Abdelhafid Palace

[3] The property on which the palace now stands was previously the location of the Belgian legation in Tangier, established there in the late 19th century by Belgium's first consul Ernest Daulin, surrounded by a vast garden.

It was then purchased by Abraham Sicsu, a member of the local Jewish community that had worked as a translator for Daulin and later became Belgian consul himself.

[4]: 250 A few months after Abdelhafid signed the Treaty of Fes that established the French protectorate in Morocco, resident-general Hubert Lyautey negotiated his abdication in August 1912 in exchange for a massive pension.

He departed from Morocco immediately after his abdication, stayed for a while in France and then took residence in Spain instead of returning to Tangier as previously intended.

[2]: 398 [8] As Italy moved towards joining the Zone in 1926, it endeavored to enhance its profile in Tangier, as part of a broader vision of Italian influence in the whole of North Africa.

[2] A Catholic church dedicated to Saint Francis was erected on the western side of the property for Franciscan monks in 1939–1940,[9] replacing a smaller chapel built in 1927.