world's second largest sports center.
• Casablanca is now famous worldwide thanks to the American film Casablanca, by the director Michael Curtiz (1942) and performed by Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. The film won 3 Oscars and is considered the most romantic film in the history of cinema^{[insufficient source]}.
• There was talk all over the world of Casablanca when Marcel Cerdan, who had grown up in the district of the Ferme blanche and then the Marif, became world boxing champion in 1948. A year later, he died in a plane crash as he was about to find his mistress, singer Edith Piaf (whose great-grandfather was Moroccan).
• Michel Chaillou (1930-2013), a French writer, draws inspiration from his adolescence in Casablanca in her novel Mémoire de Melle (Seuil, Fiction & Cie, 1993; Points, 1995).

Architecture

Boulevard de la Gare - Mohammed V, 1920.

In a half-century, between the 1910s and 1960s, Casablanca became a large metropolis and the economic capital of Morocco. This effervescent development was also accompanied by an extraordinary urbanization movement, in turn becoming a field of experimentation in the field of architecture. Since then, a particularly rich variety of styles have cohabited and enriched the architectural space of the city of Casablanca.

Among the various architectural influences of this period, you will find among others the Arabic-Andalusian style revisited in French, art nouveau, art deco, cubism, modern movement and brutalism.

It is in particular through the achievements of a large number of well-known architects that this unique heterogeneity of style is expressed. For example, creative contributions by Marius Boyer, Henri Prost, Albert Laprade, Joseph Marrast, Paul Tournon, Marcel Desmet, Joseph and Elias Suraqui, Hippolyte Delaporte Jean-François Zevaco, Pierre Jabin, Adrien Laforgue, Gaston Jambert, Jean Balois, Edmond Brion, Auguste Cadet, Albert Greslin, éonard Morandi, Domenico Basciano, Élie Azagury and Wolfgang Ewerth. These architects have, among others, contributed singularly to the architectural diversity of the city.

The 1920s

Courthouse during the 1920s.

Since the beginning of the century, and due to the image of the "new city" carried by the pioneers and settlers, Casablanca has attracted many architects from different countries. In fact, in the early 1920s, Casablanca had three times as many architects as Tunis.

These architects were largely inspired by Moroccan art and crafts in their projects, and that's how the architectural modernity they worked on was offset by the use of more traditional ornaments. Based on Moroccan techniques and decorative arts, in addition to the Art Nouveau and Art Deco motifs of the time, they have given birth to a brand new original style. This particular arrangement of styles remained characteristic of Casablanca's architecture during the early years of the French Protectorate.

This is how the decorative pluralism of the façades of the large buildings, which were born in the city center, becomes the rule: ornaments made of angelots, fruit baskets or lion heads blend harmoniously with friezes in zellige, stucco and cedar wooden balconies, as evidenced in particular by the Excelsior hotel, the Glaoui building-passage, or even various administrative buildings in the city center.

Although many large colonial villas swing between the Parisian mansion and the villas of the Côte d'Azur with their terraces and verandas, the neo-Moroccan villas are among the ones that receive the most attention from critics and that are regularly mentioned in architecture magazines. For example, the now-demolished Villa el Mokri was renowned for its Moroccan decorative elements and its original layout, which was reminiscent of Parisian mansions.

In the late 1920s, the use of the applied decorations was gradually abandoned when a new generation of architects, trained in new principles, arrived.

The 1930s

Casablancan architecture.

In the 1930s, comfort and modernity took place in architectural creation, thus sweeping the neo-Moorish style and its ornamental profusion.

Casablancan architecture.

The architects of that time, who wanted to apply the theories of modern architecture learned at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris, began to modernize the buildings — which kept rising — by adding balconies and oriels to them, in order to gain space.

