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population of (1906) 24,060. From Tlemcen the railway is continued westward to the Moroccan frontier at Lalla Maghnia, a distance of 44 M. Among the cities famous in the See also:

ANNALS (Annales, from annus, a year)

annals of Arab-See also:

BERBER

Berber, or Moorish, See also:

art and See also:

CIVILIZATION

civilization, Tlemcen takes high See also:

RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank. In architectural merits its monuments, though not so extensive, are worthy of comparison with those of See also:

Granada. The older walls and towers—there were three See also:

ancient lines of fortifications—are in See also:

GREAT

great See also:

PART

part destroyed, but a See also:

wall built by the See also:

French encircles the town. The various quarters are grouped around the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal See also:

MOSQUE (through Fr. mosquie; Span. mezquila, from Arab. masjid, sajada, to adore)

mosque—the Jewish to the See also:

south-See also:

west, the Moorish to the south-See also:

east, that of the merchants to the north-east, while the new town with the civic buildings lies to the north-west. Of the sixty-four mosques which existed at the See also:

period of the French See also:

CONQUEST

conquest, several havedisappeared. The great mosque (Jamaa-el-Kebir) has a See also:

BRICK (derived according to some etymologists from the Teutonic bricke, a disk or plate; but more authoritatively, through the French brique, originally a " broken piece," applied especially to bread, and so to clay, from the Teutonic brikan, to break)

brick See also:

MINARET (from the Arabic mandrat ; manar or miner is Arabic for a lighthouse, a tower on which liar, fire, is lit)

minaret 112 ft. high, adorned with See also:

MARBLE (from Lat. marmor, Gr. pApµapos, shining stone)

marble columns, and cased with See also:

MOSAIC (corresponding to Lat. opus musivum, from Gr. µovoeiov, an artificial grotto often decorated with mosaics; the word is only found in the sense of mosaic in late Greek, which generally uses k oXI yrlµa)

mosaic of the most varied designs; a See also:

FOUNTAIN (Late Lat. fontana, from ions, a spring)

fountain of See also:

alabaster—of the See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind known as Algerian onyx—stands in the alabaster-paved inner See also:

court; and 72 columns support the See also:

ARCHES, COURT OF

arches of the interior. This mosque was built A.D. 1136 to replace a much older See also:

BUILDING

building.

The See also:

MIHRAB

mihrab is finely ornamented with arabesques. The mosque of Sidi Ahmed See also:

bel See also:

HASSAN

Hassan, usually called Abul Hassan, built A.D. 1298, now trans-formed into a museum of antiquities, has two See also:

SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series of arches, which See also:

REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest on alabaster pillars. The courts are ornamented by sculptures of great beauty and richness; the delicately-carved See also:

CEDAR (Lat. cedrus, Gr. iapos)

cedar See also:

CEILING (from a verb " to ceil," i.e. to line or cover; of disputed etymology, but apparently connected with Fr. ciel, Lat. caelum, sky)

ceiling bears traces of polychromatic See also:

PAINTING

painting. The exterior has been altered in French See also:

TASTE (from Lat. taxare, to touch sharply; tangere, to touch)

taste. Among the antiquities preserved in the museum are the See also:

EPITAPH (Gr. it oa¢cos, sc. X/yos, from bri, upon, and ra¢os, a tomb)

epitaph of See also:

BOABDIL (a corruption of the name Abu Abdullah)

Boabdil, the last See also:

king of Granada, who died at Tlemcen in 1494, and the See also:

standard cubit measure—in marble —used in the Kissaria, bearing date A.H. 728 (1328). The mosque of El-Halawi (the Sweetmeat Maker), dating from 1353, is outside the walls of the town. It has eight magnificent columns of Algerian onyx, with richly sculptured capitals. The ceiling of cedar is richly carved, and there is a See also:

FINE

fine See also:

COLONNADE

colonnade on each See also:

side of the court. The minaret is decorated with mosaics. The military authorities occupy the Meshuar or citadel, built in 1145, which separates the Jewish and Moorish quarters and was formerly the See also:

PALACE (Lat. Palatium, the name given by Augustus to his residence on the Palatine Hill)

palace of the rulers of Tlemcen.

