Every November 6, Morocco revisits one of the defining chapters of its modern history. The Green March, launched in 1975 under King Hassan II, remains etched in the national memory as proof of an unbreakable bond between the Throne and the people, mobilized around a single national cause: completing the kingdom’s territorial unity.
The story begins in 1884, when Spain extended colonial control over part of the Sahara. During the second half of the twentieth century, as decolonization swept across Africa, the territory became a flashpoint of regional dispute. Rabat built its claim on historic ties of allegiance between Saharan tribes and the Alaouite sultans, and took the matter to international bodies.
In 1974, Madrid announced plans for a referendum on the territory’s future. Morocco turned to the International Court of Justice, which delivered its advisory opinion on October 16, 1975. The judges in The Hague recognized ties of allegiance between the Moroccan sultan and certain tribes, though they stopped short of finding ties of territorial sovereignty.
It was against this backdrop that King Hassan II announced, that same day, the organization of a peaceful march toward the Sahara, calling on citizens from every region of the kingdom to take part. On November 6, 1975, roughly 350,000 volunteers, men, women, children and the elderly, set off toward the southern provinces, carrying national flags and copies of the Quran, blending national identity with spiritual reference.
Eight days later, on November 14, 1975, the tripartite Madrid Accords were signed by Morocco, Spain and Mauritania, organizing the Spanish withdrawal and handing temporary administration of the territory to the two neighboring countries. The legal dossier, however, continued its course within the United Nations, with regional and international repercussions that persist to this day.
More than five decades on, the Green March still stands as a symbol of peaceful mobilization and national cohesion. It also continues to inform development policy in the southern provinces, where roads, schools and hospitals have reshaped regions once defined by isolation. King Hassan II had promised the marchers they would cross the border and touch the sand of their homeland, a promise kept, and one that still shapes a national narrative built on diplomacy advancing hand in hand with popular mobilization.