The luxury buildings, like the so-called ordinary production buildings, took into consideration the comfort of the Casablancan bourgeoisie and were all equipped with elevators, garbage incinerators and garages, while the apartments all had a bathroom. The city center's luxury buildings, which are real works of art, have been named after their sponsor, thus taking on the appearance of the city's monuments. The architects let their ingenuity go to the villas, where they experienced the latest discoveries in terms of housing and comfort.

Very impressed by the profusion of buildings, international critics will agree to describe Casablanca as the capital of modern architecture.

The prestigious buildings of this architectural period include:

• the Levy Bendayon building: built in 1928 by architect Marius Boyer, this building is considered to be the precursor to the modern movement of the 1930s. Perceived as a strong trend in modern Casablancan architecture, it follows the concept of the building.
• the Moretti-Milone building: inaugurated in 1934, this 11-story building located at the place of the United Nations was built by Pierre Jabin. The luxury of the building lies less in its façade marked by the large vertical and horizontal lines of its orials than in the quality of its facilities and the number of lifts.

Modern architecture

General

Building Freedom, one of the first African skyscrapers^{[ref. desired]}.

From the 1950s, economic development began to influence the city's architecture. Strongly imbued with American culture, the Casablancan bourgeoisie invests in villas with Californian accents. These villas are marked above all by the personality of their architects, as well as their ultra-modern style.

In 1950, Casablanca became the seat of the construction of the first skyscraper on the African continent. It was in fact that year that the Liberté building designed by the architect Léonard Morandi, 230 feet high, came out of the ground. It is located at the roundabout of the French Revolution (renamed Place Lemaigre Dubreuil, since his assassination in 1955, at the foot of the Liberté building he lived in).

In addition, in order to contain the rural exodus and to solve the still numerous slums, new dwellings are emerging from the ground in the suburbs of Casablanca.

Demolished Monuments

Alhambra - CTM

Casablanca Bullring

In his work Habla la la plaza de Casablanca (in French: The Arenas of Casablanca speak), F. Ribes Tover claims that the city's bullring was built in 1913. Julio Irbarren argues that the bullring was built in 1921 instead. The two authors, however, agree on their wooden construction and that they were located near the Royal Hotel of Anfa, on the boulevard of Anfa. It was in 1953 that bullfighting actually spread to Casablanca. The revitalization of this environment would be carried out by the French Paul Barrière and the Spanish Don Vicente Marmaneu, who decided to revive this practice in the city. These two men, whose address books were in all likelihood very well-stocked, allowed the Casablancans to admire the greatest matadors of the time, who usually came to finish their tours in Casablanca and at the same time stirred an overrated atmosphere.

According to information gathered by a few newspapers, the arenas of Casablanca belonged to the Castella family, a great lover of bullfighting, who came to settle in Casablanca during the 19th century. The influence of this family would have made bullfighting a weekly ritual that many Casablancans would not miss. In front of the Dominguin, El Cordobes and other important figures in the area, the public always responded and stood out especially for its energy and cosmopolitan warmth: "[...] we could see some dressed in European style and others beside them, we can no longer traditional, with their gandouras, tarbouches...".

A former matador will admit that, compared to other arenas, the Casablancan public was also particularly demanding. According to a lady named Solange, whose restaurant was the meeting place for all aficionados after the show, there was always a dynamic atmosphere, but very quickly to booing strongly if the bullfight disappoints them.

That being said, the arenas of Casablanca did not serve only to receive this expressive and passionate public of bullfighting. In the late 1940's, after the US troops landed in Operation Torch, the Arenas were occupied by a huge pile of military surplus, a treasure for Casablancans who had run out of manufactured goods during the war. Later, Dalida would have come to perform there. At the event, she would have drawn the fury of the crowd and the authorities by deciding to sing in Hebrew. She would then have been in extremis at the airport.

Although highly popular, the socio-economic context of the time would have led to a sudden and unforeseen stop of bullfighting, particularly following the death of Don Vicente, the Moroccan business community and King Hassan II's aversion to the practice. In 1971, the arenas were destroyed, taking with them the heritage architecture and historical experience that was their own.

