-
A view on the Boulevard de Paris in central Casablanca
Casablanca (classical Arabic name: الدار البيضاء, transliterated ad-Dār al-Bayḍāʼ, "the white house", dar beïda in dialectal Moroccan Arabic) is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean.
With a population of 2.95 million (September 2004 census), Casablanca is Morocco's biggest city; also it is the chief port, and is thus considered the economic capital, although Morocco's official capital and seat of government is Rabat. Casablanca is located at 33°32′N 7°35′W.
History
Before the French Protectorate
The area which is today Casablanca was settled by Berbers by at least the 7th century. A small independent kingdom, in the area then named Anfa, arose in the area around that time in response to Arab Muslim rule, and continued until it was conquered by the Almoravids in 1068.
During 14th century, under the Marinids, Anfa rose in importace as a port. In the early 15th century, the town became an independent state once again, and emerged as a safe harbour for pirates and privateers, leading to it being targeted by the Portuguese, who destroyed the town in 1468.
The Portuguese established a new town in the ruins of Anfa in 1515, which they named Casa Branca. They eventually abandoned the area in 1755 following an earthquake which destroyed most of the town. The area was reintegrated into Morocco, under the rule of the then sultan Sidi Mohammed III, who renamed the town Casablanca in commemoration of a trade agreement with Spain in 1781.
In the 19th century, the area's population began to grow as Casablanca became a major supplier of wool to the booming textile industry in Britain and shipping traffic increased (the British, in return, began importing Morocco's now famous national drink, gunpowder tea). By the 1860s, there were around 4,000 residents, and the population grew to around 9,000 by the late 1880s [1]. Casablanca remained a modestly-sized port, with a population reaching around 12,000 within a few years of the French conquest and arrival of French colonialists in the town, at first administrators within a sovereign sultanate, in 1906. By 1921, this was to rise to 110,000 [2], largely through the development of bidonvilles.
French rule
In June 1907, the French attempted to build a light railway near the port and passing through a graveyard. Local people attacked the French workers, and riots ensued. French troops were landed in order to restore order, which was achieved only after severe damage to the town. The French then took control of Casablanca. This effectively began the process of colonialisation, although French control of Casablanca was not formalised until 1910.
Casablanca was an important strategic port during World War II and hosted the Anglo-American Summit in 1943, in which Churchill and Roosevelt discussed the progress of the war.
Having had the highest concentration of urban poor in Morocco, including substantial shanty towns, Casablanca has frequently provided a home for social unrest. During the 1940s and 1950s, it was a major centre of anti-French rioting. A terrorist bomb on Christmas Day 1953 caused terrible casualties.
Since independence
Morocco gained independence from France on 2nd March 1956.
In 1958, Casablanca hosted a round of the Formula One world championship at the Ain-Diab circuit. In 1983, Casablanca hosted the Mediterranean Games.
The city is now developing a tourism industry. Casablanca has become the economic and business capital of Morocco, while Rabat is the political capital.
In March 2000, women's groups organised demonstrations in Casablanca proposing reforms to the legal status of women in the country. 40,000 women attended, calling for a ban on polygamy and the introdction of divorce law (divorce being a purely religious procedure at that time). Although counter-demonstration attracted half a millon participants, the movement for change started in 2000 was influential on King Mohammed VI, and he enacted a new Mudawana, or family law, in early 2004, meeting some of the demands of women's rights activists.
On May 16, 2003, 33 civilians were killed and more than 100 people were injured when Casablanca was hit by a multiple suicide bomb attack carried out by Moroccans and claimed by some to have been linked to al-Qaeda.
Notable physical landmarks
The French period New Town of Casablanca was designed by the French architect Henri Prost and was a model of a new town at that time. The main streets of the New Town radiate south and east from Place des Nations Unies, where the main market of Anfa had been. The New Town is possibly the most impressive in Morocco. Former admistrative buildings and present-day hotels populate the area. Their style is a combination of Hispano-Mauresque and Art Deco styles.
