Algiers

Algiers , (Arab: الجزائر Al-Jazāʾir, Dzayer; Berber: Lžayer), called Al Bahdja (“the Radiant one”) or “the White one”, as well by the Algerians as by the French, is the Capitale of the largest Algérie and city of the country.

  • N.B. : The town of Algiers is not administratively any more speaking a territorial collectivity.

Etymology

The name of “Algiers” is a French deformation of the Catalan Alguère , founder of the dynasty Zirides, when it builds the city into 960 on the ruins of the old city to the Roman name Icosium; Djezaïr Blessed Mezranna .

Several explanations however are given as for the significance of the name given by Bologhine ibn Ziri. A first explanation would like that the name is given in reference to the islands which at the time faced the port of Algiers and which were attached to its current pier; in Arab Al-Djaza' ir (rear RTL الجزائر), “Islands”. Mezranna would be also a form arabized of Imezren , or “Berber”, which would give the original form Tiziri At Imezran , “Ziri of Berber”. Moreover, the Inhabitants of Algiers indicate themselves under the term of Dziri , the popular speech preserved in addition the formula Dzayer to indicate Algiers. The agglomeration of Algiers, with its 4.250.000 inhabitants, gathers more than 12% of the Algerian population and places at the 1e place of the most populated agglomerations the Maghreb.

History

Called Icosium (“the island with the gulls”) when it acquired the statute of counter Phénicie N of importance, its foundation goes back to fourth century BC (remains of vases campiniens - dating from third century BC - there were discovered in a twenty depth meters well in 1940).

Antiquity

  • Already at the beginning of, Algiers is an important counter phenician.

  • In 202 before J. - C., the city passes under Roman influence following the alliance sealed between Massinissa and Scipion the African against Carthage. The name of Ikosim takes its romanized form, Icosium.
  • It is about the 4th century that the Christianisme is introduced in Icosium.
  • In 429, the city passes under domination vandal. In 442, a treaty between Roman and Vandales made it possible to the Romans to recover Icosium and this during the hundred years which the presence vandal in Algeria lasted.
  • After 533, the city, hardly controlled by the Byzantine , is attacked by tribes Berbères.

The Middle Ages

Modern time

  • In 1510, the Spanish S besieged it and built on a small island of bay of Algiers a fortress, the Peñón of Algiers , intended to bombard the city and to prevent its provisioning.

  • In 1529, Barberousse destroyed this fortress and built the Kheir-Eddine pier, connecting the small islands to the dry land and thus constituting the first shelter of the wearing of Algiers. This date marks also the beginning of the Régence of Algiers, a political regime of Othoman inspiration , which made of Algiers the capital of largely independent Algeria but affiliated with the Sublime Door. Thus during the period of Othoman regency, the borders Is (with the Tunisia) and West (with the Morocco) were definitively traced. At the same time, a double extrapolation was born. The city called El Djazaïr (Algiers and Algérie are written same Arabic manner: El Djazaïr) gave its name to the whole country and the citadel perched in top of the city the old, called Casbah, gave its name to the city. Nowadays still, Casbah indicates the précoloniale city. It is classified today with the world heritage of UNESCO.
Garden of test: created in 1832 per Auguste Hardy, on a surface of 48 hectares one finds there alleys of plane trees, ficus, of dracoenas, bamboos, of chamaerops excelsa (trachycarpus fortunei), lataniers and superb palm trees. The garden was overhung by a Museum of Beautiful arts. In an enclosure, was the zoological gardens.

French colonization

In 1830, following the business known as “ of the Range ”, Charles X sends a task force French to take possession of the city. Simple raid in the beginning, the French occupation will be prolonged during more than 130 years, and will deeply mark the city which hardly counted: 30000 inhabitants in 1830.

Indeed, the city becomes the capital of the new colony of Algeria, and starting from 1848, prefecture of the of the same department name. It develops quickly, becoming populated European emigrants during the second part of the 19th century, mainly of French origin. Those settle mainly in the suburbs, like the popular quarters of Bab El-Oued. The local population concentrates rather in a Casbah in the process of taudification.

Colonization makes of Algiers a city with European majority. Although the Muslim population Indigène starts exponentially to increase starting from the First World War, with the Natural increase and the Rural migration.

