Ksar-el-Kebir (Arabic, القصر الكبير) is a city in Morocco also known as Al Qasr al Kabir or Alcazarquivir in Spanish or Alcácer-Quibir in Portuguese. The name translates as The big castle in English. The population of the city is 107,380 (2004 census).
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In 1578, King Sebastião of Portugal suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the King Abd al-Malik of Morocco, which ended Portugal's ambitions to invade and Christianize the Maghreb. Both Kings died during the battle. The death of King Sebastião started the events which led to the temporary Union of Portugal and Spain under Philip II of Spain. Whereas the victory of King Abd al-Malik gave Morocco substantial strength and international prestige.
The city experienced a substantial growth with the settling of an important Spanish garrison in 1911 as a part of the Spanish Morocco Protectorate in Morocco. After Morocco's independence and the building of the Oued el Makhazine reservoir by King Hassan II to manage the Loukkos' river regime, the city has turned into an important regional agricultural distribution center