Northern Africa · TUN

Tunisia

The story · 13 chapters

How it was drawn

The heart of Carthage and of Roman Africa, then of Ifriqiya and the Hafsid kingdom, a territory whose core has stayed remarkably stable for two thousand years.

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Through the ages

Rivals in history

The kingdoms, empires and states Tunisia fought or stood against, from the first to today.

Syracuse and the Greek cities of Sicily480 BC to 276 BC
Carthage and the Greek cities of Sicily fought over the island for two centuries. Syracuse defeated Carthage at Himera in 480 BC, its tyrant Agathocles landed in Africa in 310 BC, and Pyrrhus of Epirus fought Carthage in Sicily until 276 BC.
Roman Republic264 BC to 146 BC
Three Punic Wars decided who would rule the western Mediterranean. Rome took Sicily in the first, beat Hannibal at Zama in 202 BC in the second, and in the third destroyed Carthage in 146 BC, making its land the province of Africa.
Kingdom of Numidia201 BC to 150 BC
Rome's ally Masinissa, king of Numidia, kept seizing Carthaginian land after 201 BC. When Carthage finally fought back in 150 BC, it broke its treaty with Rome and handed Rome the pretext for the Third Punic War.
Vandal Kingdom429 to 534
The Vandals crossed from Spain in 429 and took Carthage in 439, founding a kingdom whose fleet sacked Rome in 455. The Byzantine general Belisarius destroyed it in 533 and 534.
Umayyad Caliphate647 to 709
Arab armies raided from 647 and founded Kairouan in 670. Berber leaders Kusaila and al-Kahina resisted for decades, and the Byzantines held Carthage until 698. By the early eighth century Ifriqiya was a province of the caliphate.
Fatimid Caliphate1048 to 1057
When the Zirid rulers of Ifriqiya broke with their former Fatimid masters around 1048, Cairo turned the Banu Hilal Arab tribes loose on them. Kairouan was sacked in 1057, and the Zirids retreated to the coast at Mahdia.
Norman Kingdom of Sicily1135 to 1160
Roger II's fleets took Djerba in 1135 and Mahdia and the coastal towns from 1148. The Almohads drove the Normans out, retaking Mahdia in January 1160.
Kingdom of France1270
In 1270 King Louis IX of France led the Eighth Crusade against Hafsid Tunis. He landed near Carthage but died of disease in his camp, and the crusaders withdrew after a treaty with the Hafsid ruler.
Spanish Empire1535 to 1574
Charles V captured Tunis in 1535 and kept a fortress at La Goulette. The Ottomans took the city in 1569, Spain retook it in 1573, and an Ottoman fleet captured Tunis and La Goulette for good in 1574.
Regency of Algiers1705 to 1807
The neighbouring Ottoman regency of Algiers invaded Tunisia several times. Its army took Tunis in 1756 and imposed a tribute, which Hammuda Bey ended by defeating Algiers in 1807.
France1881 to 1956
France invaded in 1881 and ruled as protector for 75 years. Nationalists of the Destour and Neo-Destour parties campaigned for independence; repression and armed resistance in the early 1950s led Paris to grant autonomy in 1955 and independence in 1956.
Germany and Italy1942 to 1943
Fascist Italy had long claimed Tunisia, home to a large Italian community. In November 1942 German and Italian troops occupied the country, and the Tunisian campaign ended with their surrender in May 1943.
France1961 to 1963
Tunisia demanded the evacuation of the naval base at Bizerte. In July 1961 French forces broke a Tunisian blockade, killing hundreds. France finally handed the base over on 15 October 1963.
Libya1980 to 1985
In January 1980 commandos trained in Libya attacked the town of Gafsa. Relations stayed tense: in 1982 the International Court of Justice drew their continental shelf boundary, and in 1985 Libya expelled tens of thousands of Tunisian workers.

Today

Tunisia now

), Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, Byzantines, various Arab and Berber kingdoms, and Ottomans (16th to late-19th centuries). Rivalry between French and Italian interests in Tunisia culminated in a French invasion in 1881 and the creation of a protectorate. Agitation for independence in the decades after World War I finally convinced the French to recognize Tunisia as an independent state in 1956. The country's first president, Habib BOURGUIBA, established a strict one-party state.

Capital: Tunis
Government: parliamentary republic
Head of government: Sarra Zaafrani
Head of state: Kais Saied
Languages: Arabic
Area: 163,610 km²

Through time

Then and now

Population12.2 million2023 · 3.6 million in 1950
Life expectancy76.5 years2023 · 38.2 years in 1950
GDP per person$10,9132022 · $1,777 in 1950
Living in cities71%2025 · 32% in 1950
Literacy86%2023 · 18% in 1950
Political regimeElectoral autocracy2025 · Closed autocracy in 1950
Military alliancesNone of these2024 · None of these in 1950
Military spending2.5% of GDP2025
War deathsNone2025

Population: HYDE 3.3, Gapminder and UN WPP. GDP per capita: Maddison Project Database 2023. Urban share: UN WPP. Life expectancy: Riley, HMD, UN WPP. Literacy: OWID historical estimates, World Bank, UNESCO. Military spending: SIPRI. War deaths: UCDP. Political regime: V-Dem, Regimes of the World. All via Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0). Alliances and organization memberships: compiled by Atlas. Satellites in orbit: CelesTrak SATCAT. Modern borders, backcast.

