Carthage
Punic and Roman ruins above the Gulf of Tunis, beside Sidi Bou Said. UNESCO listing (opens the UNESCO site) ↗︎
History
The story of Tunisia
By tradition, Phoenicians from Tyre founded Carthage in 814 BC, and it grew into a sea power that challenged Rome for the Mediterranean in the Punic Wars; Hannibal crossed the Alps with his elephants in 218 BC. Rome destroyed the city in 146 BC, then rebuilt it as the capital of the province of Africa, one of the richest in the empire. The amphitheatre at El Jem and the hill town of Dougga are among the best-preserved Roman monuments anywhere.
Arab armies founded Kairouan in 670, and its Great Mosque is one of the oldest in Africa. The medina of Tunis grew around the Zitouna Mosque, and the Husainid beys ruled from 1705. Tunisia was a French protectorate from 1881 and became independent in 1956.
A short timeline
- Carthage814 BC
Founded by Phoenicians from Tyre, by tradition.
- The Punic Wars264 to 146 BC
Hannibal; Carthage destroyed in 146 BC.
- Roman Africa146 BC to 5th century
Dougga, El Jem and the new Carthage.
- Kairouan670
The Great Mosque.
- The beys of Tunis1705 to 1957
The palaces and the medina.
- Independence1956
Modern Tunisia.
