The Tangier American Legation ( ar, المفوضية الأميركية في طنجة; french: Légation américaine de Tanger), officially the Tangier American Legation Institute for Moroccan Studies (TALIMS), is a building in the ''medina'' of Tangier, Morocco. Formerly the

chancery Chancery may refer to: Offices and administration * Chancery (diplomacy), the principal office that houses a diplomatic mission or an embassy * Chancery (medieval office), responsible for the production of official documents * Chancery (Scotlan ...

of the United States diplomatic mission to Morocco, it was the first American public property abroad and is the only

U.S. National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government fo ...

located in a foreign country.Excluding those in countries that grew out of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The

legation A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, minister. Ambassadors diplomatic rank, out ...

was established on May 17, 1821. Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah issued a proclamation recognizing U.S. independence from Great Britain on December 20, 1777, making his nation the first to do so. The building was gifted by the sultan to the U.S. government to serve as a diplomatic post, for which it served for the next 140 years. After Morocco's diplomatic capital moved to Rabat in 1956, the building served a variety of government functions, before gradually falling into neglect and disrepair. In 1976, former U.S. diplomats established the nonprofit Tangier American Legation Museum Society to restore and preserve the structure; the site has since served as a cultural center, museum, and research library, concentrating on Arabic language studies. The Tangier American Legation is considered a symbol of the historic cultural and diplomatic relations between the U.S. and the

Kingdom of Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

, and of long-running American engagement with the wider Islamic world. In recognition of its historic and cultural importance, the site was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1981 and designated a National Historic Landmark the following year; it is one of only 39 properties owned by the U.S. Department of State listed in the

Register of Culturally Significant Property The Secretary of State's Register of Culturally Significant Property (Secretary’s Register) is an honorific listing of diplomatic properties that figure prominently in the international or architectural heritage of the United States. It was fou ...

Diplomatic history

The legation is an elaborate Moorish-style building of stuccoed masonry. This complex structure contains the two-story mud and stone building presented to the United States in 1821 by Sultan Moulay Suliman. The first property acquired abroad by the United States government, it housed the United States Legation and Consulate for 140 years, the longest period any building abroad has been occupied as a United States diplomatic post. It is symbolic of the 1786 Moroccan–American Treaty of Friendship, which is still in force today. The complex expanded over the years as the surrounding houses were bought up. During World War II it served as headquarters for United States intelligence agents. After the move to

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populati ...

as the diplomatic capital in 1956, when the country gained its independence, the Legation was abandoned as a diplomatic building. Over the years the United States government proceeded to use it as consul offices and Peace Corps offices, among other things. In time it became neglected and threatened with demolition.

Present

In 1976 a group of American citizens established a public, non-profit organization to save the Old American Legation (as it is known locally). Today the Tangier American Legation Museum Society rents the structure, which is still owned by the United States government. The Tangier American Legation Institute for Moroccan Studies (TALIM) is a museum and cultural center for the study of Morocco and Morocco–United States relations, and it has many paintings by

Marguerite McBey Marguerite Huntsberry Loeb McBey (April 30, 1905 – October 21, 1999) was an American painter and photographer. Born in Philadelphia, she was educated in Switzerland and at the Sorbonne in Paris. She later studied bookbinding at the Ecole et Atel ...

and other artists. In 2010, TALIM expanded the original Paul Bowles room to The Paul Bowles Wing, three rooms devoted to the expatriate writer and composer

Paul Bowles Paul Frederic Bowles (; December 30, 1910November 18, 1999) was an American expatriate composer, author, and translator. He became associated with the Moroccan city of Tangier, where he settled in 1947 and lived for 52 years to the end of his ...

. In 1999, the Legation received its initial donation of furniture, photographs and documents for the original Paul Bowles Room compiled by

Gloria Kirby Gloria Price Kirby, (Nice, France, April 19, 1928 – Tangier, Morocco, 2017) was an American gallerist, art collector and photographer, she founded the Vandrés Gallery in Madrid. Biography Gloria Kirby was the granddaughter of Fred Morgan ...

, a permanent resident of Tangier and friend of Bowles. The museum also has a research library and conference room. TALIM's community outreach programs include Arabic literacy courses for women living in the Tangier medina. Jen Rasamimanana is the current museum director.

Gallery

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