Mehdya, Morocco
Mehdya
المهدية | |
---|---|
Town | |
UTC+1 (WEST ) |
Mehdya (
According to the 2004 census, the town has a population of 16,262.[1] It is located on Sebou River (Oued Sebu).
History
Mehdya was previously called Al-Ma'mura ("the well-populated") or La Mamora in Europe, and was a harbour on the coast of Morocco. Per an ancient account, a colony was founded at the site in the 5th century BCE by the Carthaginians, who called it Thymiaterium.[2]
Portuguese occupation (1515)
It was captured by the Portuguese in 1515, and renamed São João da Mamora. Altogether, the Portuguese are documented to have seized 6 Moroccan towns, and built 6 stand-alone fortresses on the Moroccan Atlantic coast, between the river Loukos in the north and the river of
Pirate haven
During the
The only port on the Moroccan coast in the hands of neither the Spanish nor the Moors,[6] Mehdya became the main retreat of Atlantic pirates under the command of Henry Mainwaring,[7] important not only as a place to sell their plunder, but also for ship maintenance (including careening).[6] Around 1610, Mehdya was the site of a three-day battle between Dutch and English pirates.[8] The Spanish blockaded Mehdya in 1611, sinking ships and blocking the harbor entrance.[6] In the summer of 1614, the harbor housed at least 30 ships weighing at or above 100 tons,[9] though the bar prevented the passage of ships of above ~300 tons burden.[7]
Spanish occupation (1614–1681)
In order to secure the
The warlord
The Spanish retained the city for 67 years, when it was conquered by the
Moroccan (1681-1912)
The new Sultan
French protectorate of Morocco (1912-1956)
During the french conquest of Morocco, the French occupied Mehdya in 1911.[2]
About 9,000 Allied troops, carried by 19 warships, were landed in Mehdya during Operation Torch in 1942.
See also
References
- ^ "World Gazetteer". Archived from the original on 2012-12-05.
- ^ ISBN 978-90-04-08494-0.
- ^ City walls: the urban enceinte in global perspective James D. Tracy p.352
- ^ Senior 1976, pp. 48–50.
- ^ Senior 1976, pp. 53–54.
- ^ a b c Senior 1976, p. 76.
- ^ a b Senior 1976, p. 29.
- ^ Senior 1976, p. 35.
- ^ Senior 1976, p. 73.
- ^ a b Sánchez, Juan L. "Gobernadores de La Marora (1614-1681)". La época de los Tercios (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 23 September 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ^ a b c The Cambridge history of Islam by P. M. Holt, Ann K. S. Lambton, Bernard Lewis p.247
- ^ ISSN 2603-9265.
- ^ Britain and Morocco during the embassy of John Drummond Hay, 1845-1886 by Khalid Ben Srhir, p.14 [1]
- (PDF) from the original on 29 May 2014.
- ^ قصبة المهدية. Museum with no Frontiers. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
- Senior, Clive M. (1976). A Nation of Pirates. ISBN 0 7153 7264 5.