Ottoman Tunisia

Ottoman Tunisia, also known as the Regency of Tunis, refers to a territory of Ottoman Empire that existed from the 16th to 19th century in what is largely modern-day Tunisia.

During the period of Ottoman Rule, Tunis was administratively integrated into the Ottoman Empire as the Eyalet of Tunis. The Ottoman presence in the Maghreb began with the conquest of Algiers in 1516 by the Ottoman Turkish corsair and beylerbey Aruj (Oruç Reis).

In 1534, the Ottoman navy under the command of Kapudan Pasha Hayreddin Barbarossa, himself the younger brother of Aruj, attacked and successfully captured Tunis, which was then a territory of the Hafsids. However, less than a year later, Emperor Charles V sent a large, multinational invasion force to wrest control of Tunis, which attacked from across the Strait of Sicily and overwhelmed the city's Ottoman defenders. Following the final Ottoman reconquest of Tunis from Spain in 1574, the Ottoman Empire would hold Tunis for over three centuries. The period of Ottoman rule would come to an end following French conquest of Tunisia in 1881.

Tunis was initially ruled from the Ottoman Regency of Algiers, however the Ottomans would soon appoint Tunis its own governor (pasha), who's authority was to be backed by Janissaries under his command. As a result, Tunis began to function as a separate province with a considerable degree of autonomy. Although Algiers occasionally contested this, Tunisia would success in maintaining its autonomous status. Like other distant Ottoman territories, the governing councils responsible for administering the province consisted mostly of Ottoman elites - Turks, Egyptians, Albanians, etc. - from other parts of the empire. State affairs were primarily conducted in Ottoman Turkish.

At the center of what was then known as the Barbary Coast, North African ports like Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli were used as bases for Barbary Pirates targeting European shipping and, at the height of their power, raided ports and towns along Europe's Mediterranean Coast. During these raids, Barbary pirates frequently captured European sailors and civilians, who were either ransomed or sold into slavery. For centuries, Tunis was among the principle centers of the Barbary slave trade. Eventually, a prolonged decline in raids and the increasing naval power of European states, culminating in a series of punitive wars, brought an end to the practice.

By the end of the Ottoman period, Tunisia had experienced a considerable loss in territory. The decay in Ottoman authority throughout the 18th and 19th century would lead to conflict between rival provinces, especially Tripoli, and foreign encroachment. In the 19th century, Tunisian rulers observed the ongoing political and social reforms occurring throughout the Ottoman Empire. Inspired by the Turkish model, the Bey of Tunis began modernizing Tunisia’s administration, infrastructure, and economy. However, these modernization efforts were expensive and would lead to Tunisia amassing a considerable amount of foreign debt. In 1881, France would use this as a pretext to establish a Protectorate, effectively taking control over the territory.

The legacy of the centuries-long period of Ottoman rule in Tunisia is evident in the presence of Tunisia's large Turkish community. Historically, mixed male descendants were known as the Kouloughlis.