The Levant
109-423: El Oued Siliana is a river of Tunisia in the region arising from Maktar , which runs north and drains into the river Medjerda about 5 km west of Testour . On his way to collect the rainy season, water numerous wadis that are dry much of the year. Its course is about 120 km. the average rainfall is 455 mm / year between September and January grew between 15 and 11 percent. The city's main course
218-455: A Berber chieftain. It began in southern Morocco , lasting through to 743. The rebels managed to massacre the Arab population of Tangier, its Arab governor, and capture a territory including modern Morocco, Western and Central Algeria whom were never recovered by an Oriental caliphate , but failed to capture Ifriqiya (Tunisia, East-Algeria and West- Libya ) after suffering a crushing defeat at
327-638: A Berber who was the lord and master of the Catholic tribe of Gomera." In any case, being an able diplomat who was adept in Visigothic, Berber, and Arab politics, Julian might well have surrendered to Musa on terms that allowed him to retain his title and command. At this time the population of Ceuta included many refugees from a ruinous Visigothic civil war that had broken out in Hispania (modern Portugal and Spain). These included family and confederates of
436-604: A Latin-speaking Christian Berber society to a Muslim and mostly Arabic-speaking society took over 400 years (the equivalent process in Egypt and the Fertile Crescent took 600 years) and resulted in the final disappearance of Christianity and Latin in the 12th or 13th century. The majority of the population were not Muslim until quite late in the 9th century; a vast majority were during the 10th. Also, some Tunisian Christians emigrated; some richer members of society did so after
545-667: A force of 10,000 Muslims led by the Arab general Uqba ibn Nafi and enlarged by thousands of others. Departing from Damascus, the army marched into Africa and took the vanguard. In 670, the city of Kairouan (roughly 150 kilometers [80 mi] south of modern Tunis ) was established as a refuge and base for further operations. This would become the capital of the Islamic province of Ifriqiya (the Arabic pronunciation of Africa ), which would be today's western Libya , Tunisia , and eastern Algeria . After this, as Edward Gibbon writes,
654-600: A governor, usually a near relative of the Caliph. Despite the prestige of the new masters, the country was still unruly, with continuous rioting and fighting between the townsfolk and wandering Arabs and Turks, the latter being subjects of the Muslim Armenian adventurer Karakush. Also, Tunisia was occupied by Ayyubids between 1182 and 1183 and again between 1184 and 1187. The greatest threat to Almohad rule in Tunisia
763-523: A pantheon of Middle Eastern gods including Baal and Tanit . Tanit's symbol, a simple female figure with extended arms and long dress, is a popular icon found in ancient sites. The founders of Carthage also established a Tophet , which was altered in Roman times. A Carthaginian invasion of Italy led by Hannibal during the Second Punic War , one of a series of wars with Rome , nearly crippled
872-455: A section on the western side of Tripoli beach that was not walled during their hunting routine. These seven soldiers managed to infiltrate the city through this way without being detected by the city guards, and then managed to incite riots within the city while shouting Takbir (God is the greatest), causing the confused Byzantine garrison soldiers to think the Muslim forces were already inside in
981-445: Is Arab and Muslim . Vernacular Tunisian Arabic is the most spoken, and French also serves as an administrative and educational language in some contexts, but it has no official status. Beginning in early antiquity, Tunisia was inhabited by the indigenous Berbers . The Phoenicians , a Semitic people , began to arrive in the 12th century BC, settling on the coast and establishing several settlements , of which Carthage emerged as
1090-578: Is arable land . Its 1,300 km (810 mi) of coastline includes the African conjunction of the western and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Basin . Tunisia is home to Africa's northernmost point, Cape Angela . Located on the northeastern coast, Tunis is the capital and largest city of the country, which is itself named after Tunis. The official language of Tunisia is Modern Standard Arabic . The vast majority of Tunisia's population
1199-486: Is Nomad and indeed the people were semi-nomadic until the reign of Masinissa of the Massyli tribe. At the beginning of recorded history, Tunisia was inhabited by Berber tribes. Its coast was settled by Phoenicians starting as early as the 12th century BC ( Bizerte , Utica ). The city of Carthage was founded in the 9th century BC by Phoenicians. Legend says that Dido from Tyre, now in modern-day Lebanon, founded
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#17327872684021308-594: Is celebrated annually as Tunisian Independence Day. A year later, Tunisia was declared a republic, with Bourguiba as the first President . From independence in 1956 until the 2011 revolution, the government and the Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD), formerly Neo Destour and the Socialist Destourian Party , were effectively one. Following a report by Amnesty International , The Guardian called Tunisia "one of
1417-799: Is rated a hybrid regime . It is one of the few countries in Africa ranking high on the Human Development Index , with one of the highest per capita incomes on the continent, ranking 129th in GDP per capita income. Tunisia is well integrated into the international community. It is a member of the United Nations , Organisation internationale de la Francophonie , the Arab League , the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation ,
1526-512: Is sometimes also associated with the Carthage goddess Tanith (or Tunit), and the ancient city of Tynes. The French derivative Tunisie was adopted in some European languages with slight modifications, introducing a distinctive name to designate the country. Other languages have left the name untouched, such as the Russian Туни́с ( Tunís ) and Spanish Túnez . In this case,
