Tunisia Way

The Tunisian state was rebuilt by the imposition of Ottoman rule in the late 16th century. The Ottomans made Tunisia a province of their empire in 1574, and garrisoned Tunis with 4,000 Janissaries recruited from Anatolia, reinforced by some Christian converts to Islam from Italy, Spain, and Provence.

In 1591 the local Janissary officers replaced the Sultan's appointee with one of their own men, called the Dey. While the Dey dominated the city of Tunis, a Corsican-born Tunisian tax collector (Bey) named Murad (d. 1640), and his descendants, dominated the rest of the country. The struggle for power made allies of the Dey, the Janissaries, and Bedouin tribes against the Beys, the towns, and the fertile region of the countryside. The Muradid Beys eventually triumphed, and ruled until 1705, when Hussein ibn Ali came to power.

The period from 1705 to 1957 witnessed the reign of the Husseinite Beys, including the highly effective Hammouda Pasha (1781-1813). In theory, Tunisia continued to be a vassal of the Ottoman empire -- the Friday prayer was pronounced in the name of the Ottoman Sultan, money was coined in his honor, and an annual ambassador brought gifts to Istanbul -- but the Ottomans never again were able to exact obedience.