Only the minaret of the mosque, dating from the 14th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, and the battlemented wall, flanked by two towers, remain of its former magnificence. The vast See also:

basin (sahrij) under the old walls, now dry (720 ft. in length, 490 in width and 10 in See also:

DEPTH

depth), was apparently made for See also:

NAVAL

naval exhibitions. At one period See also:

barracks of the See also:

SPAHIS (in Persian Sipari, meaning warriors, and synonymous with Sepoy)

spahis occupied all that remains of the Kissario. the See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of See also:

RESIDENCE (Latin residere, to remain behind, to dwell, reside)

residence of See also:

EUROPEAN

European merchants from See also:

Pisa, See also:

GENOA (anc. Genua, Ital. Genova, Fr. GPnes)

Genoa, See also:

CATALONIA (Cataluna)

Catalonia and See also:

PROVENCE (Provincia, Proenza)

Provence. The barracks have been cleared away and a covered See also:

MARKET (Lat. mercatus, trade or place of trade)

market made in the upper part of the Kissaria. The ancient See also:

COLLEGE (Collegium)

college (medressa) where many learned See also:

ARABS

Arabs taught—of whom See also:

Ibn Khaldun, author of a See also:

HISTORY

History of the See also:

BERBERS

Berbers, may be mentioned—has entirely disappeared. The See also:

church erected by the French is a fine building in the See also:

BYZANTINE

Byzantine See also:

style. Besides the large See also:

trade carried on there are native manufactories of See also:

CLOTH

cloth, carpets and leathern articles. A See also:

SPECIAL

special manufacture is that of red shawls, used throughout the department of Oran by Jewish See also:

WOMEN

women when in See also:

MOURNING (from the verb " to mourn," to be sorrowful, 0. Eng. murnan; cf. O.H.G. mornen, Goth. maurnan, to be anxious, O.N. morna, to pine away; by some referred to root seen in Gr. jdptpva, sorrow, by others to root mer-, to die)

mourning. In the immediate neighbourhood of the See also:

MODERN

modern Tlemcen are numerous remains of the fortifications of Agadir (vide infra), and the minaret of the mosque, a beautiful See also:

TOWER (Lat. turris; Fr. tour, clocker; Ital. torre; Ger. Thurm)

tower dating SidiBu from the 13th century, the See also:

LOWER

lower part of which is built See also:

MEDIA

media. of large hewn stones from the See also:

ROMAN

Roman Pomaria. More noteworthy, however, are the ruins of Sidi Bu Medin and of See also:

MANSURA

Mansura. Sidi Bu Medin (more properly El Eubbad) is a little over a mile south-east of Tlemcen. It was founded A.D.

1337 by See also:

Ali V., the first of the Beni-Marin (Marinide) sultans who ruled Tlemcen, and commonly called the See also:

Black See also:

SULTAN (an Arabic word meaning " victorious " or " a ruler," sultat, dominion)

Sultan. The ruins of a small building, conjectured to be a palace of Sultan Ali, which commands a beautiful view, were excavated in 1881. The kubba or See also:

TOMB (Gr. Tuµ/3a, Tuµ(3os, probably allied to Lat. tumulus, literally a swelling, tumere, to swell)

tomb of Sidi Bu Medin, near the palace, is held in great veneration by the Arabs. The roof and walls are covered with arabesques, and the See also:

LEGEND (through the French from the med. Lat. legenda, things to be read, from legere, to read)

legend El-Mulk Lillah, " the See also:

KINGDOM

kingdom is See also:

God's," is repeated again and again. The See also:

SAINT (lat. sanctus, " holy ")

saint himself was See also:

BORN, IGNAZ, EDLER VON (1742–1791)

born at See also:

Seville A.D. 1126, and died near Tlemcen in his 75th See also:

YEAR

year; his See also:

DISCIPLE

disciple Sidi Abd-es-Selam of See also:

TUNIS

Tunis lies near him. The adjacent mosque is a beautiful specimen of Moorish art. The large See also:

double doors of cedar See also:

wood, covered with See also:

BRONZE

bronze showing a geometric interlaced See also:

PATTERN

pattern, have been compared with those of See also:

GHIBERTI, LORENZO (137$–1455)

Ghiberti at the See also:

BAPTISTERY (Baptislerium, in the Greek Church 4wrurrilpiov)

Baptistery of See also:

Florence. The mosque is divided by columns into five aisles. Delicate lacework extends from the See also:

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring of the arches to the roof. The See also:

TILE (0. Eng. tigel, Fr. tuile, connected with Lat. tegula)

tile mosaics are believed to have come from Morocco. The medressa is a building resembling the mosque.

