City Walls and Gates of Fez
Shorfa Gate
City walls and gates of Fez played an important role in the history of the city. In the beginning, it was to defend it against the invasions and later, as a part of the architecture and city’s heritage. One of the most beautiful gates is Bab Shorfa, situated in the Sellaline Street, it is “the Gate of the Nobles”. This rather large gate controls access to medina and is part of the Kasbah Nour. The gate has been recently restored during the restoration of the whole fortress. The gate is gigantic, decorated with harmonious engravings, placed between two big towers and has an “L” shaped entrance housing a police station.
Boujloud Gate
Bab Boujloud was built in 1913 by the French protectorate authority. the gate, which is considered one of the main entrances to the Old Medina.Boujloud Gate consists of a central arch and two small lateral arches. Adorned with the typical Fassi Zellij (ceramics of Fez) in two colours. One is green(the colour of Islam) on the interior façade, and blue(the colour of Fez) on the exterior façade. In practical terms, when a person enters the Medina the gate is blue and when exits it is green.
Mahrouq Gate
The Bab Mahrouq (the Burnt Gaate), the old name of this gate is Sharia Gate. Here body of the friend of Ibn Khaldun was burnt. After being murdered in his cell in Fes jail in 1374, his body was brought here and burnt to warn other people because he was accused of being a heretic.
The second story has another protagonist who is Al Oubeidi (a leader of Rif Ghomara tribe); an opponent of Sultan Al-Nacir Ben Youssef Al Mansour who was by his turn burned in this gate as a warning to all the opponents of the Sultan. So the change in name is attributed to those two people.
Ziat Gate
Ziat Gate is one of the few doors which provides access to the medina traffic. Bab Ain Azliten is the gate of one of the oldest districts of the Old Medina as this district dates back to the Zenet period ranging from the 10th and 11th centuries. The gate and the district took their name from a Berber tribe called Azliten. Unfortunately, this gate was destroyed in order to erect a road till the Talaa Kbira Street, and what remain from the gate are just small remnants at the sides of the road.
Ftouh Gate
Bab Ftouh, the old name of this gate is Bab Qibla. It has been the gate of a city that has attracted a lot of people from sub-Saharian Africa, the Maghreb and from all over the world. It was Zenet prince called Foutouh, in the 11th century ruled Adouat El Andalus, rebuilt the gate and gave it his name.
Guissa Gate
The Zenet prince Aguissa, who ruled Adouat Al Qarawiyine “Al Qarawiyine district” in the 11th century, gave his orders to build a gate to bear his name “Agissa” as his brother Foutouh did in his Andalusian district. The gate was rebuilt by Nasser Ibn Yaacoub El-Mansour after his grandfather, Abdelmoumen destroyed it.