1635-689: Is still Gaâfour and Siliana . The course begins wadis are controlled by the dam of El Akhmim ; above of Siliana Siliana and the reservoir; and on the left side near the mouth is the Sidi Salem Reservoir . The river crosses between different altitude regions clothes Yahia OLED 584 meters and 1347 meters in Jebel Serj an average difference of 400 meters and different rainfall (a difference of 150 mm / year). 36°33′N 9°25′E / 36.550°N 9.417°E / 36.550; 9.417 Tunisia Tunisia , officially
1744-612: Is up for debate. In 1945 after escaping French surveillance, Tunisian nationalist Habib Bourguiba arrived in Cairo . While there, he was able to make contact with the Arab League . Later in 1946, after traveling to other Middle Eastern countries, he made his way to the United States to speak to both the United Nations at their headquarters at Lake Success and U.S. State Department officials in Washington D.C. , pleading
1853-810: The African Union , the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa , the Non-Aligned Movement , the International Criminal Court , the Group of 77 , among others. It maintains close economic and political relations with some European countries, particularly with France and Italy , due to their geographical proximity. Tunisia also has an association agreement with the European Union and has attained
1962-702: The Byzantine Africa , the Maghreb region. The invading army took Tripolitania (in present-day Libya ). Count Gregory , the local Byzantine governor, had declared his independence from the Byzantine Empire in Africa . He gathered his allies, confronted the invading Islamic Arab forces and suffered defeat (647) at the Battle of Sufetula , a city 240 kilometres (150 mi) south of Carthage . With
2071-503: The Byzantine Empire lost its last remaining strongholds to Caliph Al-Walid I . The North African campaigns were part of the century of rapid early Muslim conquests . By 642 AD, under Caliph Umar , Arab Muslim forces had laid control of Mesopotamia (638 AD), Syria (641 AD), Egypt (642 AD), and had invaded Armenia (642 AD), all territories previously split between the warring Byzantine and Sasanian empires, and were concluding their conquest of Sasanian Persia with their defeat of
2180-639: The Byzantine navy that still fought on against the Muslim invasions. So he built a navy of his own which went on to conquer the Christian islands of Ibiza , Majorca , and Menorca . Advancing into the Maghreb, his forces took Algiers in 700. By 709, all of the top half of North Africa was under the control of the Arab caliphate. The only possible exception was Ceuta at the African Pillar of Hercules . Gibbon declares: "In that age, as well as in
2289-575: The Ottoman Porte appointed directly for Tunis a governor called the Pasha supported by janissary forces. Before long, however, Tunisia became in effect an autonomous province, under the local bey . Under its Turkish governors, the beys, Tunisia attained virtual independence. The Hussein dynasty of beys, established in 1705, lasted until 1957. This evolution of status was from time to time challenged without success by Algiers. During this era,
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#17327872684022398-576: The Republic of Tunisia , is the northernmost country in Africa . It is a part of the Maghreb region of North Africa , bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares maritime borders with Italy through the islands of Sicily and Sardinia to the north and Malta to the east. It features
2507-899: The Second World War , the protectorate of Tunisia was controlled by the collaborationist Vichy government in Metropolitan France. The antisemitic Statute on Jews enacted by the Vichy government was also implemented in Vichy-controlled Northwest Africa and other overseas French territories. Thus, the persecution and murder of the Jews from 1940 to 1943 was part of the Holocaust in France. From November 1942 until May 1943, Vichy-controlled Tunisia
2616-634: The Tunisian constitution . The anniversary of Ben Ali's succession, 7 November, was celebrated as a national holiday. He was consistently re-elected with enormous majorities every five years (well over 80 percent of the vote), the last being 25 October 2009, until he fled the country amid popular unrest in January 2011. Ben Ali and his family were accused of corruption and plundering the country's money. Economic liberalisation provided further opportunities for financial mismanagement, while corrupt members of
2725-454: The 14th century by scholars such as ibn Idhari , ibn Khaldun and al-Nuwayri . It differs from the earlier version not only in greater detail but also in giving conflicting accounts of events. This, however, is the best-known version and is the one given below. It is recorded by Ibn Abd al-Hakam that during the siege of Tripoli by Amr ibn al-As , seven of his soldiers from the clan of Madhlij, sub branch of Kinana , unintentionally found
2834-494: The 14th century, after which trace of them was lost. The only thing that is certain is that at the beginning of French colonial rule in the Maghreb there were no longer any Romance-speaking or Christian communities. This ultimately complete Islamization of the entire population brought about the separation of the Mediterranean region into northern and southern halves, which continues to this day. The full Islamization of
2943-662: The 19th century, the rulers of Tunisia became aware of the ongoing efforts at political and social reform in the Ottoman capital . The Bey of Tunis then, by his own lights but informed by the Turkish example, attempted to effect a modernizing reform of institutions and the economy. Tunisian international debt grew unmanageable. This was the reason or pretext for French forces to establish a protectorate in 1881. In 1869, Tunisia declared itself bankrupt and an international financial commission took control over its economy. In 1881, using
