Leo notes

Pirate notes

Cristel notes

In Duarte and Leo's days, Essaouira was called "Mogador", and was controlled by the Portuguese.

Writing about this island, and the nearby coast, Duarte says:

"In the year of our Lord Christ 1506, the King of Portugal built on the coast of Mogador a great fort which he called Castello Real. The man whose task it was to build this fort was named Diego d'Azambiega. He had to fight many a battle with the Berbers and Arabs who joined forces to fight those who had come to build the fort. In spite of their attacks, the fort was built and glory and victory remained in your magesty's hands"

Mogador was 'discovered' and settled by the Portuguese in the 15th century, but as the above account details it wasn't until the early 16th century that it was actually built into a 'town'.

The city as it stands today, despite its European looks, is not the Portuguese fort, but rather the works of a French architect working for a Moroccan Sultan in the 18th century.

However. one would like to believe that collapsed forts such as this are remnants of the Portuguese past!

Across from the city, a few feet into the water lies a small archipelago. These islands, once fortified by the Portuguese carry an even older history, as they were used by many a ruling Roman dynasty for a special shell, essential in creating the deep purple color used in royal garments.

Today these 'iles purpuaires' are a bird sanctuary for rare species of seagulls (notice the one flying across this picture)