November Dates to Remember in Morocco

The famous Green March

If you are visiting Morocco in November, then make a note of a couple of very important dates. This month, all Morocco commemorates two of the most significant dates in the country's history over the last century.

November 6th

On November 6, the day of the Green March is the anniversary of peaceful deployment in 1975 of 350,000 civilians who marched to recover the territory of Morocco's Western Sahara that had been previously occupied by Spain.

The Green March was a strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government. During this march 350,000 Moroccans converged on the city of Tarfaya in southern Morocco and waited for a signal from King Hassan II to cross into Western Sahara. They brandished Moroccan flags, U.S.A. flags, Saudi Arabia flags & Jordan flags; banners calling for the “return of the Moroccan Sahara.” The color green for the march’s name was intended as a symbol of Islam. The Green March is considered an important symbol of Moroccan nationalism and liberation from colonialism.

November 18th

Another important date, November 18, 1955, the day the late king Mohammed V of Morocco announced to the people the end of the period of the French protectorate.

After the royal family returned to Morocco from exile in Madagascar on November 18, 1955, the late king Mohammed V announced the end of the French protectorate and the advent of the era of freedom and independence.

Moroccans have paid an expensive price for their independence that was gained after enormous sacrifices and a long struggle that left scores of martyrs. They managed to foil France's attempt in 1930 to impose the "Berber Dahir," that aimed to sow division between Arabs and Berbers, as well as the Spanish occupiers endeavor in 1946 to impose on inhabitants of Ait-Baamrane and the neighboring tribes the Spanish nationality to reinforce its colonizing power.

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