Mansura, which is about 11 m. west of Tlemcen, owes its See also:

FOUNDATION (Lat. fundatio, from fundare, to found)

foundation to the attempts of the Beni-Marin rulers of Morocco to extend their See also:

SOVEREIGNTY

sovereignty. The See also:

AMIR, or AMEER (an Arabic word meaning " commander," from the root amr, " commanding ")

Amir See also:

Abu Yakub Yusef be- Mansura. sieged Tlemcen in the See also:

early years of the 14th century The See also:

SIEGE (0. Fr. sege, siege, mod. siege, seat, ultimately from sedere, to sit, cf. Class. Lat. obsidium, a siege)

siege lasted eight years, and Yusef turned his See also:

CAMP (from Lat. campus, field)

camp into a walled See also:

CITY (through Fr. cite, from Lat. civitas)

city. The siege being raised, El Mansura (the victorious), as the new city was called, was abandoned. It was reoccupied when (1335) Ali V. renewed the siege, which this See also:

time proved successful. On the See also:

EXPULSION (Lat. expulsio, from expellere)

expulsion of the Marinides in 1359 Mansura was finally deserted. Besides the walls and towers, and the minaret of the mosque, little remains of Mansura, of which Ibn Khaldun has See also:

LEFT

left a contemporary and graphic See also:

SKETCH (directly adapted from Dutch schets, which was taken from Ital. schizzo, a rough draft, Lat. schedium, something hastily made, Gr. oxE&os, sudden, off-hand, axeb6v, near by; Ger. Skizze and Fr. esquisse are from the same source)

sketch. The minaret, notwithstanding that one side and parts of two other sides have perished, is one of the finest mosque towers in existence. It is 125 ft. high, and is built of hewn See also:

stone. The arches are circular or pointed. The upper part of the tower is ornamented with See also:

green and See also:

BLUE (common in different forms to most European languages)

blue tiles and the entrance See also:

arch is beautifully carved. An inscription records that the tower was built by See also:

order of Abu Yakub Yusef. Of the rest of the mosque only the See also:

OUTER

outer walls remain.

It is about 320 ft. See also:

long by 200 wide and was divided by magnificent marble columns into thirteen aisles. Excavations made by the French brought to See also:

LIGHT

light some of these columns, which are now in the museums of Tlemcen and See also:

ALGIERS (Fr. Alger, Arab. Jezair, i.e. The Islands)

Algiers. History.—A Roman town, Pomaria, occupied a site east of the See also:

PRESENT

present town. It derived its name from the abundance and luxuriance of the See also:

APPLE (a common Teut. word, A.S. aepl, aeppel, O.H.G. aphul, aphal, apfal, mod. Ger. Apfel)

apple, See also:

PEAR (Pyrus communis)

pear and other See also:

FRUIT (through the French from the Lat. fructus; frui, to enjoy)

fruit trees in the neighbourhood. The Roman town was ruined in the period following the Vandal invasion, and at the time of the Arab conquest appears to have been deserted. Many See also:

INSCRIPTIONS (from Lat. inscribere, to write upon)

inscriptions of the See also:

Christian era have been found, some as See also:

LATE

late even as the 7th century. The site was See also:

PURCHASED

purchased from the See also:

ZENATA, or ZANATA

Zenata Berbers, in the 8th century, by Idris-See also:

bin-Abdallah, who began the building of a new city named Agadir (Berber, the fortress). Idris, founder of the Iclrisite See also:

DYNASTY (Gr. &vvaareta, sovereignty, the position of a hevnori7r, lord, ruler, from SuvaaBay to be able, Suvaµas, power)

dynasty of See also:

FEZ (Fes)

Fez, left his See also:

BROTHER

brother See also:

SULEIMAN

Suleiman in See also:

possession of Agadir, and the city was ruled by the Beni-Suleiman until 931, when it See also:

fell into the hands of the See also:

Fatimites. From the Fatimites it passed into the possession of the Beni-Yala, of the Beni-Ifren See also:

BRANCH (from the Fr. branche, late Lat. branca, an animal's paw)

branch of the Zenata Berbers, who held it as vassals of the Omayyad rulers of See also:

Spain. In ro8o the Almoravide See also:

SOVEREIGN

sovereign Yusef ibn Tashfin, after besieging and sacking Agadir, built a new town on the site of his camp. The new town, called Tagrart, became the colnmercial See also:

QUARTER (through Fr. from Lat. quartarius, fourth part)

quarter, whilst Agadir remained the royal residence. The two towns when See also:

UNITED

united received the name of Tlemcen.