3052-401: The 2nd century, olive oil rivaled cereals as an export item. In addition to the cultivations and the capture and transporting of exotic wild animals from the western mountains, the principal production and exports included textiles, marble, wine, timber, livestock, pottery such as African Red Slip , and wool. There was even a huge production of mosaics and ceramics, exported mainly to Italy, in
3161-401: The 7th century AD, Arab Muslims conquered all of Tunisia (finally succeeding in 697 after several attempts starting in 647) and settled with their tribes and families , bringing Islam and Arab culture to the local inhabitants. A later large-scale Arab migration of Banu Hilal and Banu Sulaym tribes in the 11th-12th centuries rapidly accelerated this process. By around the 15th century,
3270-457: The Arab army, receiving less pay than an Arab would have. This led to much dissatisfaction and ultimately the death of Maghreb Arab governor, Yazid ibn Abi Muslim at the hands of one of his bodyguards after ordering them to tattoo his name on their arms to signal his ownership. In 740, a Berber Revolt was prompted by the taxation of the Berbers. The rebels were lead at first by Maysara ,
3379-575: The Atlas Mountains by a man who became known to history and legend as Count Julian . Moreover, as Gibbon writes, Uqba, "this Mahometan Alexander, who sighed for new worlds, was unable to preserve his recent conquests. By the universal rebellion against muslim occupation of the Greeks and Africans he was recalled from the shores of the Atlantic." On his return, a Berber-Byzantine coalition under
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3488-546: The Berber reign. Thus Hassan was welcomed upon his return, and managed to kill Kahina at the Battle of Tabarka . Gibbon writes that “the friends of civil society conspired against the savages of the land; and the royal prophetess was slain in the first battle.” The successful general Musa bin Nusair was appointed the governor of Ifriqiya . His armies brutally put down the Berbers, consisting of various faiths, who fought against
3597-735: The Church nor the ruling Byzantine veneer was able to resist the propagation of Islam , particularly since they were at odds with each other, and that without any particular persecution on the part of the Muslim rulers, who treated the Christians leniently because they were " People of the Book ". Had the first Muslim conquerors persecuted the North African Christians rather than tolerating them, Christianity may well have continued to flourish. Many causes have been seen as leading to
3706-475: The French State prosecutor of having stolen two mega-yachts from a French marina. According to Le Monde , Ben Ali's son-in-law was being primed to eventually take over the country. Independent human rights groups, such as Amnesty International , Freedom House , and Protection International, documented that basic human and political rights were not respected. The regime obstructed in any way possible
3815-704: The Iberian Peninsula, defeated Roderic, and went on to besiege the Visigothic capital of Toledo . He and his allies also took Córdoba , Ecija , Granada , Málaga , Seville , and other cities. Due to this, the Umayyad conquest of Hispania completed the Arab conquest of North Africa. Fearing that the Byzantine Empire might reconquer it, they decided to destroy Roman Carthage in a scorched earth policy and establish their headquarters somewhere else. Its walls were torn down, its water supply cut off,
3924-462: The Islamic conquest of North Africa. It began with the renewed invasion of Ifriqiya. Gibbon writes: the standard was delivered to Hassan governor of Egypt, and the revenue of that kingdom, with an army of forty thousand men, was consecrated to the important service. In the vicissitudes of war, the interior provinces had been alternately won and lost by the Saracens. But the seacoast still remained in
4033-474: The Latin and Punic speaking population began. Contrary to widespread opinion, the Latin language did not disappear promptly or completely from the Maghreb, which can be read both from Latin grave inscriptions dating back to the eleventh century and from the numerous and conspicuous Latin foreign words in today's Berber languages on site. But the special features of the dialects of Maghrebi Arabic that developed after
4142-670: The Maghreb Egypt North Africa Anatolia & Constantinople Border conflicts Sicily and Southern Italy Naval warfare Byzantine reconquest The Muslim conquest of the Maghreb ( Arabic : فَتْحُ اَلْمَغْرِب , romanized : Fath al-Maghrib , lit. 'Conquest of the West';) or Arab conquest of North Africa by the Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphates commenced in 647 and concluded in 709, when
4251-486: The Maghreb along with the full Arabization of the non-Berber population may have been favored by the following factors: Archaeological and scholarly research has shown that Christianity existed after the Muslim conquests. The Catholic church gradually declined along with local Latin dialect . According to a view, Christianity in North Africa effectively continued a century after the Muslim conquest but that neither
4360-575: The Persian army at the Battle of Nahāvand . It was at this point that Arab military expeditions into North African regions west of Egypt were first launched, continuing for years and furthering the spread of Islam . In 644 at Medina , Umar was succeeded by Uthman , during whose twelve-year rule Armenia, Cyprus , and all of modern-day Iran , would be added to the expanding Rashidun Caliphate . With Afghanistan and North Africa being targets of major invasions and Muslim sea raids ranging from Rhodes to
4469-642: The Roman historian Sallust , the demigod Hercules died in Spain and his polyglot eastern army was left to settle the land, with some migrating to Africa. Persians went to the West and intermarried with the Gaetulians and became the Numidians. The Medes settled and were known as Mauri, later Moors. The Numidians and Moors belonged to the race from which the Berbers are descended. The translated meaning of Numidian
