page_title: El Badi Palace
section_title: The Saadian palace complex
hierarchical_section_title: El Badi Palace / Architecture and layout / The Saadian palace complex
caption_attribution_description: English: El Badi Palace by Adriaen_Matham 1640. Français&#160;: Palatium magni. Regis Maroci in Barbaria. Vue de Marrakech en 1641 / d'après l'estampe d'Adrien Matham conservée au Cabinet des estampes à Amsterdam, Demoulin frères sc.
context_page_description: El Badi Palace or Badi' Palace is a ruined palace located in Marrakesh, Morocco. It was commissioned by the sultan Ahmad al-Mansur of the Saadian dynasty a few months after his accession in 1578, with construction and embellishment continuing throughout most of his reign. The palace, decorated with materials imported from numerous countries ranging from Italy to Mali, was used for receptions and designed to showcase the Sultan's wealth and power. The palace was neglected after al-Mansur's death in 1603 and eventually fell into ruin after the decline of the Saadian dynasty. Its valuable materials were stripped away and reused in other buildings across Morocco. Today it is a major tourist attraction in Marrakesh as well as an exhibition space; notably, the Minbar of the Kutubiyya Mosque is displayed here.
context_section_description: The Saadian palaces formed a complex built inside the vast kasbah (citadel) on the south side of the city, originally laid out during the Almohad period under Caliph Ya'qub al-Mansur. Some of the various elements of the Saadian palaces may have already been built under Abdallah al-Ghalib, while Ahmad al-Mansur added to them and embellished them. The complex was entered via a "Grand Mechouar", a vast ceremonial square or courtyard, to the south of the Almohad-era Kasbah Mosque. The main gate of the royal palace was situated here and led to a smaller mechouar from which a long passage ran east to give access to the palace's various components. On the south side of this passage were most of the functional annexes of the palace, including kitchens, warehouses, the treasury, and stables. On the north side of the passage was the vast reception palace, the El Badi proper, along with the private quarters of the sultan and his family, their bathhouses (hammams), a private mosque, and the mint. Finally, beyond these structures, occupying the whole eastern side of the kasbah, were a number of pleasure gardens. These included the Crystal Garden (az-zujaj), the royal garden known as al-Mustaha ("the Desired") with a grand water basin, and the Qasr Garden or inner garden for al-Mansur's private quarters. Ahmad al-Mansur also renovated the vast Agdal Gardens to the south of the kasbah, originally created by the Almohads. The entire palace and citadel complex was surrounded by fortified walls, as in Almohad times and as still seen today. 
  One curious feature inside the palace complex was a tall tower which is prominently depicted in descriptions of Marrakesh during the Saadian period but which was missing in the later Alaouite era. Of uncertain origin, this structure may have been a private observation tower dating from either the Almohad or Saadian dynasty, used for the enjoyment of the sultan and similar to smaller elevated lookouts present in some aristocratic mansions in Marrakesh and Fes.
caption: An illustration of Marrakech and the El Badi Palace, by Adriaen Matham, 1640. Among other features, the image shows a tall tower that once stood in the palace, which later disappeared and whose origin has been debated among scholars.
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