Place Mohammed V and Government Buildings

Place Mohammed V is the main civic square of downtown Casablanca, in Morocco's Casablanca-Settat region, and is surrounded by the principal administrative buildings of the city. It was laid out in the 1910s and 1920s as the centrepiece of the French Protectorate's urban plan for the new city, drawn up under the direction of the urbanist Henri Prost during the residency of Marshal Lyautey. The square was originally known as Place des Nations Unies and was renamed after King Mohammed V following independence in 1956. The buildings around the plaza include the Palais de Justice, the Prefecture, the Wilaya with its clock tower, the Bank al-Maghrib building, the post office and other administrative offices. Most were built in the 1920s and 1930s in a style often called neo-Moorish or Mauresque, which combines French administrative planning with Moroccan decorative motifs such as green-tiled roofs, horseshoe arches, carved plaster, zellige panels and cedar woodwork. The architecture is symmetrical and monumental, and the square was designed to convey the authority of the administration. A central fountain and open paved spaces give the area a ceremonial character, and pigeons and families gather in the square throughout the day. The buildings are working government offices and are not open to visitors, but their exteriors can be viewed at any time. The square is a good starting point for a walking tour of Casablanca's colonial-era Art Deco and neo-Moorish architecture, with the central market, the Habous Quarter and the Old Medina all accessible by taxi or tram. The ensemble has been maintained as part of the city's heritage, and renovation projects have refreshed the square and its pavements in recent decades.