Morocco: Encyclopedia II - Morocco - History

Morocco - History

Main article: History of Morocco

Morocco's indigenous people are called the Berbers. The old name of Morocco was Mauretania. There have been several dynasties and kingdoms in Morocco before and after the rise of Islam.

Morocco became a French protectorate by the signing of the Treaty of Fez on March 30, 1912. The northern area of Morocco was under a Spanish protectorate concurrently. The Alaouite dynasty lasted through this period and upon independence in 1956, Sultan Mohammed V adopted the title of 'King' and Morocco became an independent Kingdom. Morocco then recovered Tangier, formerly an international city. Morocco invaded and annexed Western Sahara between 1975 to 1978, which had been a colony under the Spaniards, but this annexation has been recognized only by four nations.

Morocco was the first nation to recognize the fledgling United States in 1777 and has the oldest non-broken friendship treaty with the country, the Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship, which has been in effect since 1783. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were the American signatories. The United States legation (consulate) in Tangier is the first property the U.S. owned abroad. It now houses the Tangier American Legation Museum. Morocco was granted Major Non-NATO Ally status in June 2004 and signed free trade agreements with the United States and the European Union.

In 2003, Morocco's largest city, Casablanca, was attacked in the Casablanca terrorist attacks. The attacks left 33 civilians dead and more than 100 people injured.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki