Founded in the 11th century by the Almoravids as a military settlement, Meknes became the capital of Morocco during the reign of Sultan Ismail Ibn Sharif (1672–1727), son of the founder of the Alaouite dynasty.

Sultan Ismail created a massive imperial palace complex and endowed the city with extensive fortifications and monumental gates.

[7] Volubilis, a major Roman-era settlement in Morocco and one of its early urban centres, is located near the site of the current city of Meknes.

[13][9] However, at the beginning of the 13th century the Almohad caliph Muhammad al-Nasir (ruled 1199–1213) rebuilt the city and its fortifications, as well as its Grand Mosque.

[16]: 129  One may have been the fact that Ismail had to fight hard to reconquer both Fes and Marrakesh from his rival nephew (Ahmad al-Mahriz, son of Moulay Rashid) during the first years of his reign, which may have rendered him skeptical towards both cities as possible centers of power.

The ulema (religious scholars) of Fes were also particularly disapproving of his ways, including his use of slaves (many of whom were of Muslim background), and maintained tense relations with him throughout his reign.

[19][16][20] Choosing Meknes thus removed him from the influence of traditional elites and allowed him to build a fresh base from which he hoped to exercise absolute power.

[19] The threat of Ottoman attacks from the east (from Algeria) and the increasing insecurity in central Morocco due to tribal migrations from the Atlas and Sahara regions may have also persuaded Ismail that Meknes, situated further west, was more defensible than Fes.

[19]: 234 [16]: 129, 138 Whatever the reasons, Ismail made Meknes the center of Morocco in his time and he embarked on the construction of a new monumental palace-city on the south side of the old city.

[20][14] Nonetheless, frequently-told stories about the tens of thousands of Christian slaves used for labour and the large underground dungeons where they were kept are somewhat exaggerated and originate from the accounts of European ambassadors who visited Isma'il's court (often to negotiate the release of prisoners from their countries).

[24] In reality, the number of Christian slaves was likely closer to a few thousand at most and the chambers popularly called "prisons" were actually storage rooms for grain and supplies.

Both the Mellah and Madinat ar-Riyad were part of an urban extension ordered by Isma'il in the western angle between the old city and the Kasbah.

[16] Khnata bent Bakkar, one of his wives who was vizier (minister) under him (and briefly became de facto ruler of Morocco in 1728 after his death), was responsible for founding the Bab Berda'in Mosque, completed in 1709.

[27][28][29][10]One of the last constructions before his death, carried out between 1721 and 1725, was the Heri al-Mansur, a palace on the far southern edge of the kasbah which included vast stables.

[20] The monumental gate known as Bab al-Mansur al-'Alj, overlooking Place al-Hedim, was only finished in 1732 by his son Moulay Abdallah.

[13] His son and brief successor, Moulay Ahmad ad-Dhahabi, carried out modifications to his father's mausoleum during his two brief reigns (in 1727–28 and 1728–29) and was himself buried here in 1729.

[14] Following Moulay Isma'il's death, however, the political situation in Morocco degenerated into relative anarchy as his sons competed for power.

[11][16] The Dar al-Kebira, however, was abandoned and progressively transformed into a residential neighbourhood where the inhabitants constructed their houses within and between the former palace structures of Isma'il's time.

The city became a transportation hub for people and goods traveling from east to west or from north to south across the country, in addition to hosting extensive military barracks.

[16]: 199  During this period Meknes also became a center of agriculture and viniculture, led mainly by French colonists who appropriated large amounts of land nearby.

According to the ICOMOS Heritage at Risk report of 2000, the historic city of Meknes contains insufficient drainage systems, and as a result, suffers from inundation and leakage in certain areas.

The projects include proposed restorations to the historic city walls, to the Heri es-Swani, and to the Bou Inania Madrasa, along with other improvements to parking and tourism infrastructure.

[41] The palace complex or "imperial city" of Sultan Moulay Isma'il was constructed over his entire 55-year reign from 1672 to 1727 (with some elements finished or remodeled shortly after).

It also contained numerous monumental granaries and underground warehouses which stockpiled supplies that could allegedly sustain the city for a siege of ten years.

The high elevation, fertility and the fresh water of those lands favor the cultivation of fruits and vegetables, most notably: peaches, nectarines, prunes, apples, potatoes, onions and garlic.

The year 2016 marks a new era of industry in the city of Meknes; it includes electrical wire, embedded systems, and automotive parts production companies.

[citation needed] Many of the services products in Meknes are related to tourism due to the attractions of the old city district (the medina).