La Sqala du Port

When Alaouite Sultan Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah decided in 1765 to found a port open to Europe — today's Essaouira, then known as Mogador — he entrusted the fortifications to French engineer Théodore Cornut, inspired by Vauban's works. The Sqala du Port, an artillery platform completed in the 1770s, spans two 200-metre fortified wings meeting at a right angle facing the Atlantic. Its ramparts still bristle with Spanish and Dutch bronze cannons, some dated 1744, which once protected the corsair city from sea attacks. An emblem of Essaouira's seafront, the Sqala remains one of the best vantage points over the port and the waves crashing against the walls. Easily combined with a day trip from Marrakech.