Dar-el-Beida (or Casa-Blanco, “white house,”) is a small town, formerly in possession of the Portuguese, who built it upon the ruins of Anfa or Anafa, [22] which they destroyed in 1468.  They, however, scarcely finished it when they abandoned it in 1515.  Dar-el-Beida is situate on the borders of the fertile plains of the province of Shawiya, and has a small port, formed by a river and a spacious bay on the Atlantic.  The Romans are said to have built the ancient Anafa, in whose time it was a considerable place, but now it scarcely contains above a thousand inhabitants, and some reduce them to two hundred.  Sidi Mohammed attempted this place, and the present Sultan endeavoured to follow up these efforts.  A little commerce with Europe is carried on here.  The bay will admit of vessels of large burden anchoring in safety, except when the wind blows strong from the north-west.  Casa Blanco is two days journey from Rabat, and two from Azamor, or Azemmour, which is an ancient and fine city of the province of Dukaila, built by the Amazigh Berbers, in whose language it signifies “olives.”  It is situate upon a hill, about one hundred feet above the sea, and distant half a mile from the shore, not far from the mouth of the Wad-Omm-er-Rbia (or Omm-Erbegh) on its southern bank, and is everywhere surrounded by a most fertile soil.  Azamor contains now about eight or nine hundred inhabitants, but formerly was much more populated.  The Shebbel salmon is the principal commerce, and a source of immense profit to the town.  The river is very deep and rapid, so that the passage with boats is both difficult and dangerous.  It is frequently of a red colour, and charged with slime like the Nile at the period of its inundations.  The tide is felt five or six leagues up the river, according to Chenier.  Formerly, vessels of every size entered the river, but now its mouth has a most difficult bar of sand, preventing large vessels going up, like nearly all the Maroquine ports situate on the mouths, or within the rivers.

Azamor was taken by the Portuguese under the command of the Duke of Braganza in 1513 who strengthened it by fortifications, the walls of which are still standing; but it was abandoned a century afterwards, the Indies having opened a more lucrative field of enterprise than these barren though honourable conquests on the Maroquine coast.  This place is half a day’s journey, or about fourteen miles from Mazagran, i. e. the above Amayeeghs, an extremely ancient and strong castle, erected on a peninsula at the bottom of a spacious and excellent bay.  It was rebuilt by the Portuguese in 1506, who gave it the name of Castillo Real.  The site has been a centre of population from the remotest period, chiefly Berbers, whose name it still bears.  The Arabs, however, call it El-Bureeja, i.e., “the citadel.”  The Portuguese abandoned it in 1769; Mazagran was the last stronghold which they possessed in Morocco.  The town is well constructed, and has a wall twelve