Second world war

During the Second world war, the North Africa sees unloading the forces américano-British, within the framework of the Opération Torch. But the unloading succeeds initially only in Algiers, thanks to the Putsch of November 8th, 1942, per which 400 French patriots, the 2/3 are Jewish , stop the Vichyist generals (June, Darlan, etc) and, under the direction of Jose Aboulker and Henri d' Astier of Vigerie, the 19th Vichyist Army corps neutralizes alone , during 15 hours while occupying by surprised the majority of the strategic points. Thus make it possible they the Allies to unload without opposition, to encircle Algiers, and to obtain the capitulation from it the very same day.

With Oran and Morocco, where the putsches envisaged failed, the Vichyist generals accommodate everywhere the Allies with blow of gun, until their chiefs Darlan and Juin, captive of Alliés in Algiers finish, under the threat, by their ordering at the end of 3 days the cease-fire. Algiers becomes the seat of the Allié command, charged with preparing the unloading in Italy under the direction of the general Eisenhower, future president of the the United States.

It becomes especially capital provisional of France, when, after a provisional maintenance of the mode of Vichy under Darlan and Giraud (see Régime of Vichy in released Africa (1942-1943)), it accommodates the general de Gaulle which constitutes there, with Giraud, the French Comité of the national Release, convenes the provisional Consultative Assembly there, which will be worth to him to be decorated with the cross of the Légion of honor by the French president Jacques Chirac the August 15th 2004.

War of Algeria

Algiers plays also a decisive part during the Guerre of Algeria (1954 - 1962), in particular during the Bataille of Algiers, during which the 10th division parachutist of the French Army, starting from the January 7th 1957, led hunting to the Algerian freedom fighters, on order of the Minister of Justice François Mitterrand, which gives him all capacities “to eliminate the insurrectionists”. The city counted 884.000 inhabitants then

Algiers remains marked by this episode characterized by a thankless struggle between the freedom fighters resorting to the attacks anti-French, and the French Army carrying out a bloody repression including the quasi-systematic use of the torture against the protestors of the colonial order, such as the young mathematics professor Maurice Audin, or the nationalist leader Larbi Ben Me hidi, honoured since by the municipality: principal arteries of the city bear their names.

The manifestations of the May 13rd 1958 at the time of the Crise of May 1958 devote the fall of the to it Fourth Republic in France, as well as the return of the general de Gaulle to the businesses. (See war of Algeria) Algiers will lose during the exodus of 1962, its population of European and Jewish origin. (350.000personnes)

Independence

The Algerians celebrate in a great popular jubilation the independence of Algeria the July 5th 1962. Directed by the soldiers, Algiers becomes one cultural, political and diplomatic capital Third world like one headlight city Movement of non-aligned the during the Cold war.

In October 1988, is one year before the fall of the Berlin Wall, Algiers is the theater of demonstrations claiming the end of the system of sole party, true a Démocratie baptized “the Spring of Algiers” (see the article: Riots of October 1988 in Algeria ). They are repressed by the authorities (more than 300 dead), but constitute a turning in the political history of modern Algeria: in 1989, a new constitution is adopted which puts an end to the reign of the sole party and sees the creation of more than fifty political parties, as well as an officially total release of the written press.

Crisis of the years 1990

See also: Algerian Civil war

The city becomes then until in 1992 the theater of many political demonstrations of all tendencies. In 1991, a political training dominated by religious conservatives, the MADE, engages a political arm wrestling with the authorities which shows legislative elections which it is on the way to gain in 1992, with the favor of a massive abstention from the disillusioned Algerian voters by the turning of the events. The cancellation of the poll by the authorities marks the beginning of a news period of violences opposing the State to the religious ultraconservateurs made up in armed groups, until in 1999.

The social and cultural economic activity takes again colors with the favor of the calm income.

Years 2000

Nowadays, in 2007, Algiers wants to become again a large African capital and Mediterranean, planning to have a level of development of the infrastructures comparable with that which it had in 1962. She undertakes an opening towards the world by organizing many demonstrations and international symposiums.

Algiers has attracted thus for a few years of great multinationals such as Carrefour, Yves Rocher, or Quick. Many great projects of realization of infrastructures such as the Subway of Algiers, the tram like various redevelopment projects urban, of creation of new satellite urban centres, pain to be born, though they should have been completed there is more than 15 years: Algiers is in full urban development, moved by a need for assertion to the regional plan in its fight to compete with the other North-African cities of Tunisia and the Morocco.