The exact cause of this architectural destruction remains uncertain, though some are raising speculation as a plausible cause. This place, so long bustling with activity and emotion, has remained, since the demolition, a wasteland left to abandon.

Casablanca Municipal Pool

The Casablanca Municipal Pool is a seawater pool built in rocks along the road from Ain Diab to Casablanca. It was designed by the architect Maurice L'Herbier and opened on 14 July 1934. Considered the longest swimming pool in the world in its time (480 meters long and 75 meters wide), the sea water was renewed every day by the game of tides and the help of a pumping station.

This pool has given way to the Hassan-II mosque.

Casablanca Aquarium

The aquarium was part of the Moroccan Institute of Fisheries, an institute created in 1946 and considered to be an branch of the French Institute of Scientific and Technical Fisheries. Located not far from the Casablanca International Fair, it was part of the Merchant Navy's management and was used only for scientific and technical work and analysis.

Considered the only maritime park in Morocco, the Casablanca aquarium was opened in 1959-1960 and opened its doors to the general public from 3 January 1962. People traveled from all over Morocco to visit this country's first maritime zoo.

More than thirty years later, the aquarium closed its doors in a sudden and unexpected way, in front of a Casablancan and Moroccan audience dismayed by the lack of explanatory reasons for its closure.

Lincoln Hotel

Originally called the "Bessoneau building", it was built in 1917 by the French architect Hubert Bride on an area of 3,000 m². It was among the first buildings built on Boulevard Mohammed-V (formerly Boulevard de la Gare) and bordered by ex-Streets Prom and Coli, opposite the central market. The hotel itself occupied only the western part of the building, on the corner of the former Prom street, under the first name of the "Grand Hotel Moderne". Its central body consisted until the end of the 1920s of a four-slope roof made of green tiles, which disappeared in the early 1930s in favor of a roof terrace decorated with green tiles It is part of some forty monuments classified as "Art Deco" heritage in the region of Grand Casablanca. The hotel has been closed and abandoned since 1989 following the collapse of the floor of one of its rooms, which was made of simple earth, built on hollow bricks, arranged in vaults, relying on metal beams. Another part of the hotel collapsed in January 2009 after heavy rains, the only remaining part of the building is the façade.

Bank of State of Morocco (2^th)

The Bank of State of Morocco occupied three successive locations: former Medina (c/1907) then ex-place de France, adjacent to the Alhambra/CTM (1912) and finally opposite the main post, ex-boulevard de Paris (1937).

VOX Cinema

Beautiful 1940s building built by French architect Marius Boyer and located on the corner of the former rue Moinier and rue Chevandier de Valdrome. At the time, he was the biggest cinema in all of Africa. Now gone, he had replaced an annex of nearby modern stores.

Galeries Lafayette/Paris-Morocco Building/Modern Shops

Now gone, it has long closed the prospect of the former place of France to the south. Opened in 1914, this magnificent building by architect H. Delaporte was, with the Excelsior hotel of the same architect, the first to use a reinforced concrete structure. The ground floor was originally occupied by the imposing modern shops topped with luxurious apartments. The Galeries Lafayette opened in the 1930s, with modern shops moving in a new building on the other side of rue Chevandier de Valdrome. The building itself was replaced in the 1940s by the superb Vox cinema, now gone.

Old Town

 

This article contains one or more lists (November 2018).

This article contains one or more lists. These lists would benefit from being drafted in the form of synthetic paragraphs, which would be more pleasant to read, since the lists could also be introduced by a written and sourced part, so as to make the various items well-known.

Compared to the old cities of Morocco and in particular those of the imperial cities, the old town of Casablanca has modest dimensions of some 50 hectares, and is surrounded by a more or less preserved wall of about 2.5 miles pierced by several doors. Located in the north-east part of Casablanca facing the port and the old Portuguese coast, the old town is composed of three parts, the medina itself, the Jewish or mellah quarter and the popular district called Tnaker.

