GLAOUI KASBAH

One enters the kasbah through a vaulted door that leads to what was once the courtyard of honour where folk festivals were held in homage to the beauty of the women of the harem. On the left, the vast dining room of the pasha retains its cedar ceiling, while small barred windows give a beautiful view of the houses of the village. Opposite is the dining room, narrower, completely enclosed, which was reserved for the legitimate wives of the Glaoui and fulfilled, together with the adjoining room, the function of a harem. On the right is a small room, the bedroom where Thami el-Glaoui died in 1956. The interior decoration, of Andalusian inspiration, has suffered enormously over the years, but the stucco and plaster sculptures that adorn the ceilings, the zellij that run over the columns and capitals remind us, with the beautiful sobriety of the exposed beams, that this kasbah was the scene of dazzling and sumptuous celebrations at a time when the power of the Glaouas extended beyond Marrakech! It is said that more than 300 of the best workmen, from all over the kingdom, worked for three years to decorate the palace. The most surprising thing is to see today this sumptuous ghost, lost in the middle of the town, which is inexorably crumbling. From the terrace located on the top floor, one dominates the ruins of the primitive kasbah as well as the great courtyard of honour, built as an extension of the first kasbah, which later became a caravanserai.