[Home]Algiers

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capital and largest city of Algeria, North Africa, seat of the
governor- general, of a court of appeal, and of an archbishop,
and station of the French XIX. corps d'armee. It is situated
capital and largest city of Algeria, North Africa. It is situated

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coast. The view of the city from the sea is one of great
beauty. Seen from a distance it appears like a succession
of dazzling white terraces rising from the water's edge. The
houses being seemingly embowered in the luxuriant verdure of
the Sahel, the effect is imposing and picturesque, and has
given rise to the Arab comparison of the town to a diamond
set in an emerald frame. The city consists of two parts;
the modern French town, built on the level ground by the
coast.

The city consists of two parts;
the modern part, built on the level ground by the

Removed: 21,63d14
Extending along the front of the town is the boulevard de la
Republique, a fine road built by Sir Morton Peto on a series of
arches, with a frontage of 3700 ft., and bordered on one side
by handsome buildings, whilst a wide promenade overlooking the
harbour runs along the other. Two inclined roads lead from
the centre of the boulevard to the quay 40 ft. below. On the
quay are the landing-stages, the custom-house and the railway
station. At the southern end of the boulevard de la Republique
is the square de la Republique, formerly the place Bresson,
in which is the municipal theatre; at the other extremity of
the boulevard is the place du Gouvernement, which is planted
on three sides with a double row of plane trees and is the
fashionable resort for evening promenade. The principal streets
of the city meet in the place du Gouvernement: the rue Bab
Azoun (Gate of Grief) which runs parallel to the boulevard de
la Republique; the rue Bab-el-Oued (River Gate) which goes
north to the site of the old arsenal demolished in 1900; the
rue de la Marine which leads to the ancient harbour, and in
which are the two principal mosques. A large part of the
modern town lies south of the square de la Republique; in
this quarter are the law courts, hotel de ville, post office
and other public buildings. The streets in the modern town
are regularly laid out; several are arcaded on both sides.

The old town presents a strong contrast to the new town. The
streets are narrow, tortuous and inaccessible to carriages.
They often end in a cul-de-sac. The principal street is
the rue de la Kasbah, which leads up to the citadel by 497
steps. The streets are joined by alleys just wide enough to pass
through. The houses, built of stone and whitewashed, are
square, substantial, flat-topped buildings, presenting to the
street bare walls, with a few slits protected by iron gratings
in place of windows. Each house has a quadrangle in the centre,
into which it looks, and which is entered by a low, narrow
doorway. Shops in the native quarter are simply chambers in
the walls of the houses, and open at the front. In these shops
the few Moorish industries are carried on, such as embroidery
in gold and silver thread, the making of kid slippers of every
kind and colour, the manufacture of gold and silver ornaments.
To European eyes the native city, with its motley throng of
Moors, Arabs, Jews and negroes, is the most interesting sight in
Algiers. Various squares are set apart for markets, and
here are to be witnessed scenes of the greatest animation.

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1799-1800. The kasbah was begun in 1516 on the site of an older
1799-1800.

The kasbah was begun in 1516 on the site of an older

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dey. The Grand Mosque (Jamaa-el-Kebir) is traditionally said
dey.

The Grand Mosque (Jamaa-el-Kebir) is traditionally said

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The principal facade, in the rue de la Marine, consists of
a row of white marble columns supporting an arcade. The New

The New

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Mosque. The church of the Holy Trinity (built in 1870) stands
Mosque.

The church of the Holy Trinity (built in 1870) stands

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is in the place Malakoff, next to the governor-general's
palace. In its construction an attempt has been made to
produce a building suitable for Christian worship whilst the
architecture is Moorish in style. The principal entrance,
is in the place Malakoff. The principal entrance,

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handsome. There is also a lycee in which the instruction
is similar to that given in France, and in which Christians,
Jews and Mahommedans are educated together. The museum (a
state institution), formerly housed in the same building as
the library, was transferred in 1897 to a new building in
the suburb of Mustapha Superieur. In the museum are some
handsome. The museum holds some

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together with medals and Algerian money. New buildings,
to contain specimens of Moslem art, were added in 1903.
together with medals and Algerian money.