Casablanca is home to the Hassan II Mosque, designed by the French architect Michel Pinceau. It is the second largest in the world (after the Shah Faisal Mosque near Islamabad). It is sited on a promontory looking out to the Atlantic, which can be seen through a gigantic glass floor with room for 25,000 worshippers. A further 80,000 can be accommodated in the mosque's courtyard. Its minaret is the world's tallest at 210 metres.
Work on the mosque was started in 1980, and was intended to be completed for the 60th birthday of former the Moroccan king, Hassan II, in 1989. However, the building was not inaugerated until 1993. It is the only mosque in Morocco which is open to non-Muslims.
The Parc de la Ligue Arabe is the city's largest public park. On it's edge is situated the Cathedrale du Sacré Coeur, disused, but a splendid example of Mauresque architecture.
The Old Medina (the part of town pre-dating the French protectorate) attracts fewer tourists than the medinas of other Moroccan towns, such as Fez and Marrakesh. However, it has undergone some restoration in recent years. Included in this project have been the western walls of the medina, its skala, or bastion, and its Ottoman-period clock tower.
The city is served by Anfa Airport and Mohammed V International Airport, and its port is one of the largest artificial ports in the world.
Jews in Casablanca
There was a Sephardic Jewish community in Anfa up to its destruction by the Portuguese in 1468. Jews were slow to return to the town, but by 1750 there seem to have been enough of them to warrant the building of the first synagogue in Casablanca, the Rabbi Elijah Synagogue, which was destroyed along with much of the town in the earthquake of 1755.
By the beginning of the 20th century, Casablanca was home to about 6,000 Jews - more than a quarter of the population. Since the beginning of the 20th century, Casablanca has been associated with Judaism more than any other city in North Africa. The Jewish population snowballed in the mid 20th century, partly because of the development of social support structures for Jewish incomers and partly, after the European Holocaust, because of an increased desire of some Jews for the protection of a large Jewish community.
Between the 1940s and 1960s, the Jewish population of Casablanca was around 70,000. Emigration to France, America and Israel from Casablanca has been substantial since then, however. Large numbers of expats retain Moroccan citizenship and a Moroccan identity. Fewer than 5,000 Jews remain in the city today.
Transport
Trains
Casablanca is served by two rail stations run by the national rail service, the ONCF. The main long haul station is Gare des Voyageurs, from which trains run south to Marrakesh or El Jadida and north to Rabat, and then on either to Tangiers or Meknes, Fes and Oujda. A dedicated airport shuttle service to Mohammed V International Airport also has its primary in-city stop at this station, for connections on to further destinations.
The second station, Gare du Port serves primarily commuter trains running the Casablanca - Rabat corridor, with some connecting trains with running on to Gare des Voyageurs.
Coaches
CTM coaches (intercity buses) and various private lines run services to most notable Moroccan towns as well as a number of European cities. These run from the Gare Routière on Rue Léon l'Africain in downtown Casablanca
Planes
Casablanca's main airport is Mohammed V International Airport, Morocco's busiest airport. Regular domestic flights serve Marrakesh, Agadir, Oujda, and Tangiers, Laayoune in the disputed Western Sahara, as well as other cities.
Casablanca is well served by international flights to Europe, especially French and Spanish airports, and has regular connections to North Aftrican, Middle Eastern and sub-Saharan African destinations. New York, Dakar and Dubai are important primary destinations.
The older, smaller Casablanca Anfa airport to the west of the city which served certain destinations including Sydney, Damascus, and Tunis is scheduled to close to civilian traffic in 2006.
Taxis
Registered taxis in Casablanca are coloured red and known as petits taxis, or coloured white and known as grands taxis. As is standard Moroccan practice, petits taxis, typically small-four door Fiat or similar cars, provide metered cab service in the central metropolitan areas. Grands taxis, generally older Mercedes sedans, provide shared mini-bus like service within the city on pre-defined routes, or shared inter-city service. Grands Taxis may also be hired for private service by the hour or day, although typically only foreigners do so.
List of main Casablanca Districts