For the year 2007, Algiers is capital “Arab culture”. April 11th, 2007, a double murder with the bomb aims at the palate of the government (where seat the Prime Minister and the Minister of Interior Department) and the police station of Bab-Ezzouar. These attacks are asserted by Organization Al-Qaïda in the Islamic Maghreb (old GSPC).

However, as brings it back the Algerian press, Algiers is the least livable capital in the world . It is what comes out from a study published lately by “The Economist Intelligence”, which is a unit of the investigations belonging to the British group “The Economist” (weekly specialized in the businesses and the economic analyzes). On 132 selected cities, Algiers was classified in the last place of this report/ratio worked out by evaluating the living conditions of these cities, according to 40 indicators. The latter relate to five categories: stability, department of health, culture and environment, the education and the availability of the basic infrastructures. The evaluation of Algiers was of 64,7% (whereas Vancouver, the first of the classification, had 1,3%). In 2005, the “white one” was classified by the same organization with the 125e place (on 129). This time, Algiers was regarded as gravitational of the world being made outdistance by Karachi (Pakistan), Tripoli (Libya), Abidjan (coast-D' ivory), or Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

Peripheral Districts

The peripheral districts of Algiers shelter today more half of the inhabitants of the wilaya of Algiers. One can quote in particular El-Harrach (Square ex-House), Hussein-dey, Bab Ezzouar, Bouzareah, Chevalley and Kouba. One can also add to it the suburbs of Chéraga, Bordj el Kiffan (ex- Fort of water), Rouiba, Dély-Ibrahim, Draria, Ain Benian (ex-Guyotville), Ain Taya, Bordj El Bahri (ex- Cape Matifou) and Birkhadem.

Districts of Algiers

  • the Kasbah (of Al Qasbah , “the Citadel”), Ier District of Algiers: called Al-Djazaïr Al Mahroussa (“Well Kept Algiers”), it is founded on the ruins of old Icosium.

It is a small town which, built on a hill, goes down towards the sea, divided in two: the High city and the Low city. One finds there masonries and mosques of the 17th century; Ketchaoua mosque (built in 1794 by the Dey Baba Hassan) flanked of two minarets, mosque el Djedid (1660, at the time of Turkish regency) with its large finished ovoid cupola points some and its four coupolettes, mosque El Kébir (oldest of the mosques, it was built by the almoravide Youssef Ibn Tachfin and later rebuilt in 1794), mosque Ali Betchnin (Ray, 1623), Dar Aziza, palate of Jénina. The Kasbah, they is also labyrinths of lanes and houses picturesque; and if one loses oneself there, it is enough to go down again towards the sea to reposition itself.

  • Bab El-Oued : popular quarters which extend from the Kasbah beyond “the door of the river”. It was at the beginning the district of the small European people before 1962. It is the district more chouchouté and more liked of all the districts of the capital. Famous for its place “the three clocks” and for its “market Triplet”, it is also a district of workshops and manufactures.

  • Seaside : starting from 1840, the architects Pierre-August Guiauchain and Frederic Chassériau installed new constructions apart from the Kasbah, town hall, law courts, buildings, theater, palate of the Governor, casino… to form an elegant walk bordered of arcades which is today the boulevard Che Guevara (ex-boulevard of the République).

  • Kouba (Daira of Hussein-dey): Kouba is an old village which was absorbed by the expansion of the town of Algiers. Of village, Kouba quickly developed under the French colonial era then more still with the favor of the formidable demographic expansion than Algiers knew after the independence of Algeria in 1962. It is today a district of Algiers with whole share made up mainly of houses, villas and buildings not exceeding the five stages.

  • El Harrach, according to the name of the river which crosses this district. The mouth of this river played a very important part in the catch of Algiers and the Dogvane, this rock opposite Algiers occupied by the Spaniards. Indeed, at the beginning of the 16th century, with the call of the one of the dignitaries of Algiers autochtones who saw the progressive loss of the authority of the city in front of the occupation of the Dogvane by the Spaniards, one of the Barberousse brothers hid his fleet there before taking Algiers by surprised by the south-eastern side. This district of Algiers will be named House-Square by French, who will make the industrial park of the city of it. Thus, during colonization, as well El-Harrach as Hussein-Dey will be satellite towns of Algiers where Algerian autochtones more or less will cohabit with French, but in clearly separate zones. This city will be a residential district for an easy layer of French, but a true ghetto for the Algerians, especially those pushed by the rural migration.
El-Harrach was also a city which wrote a large page of sporting history with the Boxe and the Football. After independence, El-Harrach will become gradually a district of Algiers, and later on chief town of Daira with a new cutting in districts, like Mohammadia, Belfort, Bellevue, the Park, Wadi-Smar, Five-Houses, the dunes, theMaritime ones, Beaulieu, etc

