Oudhna by bike

Tebourba is a small town of more than 25,000 inhabitants located in the north of Tunisia, on the left bank of the Medjerda river, about thirty kilometers west of Tunis.

A little history

 

The city is built partly on the site of the Roman city of Thuburbo Minus, giving its name to Tebourba, which depended on the province of Proconsular Africa.

The major events to remember are the following:

  • I century BC: the city has nearly 2,500 inhabitants and appears on a map of the Roman road network, the Peutinger Table *.
  • 2nd century: Saint Perpetua and Saint Felicity (known martyrs of Christianity) were held there with their co-religionists before being put to death in the amphitheater of Carthage in 202 or 203. The remains of a church, built in their memory during the years of the protectorate (1903) and then partially destroyed during the 2nd World War, can still be seen today in the city.
  • VI century: the city will give two known bishops: Victor, participant in the council of Carthage, and Germanus who signs in 646 the letter of the bishops of the consulate addressed to the patriarch Paul II of Constantinople against the monotheism.
  • XVth century: the city was rebuilt by Moors from Andalusia who were responsible for the application of an original urban plan, namely an urban grid with eight avenues converging on a vast rectangular square (the Andalusiansouk ) around which mosques, shops and fondouks were built.
  •  XVII th century : The Roman amphitheatre will be demolished to make way for the construction of a bridge.
  •  XXth century: During the Second World War, Tebourba was the scene of an important battle, from November 29 to December 4, 1942, during which Anglo-American troops and Italian-German troops clashed. The battle was won by the latter and the city was destroyed.

*The Peutinger map is a facsimile of a map dating from the Roman era, ancestor of our road maps. It is presented in the form of a long parchment of 6m length. You can discover it here :

Economy

 

Located in the valley of the only perennial river of Tunisia, Tebourba has, since ancient times, an agricultural vocation based on the production of wheat, olive oil and wine.
The viticulture strongly developed under the protectorate, knows a revival currently through the production of an AOC, the Slopes of Tebourba, for the production of red and rosé wines of which the famous Magon

It also has an important industrial zone that is enhanced by a direct rail link with Tunis. with Tunis. One can, on the occasion of a cycle tour for example, discover a pretty small station of colonial style.

The city has an ancient and Andalusian heritage. We can see the bridge-dam of El Battan, with sixteen arches, built in 1690 under the reign of Murad II Bey, to allow water from the Medjerda to irrigate the land and operate the mills (battân) of the city.

To be seen on site or in the vicinity

 

Tebourba and its surroundings are full of traces of history... we can launch, by bikeof course, in a hunt for ancient treasures.

Oil mill 

 

While walking through the city, one can visit the Mahjoub oil mill, created in 1896 and still active. For the curious ones of passage, avid of history, the Mahjoub mills, it is also a small museum which knew to preserve the tools of antan and whose one can discover the operation on the spot.

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Zaouia Sidi Ben Aissa

 

A zawiya is a Muslim religious building around which a Sufi order is structured. This one, today classified as a historical monument, was created by the Issawiya order, a mystic-religious Moroccan Sufi brotherhood and order, founded by Sidi Mhammed Ben Aïssâ (1465-1526 / 882-933 H.), nicknamed the "Perfect Master".

 

Like other Sufi orders (Gnaoua and Hamadcha), the Aïssâwa are famous in the Arab world for their spiritual music, and are characterized by the use of a kind of oboe (ghaita), collective singing of religious hymns accompanied bypercussion using elements of polyrhythm .
It
should be noted that this brotherhood has in its ceremonial ritual non-Islamic elements that appeared over thecenturies, such as exorcism and trance dances. The mausoleum of Sidi Ben Aissa wasrestored several times during the Husseinite period, notably in 1813 and 1896, according to the indications visible on the monument.
This place is today the headquarters
of the Association for the Safeguarding of Tébourba.

The church of Saint Felicity and Saint Perpetua

 That we mentioned earlier, is a Catholic church built at the time of the French protectorate. Before its construction, the practice of the Catholic worship will know some years of wandering since a first chapel was built in 1888 on the domain Schuiggui in order to allow its Sicilian employees to practice their worship, followed by a second. Deemed too far from Tebourba by the city's churchgoers, the parish was finally transferred there in 1901 where, due to a lack of premises, masses were held successively under a tent, in a barn and then in an oil mill. The first stone of the church was laid in 1903, coming from a Roman basilica located nearby. This one will be destroyed during the 2nd world war, during the bombardments of the battle mentioned above... Only the bell, blessed in 1905, will escape from it. The building was finally rebuilt in 1947, larger and in another style, adopting certain local architectural codes. It will then host a college for young girls of excellent reputation. Ceded to the Tunisian government in 1964, the church now houses the city's public library .The building is classified as a historical monument by the decree of September 1, 2000.

Bridges of the Ottoman period 

There are 4 of them built in the XVII century under the Ottoman reign. The first one, built in stone and called Bizerte bridge is located on the road connecting Tunis to Bizerte. The bridge of Mejez al-Bab, completed in 1677, isstill today a vital artery of the homonymous city .

It spans the Medjerda and ensures the passage of the city of Mejez-el-Bab towards the gardens and the andalusian cities (Testour, Slouguia, Grich). There are two other bridges in Djedeïda and El Battan where were also built fulling mills (Battan), hydraulic mills hydraulic mills and dams. The latter provided water for the fulling mills of the chéchia and allowed to irrigate the riparian lands thanks to the elevation of the water of the river. It should be noted that the materials used for these bridges are partly from sites located in the vicinity, one can besides distinguish Latin inscriptions on some blocks.

A traditional workshop of washing and crushing of wool for the manufacture of fez

 

The fulling consists in washing with hot water and pressing the chechia blanks in order to give the fabric a better to give the fabric a better hold. The making of such caps seems to go back to to the antiquity, since we find illustrations of similar headgear in felt at the time of Carthage (one of it is visible in the museum of Bardo on a stele in from the tophet of Carthage). The history of the fez is traditionally linked to the arrival of the of the fez to the arrival of the Andalusian Arabs in Tunisia shortly after 1600.

The industry of industry will know a particular rise at the beginning of the XIXth century in Tunisia which will specialization: the knitting of caps was done in Ariana, the fulling in el Battan and fulling in el Battan and Djedeida, and the famous red dye in Zaghouan.
Note that
the Tunisian fez, today true national heritage, will reach an international fame at this time international fame at that time, and will be exported to Algeria, Libya where it is of black Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt, Sudan, Turkey and Greece, Tunisia being the only supplier of the Greece, Tunisia being the only supplier in the world.

Around Tebourba, one can also discover innumerable remains of cisterns, aqueducts, but also buildings, remains of thermal baths, triumphal arches... It is better tobe accompanied by a guide to reach them easily.

Gourmet stage

Discovering a place, its history and culture, is also honoring its culinary tradition.

The farm of Hérédium

welcomes gourmets around its table d'hôte, where you can enjoy local specialties cooked at home. The dishes are concocted from the farm' s permaculture products .

You can taste for example the famous white Mhamsa of Tebourba, a local specialty of traditional pasta, elaborated by hand with wheat, salt and olive oil. Resembling couscous with very large grains, it is traditionally accompanied with small local merguez, prunes, apricots and almonds.

And for those who wish, you can end your meal with a little digestive walk in the orchard, accompanied by the the orchard, accompanied by the owner, Jihed, who willingly explains to those interested principles of permaculture that he implements in his plantations.

And there is also something for the children since the Hérédium organizes games of tracks, welcoming groups and schools.

Regularly, the Lemon Tour organizes outings to Tebourba. 

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