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4578-568: The Roman period, the area of what is now Tunisia enjoyed a huge development. The economy, mainly during the Empire, boomed: the prosperity of the area depended on agriculture. Called the Granary of the Empire , the area of actual Tunisia and coastal Tripolitania , according to one estimate, produced one million tons of cereals each year, one quarter of which was exported to the Empire. Additional crops included beans, figs, grapes, and other fruits. By
4687-524: The Romans and Persians ) is said to range from 30,000 to 300,000 in various Muslim histories and some even allude to a higher number. Philip Khuri Hitti described the attribution of figures such as 300,000 slaves (also capturing 30,000 noble maidens of Spain) to him as exaggerated which was due to the high number of slaves that were available after Muslim conquests. An assertion which is confirmed by historian Kishori Saran Lal . Musa also had to deal with
4796-556: The Trabelsi family, most notably in the cases of Imed Trabelsi and Belhassen Trabelsi , controlled much of the business sector in the country. The First Lady Leila Ben Ali was described as an "unabashed shopaholic " who used the state airplane to make frequent unofficial trips to Europe's fashion capitals. Tunisia refused a French request for the extradition of two of the President's nephews, from Leila's side, who were accused by
4905-457: The US feared political change in North Africa due to the looming presence of possible Soviet Union communist expansion. Bourguiba continued to plead to foreign leaders when he traveled to Italy on 6 November 1951. His contacts included Alberto Mellini Ponce De León , Mario Toscano , and Licinio Vestri . De León was an old friend of Bourguiba who had helped free him from German captivity, Toscano
5014-542: The advancing Muslims. Their conquest reached the Atlantic coast in 708. He was noted for the vast number of mawla he had amassed which consisted of Berber converts to Islam and people from other regions as well. In 698-702 AD all the major capitals in the Berber states were taken definitively by the Arabs: Christian Carthago was completely destroyed, half the inhabitants were killed (only a few hundreds could escape by boats toward Byzantine Sicily) and
5123-571: The agricultural land was ravaged and its harbors made unusable. The destruction of the Exarchate of Africa marked a permanent end to the Byzantine Empire's influence in the region. It is visible from archaeological evidence, that the town of Carthage continued to be occupied. Constantine the African was born in Carthage. The fortress of Carthage was used by the Muslims until Hafsid era and
5232-580: The archaeological sites of Carthage dating back to the 9th century BC, as well as the Great Mosque of Kairouan . Known for its ancient architecture, souks , and blue coasts, it covers 163,610 km (63,170 sq mi), and has a population of 12.1 million. It contains the eastern end of the Atlas Mountains and the northern reaches of the Sahara desert; much of its remaining territory
5341-418: The berber king of Altava known as Kusaila ambushed and crushed his forces near Biskra , killing Uqba and wiping out his troops. Then, adds Gibbon, "The third general or governor of Africa , Zuhayr , avenged and encountered the fate of his predecessor in the Battle of Mamma . He vanquished the native population in many battles but he was overthrown by a powerful army, which Constantinople had sent to
5450-405: The broader Arab Spring movement across the region. Free multiparty parliamentary elections were held shortly thereafter; the country again voted for parliament on 26 October 2014, and for president on 23 November 2014. From 2014 to 2020, it was considered the only democratic state in the Arab world , according to the The Economist Democracy Index . After a democratic backsliding , Tunisia
5559-461: The case of the Tunisian nationalists. As part of postwar Tunisia, a new all-Tunisian labor organization was formed, the Union Générale des Travailleurs (UGTT) . This was one of the stronger components of the nationalist group Neo-Destour . Habib Bourguiba made his way to the United States on 13 September 1949. He attended the American Federation of Labor meeting in San Francisco , California. The French were opposed to his presence there, and
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#17327872684025668-441: The catapult platform which filled by cotton sacks. The catapult launched them one by one to the top of the wall and allowed these warriors to enter the city, opening the gates and killing the guards, thus allowing the Muslim forces to enter and capturing the city. Then caliph Umar, whose armies were already engaged in conquering the Sassanid Empire , did not want to commit his forces further in North Africa while Muslim rule in Egypt
5777-419: The central area of El Djem (where there was the second biggest amphitheater in the Roman Empire). Berber bishop Donatus Magnus was the founder of a Christian group known as the Donatists . During the 5th and 6th centuries (from 430 to 533 AD), the Germanic Vandals invaded and ruled over a kingdom in Northwest Africa that included present-day Tripoli. The region was easily reconquered in 533–534 AD, during
5886-445: The character of a prophetess, they attacked the invaders with an enthusiasm similar to their own. The veteran bands of Hassan were inadequate to the defence of Africa: the conquests of an age were lost in a single day; and the Arabian chief, overwhelmed by the torrent, retired to the confines of Egypt. In 703, five years passed before Hassan received fresh troops from the caliph. Meanwhile, the people of North Africa's cities chafed under
5995-589: The city and to flee towards their ship leaving Tripoli, thus, allowing Amr to subdue the city easily. Later, the Muslim forces besieged Barqa ( Cyrenaica ) for about three years to no avail. Then Khalid ibn al-Walid , who was previously involved in the conquest of Oxyrhynchus , offered a radical plan to erect catapult which filled by cotton sacks. Then as the night came and the city guard slept, Khalid ordered his best warriors such as Zubayr ibn al-Awwam , his son Abdullah , Abdul-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr , Fadl ibn Abbas , Abu Mas'ud al-Badri, and Abd al-Razzaq to step into