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an area of 235 acres. The depth at the entrance is 72 to
108 ft., and in port from 36 to 66 ft. Two government dry
docks are available for merchant vessels. The quays cover
18,000 sq. yds. There are three jetties, north, east and
south. Within this harbour is the small harbour of the deys,
now transformed into a wet dock. An opening in the south jetty
an area of 235 acres.
An opening in the south jetty

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Bay. This harbour is formed by the projection of a mole, 2500
ft. in length, from the eastern jetty of the old harbour. It
provides extensive quayage with a minimum depth of water of 28
ft. Agha harbour has also an independent entrance on its
southern side. Algiers is the chief coaling station in the
Mediterranean, having become so largely at the expense of
Gibraltar. In other respects the trade resembles that of other
Algerian ports. (For trade statistics see ALGERIA.) The inner
Bay.
Agha harbour has also an independent entrance on its
southern side.

The inner

Changed: 178,183c119
was built in 1544. Work on the northern harbour was begun in
1836, on the southern in 1904. Algiers maintains communication
with Marseilles by a quick service of steamers, which run the
497 miles across the Mediterranean in twenty-eight to thirty
hours. The journey between Algiers and Paris, from which it is
distant 1031 miles, is accomplished in about forty-five hours.
was built in 1544.

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Owing to the mildness of its climate Algiers has become a
favourite resort for those seeking to escape the rigours
of a European winter. The city is well supplied with
water and its sanitary state is good. The mistral of the
Riviera is entirely absent from Algiers, but in summer
the city occasionally suffers from the sirocco or desert
wind. The environs of Algiers are noted for their beauty and
healthiness. Of the suburbs the most picturesque is Mustapha
Superieur, about 2 m. from the centre of the city on the
slopes of the hills to the south. Here are the summer palace
of the governor-general, many fine Moorish and French villas
and luxurious hotels, all surrounded by beautiful gardens.
A numerous British colony resides at Mustapha, where there is
an English club. Mustapha Inferieur is built on the lower
slopes of the hills. Farther to the south is the large Jardin
d'Essai, containing five avenues of palms, planes, bamboos and
magnolias. Notre-Dame d'Afrique, a church built (1858-

Notre-Dame d'Afrique, a church built (1858-

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fishermen. Beyond Notre-Dame d'Afrique is the beautiful Valley
of the Consuls, very little changed since the time of the
deys. (The valley was in those days the favourite residence
of the consuls.) At the Petit Seminaire, on the site of
the old French consulate, Cardinal Lavigerie died (1892).

In 1906 the population of the commune of Algiers was 154,049; the
population municipale, which excludes the garrison, prisoners,
etc., was 145,280. Of this total 138,240 were living in the
city proper or in Mustapha. Of the inhabitants 105,908 were
Europeans. French residents numbered 50,996, naturalized Frenchmen
23,305, Spaniards 12,354, Italians 7368, Maltese 865, and other
Europeans (chiefly British and Germans) 1652, besides 12,490
Jews. The remainder of the population--all Mahommedans--are
Moors, Arabs, Berbers, Negroes, with a few Turks. The vast
majority of the Europeans are Roman Catholics. Most of the
naturalized French citizens are of Spanish or Italian origin.
fishermen.

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History.--In Roman times a small town called Icosium existed
History -- In Roman times a small town called Icosium existed

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mentioned as late as the 5th century. The present city was
mentioned as late as the 5th century.

The present city was

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Zeirid-Sanhaja dynasty, which was overthrown by Roger II. of
Sicily in 1148 (see FATIMITES.) The Zeirids had before that
Zeirid-Sanhaja dynasty, which was overthrown by Roger II of
Sicily in 1148. The Zeirids had before that

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Wahid, sultans of Tlemcen. Numinally part of the sultanate of
Wahid, sultans of Tlemcen.

Nominally part of the sultanate of

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between Algiers and Spain. Algiers, however, continued of
between Algiers and Spain.

Algiers, however, continued of

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capitulated on the following day (see ALGERIA, History.)

capitulated on the following day.