Wall

The wall is about 6 to 8 meters high, it surrounds the city with a triangular shape, this wall has undergone several transformations, destruction and restorations. Originally, the wall consists of three sections:

• north-east section on the seafront: it stretched in a winding way from the Sidi Belyout mausoleum in the north to the Sour Jdid in the east; This section is currently interrupted at several levels, it includes the Sqala bastion halfway through;
• section south-east straight: it stretched out from the Sidi Belyout mausoleum, along the current Avenue Houphouët-Boigny, bordered the Clock Tower in its former location, crossed the current place of the United States and ended at the level of a south tower currently disappeared, at the level of the Marshal's square; This section was initially destroyed in its northern part between Sidi Belyout and the Clock Tower and then in its southern part between the Clock Tower and the southern tower; this section has been partially rebuilt back about 10 meters on both sides of the current Clock Tower;
• southwest section: still visible, it leaves from the south tower, crossing the current parking lot of the Hyatt Regency hotel, reaching the opening of Bab Marrakech to extend to the Sour Jdid in the east.

Doors

Bab el-Kebir.

The wall is broken up by several doors, one of which gives direct access to the sea:

• Bab el-Marsa or the gate of the navy, which is the only door that has kept its original appearance and opens onto the old Portuguese church;
• Bab er-Rha existed halfway between the Clock Tower and Sidi Belyout, the door and the wall no longer exist;
• Bab el-Kebir or Bab es-Souk, in the south-east section of the former location of the Clock Tower opening onto Allal Ben Abdallah street (formerly Clock Street), this door has been reproduced in retreat to open onto Souk Square and Chakib Arsalane street, it is often mistakenly called Bab Marrakech which is a few dozen meters further;
• Bab Marrakech, giving access to the city by the southwest section of the wall, the door is only visible through a bay in the wall delimited by two columns and two small side doors;
• Bab el-Qadim on the northeast stretch between Sidi Belyout and Bab el-Marsa;
• Bab Jdid or Bab el-Afya and Bab el-Arsa between Bab Marrakech and Sour Jdid.

Towers and bastions

Clock Tower.

• The Clock Tower: Built in 1911 by Captain Dessigny, the first municipal affairs officer appointed by the French authorities, it was built by raising the north tower of the gate of Bab el Souk adjacent to the old rampart. To broaden the former Place de France and its access to the port, the rampart was demolished leaving the Clock Tower isolated in the middle of the square. Declared "wobbly", it was demolished in 1948. The Moroccan authorities decided to build a replica of it in 1993 with a door and a piece of rampart not far from its original location.

A legend as stubborn as a fancier wanted a secret underground to link the Clock base to the northwest point of El Hank.

• La Sqala: after Mazagan was taken over by the Portuguese in 1769, Mohamed Ben Abdallah decided to supplement his Atlantic defensive system between Salé and Mogador by strengthening the wall by a repaired stronghold built by Genoese labor masters and armed with several cannons to defend the city against unwanted ships in the Casablanca harbor.

Religious monuments

• Hassan-II Mosque;
• Souk mosque;
• Oueld el-Hamra mosque;
• Chleuhs mosque;
• M'guerja mosque;
• Ettedgui Synagogue;
• Santa Buenaventura church.

Mausoleum and Zaouia

Sidi Belyout Mausoleum.

• Mausoleum of Sidi Belyout: located outside the medina just a few meters from the northeast tip of the wall, the dome was built in 1881 on the site of the burial site of Sidi Belyout, considered by the Casablancans as the protector of the city. The folk legend says that the saint who lived during the Almohades era fled the decadence of his fellow citizens to exile in a forest around the city, most probably that of Ain-Sebaa alongside wild animals, especially the lions on which he acquired such a captivating power that they kept him in the evening, helped him to move around by Because of his blindness and his death they transported him out of the forest to the outskirts of the city in order to allow the inhabitants to bury him, his connection with these animals earned him the nickname "Abu Loyoute" ("The Lion's Father") in Arabic and the veneration of the inhabitants who began to bury their dead beside his grave and thus form a cemetery that named after him. During the construction of a stretch of railway linking the port to the road to Rabat, which was to cross the cemetery, clashes broke out between the population and foreign workers, resulting in the death of seven of these French, Portuguese and Spanish workers employed by the railway company. These clashes contributed to the bombing and invasion of the city by the French army;

Mausoleum of Sidi Allal el-Kairouani.