Relations

Close partners and tensions

Close partners

United States
Libya

Summarised from World Bank and Wikipedia data, updated 24 October 2026.

Rivals in history

The kingdoms, empires and states Tunisia fought or stood against, from the first to today.

Syracuse and the Greek cities of Sicily480 BC to 276 BC

Carthage and the Greek cities of Sicily fought over the island for two centuries. Syracuse defeated Carthage at Himera in 480 BC, its tyrant Agathocles landed in Africa in 310 BC, and Pyrrhus of Epirus fought Carthage in Sicily until 276 BC.

Roman Republic264 BC to 146 BC

Three Punic Wars decided who would rule the western Mediterranean. Rome took Sicily in the first, beat Hannibal at Zama in 202 BC in the second, and in the third destroyed Carthage in 146 BC, making its land the province of Africa.

Kingdom of Numidia201 BC to 150 BC

Rome's ally Masinissa, king of Numidia, kept seizing Carthaginian land after 201 BC. When Carthage finally fought back in 150 BC, it broke its treaty with Rome and handed Rome the pretext for the Third Punic War.

Vandal Kingdom429 to 534

The Vandals crossed from Spain in 429 and took Carthage in 439, founding a kingdom whose fleet sacked Rome in 455. The Byzantine general Belisarius destroyed it in 533 and 534.

Umayyad Caliphate647 to 709

Arab armies raided from 647 and founded Kairouan in 670. Berber leaders Kusaila and al-Kahina resisted for decades, and the Byzantines held Carthage until 698. By the early eighth century Ifriqiya was a province of the caliphate.

Fatimid Caliphate1048 to 1057

When the Zirid rulers of Ifriqiya broke with their former Fatimid masters around 1048, Cairo turned the Banu Hilal Arab tribes loose on them. Kairouan was sacked in 1057, and the Zirids retreated to the coast at Mahdia.

Norman Kingdom of Sicily1135 to 1160

Roger II's fleets took Djerba in 1135 and Mahdia and the coastal towns from 1148. The Almohads drove the Normans out, retaking Mahdia in January 1160.

Kingdom of France1270

In 1270 King Louis IX of France led the Eighth Crusade against Hafsid Tunis. He landed near Carthage but died of disease in his camp, and the crusaders withdrew after a treaty with the Hafsid ruler.

Spanish Empire1535 to 1574

Charles V captured Tunis in 1535 and kept a fortress at La Goulette. The Ottomans took the city in 1569, Spain retook it in 1573, and an Ottoman fleet captured Tunis and La Goulette for good in 1574.

Regency of Algiers1705 to 1807

The neighbouring Ottoman regency of Algiers invaded Tunisia several times. Its army took Tunis in 1756 and imposed a tribute, which Hammuda Bey ended by defeating Algiers in 1807.

France1881 to 1956

France invaded in 1881 and ruled as protector for 75 years. Nationalists of the Destour and Neo-Destour parties campaigned for independence; repression and armed resistance in the early 1950s led Paris to grant autonomy in 1955 and independence in 1956.

Germany and Italy1942 to 1943

Fascist Italy had long claimed Tunisia, home to a large Italian community. In November 1942 German and Italian troops occupied the country, and the Tunisian campaign ended with their surrender in May 1943.

France1961 to 1963

Tunisia demanded the evacuation of the naval base at Bizerte. In July 1961 French forces broke a Tunisian blockade, killing hundreds. France finally handed the base over on 15 October 1963.

Libya1980 to 1985

In January 1980 commandos trained in Libya attacked the town of Gafsa. Relations stayed tense: in 1982 the International Court of Justice drew their continental shelf boundary, and in 1985 Libya expelled tens of thousands of Tunisian workers.

Tunisia now

Capital

Tunis

Government

parliamentary republic

Head of government

Sarra Zaafrani

Head of state

Kais Saied

Languages

Arabic

Area

163,610 km²

Then and now

Population12.2 million2023 · 3.6 million in 1950

Life expectancy76.5 years2023 · 38.2 years in 1950

GDP per person$10,9132022 · $1,777 in 1950

Living in cities71%2025 · 32% in 1950

Literacy86%2023 · 18% in 1950

Political regimeElectoral autocracy2025 · Closed autocracy in 1950

Military alliancesNone of these2024 · None of these in 1950

Military spending2.5% of GDP2025

War deathsNone2025