Fes
Morocco's Spiritual Capital — The World's Living Medieval City
About Fes
Welcome to Fes
Fes (also spelled Fez) is unlike any other place in Morocco — and arguably unlike any other place in the world. The Medina of Fes el-Bali, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981, is the largest car-free urban area on Earth and one of the most complete examples of a medieval Islamic city still in everyday use. Its 9,000 streets and alleyways, 350 mosques and madrasas, scores of funduqs (merchant inns), and the working tanneries that have operated on the same sites for a thousand years constitute a living document of a civilisation at the height of its intellectual and artistic power.
Fes is also Morocco's spiritual and intellectual capital. The University of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 859 CE by Fatima al-Fihri and recognised by UNESCO and Guinness as the world's oldest continuously operating university, remains a functioning centre of Islamic scholarship. The city's role as the centre of Moroccan religious law, Arabic calligraphy, and traditional arts remains undiminished.
Why Visit Fes?
- Fes el-Bali Medina: The world's most intact medieval Islamic city — 9,000 alleys, minarets, madrasas, souks, and funduqs in unbroken use since the 9th century
- The Chouara Tannery: The most famous working leather tannery in the world — a multi-coloured grid of stone dyeing vats viewed from surrounding terraces, unchanged for centuries
- Bou Inania and Al-Attarine Madrasas: Masterpieces of Moroccan architectural craft — zellige tilework, carved plaster, and cedar wood at the highest level of achievement
- Al-Qarawiyyin University: The world's oldest university, founded 859 CE — the courtyard is among the most historically charged spaces in Morocco
- Jewish Mellah: Morocco's oldest Jewish quarter, established 1438, with the 17th-century Ibn Danan Synagogue and a historic cemetery that tell a millennium of Jewish-Moroccan life
- Bab Bou Jeloud (Blue Gate): The iconic blue-tiled entrance to Fes el-Bali, with zellige tiles of blue outside (for the city) and green inside (for Islam)
Quick Info
Location
Morocco
Attractions
64 places to visit
Average Rating
4.5 / 5
Best Time to Visit
March - May, September - November (cooler, ideal for medina exploration; summers are very hot)
Population
1,256,172
Region
Fès-Meknès
Twelve Centuries of Continuous Civilisation
Foundation by the Idrisids (789 CE)
Fes was founded in 789 CE by Idris I, the founder of the Idrisid dynasty and Morocco's first Islamic state. Idris I established a settlement on the right (east) bank of the Oued Fes river. His son, Idris II, expanded the settlement dramatically after 808 CE, founding a second city on the left (west) bank and populating it with waves of refugees: first Andalusian Muslims expelled from Córdoba in 818 CE following an uprising, then Arab families from Kairouan (in present-day Tunisia). These two communities — the Andalusians in the Andalusian Quarter and the Kairouanis in the Kairouan Quarter — gave Fes its intellectual and cultural character from its earliest years.
Al-Qarawiyyin University (859 CE)
In 859 CE, Fatima al-Fihri — a wealthy Kairouani woman — founded a mosque and scholarly institution that would become the University of al-Qarawiyyin. Her sister Maryam al-Fihri founded the adjacent al-Andalus Mosque. Al-Qarawiyyin attracted scholars from across the Islamic world and became the pre-eminent centre of Islamic scholarship and Arabic letters in the medieval Mediterranean. Among those who passed through its circles: the geographer al-Idrisi, philosopher Ibn Khaldun, and Pope Sylvester II (Gerbert d'Aurillac) — who is said to have studied here before his papacy. The institution has operated without interruption for over 1,150 years.
The Merinid Golden Age (13th–15th Century)
The Merinid dynasty, who ruled Morocco from the 13th to 15th centuries, made Fes their capital and transformed it with extraordinary building projects. The Bou Inania Madrasa (1351–1356), the Al-Attarine Madrasa (1325), and the expansion of the al-Qarawiyyin complex represent the highest achievements of Moroccan architectural art. The Merinids also established the Mellah (Jewish quarter) of Fes el-Jdid in 1438 — the oldest Mellah in Morocco — placing the Jewish community under royal protection directly adjacent to the palace.
Imperial Capital Through the Ages
Fes served as Morocco's capital under the Idrisids, Almohads, Merinids, Wattasids, and parts of the Alaoui period — a remarkable continuity of political significance. The French Protectorate (1912–1956) declared Rabat the administrative capital, reducing Fes's political role but preserving the medina from the kind of modernisation that has altered other Moroccan cities. Today Fes el-Bali remains structurally close to its medieval form — a legacy of this inadvertent preservation.
Jewish Community of Fes
Fes has hosted one of Morocco's oldest and most significant Jewish communities. The Mellah of Fes el-Jdid, established in 1438, was Morocco's first Mellah (purpose-built Jewish quarter). The community produced scholars, merchants, and court advisors, and maintained vibrant institutions including the Ibn Danan Synagogue (built 17th century, restored by UNESCO funding in the 1990s). The Jewish population of Fes peaked at approximately 17,000 before mass emigration to Israel and France from the 1950s onward. A small Jewish community remains, and the heritage sites are actively maintained.
Things to Do in Fes
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