50 years ago, Morocco’s King Hassan II was welcomed by President John F. Kennedy to Washington. The North African leader, father of Morocco’s reigning King Mohammed VI, met with Congress, spoke at UN in New York, and visited Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Click photo for video from JFK Library.
**50 Years Ago – Morocco King Hassan II Visits US, March 27-30, 1963 – Click here to see video of visit**
John F. Kennedy Library and Museum (Boston, Massachusetts, April 2, 2013) — Fifty years ago this past week, US President John F. Kennedy warmly welcomed Moroccan King Hassan II on a state visit to the United States. The Moroccan leader − father of Morocco’s King Mohammed VI − traveled at President Kennedy’s invitation to Philadelphia, Washington, and New York City.
The visit was captured on an 18-minute film that is archived at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, Massachusetts.
In Washington, DC, the Moroccan King and President Kennedy discussed the two countries’ long history, common vision and shared values:
“Though a wide ocean separates our two countries, they have been bound together throughout our history,” said President Kennedy. “Your country was the first to recognize the United States in the most difficult days of our revolution.”
Kennedy noted that the first US President, George Washington, wrote of the new US Constitution to Morocco in 1789.
“From that day till the present, our ties have been intimate, in war and in peace.”
King Hassan expressed his pleasure on being able to greet the people of the United States and meet their President, and spoke of the affection and admiration Moroccans feel for Americans. He said he hoped to consolidate the friendship which has existed between the two countries since the dawn of American independence.
On his first stop of the official visit, King Hassan II traveled to Philadelphia, where he visited Independence Hall and met with the Mayor at the Liberty Bell.
The Moroccan leader was welcomed to Washington by President Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy at Union Station, and he met with the President and attended a state dinner at the White House.
He met with Members of Congress and the diplomatic corps, visited the Islamic Center, and paid his respects to fallen veterans at Arlington National Cemetery.
He also addressed the National Press Club, where he spoke of the two nations’ long and shared “love of liberty.”
King Hassan wrapped up his US trip in New York City, where he met the Mayor, was honored with a parade up Broadway, and spoke with leaders at the United Nations.
He dedicated a mosaic hand made in Fez that became a permanent exhibit at the UN headquarters building.
For more information about the film, go to: John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
