Rabat - The

Bank Al-Maghrib building on Mohammed V Avenue - the beating heart of the capital, Rabat - draws attention thanks to its distinctive architectural style, which made UNESCO designate it as a World Heritage Site in 2012, along with other historical monuments scattered along the street.

This year, Bank Al-Maghrib celebrates the centenary of the construction work of the building in Rabat in 1922, and these works continued in stages, divided between the periods of French colonialism and independence.

Despite the extension of the stages of its expansion over different periods of time, followed by 3 architects, the architectural style of the building remained consistent and harmonious.

The style of its construction was inspired by the Greco-Roman style, but the hands of traditional Moroccan craftsmen left their mark in this luxurious building.

Harmony between two architectural styles 

The architectural style that was adopted in the building of the central headquarters of Bank Al-Maghrib in Rabat is characterized by being a harmonious mixture that combines in perfect harmony between the traditional Moroccan architectural systems and the European methods adopted in the twenties and thirties of the last century, according to official information provided to Al-Jazeera Net by this bank.

According to the same source, this harmony resulted in an architecture that embodies colonial art, while preserving the characteristics of the Moroccan heritage deeply rooted in history.

Experts categorize this building within the architectural style (Art Deco), ie (decorative art), which is characterized by innovation and boldness in the creation of major architectural installations.

The main dome of Bank Al-Maghrib, a unique installation of glass and carved Atlas cedar wood (Al-Jazeera)

Stages of the construction of the historic building

The construction of the central headquarters of Bank Al-Maghrib went through 3 phases, the first stretching from 1922 to 1930, during which the historical part of the building and its main facade overlooking Mohammed V Avenue were established.

The works extended for years with the contribution of the most skilled traditional craftsmen at the national level during that period, and their creativity was evident, especially in the central square of this historic building and its unique dome.

As for the second phase, works began in 1949 and ended in the mid-fifties of the last century, during which new underground buildings were constructed, as well as a number of offices at the level of the first floor of the building.

The works of the third phase were completed during the seventies, and strict respect for the architectural rules adopted in the previous two phases were taken into account.

Thanks to this strictness, the beholder of the Bank Al-Maghrib building does not notice any difference between the three components of the building. Last.

The three parts of the building underwent a comprehensive renovation that ended in 2020, during which all components of the building were modernized using the latest architectural technologies.

The historical part of the headquarters and its main entrance were also rehabilitated to preserve its unique splendor.

The gate of the Central Bank building in Rabat (Al Jazeera)

3 engineers

The completion of the first and second phases of the building was entrusted to the French architects Auguste Cadé and Edmond Brion, while the third phase was supervised by the Moroccan architect Mourad Ben Mbarek.

And the architect Kadee put the first designs for the building in the early twenties of the last century.

This French architect came to the Kingdom in 1916 to work as an attaché with the Special Department of Architecture and City Designs affiliated to the protection, to decide on permanent settlement.

He was then appointed an official architect for the late King Mohammed V, where he would conclude his dealings with the title of architect with the honorable government to distance himself from the colonial government.

Kadee was passionate about Arab Andalusian art since his arrival in Morocco, and this passion led him to study Moroccan architecture, especially the Almohad era. In all the buildings he built, he mixed the traditional Arab-Andalusian decoration with a revised geometric framework inspired by the Almohad models used in palaces, mosques, Quranic schools, as well as from antiquities Roman and Gothic.

Brion was a partner of Cadet in his agency for 15 years, and they built the buildings of 4 banks in Marrakech, El Jadida and Oujda, along with the Central Bank of Morocco in Rabat.

As for the engineer, Ben Mubarak, who worked on the expansion of the bank building in the seventies, he obtained an architect’s degree from France in 1960 to be appointed director of the Construction Department at the Ministry of Public Works, and he was only 27 years old, to be the first Moroccan engineer to assume the position of responsibility in the administration.

Touches of traditional craftsmen

The touches of Moroccan traditional craftsmanship are evident in the various components of this historic building.

Among the most important evidence is the main facade of the headquarters and the unique stone inscriptions that adorn it using stones brought from the Salé sides, then the main gate and its distinct pillars, and the main dome of the central headquarters, which is a unique installation of glass and carved Atlas cedar wood.

Their touches also appear in the iron inscriptions that decorate the gates and windows, and the traditional wood carvings that adorn all the pillars and balconies in the central courtyard of the building, as well as the stone and gypsum formations that decorate the walls and windows of the building.

The main interface of Bank Al-Maghrib and one of its sides (Al-Jazeera)

The story of Bank Al-Maghrib

The book “The Magistrate of Morocco” discusses in the fifth part the history of the establishment of the first bank in Morocco in Tangier, how it moved to Rabat, and the stages it passed through, starting from being considered an international bank with a number of European countries participating in its capital. national institution.

The foundation of the Makhzen Bank dates back to the holding of the Algeciras Conference in 1906, an international conference held to determine the fate of Morocco as a European colony.

According to the previous source, the historical circumstances of the establishment of the Makhzen Bank are mixed with the historical circumstances that prepared Morocco for the protection treaty, and it is possible to distinguish 3 stages in the development of the bank and they are related to the development of foreign influence in Morocco.

The pre-colonial bank exercised indirect financial and political control over the Makhzen, i.e. the regime in Morocco. It focused its activities on tracking the “reforms” stipulated in the Algeciras Treaty. After the First World War, a number of countries abandoned their shares in favor of the French, and France became the majority shareholder.

In 1925 the Bank of Al-Makhzani inaugurated a new headquarters in Rabat, which became the central headquarters, thus making a final end to the international character of the Bank, which was conferred upon it by its stability in Tangiers, which was an international area.

With the country's independence in 1956, the laws and privileges of the Makhzani Bank became incompatible with the sovereignty of Morocco, and it had to restore its monetary and financial authority and put an end to the existence of the Makhzani Bank and compensate it with a national institution.

In 1959, the Bank of Al-Makhzani relinquished, according to an agreement, the privilege of issuing cash and other privileges, and it was decided to return these privileges to the state that handed them over on the same date to Bank Al-Maghrib as the institute for the new issuance.

Bank Al-Makhzani officially ended its banking activity on July 1, 1959, and was replaced by Bank Al-Maghrib.