  • the communes of Hydra, Ben Aknoun, El-Biar and Bouzareah form what the inhabitants of Algiers name the heights of Algiers. These communes, sometimes famous knacks, shelter the majority of the foreign embassies of Algiers, from many ministries and university centres, which does of it one of the administrative poles and policy of the country.

  • the street Didouche Mourade ex- Rue Michelet is located in the 3rd district of Algiers. It extends from the Grande Post office until the Heights of Algiers. It crosses in particular the place Audin , the Faculty of Algiers , Crowned the Heart and the park of Galland . It is bordered of smart stores and restaurants on most of its length. She is regarded as the heart of the capital.

Monuments

  • Monument of the Martyrs ( Maquam E' chahid ): Set up with the site of the war memorial of the second world war natives of Algeria, destroyed by the Algerian government, high of 90 meters and overhanging Algiers. The monument was built by a Canadian company in 1984, and is composed of three palms resting on a vast esplanade where the “eternal flame is”. It is dedicated to the memory of the combatants of the war of independence of the country. The shopping mall Riad El-Feth is located just at side and the two places are connected.

  • the Large Post office (1910, by Voinot and Tondoire): construction of the néo-Moorish type which is in full center town of Algiers.
  • Garden of Test ( El-Hamma ): located at the east of Algiers, it extends on a surface from 80 hectares. It was created in 1832 by A. Hardy. Exotic plants and gardens there are found.
  • Large Mosque of Algiers : built by Almoravide Youssef Ibn Tachfin in XIe century then rebuilt in 1840, located at the Street of the Navy, the oldest mosque of Algiers.

  • Notre-Dame Basilica of Africa , accessible by a Cable car, is one of its most outstanding monuments: located in the district of Z' will ghara, the basilica was built around 1858.

  • Place of the Emir Abdelkader (ex-place Bugeaud): in memory of the emir Abd El-Kader, resistant during the colonial conquest of Algeria.
  • Villa Abd-el-Hair , with the top of the Garden of test, one of the old residences of the dey, where until 1962, were placed the artists prizes winner of the Prix Abd-el-Hair, and in particular Maurice Boitel and André Hamburg.
  • Riadh El-Feth : shopping mall and gallery of Article
  • National library , with the modern architecture, are in the district of El Hamma.
  • the MAMA , museum of modern art of Algiers located in the street Larbi Ben Me hidi (ex-street of Isly) which replaces the old Algerian gallery (dating from the colonial time).

Economy

Algiers is the first economic and commercial pole of Algeria and the only important financial pole of the country. Nevertheless Algiers pains to be essential on the international level, or even still with the regional scales. After 40 years of state intervention and baited centralism, the slowness of the reforms still does not arrive has to give has " Blanche" airs of large Metropolis. On the financial plan, the cruel lack of private large banks of investment banks muzzles the sector of SME and overall degrades the economic environment which is too depend on the oil revenue and which hardly survives when they are or not gas not-tankers fields. Moreover the State of the Stock Market of Algiers is enough only has him to raise the veil on an even lacking tone often latent private sector on certain fields (services, insurances, banks, council, tourism, advanced technology industry…). Indeed this purse recorded a ridiculous capitalization rising has 67 Million euroscontre 5 Billion euros for Stock Exchange Tunis and 61 Billion euros for Casablanca Stock Exchange, quantifies illustrating perfectly the lack of of Algiers dynamism compared to the two other economic capital of the adjoining countries. With regard to the industry of the leisures and Algiers tourism hardly makes better.

Tourist installations

,

To some 20 km in the west of Algiers seaside resorts are such as Sidi Fredj (ex-Sidi Ferruch), Palm Beach, Douaouda, Zéralda, the Club of the Pines (residence of State); one will find there tourist complexes, Algerian and different restaurants, souvenir shops, supervised beaches, etc the city is also equipped with important hotel complexes such as the hotel Hilton, El-Aurassi or El Djazair.

