Today, I decided to visit a kasbah(قصبة , fortress or citadel) located near Boulaouane, a town close to where I live.

Located on a bedrock of shale cut into sharp cliff by wadi Oum al-Rbia(أم الربيع‎, the mother of spring), this fortress was built by Moulay Ismaïl Ibn Sharif, the second sultan of the Alaouite dynasty(which to this day continues to rule Morocco), in 1710. Moulay Ismaïl seeked to solidify the Alaouite rule in Morocco, but his efforts were not perceived fondly by various Berber and Bedouin tribes. Their opposition necessitated construction of forts such as this in order to pacify them.

I don't know from when it fell into disuse, but currently, only structures left are a half crumbled tower, a half buried structure with a series of rooms that seems to be a barrack or warehouse(both shown in the photo), and a mosque(located in north western corner of fortress).