Built under the reign of Sultan Moulay Hassan I, the construction works were finished in 1889, the fort was inaugurated in 1902. The Fort Rotengurg is the work of the German architect Walter Rotheburg, hence the name it was given first. It was supposed to accommodate two enormous cannons weighting 30 tons each, and offered to the Sultan by the German firm, Krupp, which used to specialize in the heavy armament of the time. The Sultan had ordered the fort’s construction at a strategic location, intending thus to reinforce the defense of the country’s coasts. Still, neither the fort itself, nor the cannons have ever been used militarily. Instead, the fort was used as an ammunition depot and was, in 1912, renamed as « fort Hervé » after the French Captain who perished in a plane crash. Today, it also bears the name of « Borj Lakbir».
