What is today El Jadida, in Morocco, was built in the 1500s by the Portuguese and was then called Mazagan. (It was renamed El Jadida, which means ‘the new’, in the 1800s by the Moroccans.) The city was one of the earliest European colonial outposts in this part of the world as the European countries, with Portugal leading the way, began exploring further and further around the coast of Africa in their search for a route to India. The Portuguese build El Jadida as a natural port, with a fortified city around it. Today the old stone walls still outline where the original city once ended. Even the ramparts overlooking the old port are originals. The thick, high walls served their purpose: El Jadida was never conquered. The Portuguese handed it over in 1769 as part of a peace treaty with Morocco.
The peace treaty was not all peaceful, unfortunately for El Jadida. The Portuguese were forced to leave through the gate that led out to sea without taking any of their possessions. They left mines at the main land entrance which exploded when the locals tried to come in. Partly because of this destruction, the old town was left abandoned for about 50 years before it was decided to make it livable again. Almost all of the old city was rebuilt, with the locals’ distinctive mixture of Portuguese and Moroccan styles. Only the Catholic Church and the cistern (and the walls) are left from the Portuguese.
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