Changed: 279c190
Initial text from 1911 encyclopedia -- Please update as needed
Initial text from 1911 encyclopedia -- Please update as needed

ALGIERS (Fr. Alger, Arab. Jezair, i.e. The Islands), capital and largest city of Algeria, North Africa. It is situated on the west side of a bay of the Mediterranean, to which it gives its name, in 36 deg. 47' N., 3 deg. 4' E., and is built on the slopes of the Sahel, a chain of hills parallel to the coast.

The city consists of two parts; the modern part, built on the level ground by the seashore, and the ancient city of the deys, which climbs the steep hill behind the modern town and is crowned by the kasbah or citadel, 400 ft. above the sea. The kasbah forms the apex of a triangle of which the quays form the base.

The public buildings of chief interest are the kasbah, the government offices (formerly the British consulate), the palaces of the governor-general and the archbishop--all these are fine Moorish houses; the "Grand" and the "New', Mosques, the Roman Catholic cathedral of St Philippe, the church of the Holy Trinity (Church of England), and the Bibliotheque Nationale d'Alger--a Turkish palace built in 1799-1800.

The kasbah was begun in 1516 on the site of an older building, and served as the palace of the deys until the French conquest. A road has been cut through the centre of the building, the mosque turned into barracks, and the hall of audience allowed to fall into ruin. There still remain a minaret and some marble arches and columns. Traces exist of the vaults in which were stored the treasures of the dey.

The Grand Mosque (Jamaa-el-Kebir) is traditionally said to be the oldest mosque in Algiers. The pulpit (mimbar) bears an inscription showing that the building existed in 1018. The minaret was built by Abu Tachfin, sultan of Tlemcen, in 1324. The interior of the mosque is square and is divided into aisles by columns joined by Moorish arches.

The New Mosque (Jamaa-el-Jedid), dating from the 17th century, is in the form of a Greek cross, surmounted by a large white cupola, with four small cupolas at the corners. The minaret is 90 ft. high. The interior resembles that of the Grand Mosque.

The church of the Holy Trinity (built in 1870) stands at the southern end of the rue d'Isly near the site of the demolished Fort Bab Azoun. The interior is richly decorated with various coloured marbles. Many of these marbles contain memorial inscriptions relating to the English residents (voluntary and involuntary) of Algiers from the time of John Tipton, British consul in 1580. One tablet records that in 1631 two Algerine pirate crews landed in Ireland, sacked Baltimore, and carried off its inhabitants to slavery; another recalls the romantic escape of Ida M`Donnell, daughter of Admiral Ulric, consul- general of Denmark, and wife of the British consul. When Lord Exmouth was about to bombard the city in 1816, the British consul was thrown into prison and loaded with chains. Mrs. M`Donnell--who was but sixteen--escaped to the British fleet disguised as a midshipman, carrying a basket of vegetables in which her baby was hidden. (Mrs. M`Donnell subsequently married the duc de Talleyrand-Perigord and died at Florence in 1880). Among later residents commemorated is Edward Lloyd, who was the first person to show the value of esparto grass for the manufacture of paper, and thus started an industry which is one of the most important in Algeria.

The cathedral of St Philippe, built on the site of a mosque, is in the place Malakoff. The principal entrance, reached by a flight of 23 steps, is ornamented with a portico supported by four black-veined marble columns. The roof of the nave is of Moorish plaster work. It rests on a series of arcades supported by white marble columns. Several of these columns belonged to the former mosque. In one of the chapels is a tomb containing the bones of San Geronimo. The finding of the remains of the saint in 1853 afforded striking confirmation of an incident recorded by a Spanish Benedictine named Haedo, who published a topography of Algeria in 1612. Haedo sets forth that a young Arab who had embraced Christianity and had been baptized with the name of Geronimo was captured by a Moorish corsair in 1569 and taken to Algiers. The Arabs endeavoured, to induce Geronimo to renounce Christianity, but as he steadfastly refused to do so he was condemned to death. Bound hand and foot he was thrown alive into a mould in which a block of concrete was about to be made. The block containing his body was built into an angle of the Fort of the Twenty-four Hours, then under construction. In 1853 the Fort of the Twenty-four Hours was demolished, and in the angle specified by Haedo the skeleton of Geronimo was found. The bones were interred at St Phihppe. Into the mould left by the saint's body liquid plaster of Paris was run, and a perfect model obtained, showing the features of the youth, the cords which bound him, and even the texture of his clothing. This model is now in the museum at Mustapha (see below).

