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  The story began with Almoravid Berber leader Youssef Ben Tachfine who, seeing the strategic potential, built ramparts around the encampment in 1062. Warring Berber tribes then proceeded to destroy and rebuild the city over the years, until the Arab Saadian sharifs captured Marrakech in the 1500s and made it the heart of their thriving sugar trade.

Photography by Shantanu Starick