Emerging from a nomadic clan native to the Sahara, the Almoravid dynasty was established in 1058, reigning for a century and commanding an empire stretching from the eastern boundaries of the Maghreb to Andalusia. Founding Marrakech, the second imperial city in Morocco after Fès, the Almoravids bestowed the city’s name upon the country. Numerous architectural marvels from this era include the Grand Mosque of Tlemcen, the mausoleum of the Abbadid king of Seville, Al Mutamid ibn Abbad in Aghmat (30 km from Marrakech, at the foot of the High Atlas), and the Almoravid Qoubba in Marrakech.
