Sbeitla or Sufetula ( ber, Sbitla or Seftula, ar, سبيطلة ') is a small town in west-central

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

. Nearby are the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...

ruins of Sufetula, containing the best preserved Byzantine forum temples in Tunisia. It was the entry point of the Muslim conquest of North Africa. Sbeitla is the capital of the largest

delegation Delegation is the assignment of authority to another person (normally from a manager to a subordinate) to carry out specific activities. It is the process of distributing and entrusting work to another person,Schermerhorn, J., Davidson, P., Poole ...

in Kasserine Governorate with an area of 1133.5 km². It is located in 33 km in the west of the governorate, and 264 km to

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

. It has a population of 23,844 (2014 estimate). Sbeitla is mentioned in Noman Douglas's ''

Fountains in the Sand A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...

'' as being wooded by junipers and Aleppo pines as late as the 19th century, though he found them "bleak and bare" in the early 20th century.

History

The oldest traces of civilisation in the zone are

Punic The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...

megaliths and funereal stelae. The region was inhabited by nomadic tribes until the

Legio III Augusta ("Third Augustan Legion") was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. Its origin may have been the Republican 3rd Legion which served the general Pompey during his civil war against Gaius Julius Caesar (49–45 BC). It supported the general Octa ...

established a camp at Ammaedara. Through the surrender of the Berber leader Tacfarinas, the region was pacified and populated under the Roman emperor

Vespasian Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Em ...

and his sons between 67 and 69, becoming a

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 ...

in 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 ...

Byzacena Byzacena (or Byzacium) ( grc, Βυζάκιον, ''Byzakion'') was a Late Roman province in the central part of Roman North Africa, which is now roughly Tunisia, split off from Africa Proconsularis. History At the end of the 3rd century AD, t ...

. Some inscriptions found in the city suggest that the settlement had success along the lines of others in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...

during the 2nd century, reaching great prosperity through the

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

industry, whose cultivation benefited from excellent climatic conditions in the region. The olive presses found in the ruins of the city further bolster this conclusion. The resulting prosperity made possible the construction of a splendid forum and other important buildings. The city began to decline during the Late Empire, during which the city was surrounded and occupied by

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The Vandals migrated to the area be ...

, a fact that is demonstrated by the appearance of temples dedicated to their gods. The

arrival Arrival(s) or The Arrival(s) may refer to: Film * ''The Arrival'' (1991 film), an American science fiction horror film * ''The Arrival'' (1996 film), an American-Mexican science fiction horror film * ''Arrival'' (film), a 2016 American science ...

of the Byzantines inaugurated a new period of splendor. In 647, the fields before the city were the site of a major battle between the Byzantines and Berbers of Gregory the Patrician and the

Rashidun Caliphate The Rashidun Caliphate ( ar, اَلْخِلَافَةُ ٱلرَّاشِدَةُ, al-Khilāfah ar-Rāšidah) was the first caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was ruled by the first four successive caliphs of Muhammad after hi ...

's governor of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

, Abdullah ibn Saad. The

Battle of Sufetula Battle of Sufetula can refer to: * Battle of Sufetula (546 or 547) between Byzantines and Moors * Battle of Sufetula (647) The Battle of Sufetula ( ar, معركة سبيطلة, Ma'rakat Sbeitla) took place in 647 between the Arab Muslim forces o ...

ended in a decisive Muslim victory, which shook Byzantine control over the region and signalled the beginning of the Muslim conquest of North Africa. Image:Sbeitla Temples of the Gods.jpg, Capitoline temples Image:Sbeitla 01.jpg, Public baths Image:Sbeitla Arch of Antoninus Pius.jpg, Arch of Antoninus Pius and Capitoline temples The

caliph A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

at the time of the battle was

Uthman ibn Affan Uthman ibn Affan ( ar, عثمان بن عفان, ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān; – 17 June 656), also spelled by Colloquial Arabic, Turkish and Persian rendering Osman, was a second cousin, son-in-law and notable companion of the Islamic prophe ...

, who set the army under the leadership of Abdullah ibn Saad. At his arrival to

Barqa Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή ��παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...

Uqba ibn Nafi ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī al-Qurashī ( ar, عقبة بن نافع بن عبد القيس الفهري القرشي, ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī), also simply known as Uqba ibn Nafi, was an Arab general ser ...

and his troops joined the main army and the two commanders prepared together the plan to conquer Sbeitla. The battle was long and hard, and Caliph Uthman sent reinforcement under the leadership of

Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ( ar, عبد الله ابن الزبير ابن العوام, ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Zubayr ibn al-ʿAwwām; May 624 CE – October/November 692), was the leader of a caliphate based in Mecca that rivaled the ...

