About Meknes
Meknes (Arabic: مكناس, romanized: maknās, pronounced [maknaːs]) is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco, located in northern central Morocco and the sixth largest city by population in the kingdom.
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Founded in the 11th century by the Almoravids as a military settlement, Meknes became the capital of Morocco during the reign of Sultan Ismail Ibn Sharif (1672–1727), son of the founder of the Alaouite dynasty. Sultan Ismail created a massive imperial palace complex and endowed the city with extensive fortifications and monumental gates. The city recorded a population of 632,079 in the 2014 Moroccan census. It is the seat of Meknès Prefecture and an important economic hub in the region of Fès-Meknès.
