[23] Prior to the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century, an anchorage used by boats appears to have existed at the current site of El Jadida throughout the Middle Ages and in ancient times.

He and his crew took refuge in an abandoned tower, called al-Briya or al-Burayja, to defend themselves against any potential attack by the locals.

During the next few decades the Sa'dids rose to power and began expelling the Portuguese from their coastal fortresses, with the most significant event being their expulsion from Santa Cruz (present-day Agadir) in 1541.

[25] The city was then taken over by Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah in 1769 and remained largely uninhabited, having been dubbed al-Mahdouma ('The Ruined').

[22] Eventually, Sultan Abd al-Rahman (r. 1822–1859) ordered that a mosque be built, and the destroyed portions of the city were rebuilt during his reign in the early nineteenth-century.

[28] Aided by its UNESCO World Heritage Site designation since 2004, the city continues to be a tourist destination today.

[31] The slightly inclined, massive walls are c 8m high on average, with a thickness of 10m, enclosing a patrolling peripheral walkway 2m wide.

During the time of the French Protectorate the ditch was filled in with earth and a new entrance gate was opened leading to the main street, the Rua da Carreira, and to the Seagate.

[citation needed] Along this street are situated the best preserved historic buildings, including the Catholic Church of the Assumption and the Portuguese cistern.

It is a building with a rectangular floor plan measuring about 47 by 56 metres (154 by 184 ft), with three major rooms around a central space and four towers (one at each corner).

The semi-subterranean chamber has a roughly square plan measuring around 33 to 34 metres (108 to 112 ft) per side, was constructed with five rows of five stone pillars and columns.

[22] The chamber is built in a late Gothic style known as Manueline, with a vaulted ceiling of brick masonry and stone ribs.

[22] The cistern is famous especially for the thin layer of water that covers the floor and creates fine and ever-changing reflections in the otherwise dark vaulted chamber.

[35] Located near the beach south of the old city and the port, this museum and exhibition space is dedicated to the memory of Moroccan soldiers and resistance to the French Protectorate regime.

[11] Since the 1980s the city's economy has benefited[28] from the large industrial complex at Jorf Lasfar, located some 20 kilometres to the south.

[13] The complex, managed by the Office Chérifien du Phosphore, is the main processing center for the region's phosphate reserves and its port is used for exporting its related products.

Within a perimeter of around 120 km or less, are located Casablanca, Berrechid, Settat, Sidi Bennour, Oualidia, Youssoufia, Safi.