Taza

An important capital during the Almohad, Merenid, and early Alaouite dynasties (11th to 16th centuries), Taza was used as a passage into Morocco by the first Moroccan Arabs—the Idrissids—and nearly all successive invaders en route to Fez. Fortified and refortified over the centuries, the city, located in the mountain pass known as the Taza Gap separating the Rif from the Middle Atlas Mountains, is marked by a medina that houses a 14th-century medersa and four mosques.