Kenitra

Kenitra (Arabic name: القنيطرة, transliterated: Al-Qonaitirah, the little bridge) is a city in Morocco, formerly known as Port Lyautey. It is a port on the Sebou River, has a population of approximately 370,000 (2005 census),[citation needed] and is the capital of the Gharb-Chrarda-Béni Hssen region.
History
In terms of some of the earliest known prehistory of this area, the Phoenicians settled the coastline along this part of Morocco as early as the first millennium BC. The major settlement nearest Kenitra was Chellah, somewhat to the south along the banks of the Oued Bou Regreg.
Before the French protectorate, there was only a kasbah in the area where the modern city can today be found. Established in 1912 by Hubert Lyautey, the first Resident-General in Morocco, as a French military fort, harbor and town. The port at Kenitra was opened in 1913.
Kenitra draws its name from a culvert built on the Fouarat river upstream of the kasbah. This culvert was destroyed in 1928. In 1933, the French officially named the locale "Port Lyautey". It was renamed "Kenitra" in 1956 as Morocco gained its independence.