The lord of the decaying palace in Fez
by Yavor Mihaylov
Title
The lord of the decaying palace in Fez
Artist
Yavor Mihaylov
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This cat is the real lord of El Glaoui Palace in Fez, Morocco. Once upon a time there was one powerful family that has ruled the south region of Morocco since the end of 17th century. Glaoui were warlords and pashas of Marrakesh.
"Madani and T'hami el Glaou were warlord brothers who carved out a feudal fiefdom in southern Morocco in the early twentieth century. Quislings of the French colonial administration, they combined the aggression of gangland mobsters with the opulence of hereditary Indian princes, and ruled with a mixture of flamboyance and terror. On returning from the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, T'hami ordered the severed heads of his enemies to be mounted on his gates.” This is how the famous writer and naturalist Gavin Maxwell described the family in his book "Lords of the Atlas: The Rise and Fall of the House of Glaoua 1893-1956”.
El Glaoui family has a splendid mansion in Fes El Bali, the old medina quarter in city of Fez. T'hami El Glaoui has renovated and built this palace. It was one of the most luxurious riads in the city and the first building with central heating in Morocco. Many famous European artists, aristocrats and politicians, including Churchill, who was а friend of T'hami, visited this palace. I heard legends about the parties of the pasha and his guests. They told me that T'hami also made the first golf playground in Morocco for his English friend...
In 1953 T’hami took part in conspiracy with the French against Mohamed V. They forced the Moroccan monarch into exile and T’hami became one of the most powerful men in the kingdom. Yet in 1956, when the French left Morocco, the Glaoua regime toppled like a pack of cards. Mohamed V returned to the country and assumed the crown again. The Glaoui family fell in disgrace…
Now this palace is almost ruined and abandoned. There's the ghost feeling of frozen time. Some of the heirs of the Glaouis are artists and are not involved in the politics. When I visited this palace the owner used only one room as atelier. The family of his servants used another room. The real householder of the palace was this cat.
The famous Moroccan painter Hassan El Glaoui, son of the last pasha of Marrakesh, has passed away last year at age of 94.
I’m wondering what happened with the cat and the palace…
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Uploaded
January 7th, 2019
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