Meknes is one of Morocco's four Imperial Cities, and the one most associated with Sultan Moulay Ismail (r. 1672–1727), who determined to build a capital to rival Versailles. Using tens of thousands of captives and enslaved workers, he raised massive ramparts, granaries, stables for 12,000 horses, a vast palace complex, and the monumental gates — above all Bab Mansour — that still define the city's skyline. His mausoleum is one of the only religious buildings in Morocco open to non-Muslims.
Older than the Imperial City, the medina retains its souks, the Bou Inania Medersa, and Place el-Hedim, the broad square that separates the two halves of the city. The souks are smaller and less frenetic than those of Fez or Marrakesh. Thirty kilometres north, the UNESCO-listed Roman ruins of Volubilis are an easy day trip. Meknes is also the centre of a wine-producing region, one of the few remaining in Morocco.