Algiers possesses a college with schools of law, medicine, science and letters. The college buildings are large and handsome. The museum holds some of the ancient sculptures and mosaics discovered in Algeria, together with medals and Algerian money.

The port of Algiers is sheltered from all winds. There are two harbours, both artificial--the old or northern harbour and the southern or Agha harbour. The northern harbour covers an area of 235 acres. An opening in the south jetty affords an entrance into Agha harbour, constructed in Agha Bay. Agha harbour has also an independent entrance on its southern side.

The inner harbour was begun in 1518 by Khair-ed- Din (see History, below), who, to accommodate his pirate vessels, caused the island on which was Fort Penon to be connected with the mainland by a mole. The lighthouse which occupies the site of Fort Penon was built in 1544.

Algiers was a walled city from the time of the deys until the close of the 19th century. The French, after their occupation of the city (1830), built a rampart, parapet and ditch, with two terminal forts, Bab Azoun to the south and Bab-el-Oued to the north. The forts and part of the ramparts were demolished at the beginning of the 20th century, when a line of forts occupying the heights of Bu Zarea (at an elevation of 1300 ft. above the sea) took their place.

Notre-Dame d'Afrique, a church built (1858- 1872) in a mixture of the Roman and Byzantine styles, is conspicuously situated, overlooking the sea, on the shoulder of the Bu Zarea hills, 2 m. to the north of the city. Above the altar is a statue of the Virgin depicted as a black woman. The church also contains a solid silver statue of the archangel Michael, belonging to the confraternity of Neapolitan fishermen.

History -- In Roman times a small town called Icosium existed on what is now the marine quarter of the city. The rue de la Marine follows the lines of a Roman street. Roman cemeteries existed near the rues Bab-el-Oued and Bab Azoun. Bishops of Icosium--which was created a Latin city by Vespasian --are mentioned as late as the 5th century.

The present city was founded in 944 by Bulukkin b. Zeiri, the founder of, the Zeirid-Sanhaja dynasty, which was overthrown by Roger II of Sicily in 1148. The Zeirids had before that date lost Algiers, which in 1159 was occupied by the Almohades, and in the 13th century came under the dominion of the Abd-el- Wahid, sultans of Tlemcen.

Nominally part of the sultanate of Tlemcen, Algiers had a large measure of independence under amirs of its own, Oran being the chief seaport of the Abd-el- Nahid. The islet in front of the harbour, subsequently known as the Penon, had been occupied by the Spaniards as early as 1302. Thereafter a considerable trade grew up between Algiers and Spain.

Algiers, however, continued of comparatively little importance until after the expulsion from Spain of the Moors, many of whom sought an asylum in the city. In 1510, following their occupation of Oran and other towns on the coast of Africa, the Spaniards fortified the Penon. In 1516 the amir of Algiers, Selim b. Teumi, invited the brothers Arouj and Khair-ed-Din (Barbarossa) to expel the Spaniards. Arouj came to Algiers, caused Selim to be assassinated, and seized the town. Khair- ed-Din, succeeding Arouj, drove the Spaniards from the Penon (1550) and was the founder of the pashalik, afterwards deylik, of Algeria.

Algiers from this time became the chief seat of the Barbary pirates. In October 1541 the emperor Charles V. sought to capture the city, but a storm destroyed a great number of his ships, and his army of some 30,000, chiefly Spaniards, was defeated by the Algerians under their pasha, Hassan. Repeated attempts were made by various European nations to subdue the pirates, and in 1816 the city was bombarded by a British squadron under Lord Exmouth, assisted by Dutch men-of-war, and the corsair fleet burned. The piracy of the Algerians was renewed and continued until 1830. On the 4th of July in that year a French army under General de Bourmont attacked the city, which capitulated on the following day.


Initial text from 1911 encyclopedia -- Please update as needed

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