• Sidi Bousmara mausoleum: the tomb of Sidi Bousmara resembles a small square stone house with white walls carved out of two niches in which the faithful lay candles. The roof with four triangular sections is covered with green tiles. The mausoleum occupies the center of a square planted with several trees, one of which carries many nails on its trunk because of an ancestral custom of planting nails in the trunk of this tree by pilgrims to plead for help to the saint. According to popular legend, a pious man with a white beard descending from the Arab conquerors passing through the city knocked on the door of one of the houses to ask for water to make his ablutions. His demand was delayed, he struck the land and a clear source of fresh water sprung up and became a supply point for the inhabitants, impressed by this miracle, who asked him not to leave again;
• Sidi Allal el-Kairouani's mausoleum: Built by Sultan Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah, it is Casablanca's oldest mausoleum, home to the tomb of the city's first patron saint. Located behind the Sqala, the building has a double crown of stuffed merlons and a koubba and is topped with three yellow copper balls. Considered the protector of sailors, the fishermen of Casablanca regularly go there to ask for the protection of the saint. According to popular legend, Sidi Allal el-Kairouani, originally from Kairouan, was shipwrecked in 1340 on the coasts of Casablanca on his trip to Senegal and was greeted by the city's sinners, his daughter called "Lella Beida" because of the whiteness of her complexion wanting to join her father, drowned and died on the coasts of his father buried him in front of the sea and asked to be buried near her. The mausoleum built in homage to Sidi Allal and his daughter, whose walls were painted white, was a landmark for sailors thanks to its white color. The name change of the city of Anfa is most likely related to either Sidi Allal's daughter: The White House: "Dar el Beida" is because of the white color of the sanctuary visible from afar: "the white house";
• marabout of Lalla Taja: it is a small square building with a green door on Rue de Belgique just to the left of the former consulate of Belgium (now the primary school of Omar Ben Abdelaziz). This marabout houses the tomb of a woman who lived during the 19th century and who was known for her kindness, generosity and services to orphans and poor children she had at home in a house of the medina next to the Belgian legation in Casablanca. Due to the moral and material support of the Belgian consulate secretary, rumors were made that Lalla Taja, known by her generosity and her free spirit, had a romantic relationship with the latter, which earned her contempt and verbal and physical aggression from the men of the neighborhood, an assault that went to her stoning. There are mixed accounts of the cause of her death, some argue that she died immediately, others claim that Lalla Taja took refuge in the Belgian legation, but the incident affected her considerably and caused her death. As the local men refused to bury him in the Muslim cemetery, the Belgian consul reserved a small space for him next to the consulate to bury him. According to popular legend, Lella Taja composed a poem that tells her sad story and the women sang it in tears. Several women still come to gather on his grave in memory of his courage, generosity and kindness;
• Zaouïa Derkaouiya, of the Derkaoua or tariqa Derkaouiya order, created in the late eighteenth century by Moulay Larbi Derkaoui;
• Zaouia Kadiria Boutchichiya;
• Zaouïa Naciria;
• Zaouia Kadiria.

Places

• Central Square;
• trade square.

Buildings

• Dar el Makhzen;
• former residence house;
• Customs;
• former French consulate;
• former Belgian consulate;
• former consulate of Spain;
• Circulo del Progresso;
• Rick's Café Casablanca
• Grand Hôtel de France;
• former State Bank of Morocco;
• Dar Rabi Haim Pinto.