Algiers also obtained 2 watery parks. Located at ten minutes of the city while going towards the East, the (Kiffan Club) extends on a surface from 2 hectares. Large adult basin, several basins children as well as large toboggans, the site includes/understands several points of restoration and (Aquafortland) 16000m2 except carpark includes/understands a river with toboggans, a very ludic pataugeoire, a large swimming pool with jacuzzi and of the plays for children trampoline and rubber band a varied restoration the whole in decorations pleasant. between these two watery parks the Karting Escape is, which is the new Karting of Algiers, with a 700 meters long track and having three categories different of karts. The Tourisme of Algiers is in full rise but is not as developed as that of the big cities of the Morocco or the Tunisia.

Transport

  • Subway of Algiers, the first phase of the line 1 “Haï el Badr” - “Tafourah-Large post office”, 9 km, 10 stations, currently in construction, must be brought into service at the end of 2008.

  • ETUSA (urban and suburban Haulage company of Algiers) has bus as of the mégabus since 2006 which serves the capital like its suburbs. 54 lines are currently operational and the service is ensured of 5:30 0:45.

  • SNTF (National company of the rail-bound transports) operates on lines connecting the capital to the of Algiers suburbs starting from the of Algiers stations.

  • the Aéroport of Algiers managed by EGSA (Management company of the airport services) is located at 20 km. The majority of the airline companies had suspended their service road towards Algiers since the taking of hostages on December 24th, 1994 of the flight Air France Vol AF 8969 but the majority returned since. The airport serves the majority of the European cities, the West Africa, the the Middle East and since June 15th, 2007, the North America with a flight Algiers-Montreal.

  • Inauguré on July 5th, 2006 new an air terminal international is from now on in service. Its very modern infrastructures can better manage the flow of the international traffic. The company Airports of Paris, manages this news large installation.

  • the long Tramway of Algiers 8 km will be usable since 2009.

Quinquennial projects of the wilaya of Algiers

  • the beach Colonel Abbès is located at the West of Algiers, to approximately 25 km of the downtown area. The tourist project will include/understand a marina, apartments hotel, villas of luxury and a shopping mall on a surface of 109 ha. The other project of Emaâr, located on bay of Algiers is to 3 km of the downtown area and will extend on 260 ha, to include/understand villas of luxury, apartments, offices, a center of conferences, a marina, a hotel and two great shopping malls. The city of the health of Staouéli, to approximately 20 km of the center of Algiers, includes/understands a private hospital, a ancillary medical school, a furnished medical school, research center, apartments, a hotel thalasso, villas, apartments, a campus for students, a shopping mall and centers of sport. “Basing itself on the principal competence of Emaar under development, our multi-purpose projects have an important socio-economic role for Algeria. Emaar Proprieties PJSC is one of the largest real estate companies of the world and is in full expansion to become a total supplier of high level lifestyles. Moved by its vision 2010 to become one of the best companies of value in the world, Emaar springs on a new line of growth with a double strategy of geographical and commercial expansion.

  • to make up the enormous deficit which the town of Algiers as regards transport knows, this one will be equipped with a Tramway which will connect the Center-ville to Dergana (operational in 2009), of a line of Métro Tafourah-Large Post office-El Harrach (operational in 2008) and several lines the RER Algiers-Aga-Thenia, Algiers-Aga-Elafroun, Algiers-Aga-Zeralda. To all this the reorganization of Etusa is added (urban and suburban Haulage company of Algiers), the new realization of three Téléphérique S from here 2009, the rehabilitation of four what exists as well as the refitting of the Voirie. It is also question of the restoration of the station of Algiers (Aga) to accommodate the future line LGV Annaba-Algiers-Oran.

  • In addition, in response to the increase always increasing in the car fleet, and parallel to the installation of Way S and roundabouts, of the exchanging and the sections of Autoroute was built right now, and others are in the course of construction in order to improve the traffic in the metropolis. A school - at the same time Koranic school and school of the Science S - there will be attached, bordered of green areas.

  • Construction of two seaside resorts on the of Algiers littoral.

  • Park of the high winds which is located at the west of Algiers: large of a surface of 650 ha; many species of trees and plants will be planted there.

  • the new town of Sidi Abdellah which will include/understand a technological pole and of research, like: 20000 residences

  • (9/3/1998)

; Treaty of friendship and co-operation:

  • (10/11/1989)
  • (2003)

Celebrities

Of Algiers personalities

Celebrities born in Algiers

Films on Algiers

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