Kasbah of Tifoultoute: A Seventeenth-Century Guest Fortress in Morocco
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.3
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- Morocco
- Primary era
- Early Modern
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Early Modern
- Civilizations
- Unclassified
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
History
The Kasbah of Tifoultoute is a fortress-like kasbah in Morocco, about 8 kilometres west of Ouarzazate near Tifoultoute village. A kasbah is a fortified residential or communal building with defensive walls, towers, and enclosed living spaces. Built in the seventeenth century, the kasbah was specifically intended to receive guests of the Pasha of Marrakesh.
The fortress belonged to the family of Thami El Glaoui, a prominent Moroccan political figure who served as Pasha of Marrakesh from 1912 to 1956, during the period of the French Protectorate and the final decades before Moroccan independence. Its setting on a rocky spur overlooking the valley of the Ouarzazate River places it near the Draa Valley.
The kasbah later became associated with the history of cinema when scenes for Lawrence of Arabia were filmed there. Following restoration approximately three decades ago, it was converted into a hotel. It is now partly adapted as a hotel-restaurant, while other sections are gradually falling into ruin.
