Bizerta

“Towards the middle of the 6^th century, the Arabs occupied Tunisia and founded the holy city of Kairouan. But they were not the only lords of the city until Carthage was captured… In 661-662 it fell into the hands of the Moors under Muawia bin Hudeij. Though the city had no more than 4,000 inhabitants, it did not hesitate in rising up against the lords of Tunis or Constantine (a city in Eastern Algeria today), which caused its ruin on repeated occasions.

In 1492, many of the Moors fleeing from Spain sought refuge in Bizerte, founding the neighbourhood which is still referred to today as the Andalusian neighbourhood.

When Hayreddin Barbarossa occupied Tunis for the first time, the inhabitants of Bizerte were the first to recognise him. After his expulsion, they killed the governor that Hassan Agha had sent. Hassan attacked them from land while Andrea Doria helped him from the sea; the city was captured, and its inhabitants were severely punished.”

Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria, Bizerte, J. Rothschild, Paris, 1900 (Prague, 1897)