Museums

• The Casablanca Art villa was built in 1934 to promote Moroccan and contemporary arts through exhibitions and cultural encounters. It is run by the ONA Foundation;
• the Abderrahman Slaoui museum houses unique collections of ancient jewelry, ancient posters, illuminations and bohemian crystal boxes from the 19^th;
• the museum of Moroccan Judaism, the first museum on Judaism in the Arab World;
• the andalusian music museum has three small exhibition rooms dedicated to instruments, scores and photos that have made the history of this music.

Photogallery

• View of the Medina.

• View of the Medina.

• Casablanca Tram.

• Ain Diab at night.

• Arab League Park.

• Aerial view.

• Boulevard Mohammed-V.

• Casablanca Court of First Instance.

• View of El Hank lighthouse.

• Arab League Park.

• Awful.

• The Fountain.

• The Fountain.

• Pedestrian street in the city center.

• Habous neighborhood.

• Central market.

• Art villa.

Casablanca is a city whose history abounds with many famous or prominent people.

Politicians

• Nadia El Yousfi, a Belgian politician of Moroccan origin, a member of the Socialist Party.
• Jihane Annane, a Belgian politician born in Casablanca.
• Michèle Barzach, Minister of Health of the Chirac Government 1986-1988.
• Taïeb Fassi-Fihri, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in the Government Abbas El Fassi.
• Karim Ghellab, Minister of Transport and Equipment in the Abbas El Fassi Government.
• Touria Jebrane Kryatif, former Minister of Culture in the Abbas El Fassi Government.
• Abderrahim Harouchi, Moroccan Minister for Social Development, Family and Solidarity in the Abbas El Fassi Government.
• Mohamed Naciri, Minister of Justice in the Abbas El Fassi Government.
• Khalid Naciri, Minister of Communication in the Abbas El Fassi Government.
• Driss Basri, politician, former right-hand man of Hassan 2 and former Moroccan Prime Minister. Driss Basri is from Settat.
• Leila Rhiwi, senior official.
• Aicha Farih, Morocan politician born in Casablanca.
• Fouzia Assouli, a feminist activist.

Other personalities

The city has seen the birth of various:

• scientists: Serge Haroche;
• actors: Jean Reno, Marion Game, Leila Hadioui, Mohamed Miftah, Mohamed Majd;
• singers: Alain Souchon, Sofia Essaïdi, Jean Schultheis, Mustapha Bourgogne, Haja el Hamdaouia, Hoda Saad, Faouzia, Meryem Aboulouaf, the Nass El Ghiwane, Lemchaheb, Essiham and Mesnawa, Mohamed El Hayani, Naima Samih;
• writers: Daniel Pennac, Pierre Assouline, Nicole Elgrissy, Tito Topin, Ghizlaine Chraibi;
• entrepreneurs: Nezha Hayat, Fatine Layt, Touria El Glaoui, Bouchra Rejani;
• comedians: Abderrahim Tounsi, Gad Elmaleh, Hassan El Fad;
• television hosts: Arthur, Leila Ghandi, Ariel Wizman, Bernard Montiel, Valérie Bénaïm;
• rappers: French Montana, La Fouine, Mister You, 3robi, 7liwa, Lbenj;
• sports enthusiasts: Richard Virenque, Guy Forget, Nabil Dirar, Imad Hadar;
• media: Bouchra Réjani, Dalila Ennadre.

Coupling:

•  Chicago, USA;
•  Shanghai, China, since 1986;
•  Bordeaux (France) since 3 November 1988;
•  Dubai (city) (United Arab Emirates);
•  Algiers (Algeria) since 19 July 1963;
•  Sfax (Tunisia);
•  Brussels, Belgium;
•  St. Petersburg (Russia);
•  Lisbon (Portugal);
•  Ouarzazate (Morocco);
•  Tirana (Albania).

Cooperation agreements

•  Istanbul, Turkey;
•  Montreal (Canada) since March 1999;
•  Marseille (France) since 27 July 1998.