6104-420: The city in 814 BC, as retold by the Greek writer Timaeus of Tauromenium . The settlers of Carthage brought their culture and religion from Phoenicia, now present-day Lebanon and adjacent areas. After the series of wars with Greek city-states of Sicily in the 5th century BC, Carthage rose to power and eventually became the dominant civilization in the Western Mediterranean . The people of Carthage worshipped
6213-477: The command of Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha , the younger brother of Oruç Reis, who was the Kapudan Pasha of the Ottoman Fleet during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent . However, it was not until the final Ottoman reconquest of Tunis from Spain in 1574 under Kapudan Pasha Uluç Ali Reis that the Ottomans permanently acquired the former Hafsid Tunisia , retaining it until the French conquest of Tunisia in 1881. Initially under Turkish rule from Algiers, soon
6322-586: The conquest in 698 and others were welcomed by Norman rulers to Sicily or Italy in the 11th and 12th centuries – the logical destination because of the 1200 year close connection between the two regions. The Arab governors of Tunis founded the Aghlabid dynasty , which ruled Tunisia, Tripolitania and eastern Algeria from 800 to 909. Tunisia flourished under Arab rule when extensive systems were constructed to supply towns with water for household use and irrigation that promoted agriculture (especially olive production). This prosperity permitted luxurious court life and
6431-458: The conquest were also shaped primarily in the lexis of Latin. The same applies to Christianity in the Maghreb, which did not end with the Arab conquest, but is also documented afterwards by sporadic sources. In what is now Tunisia, for example, Muslims were probably in the majority towards the end of the ninth century. The decline of Christian institutions only accelerated towards the end of the eleventh century; individual communities survived until
6540-527: The country on 14 January 2011, after 23 years in power. Protests continued for banning of the ruling party and the eviction of all its members from the transitional government formed by Mohammed Ghannouchi . Eventually the new government gave in to the demands. A Tunis court banned the ex-ruling party RCD and confiscated all its resources. A decree by the minister of the interior banned the "political police", special forces which were used to intimidate and persecute political activists. Muslim conquest of
6649-401: The death of Gregory, his successor, probably Gennadius , secured the Arab withdrawal in exchange for tribute. The campaign lasted fifteen months and Abdallah's force returned to Muslim territories in 648. All further Muslim conquests were soon interrupted, however, when Egyptian dissidents murdered Caliph Uthman after holding him under house arrest in 656. He was replaced by Ali , who in turn
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#17327872684026758-442: The decline of Christianity in Maghreb. One of them is the constant warfare, as well as persecutions. In addition, many Christians migrated to Europe. The Church at that time lacked the backbone of a monastic tradition and was still suffering from the aftermath of heresies including the so-called Donatist heresy, and this contributed to the early obliteration of the Church in the present day Maghreb. Some historians contrast this with
6867-409: The end of the war in Africa. After the liberation of Tunisia from the Germans, the French regained control over the government and made participation in a nationalist party illegal once more. Moncef Bey , who was popular amongst Tunisians, was deposed by the French. The French claimed that his removal was due to him being sympathetic to the Axis countries during German occupation, but the real reason
6976-403: The fearless general "plunged into the heart of the country, traversed the wilderness in which his successors erected the splendid capitals of Fes and Morocco , and at length penetrated to the verge of the Atlantic and the great desert ". In his conquest of the Maghreb (western North Africa), he besieged the coastal city of Bugia as well as Tingi or Tangier , overwhelming what had once been
7085-471: The governing councils controlling Tunisia remained largely composed of a foreign elite who continued to conduct state business in the Turkish language . Attacks on European shipping were made by corsairs , primarily from Algiers, but also from Tunis and Tripoli , yet after a long period of declining raids the growing power of the European states finally forced its termination. The plague epidemics ravaged Tunisia in 1784–1785, 1796–1797 and 1818–1820. In
7194-399: The hand of Ifriqiya governor Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi . One of the unifying forces of these rebellions were the teachings of Arab Kharijite missionaries who had worked as merchants. They were able to convert some sections to their way of thinking and this provided a "unifying discipline and revolutionary zeal that powered the Berber rebellion of 739" through 743. The loss of Africa
7303-400: The hands of the Greeks; the predecessors of Hassan had respected the name and fortifications of Carthage; and the number of its defenders was recruited by the fugitives of Cabes and Tripoli . The arms of Hassan were bolder and more fortunate: he reduced and pillaged the metropolis of Africa; and the mention of scaling-ladders may justify the suspicion, that he anticipated, by a sudden assault,
7412-429: The help of activists such as Chedly Kallala, Farhat Hached , and Salah Ben Youssef . Today, Tunisia's culture and identity are rooted in this centuries-long intersection of different cultures and ethnicities. In 2011, the Tunisian Revolution , which was triggered by dissatisfaction with the lack of freedom and democracy under the 24-year rule of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali , overthrew his regime and catalyzed