The See also:

ALMORAVIDES (properly Murabtis, the name being corrupted through the Spanish)

Almoravides reigned sixty-five years, when, after holding Agadir four years against the enemy, they were overcome by the See also:

ALMOHADES (properly Muwahhadis, i.e. " Unitarians," the name being corrupted through the Spanish)

Almohades, who massacred the inhabitants, rebuilt, enlarged and repeopled the ruined town, and built a wall (1161) surrounding the double town. In 1248 Tlemcen was captured The by Abu Yahia Yarmorasen (Ghamarasan) who was sultanate of chief of the Zenata tribe of Berbers and claimed Tlemcen- descent from the See also:

CALIPH, CALIF

Caliph Ali. Yarmorasen, who died in 1282, founded the dynasty of the Abd-el-Wahid, who ruled the greater part of what now constitutes Algeria. Under their sway Tlemcen flourished exceedingly. The presence of See also:

Jews and Christians was encouraged and the Christians possessed a church. The See also:

BAZAAR (Pers. bazar, market)

bazaar of the See also:

Franks (kissaria) was a large walled enclosure, the See also:

GATES, HORATIO (1728-1806)

gates of which were closed at sunset. As many as 5000 Christians lived peaceably in Tlemcen, and the Sultan included in his See also:

army a Christian bodyguard. In 1337 the See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power of the Abd-el-Wahid was temporarily extinguished by the Marinide sultans of Morocco. They left some fine monuments of the period of their ascendancy, which lasted twenty-two years. Once more, under the Abd-el-Wahid, now known as the Beni-Zeiyan, from 1359 to 1553, Tlemcen enjoyed prosperity. It had a population reputed to number 125,000, an extensive trade, a brilliant court and a powerful army. The See also:

SPANISH

Spanish occupation of Oran (15o9) struck a fatal See also:

BLOW, JOHN (1648-1708)

blow at the European See also:

commerce of the town.

The Beni-Zeiyan, after the See also:

CAPTURE (from Lat. capere, to take; Fr. prise maritime; Ger. Wegnahme)

capture of Algiers in 1516 by the See also:

CORSAIR (through the Fr. from the Med. Lat. cursarius, a pirate; cursus, or cursa, from currere, to run, being Late Latin for a plundering foray)

corsair See also:

BARBAROSSA ("Redbeard")

Barbarossa (q.v.) gradually lost their territory to the See also:

TURKS

Turks, while Tlemcen itself for See also:

FORTY

forty years became tributary to the Spanish See also:

GOVERNOR (from the Fr. gouverneur, from gouverner, O. Fr. governer, Lat. gubernare, to steer a ship, to direct, guide)

governor of Oran. In 1518 the town was held for a See also:

SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short time by Arouj Barbarossa, but Arouj was killed in a fight with the Spaniards. It is said that, while See also:

MASTER (Lat. magister, related to tnagis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maitre; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro)

master of the town, Arouj caused twenty-two of the Zeiyan princes to be drowned in the sahrij. In 1553 the Turks under Salah See also:

RAIS (or RETZ), GILLES DE (1404-1440)

Rais, See also:

PASHA

pasha of Algiers, captured Tlemcen and the Sultanate of Tagrart, as it was still frequently called, came to an end. Under the Turks the town ceased to be of any importance. When the French entered Algeria the sultans of Morocco were disputing the possession of Tlemcen with the Kuluglis, who fought first for themselves and after-wards for See also:

France. In 1835 Abd-el-Kader, on whose See also:

APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance the See also:

Moors retired, sought to re-establish the ancient See also:

EMPIRE

empire of Tlemcen, but he retreated before See also:

General See also:

CLAUSEL (more correctly CLAUZEL), BERTRAND, COUNT (1772–1842)

Clausel in 1836. The treaty of the Tafna (1837) gave Tlemcen to Abd-el-Kader, but, See also:

war being renewed in 1842, Tlemcen was definitely occupied by the French, under whom it has prospered. The See also:

commune of Tlemcen, which includes a number of villages near the city, had a population (1906) of 39,757, and the arrondissement, which includes nine communes, 149,467. See See also:

Les Monuments arabes de Tlemcen, by See also:

William Marcais and Georges Marcais (See also:

Paris, 1903). This accurate and finely-illustrated See also:

WORK

work, one of the publications of the Service See also:

des monuments historiques de l'Algerie, cites the principal See also:

WORKS

works dealing with Tlemcen, and gives a See also:

CRITICAL (in alphabetical order of authors)

critical estimate of their value. (F.

End of Article: TLEMCEN

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