Enfidha (or Dar-el-Bey, ar, دار البي ') is a town in north-eastern
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
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, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
with a population of approximately 10,000. It is visited by tourists on their way to Takrouna. Enfidha is located at around . It lies on the
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
between
Tunis
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
, population_note =
, population_urban =
, population_metro = 2658816
, population_density_km2 =
, timezone1 = CET
, utc_offset1 ...
and
Sousse, approximately 45 km northeast of Sousse and a few kilometres inland from the
Gulf of Hammamet
Gulf of Hammamet () is a large gulf in northeastern Tunisia.
Geography
The Gulf of Hammamet is located south of the Cape Bon peninsula. To the other side of the Cape Bon peninsula is the Gulf of Tunis
The Gulf of Tunis () is a large Mediterra ...
. The nearby
Enfidha – Hammamet International Airport
Enfidha (or Dar-el-Bey, ar, دار البي ') is a town in north-eastern Tunisia with a population of approximately 10,000. It is visited by tourists on their way to Takrouna. Enfidha is located at around . It lies on the railway between Tunis ...
opened in 2009, serving charter flights from several
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
an countries.
History
Ancient History
Nearby
Henchir Chigarnia is an
Archaeological site and former
civitas of the
Roman Province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
of
Africa Proconularis.
About 8 km north of Enfidaville is another
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
site
Henchir Fraga, which is the ancient town of
Uppenna
Uppenna or Upenna is a Tunisian archaeological site located on the site of the present locality of Henchir Chigarnia. The site has delivered a basilica and the remains of a fortress . Location
The site is located at Henchir Fraga at 36° 09′ 57 ...
, where
ruins
Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...
include a large
fortress and of a
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* C ...
in which were found
mosaic
A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...
s with
epitaph
An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...
s of various
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...
s and
martyr
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
s. The
bishopric
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
of
Uppenna
Uppenna or Upenna is a Tunisian archaeological site located on the site of the present locality of Henchir Chigarnia. The site has delivered a basilica and the remains of a fortress . Location
The site is located at Henchir Fraga at 36° 09′ 57 ...
has been brought into use as a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...
since 1967.
Early Modern History
The Enfida estate was granted by the ''bey''
Mahommed-es-Sadok to his chief minister,
Khaireddin Pasha, in return for the confirmation by the ''
sultan'' of
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
in 1871, through the instrumentality of the ''
pasha
Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitar ...
'', of the right of succession to the ''
bey
Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...
lik'' of members of Es-Sadok's family.
French Colonial Era
When Khaireddin left
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
for
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...
some years later, he sold the estate to a
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
company which named it Enfidaville. The attempt by the Tunisian authorities to block the sale of the estate to a
French buyer is regarded as a contributory factor in the decision of the French government to bring Tunisia under colonial rule. The estate was later sold on to the Société Franco-Africaine. Enfidaville became the chief settlement on the Enfida estate, a property of over 300,000 acres (1,200 km
2) in the
Sahel district of Tunisia, forming a rectangle between the towns of
Hammamet,
Sousse,
Kairouan
Kairouan (, ), also spelled El Qayrawān or Kairwan ( ar, ٱلْقَيْرَوَان, al-Qayrawān , aeb, script=Latn, Qeirwān ), is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city was founded by t ...
and
Zaghouan. On this estate, devoted to the cultivation of
cereals,
olives,
vine
A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themsel ...
s and to pasturage, were colonies of Europeans and natives. At Enfidaville, which was, as its native name indicates, a palace of the ''
bey
Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...
s'' of Tunis, came a large
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million yea ...
-breeding establishment and a much-frequented weekly market.
World War II
Enfidaville was the site of the last battle in the
North African Campaign of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, and was the site of an Allied
Airfield
An aerodrome ( Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for pub ...
.
In April 1943 during
Operation Strike, the
American Corps II cornered the
Axis powers force against the Tunisian Coast. The
Eighth Army attacked Enfidaville on 19 April captured the village, but met strong resistance.
Attacks further north saw the fall of
Tunis
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
, population_note =
, population_urban =
, population_metro = 2658816
, population_density_km2 =
, timezone1 = CET
, utc_offset1 ...
on 7 May, to the
British 1st Army and
Bizerta on 8 May to the Americans.
Resuming the assault on Enfidaville on 11–13 May, the city saw the defeat of Axis forces but with significant casualties. 1,551 Allied casualties were buried in the Enfadaville War Cemetery, including Wing Commander
Ian Gleed DSO DFC, an English RAF pilot and
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
, who was shot down over
Cap Bon
Cape Bon ("Good Cape") is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia, also known as Ras at-Taib ( ar, الرأس الطيب), Sharīk Peninsula, or Watan el Kibli;
Cape Bon is also the name of the northernmost point on the peninsula, also known as ...
.
Sources
*
Catholic Hierarchy
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Populated places in Tunisia
Populated coastal places in Tunisia
Communes of Tunisia
Roman towns and cities in Tunisia
Archaeological sites in Tunisia
Roman towns and cities in Africa (Roman province)