7521-402: The imperial throne, for his officers, afraid of being held responsible for the defeat, elevated him to the position of anti-emperor and overthrew Leontios, who had his nose cut off. Another effect was that there were no longer any major Latin or Romance-speaking provinces in the Byzantine Empire and Greek finally prevailed. With the conquest of Carthage, the Arabs laid the basis for domination of
7630-421: The interests of the French and French citizens in Tunisia, at the Cercle Republicain d'outre Mer in Paris. The Neo-Destour group was not in favor of these reforms if they themselves were not involved in their creation. They also demanded the freedom of Bourguiba who was imprisoned on the Isle of Galete. Tunisia achieved independence from France on 20 March 1956 with Habib Bourguiba as Prime Minister. 20 March
7739-401: The invading Muslim armies. The years 665 to 689 saw a new Arab invasion of North Africa . It began, according to Will Durant , to protect Egypt "from flank attack by Byzantine Cyrene". So "an army of more than 40,000 Muslims advanced through the desert to Barca , took it, and marched to the neighborhood of Carthage", defeating a defending Byzantine army of 20,000 in the process. Next came
7848-779: The lands ravaged by Banu Hilal invaders had become completely arid desert. The main Tunisian cities were conquered by the Normans of Sicily under the Kingdom of Africa in the 12th century, but following the conquest of Tunisia in 1159–1160 by the Almohads the Normans were evacuated to Sicily. Communities of Tunisian Christians would still exist in Nefzaoua up to the 14th century. The Almohads initially ruled over Tunisia through
7957-501: The late King Wittiza , Arian Christians fleeing forced conversions at the hands of the Visigothic Catholic church, and Jews . As Gibbon puts it, Musa received an unexpected message from Julian, "who offered his place, his person, and his sword" to the Muslim leader in exchange for help in the civil war. Though Julian's "estates were ample, his followers bold and numerous", he "had little to hope and much to fear from
8066-409: The more tedious operations of a regular siege. Having lost Carthage to the Muslims in 695, the Byzantine Empire responded with troops from Constantinople, joined by soldiers and ships from Sicily and a powerful contingent of Visigoths from Hispania. This forced the invading Arab army to run back to Kairouan. Then, writes Gibbon, “the Christians landed; the citizens hailed the ensign of the cross, and
8175-518: The most modern but repressive countries in the Arab world". On 12 May 1964, Tunisia nationalized foreign farmlands. Immediately after, France canceled all financial assistance for the country, which was to amount to more than $ 40 million. This led to the Tunisian National Assembly passing a bill that required all residents of the country to subscribe to a "popular loan" in proportion to their income. From 1977 until 2005, Tunisia
8284-662: The most powerful by the 7th century BC. The descendants of the Phoenician settlers came to be known as the Punic people . Ancient Carthage was a major mercantile empire and a military rival to the Roman Republic until 146 BC when it was defeated by the Romans who occupied Tunisia for most of the next 800 years. The Romans introduced Christianity and left architectural legacies like the Amphitheatre of El Jem . In
8393-749: The new reign." And he was too feeble to challenge Roderic directly. So he sought Musa's aid. For Musa, Julian, "by his Andalusian and Mauritanian commands, ... held in his hands the keys of the Spanish monarchy." And so Musa ordered some initial raids on the southern coast of the Iberian Peninsula in 710. In the spring of that same year, Tariq ibn Ziyad —a Berber, a freed slave, and a Muslim general—took Tangier. Musa thereupon made him governor there, backed by an army of 6,700. The next year, 711, Musa directed Tariq to invade Hispania. Disembarking from Ceuta aboard ships provided by Julian, Tariq plunged into
8502-589: The present, the kings of Spain were possessed of the fortress of Ceuta [...] Musa, in the pride of victory, was repulsed from the walls of Ceuta, by the vigilance and courage of Count Julian, the general of the Goths." Other sources, however, maintain that Ceuta represented the last Byzantine outpost in Africa and that Julian, whom the Arabs called Ilyan, was an exarch or Byzantine governor. Valdeavellano offers another possibility, that "as appears more likely, he may have been
8611-615: The pretext of a Tunisian incursion into Algeria , the French invaded with an army of about 36,000 and forced the Bey of Tunis, Muhammad III as-Sadiq , to agree to the terms of the 1881 Treaty of Bardo . With this treaty, Tunisia was officially made a French protectorate , over the objections of Italy. European settlements in the country were actively encouraged; the number of French colonists grew from 34,000 in 1906 to 144,000 in 1945. In 1910 there were also 105,000 Italians in Tunisia . During
8720-566: The previous adjectival form was "Tunisine". Farming methods reached the Nile Valley from the Fertile Crescent region about 5000 BC, and spread to the Maghreb by about 4000 BC. Agricultural communities in the humid coastal plains of central Tunisia then were ancestors of today's Berber tribes. It was believed in ancient times that Africa was originally populated by Gaetulians and Libyans, both nomadic peoples. According to
8829-609: The protests. The protests inspired the Arab Spring , a wave of similar actions throughout the Arab world. The catalyst for mass demonstrations was the death of Mohamed Bouazizi , a 26-year-old Tunisian street vendor, who set himself afire on 17 December 2010 in protest at the confiscation of his wares and the humiliation inflicted on him by a municipal official named Faida Hamdy . Anger and violence intensified following Bouazizi's death on 4 January 2011, ultimately leading longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to resign and flee
8938-587: The region of modern-day Tunisia had already been almost completely Arabized , establishing Arabs as the demographic majority of the population. Then, in 1546, the Ottoman Empire established control there, holding sway for over 300 years, until 1881, when the French conquered Tunisia . In 1956, Tunisia gained independence as the Tunisian Republic under the leadership of Habib Bourguiba with
