Dar Hammuda Pasha is an old

palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

in the

medina of Tunis The Medina of Tunis is the medina quarter of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. The Medina contains some 700 monuments, including palaces, mosques, mausoleums, madrasas and fountains dating from ...

. It is considered one of the oldest and biggest palaces of the medina that kept their original architecture.

Localization

It is located in

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

, in the prestigious Sidi Ben Arous Street, near the political power centre.

History

Dar Hammuda Pasha was built by

Hammuda Pasha Bey Hammuda Pasha Bey (), died April 13, 1666Ibn Abi Dhiaf, ''Présent des hommes de notre temps. Chroniques des rois de Tunis et du pacte fondamental'', vol. II, éd. Maison tunisienne de l'édition, Tunis, 1990, p. 47 was the second Bey of the Tuni ...

, a Muradid prince in 1630. The palace was the residence place of Hammuda Pasha and his first wife, the well known princess Aziza Othmana, before succeeding his father to the throne and moving to Dar El Bey (then called Dar El Kbira or Big House). Few years before his death, Hammuda Pacha decides to give Dar El Bey to his eldest son and successor,

Murad II Murad II (, ; June 1404 – 3 February 1451) was twice the sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1421 to 1444 and from 1446 to 1451. Early life Murad was born in June 1404 to Mehmed I, while the identity of his mother is disputed according to v ...

while Dar Hammouda Pacha (called Dar El Sghira at that time or Small House) was given to his younger son Mohamed El Hafsi Pasha. Under the

Husainid dynasty The Husainid dynasty or Husaynid dynasty () was a ruling Turkish dynasty of the Beylik of Tunis. The dynasty was of Greek origin from the island of Crete. It came to power under al-Husayn I ibn Ali in 1705, succeeding the Muradid dynasty. Af ...

, the palace was used as an annex to Dar El Bey and a residence place for the royal family. After the Mejba Revolt, the palace was offered by

Muhammad III as-Sadiq Muhammad III as-Sadiq (; 7 February 1813 – 27 October 1882) commonly known as Sadok Bey (), was the Husainid Bey of Tunis from 1859 until his death. Invested as Bey al-Mahalla (Heir Apparent) on 10 June 1855, he succeeded his brother Muhamm ...

to Salah Ben Mohamed, a ''kahia'' and tribal leader who was promoted later to ''bach hamba'' (captain of the mounted police) and a lieutenant governor of

El Kef El Kef ( '), also known as ''Le Kef'', is a city in northwestern Tunisia. It serves as the capital of the Kef Governorate. El Kef is situated to the west of Tunis and some east of the border between Algeria and Tunisia. It has a population of ...

for his loyalty and good services during the civil war. Salah Ben Mohamed transformed the palace into a habous. In 1872, Hammuda Chahed, a rich noble and one of the biggest chaouachia corporation chiefs, bought it but kept its previous legal status as a habous. In 1957, Dar Hammouda Pacha lost its status as a habous due to a new law, which made it possible to the touristic development society of

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

, and affiliate of the Poulina group to buy the palace and convert it into a prestigious restaurant called Dar Hammouda Pacha.

Architecture

Laurent d'Arvieux, who visited the palace in 1670, gave detailed description of the palace :

References

{{Coord missing, Tunisia Hammouda Pacha