You’ll need some imagination to understand the former beauty of the Palais El-Badi, formerly a wonder of the Islamic world, now a ruin. Saadi ruler Ahmad al-Mansur ordered the creation in 1578 with finest decorations and especially with a vast water basin in the Andalusian style of Granada – like the Patio de los Leones but on much greater scale and with four buildings surrounding the water: the Koublat el Hadra, Koublat ed Dahab, Koublat el Hayzudran and the Koublat el Hamsinija.
When Ahmad al-Mansur died the Saadi dynasty ended and the Alaouites took over control. Their second ruler Moulay Ismail hated the Saadi and used the Palais El-Badi as a quarry; parts of the palace were integrated into new buildings in the new capital city of Meknès. The name of the palace, ‘El-Badi‘ means ‘the incomparable‘ – one of the 99 names of Allah.
Don’t forget to go underground and discover the cellar of the palace: there, old photographs of Marrakech are exhibited and you can learn a lot about its past. You can reach the Palais El-Badi best from the Place des Ferblantiers, 700 meters south of Place Jemaa el fna.
Palais El-Badi
Marrakech
Morocco
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