9047-471: The relief and liberation of Carthage ." Meanwhile, a new civil war among rivals for the monarchy raged in Arabia and Syria. It resulted in a series of four caliphs between the death of Mu'awiya in 680 and the accession of Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan in 685; strife ended only in 692 with the death of the rebel leader. This development brought about a return of domestic order that allowed the caliph to resume
9156-540: The rest enslaved, erasing forever the main center of Greco-Roman influence in the Maghreb. Musa bin Nusair, a successful Yemeni general in the campaign, was made governor of "Ifriqiya" and given the responsibility of putting down a renewed Berber rebellion and forcefully converting the population to Islam. Musa and his two sons prevailed over the rebels, slaughtered nearly all the Christian Berber civilians of his Ifriqiya and enslaved 300,000 captives (in those years
9265-595: The rise of Roman power. From the conclusion of the Second Punic War in 202 BC, Carthage functioned as a client state of the Roman Republic for another 50 years. Following the Battle of Carthage which began in 149 BC during the Third Punic War , Carthage was conquered by Rome in 146 BC. Following its conquest, the Romans renamed Carthage to Africa , incorporating it as a province. During
9374-610: The rule of Emperor Justinian I , by the Eastern Romans led by General Belisarius , preluding a 165-year era of Byzantine rule . Sometime between the second half of the 7th century and the early part of the 8th century, Arab Muslim conquest occurred in the region . They founded the first Islamic city in Northwest Africa, Kairouan . It was there in 670 AD that the Mosque of Uqba , or the Great Mosque of Kairouan,
9483-510: The same name is used for both country and city, as with the Arabic تونس , and only by context can one tell the difference. In English, Tunisia before independence was also often called simply "Tunis", a name that persisted until the 1940s; under French influence, the neologism "Tunisia", adapted from Tunisie , gradually took hold. The adjective "Tunisian" first appeared in English in 1825;
9592-533: The son of Abu Hafs declared himself independent. During the reign of the Hafsid dynasty from their capital Tunis, fruitful commercial relationships were established with several Christian Mediterranean states. In the late 16th century the coast became a pirate stronghold. In the last years of the Hafsid dynasty , Spain seized many of the coastal cities, but these were recovered by the Ottoman Empire . The first Ottoman conquest of Tunis took place in 1534 under
9701-606: The southern coasts of the Iberian Peninsula , the Byzantine navy was defeated in the eastern Mediterranean. The earliest Arab accounts are those of ibn Abd al-Hakam , al-Baladhuri , and Khalifah ibn Khayyat , all of which were written in the ninth century, some 200 years after the first invasions. These are not very detailed. In the case of the most informative, the History of the Conquest of Egypt and North Africa and Spain by Ibn Abd al-Hakam, Robert Brunschvig has shown that it
9810-513: The status of a major non-NATO ally of the United States . The word Tunisia is derived from Tunis ; a central urban hub and the capital of modern-day Tunisia. The present form of the name, with its Latinate suffix -ia , evolved from French Tunisie , in turn generally associated with the Berber root ⵜⵏⵙ , transcribed tns , which means "to lay down" or "encampment". It
9919-561: The total population of the Maghreb was around one million, and this gives an idea of the massacre and why Christianity disappeared). The caliph's portion was 60,000 of the captives. He sold into slavery these Christian Berbers (mainly in Damascus, after a deadly deportation through the desert from southern Tunisia to Egypt): the proceeds from their sale went into the Arab public treasury. Daniel Pipes The number of slaves he took in his various campaigns (including campaigns outside Africa, against
10028-481: The traditional Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana . But here he was stopped and partially repulsed. Luis Garcia de Valdeavellano writes: In their invasions against the Byzantines and the Berbers, the Arab chieftains had greatly extended their African dominions, and as early as the year 682 Uqba had reached the shores of the Atlantic, but he was unable to occupy Tangier, for he was forced to turn back toward
10137-517: The western Mediterranean, since they could now use the African ports there as a springboard for operations against the Balearic Islands, Sardinia and Sicily. They also prepared for the invasion of Spain 13 years later by eliminating the flank threat. The capture of Septem, in turn, removed the last immediate obstacle. On the territory of the Exarchate of Carthage, after the conquest, a rather gradual but ultimately complete Arabization of
10246-426: The winter was idly wasted in the dream of victory or deliverance.” In 698, the Arabs conquered Carthage under Hassan ibn al-Nu'man and completed the conquest of the eastern Barbary coast. Anticipating attempts at Byzantine reconquest however, they decided to destroy it. The walls were torn down, the agricultural land ravaged, the aqueducts and harbors made unusable. They established their base instead at Tunis which
10355-419: The work of local human rights organizations. In 2008, in terms of press freedom , Tunisia was ranked 143rd out of 173. The Tunisian Revolution was an intensive campaign of civil resistance that was precipitated by high unemployment , food inflation , corruption , a lack of freedom of speech and other political freedoms and poor living conditions . Labour unions were said to be an integral part of
10464-447: Was a severe blow to the Byzantine Empire. In 698, after Egypt, the second large granary and a significant source of taxes went here was lost, which in retrospect did not detract from the empire's ability to survive, but significantly impaired the decades-long defensive struggles against the caliphate. Financially, the lost tax revenue for Eastern Rome/Byzantium could not be compensated for a long time. The fall of Carthage brought Tiberios