. The three leaders prepared a new battle plan and they finally succeeded in taking Sufetula. The Muslim conquest marked the end of the diocese of Sufetula, which was however nominally revived as a Catholic

titular bishopric 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 ...

Geography

Sbeitla is located in western central Tunisia. By road it is 33 kilometres (29 mi) north-east of Kasserine, 246 kilometres (180 mi) south-west of Tunis, and 166 kilometres (141 mi) south-west of Sousse. The city is known by its

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi- ...

Culture

Thanks to the well preserved archaeological site with its prestigious Roman forum, the cultural activities in Sbeitla have prospered. An annual festival is organised in the forum.

Museums

The archaeological museum of Sbeitla houses several sculptures and mosaics. It consists of three exhibition rooms: the first one is about the Capsian culture, the second about the rest of

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...

' empire, and the third contains two mosaics.

Festivals

Since 2000, the city holds its

Spring International Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device) A spring is an elastic object that stores mechanical energy. In everyday use the term often refers to coil springs, but there are many differen ...

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival co ...

each year, it is an international celebration where many famous actors like

Mahmoud Yacine Mahmoud Yassin ( ar, محمود ياسين; 19 February 1941 – 14 October 2020) was an Egyptian actor. He was an iconic actor in both Egyptian cinema and television, portraying dramatic, psychological and romantic roles. Career Yassin studied l ...

and authors like Mahmoud Messadi were honored. The city celebrates also its international festival named also ''festival abadelah of Sbeitla''. It was founded in 2000, and it became international in 2013.

Economy

The economy of Sbeitla relays on handicraft, agricultural and petroleum production managed by ETAP in the oil field of

Douleb Douleb ( ar, الدولاب ) is a small town in north-central Tunisia, belongs to Sbeitla in the Kasserine Governorate. It is well known by it oil field A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons ...

. Smuggling goods and oil from Algerian Borders represent a major parallel economy activity in the region.

Agricultural

The city is surrounded by a large field of agriculture of

, almond and

animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, selective breeding, and the raising of livestock. Husbandry has a long history, star ...

. It contains 919

shallow wells A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

, 137 deep wells, a mountain lake and a mountain dam the irrigated Area remains limited to 2930 hectares.

Petroleum industries

The Oil field of

is one of the fields explored by ETAP, since April 12, 1968 and it produces 230 000 barrels\year. In 1974, the field reached it maximal productivity with 1200m³ per day.

Handicraft

The majority of

handicraft A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...

known in Sbeitla relay on

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

processing. Tunisian barnous is one of those handcrafts.

Sports

Sbeitla's most popular sport club is ''Union Sportive Sbeitla'' also known as USS, the club plays in the

Tunisian ligue professionnelle 3 Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 3 is the 3rd tier of football in Tunisia. 42 teams compete at this level, divided into 3 groups of 14 teams each. 2016–17 clubs Group 1 * Ahly Mateur * AS Metline * Association Mégrine Sport * AS Mhamdia * AS O ...

before being promoted to

ligue 2 Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions making up the Ligu ...

in the 2013 season . The team currently plays in the Third Tunisian League. On June 5, 2013, the club advanced to the

Quarter-finals A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final mat ...

of Tunisian Cup for the first time in its history. After defeating Stade Tunisien, the club was eliminated by CA Bizertin." Tunisian Cup : Stade Tunisien was eliminated by Union Sportive Sbeitla ", ''Mosaïque FM'', juin 9, 2013
/ref>

Notable people

* Ali Ben Ghedhahem (1814 - October 10, 1867) a famous Tunisian

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

. *

Mongi Soussi Zarrouki Mongi Soussi Zarrouki ( ar, منجي سوسي زروقي ; 24 February 1936 – 26 May 2000) was a Tunisian track and field athlete. He competed in the 400 metres hurdles events at the 1960 Summer Olympics. He was also the silver medallist i ...

(February 24, 1936 – May 26, 2000) is an

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-dev ...

who participated in

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

and in the 1959 Mediterranean Games. *

Lotfi Ben Jeddou Lotfi Ben Jeddou (born 31 July 1964 in Sbeitla Biography of Lotfi Ben Jeddou, Minister of the Interior
''Express FM'', January 27, 2014) is a politician who was the

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

from March 2013 to february 2015.

References

External links

Lexicorient
{{Authority control Populated places in Kasserine Governorate Roman sites in Tunisia 69 establishments Communes of Tunisia Populated places of the Byzantine Empire Roman amphitheaters in North Africa Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Tunisia