Marrakech was founded in 1062 by Yousuf ibn Tashfin and was the capital during Almoravid & Almohad dynasties until 1269 and again during the Saadian rulers.. The whole of the country was called 'Morocco' because of the mis-pronnounceation by the visiting Europeans....the pronunciation taken from 'Marrak' of Marrakech. It regained its splendour during the reign of Sultan Moulay Hassan and his son Moulay Abdal Aziz. It has always been a thriving market place and a meeting place of the traders from Africa, The Berber & The Arabs. The important Avenues in the city are the Avenue Mohammed V, Avenue Hassan 11, Avenue El Menara, and Avenue de France. The Splendour of Bahia Palace is still to be seen and the Mosaic work is stunning and so are the well-decorated Ceilings, Walls and the fireplaces. The Soukes in Marrakech are as ever present and busy as in any cities of Morocco. The Town Square ' Jemaa El Fna' (Meaning the parade of the Dead - probably used as a place to parade and/or to display the heads of those who displeased the Sultans of Almoravid dynasty) is the place where every thing happens in the evenings - shops, Food stalls, Dancing, snake charmers and the fortune tellers etc gather in the evening with its back drop of Koutoubia Mosque. A visit to the Saadia sultans tombs with separate burial places of Sultans, their wives and the Children are to be seen (Built by Ahmed Al Mansour in the 16 century and was walled up by Sultan Moulay Ismail out of vengeance and lay un discovered for 100 years and were restored in 1917 following their discovery by aerial photography. Obviously there is more to Marrakech than mentioned and can be read from any well-written book.