10573-563: Was a shooting location for five films of the Star Wars film franchise. In 1982, Tunisia became the center of the Palestinian Liberation Organization , a militant and political organization based in the capital Tunis. In November 1987, doctors declared Bourguiba unfit to rule and, in a bloodless coup d'état, Prime Minister Zine El Abidine Ben Ali assumed the presidency in accordance with Article 57 of
10682-653: Was assassinated in 661. The Umayyad Caliphate of largely secular and hereditary Arab caliphs, then established itself at Damascus and Caliph Muawiyah I began consolidating the empire from the Aral Sea to the western border of Egypt. He put a governor in place in Egypt at al-Fustat , creating a subordinate seat of power that would continue for the next two centuries. He then continued the invasion of non-Muslim neighboring states, attacking Sicily and Anatolia (in Asia Minor) in 663. In 664, Kabul , Afghanistan, fell to
10791-536: Was captured by the Crusaders during the Eighth Crusade . Remnants of former Roman Carthage was used as a source to provide building materials for Kairouan and Tunis in 8th century. Although the area was under control of the caliphate, there were still some sections of the population that would resist the spread of Islam. The Berber people were thought of as inferior and made to convert to Islam and join
10900-593: Was connected to the decline of Tunisian trade and agriculture. The depredation of the Tunisian campaigns by the Banu Hilal , a warlike Arab tribe encouraged by the Fatimids of Egypt to seize Northwest Africa, sent the region's rural and urban economic life into further decline. Consequently, the region underwent rapid urbanisation as famines depopulated the countryside and industry shifted from agriculture to manufactures. The Arab historian Ibn Khaldun wrote that
11009-554: Was constructed. This mosque is the oldest and most prestigious sanctuary in the Muslim West with the oldest standing minaret in the world; it is also considered a masterpiece of Islamic art and architecture. The Arab migration to the Maghreb began during this time. The region in its entirety was taken in 695, retaken by the Byzantine Eastern Romans in 697, but lost permanently in 698. The transition from
11118-459: Was heavily expanded, though Kairouan remained the governor's capital until late-9th century. This was immediately followed by a Berber rebellion against the new Arab overlords and a decisive victory at the Battle of Meskiana . Gibbon writes: Under the standard of their queen Kahina , the independent tribes acquired some degree of union and discipline; and as the Moors respected in their females
11227-472: Was marked by the construction of new palace cities such as al-Abbasiya (809) and Raq Adda (877). After conquering Cairo , the Fatimids abandoned Tunisia and parts of Eastern Algeria to the local Zirids (972–1148). Zirid Tunisia flourished in many areas: agriculture, industry, trade, and religious and secular learning. Management by the later Zirid emirs was neglectful though, and political instability
11336-715: Was occupied by Germany. SS Commander Walter Rauff continued to implement the "Final Solution" there. From 1942 to 1943, Tunisia was the scene of the Tunisia Campaign , a series of battles between the Axis and Allied forces. The battle opened with initial success by the German and Italian forces, but the massive supply and numerical superiority of the Allies led to the Axis surrender on 13 May 1943. The six-month campaign of Tunisia's liberation from Axis occupation signalled
11445-688: Was replaced by Pierre Voizard . Voizard had previously been the French Minister to Monaco . A month after his arrival in Tunis on 26 September 1953, Voizard made many changes to ease tensions in Tunisia. He lifted press censorship and freed several political prisoners. He also restored the full powers of civil authorities and raised the state of siege in the Sahel . On 26 January 1954, Voizard announced that there would soon be new reforms in favor of granting more sovereignty to Tunisians while insuring
11554-591: Was still insecure and ordered 'Amr to consolidate the Muslims' position in Egypt and that there should be no further campaigning. 'Amr obeyed, abandoning Tripoli and Burqa and returning to Fustat towards the close of 643. The next invasion of the Maghreb , ordered by Abdallah ibn Sa'd , commenced in 647. 20,000 soldiers marched from Medina in the Arabian Peninsula , with another joining them in Memphis, Egypt where Abdallah ibn Sa'd then led them into
11663-696: Was the Banu Ghaniya , relatives of the Almoravids , who from their base in Mallorca tried to restore Almoravid rule over the Maghreb. Around 1200 they succeeded in extending their rule over the whole of Tunisia until they were crushed by Almohad troops in 1207. After this success, the Almohads installed Walid Abu Hafs as the governor of Tunisia. Tunisia remained part of the Almohad state, until 1230 when
11772-760: Was the head of the Ufficio Studi e Documentazione in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , and Vestri was an Africanist scholar. Despite his best efforts, the Italians remained neutral as they did not want to ruin relations with NATO ally France, nor did they want to hamper any possibility of future relations with Tunisia as it served as a key part of the Mediterranean . The French Resident General in Tunisia, Jean de Hautecloque [ de ; fr ] left Tunis to go to Paris on 25 August 1953, when he
11881-439: Was written with a view to illustrating points of Maliki law rather than documenting history and that some of the events it describes are probably ahistorical. Beginning in the 12th century, scholars at Kairouan began to construct a new version of the history of the conquest, which was finalised by Ibrahim ibn ar-Raqiq . This version was copied in its entirety and sometimes interpolated, by later authors, reaching its zenith in
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