Constantine (Algeria)

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قسنطينة
ⵇⵙⵏⵟⵉⵏⴰ
Constantine
Constantine (Algeria)
Constantine
Constantine
Coordinates 36 ° 22 ′  N , 6 ° 37 ′  E Coordinates: 36 ° 22 ′  N , 6 ° 37 ′  E
Basic data
Country Algeria

province

Constantine
ISO 3166-2 DZ-25
height 650 m
surface 22,972 km²
Residents 448,028 (April 14, 2008)
density 19.5  Ew. / km²
Website www.wilayadeconstantine.org
Culture
Twin cities FranceFrance Grenoble Sousse Istanbul
TunisiaTunisia
TurkeyTurkey
Former El Kantara Bridge over the Rhumel

Constantine ( Arabic قسنطينة, DMG Qusanṭīna , Central Atlas Tamazight ⵇⵙⵏⵟⵉⵏⴰ Qsenṭina ) is the third largest city in Algeria after Algiers and Oran with 448,028 inhabitants (as of April 14, 2008) . It is the capital of the province of the same name , an industrial city and a transport hub. The city has a university, an Islamic college and ancient and medieval buildings such as the statue of the Roman emperor Constantine and the Ahmed Bey Palace.

geography

The city is located in the east of the country in a hilly landscape at an altitude of more than 600 m above sea level, about 60 km south of the Mediterranean. The nearest coastal town is Skikda (ex Philippeville) in the north, 80 km away on the N3, and a little further northeast Annaba (ex Bône), 157 km away on the N3 and N 44. The capital Algiers is 430 km away, the Tunisian border at Ghardimaou 235 km and the city ​​of Biskra, located in the south on the edge of the Sahara , around 225 km.

The old town of Constantine is located on a mighty plateau 650 m above sea level , which is only accessible via a narrow ridge from the southwest, but drops steeply to the northwest and to the north and west through the more than 100 m deep gorge of the river Rhumel is cut off from the Sidi M'Cid plateau opposite .

Today's city stretches far over the surrounding hills with numerous newer neighborhoods and suburbs.

geology

The Rhumel River did not cut into the limestone rock, but found a way under the rock in prehistoric times. The gorge was formed as the ceiling of this underground river continued to collapse. Remnants of this ceiling are still present in the gorge today. The river leaves the gorge over a large waterfall.

history

French troops before Constantine 1836

As the richest and most prosperous city in Numidia , it played an important role in ancient times . Its Carthaginian name was Karta (city), the Romans called it Cirta . It was founded by Micipsa , son of Massinissa , with the help of Greek colonists , and was founded in 203 BC. Made the capital of Numidia.

It stood out from all other cities of northern Africa for the grandeur of its public buildings and the number of its population . In 113 BC The city was conquered by Jugurtha . It served as the main base for the Roman generals Caecilius Metellus Numidicus and Gaius Marius . Marius achieved 107 BC BC at Cirta a victory over Jugurtha.

When King Iuba I with the rest of his Pompeian party in 46 BC Was defeated in Africa, Gaius Iulius Caesar gave one of his partisans, Publius Sittius Nucerinus , part of the area of ​​Cirta, which was given the Roman citizenship and the name Sittlanorum Colonia as a special colony .

Then began the disintegration of the old Cirta, which was completely destroyed in 311 AD in the war of Maxentius against the governor of the province of Africa Domitius Alexander , who had proclaimed himself emperor. Constantine I , the Great, restored the city in 312 AD and named it Constantina .

In 430 the city was conquered by the vandals . From 534 to 697 it was part of the Byzantine Empire , ruled by Berber and Arab dynasties from the 8th to 15th centuries . During the rule of the Ottoman Empire from 1529, the city was the seat of a Turkish governor .

On October 13, 1837, Constantine was captured by French troops. In the Second French Republic from 1848, the northern part of today's state of Algeria, divided into the departments of Algiers, Oran and Constantine, became part of mainland France . The city of Constantine was the capital of the Department de Constantine . Like the entire north of what is now Algeria, it was incorporated into the French customs area in 1851 and, politically and economically, into French territory in 1865.

population

Constantine has 448,028 inhabitants (census). In 2008 the population of the city including the surrounding area was 938,475.

Population development:

year Residents
1977 (census) 345,566
1987 (census) 443,727
1998 (census) 462.187
2008 (census) 448.028

City of bridges

The location of the old town on the Rhumel gorge made it necessary to build a number of bridges. In the direction of the river from south to north these are:

  • Pont Salah Bey , a four-lane cable - stayed bridge about 600 m above the Pont Sidi Rached and outside the old town, which opened in 2014.
  • Pont Sidi Rached , a 447 m long viaduct with an arched bridge, which was built in the years 1908–1912 by the French engineer Paul Séjourné . Its brick arches with a span of 68 m support a plate made of reinforced concrete. The clearance height is 103 m.
  • Pont du Diable (Devil's Bridge), a small arched bridge for pedestrians, almost immediately below the Pont Sidi Rached.
  • Passerelle Perregaux / Mellah Slimane , a pedestrian suspension bridge.
  • Pont d'El Kantara , a 128 m long segment arch bridge made of concrete with a 56 m span and a height of 125 m, which replaced an iron bridge from 1863.
  • Pont Sidi M'Cid , a suspension bridge also opened in 1912 with a span of 160 m and a clearance height of 175 m, making it the tallest bridge in the world until the opening of the Royal Gorge Bridge , Colorado, USA in 1929.
  • Pont des chutes / Pont de Winet el Foul (waterfall bridge), an arch bridge built in 1925 over the waterfalls at the exit of the gorge.
Sidi M'Cid Bridge

Attractions

View of the old town of Constantine
The deep gorge of the Rhumel River

The main attractions in Constantine are:

  • Gustave Mercier Museum
  • Ben Badis Mosque
  • Kasbah (old town)
  • Islamic Emir Abdel Kader University (Université des sciences islamiques "Émir Abd El Kader")
  • Djamma El Kebir Mosque
  • Soumma mausoleum
  • Ahmed Bey Palace
  • Ruins of the Roman aqueduct
  • Statue of the Roman Emperor Constantine
  • The Université Mentouri de Constantine University (UMC) , designed by Oscar Niemeyer
  • The sanctuary El Hofra that from the time of the Phoenicians dates

Economy and Infrastructure

Constantine is an industrial city (cement, metal, light, food industry) and a transport hub. It has a university, an Islamic college and several technical schools and libraries. Constantine is also the seat of the Center National du Registre du Commerce (CNRC).

After gaining independence, the nationalization of some economic sectors began. Since the early 1980s, however, efforts have been made to liberalize the economy and to promote the private sector.

traffic

As a traffic junction, Constantine is located on the east-west motorway and is connected to the capital Algiers and the port cities of Jijel , Skikda and Annaba via national roads. National roads lead to Tunisia and via Biskra into the Sahara. The Autoroute Est-Ouest (east-west motorway) runs in a large curve east and south around Constantine and past the airport.

Constantine Aéroport Mohamed Boudiaf airport is located about 9 km south of the city. In addition to Algerian destinations, it also has connections to various French locations and to Geneva.

Constantine has rail connections to Algiers, Tebessa , M'Sila, Skikda and Jijel.

Since mid-2013 there has been a first 8.1-kilometer tram line with ten stops, which runs in a north-south direction from the Ramdhan Ben-Abdelmalek Stadium to the Zouaghi district.

Since 2008, Constantine has had the Téléphérique de Constantine , an inner-city gondola that runs between the old town, the clinic district on the opposite side of the Oued Rhumel and a district a good 1 km away.

Town twinning

Constantine maintains partnerships with Grenoble in France , Sousse in Tunisia and Istanbul in Turkey .

sons and daughters of the town

Climate table

Constantine
Climate diagram
J F. M. A. M. J J A. S. O N D.
 
 
67
 
12
3
 
 
58
 
13
3
 
 
62
 
15th
4th
 
 
53
 
18th
7th
 
 
42
 
23
10
 
 
21st
 
29
14th
 
 
9
 
33
17th
 
 
12
 
33
18th
 
 
36
 
28
15th
 
 
38
 
22nd
11
 
 
44
 
17th
6th
 
 
71
 
12
3
Temperature in ° C ,  precipitation in mm
Source: wetterkontor.de
Average monthly temperatures and rainfall for Constantine
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Max. Temperature ( ° C ) 11.5 13.0 14.9 18.2 23.1 28.6 33.0 32.7 28.1 22.2 16.6 12.3 O 21.2
Min. Temperature (° C) 2.6 3.1 4.2 6.5 10.0 14.3 17.3 17.6 14.7 10.5 6.1 3.4 O 9.2
Precipitation ( mm ) 67 58 62 53 42 21st 9 12 36 38 44 71 Σ 513
Hours of sunshine ( h / d ) 5.0 5.5 6.2 7.0 8.1 10.5 11.5 9.8 8.6 6.9 5.5 4.8 O 7.5
Rainy days ( d ) 9 8th 9 7th 6th 3 1 2 4th 6th 8th 7th Σ 70
Humidity ( % ) 76 73 72 70 65 54 42 48 60 68 75 76 O 64.9
T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
11.5
2.6
13.0
3.1
14.9
4.2
18.2
6.5
23.1
10.0
28.6
14.3
33.0
17.3
32.7
17.6
28.1
14.7
22.2
10.5
16.6
6.1
12.3
3.4
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
N
i
e
d
e
r
s
c
h
l
a
g 		67
58
62
53
42
21st
9
12
36
38
44
71
  Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Source: wetterkontor.de

Web links

Commons : Constantine  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Population of Constantine (Urban Settlement). In: http://www.citypopulation.de . Thomas Brinkhoff, March 23, 2014, accessed on August 26, 2014 .
  2. ↑ Population résidente des ménages ordinaires et collectifs (MOC) selon la wilaya de résidence et le sexe et le taux d'accroissement annuel moyen (1998-2008) (suite). ( PDF , 153 k B ) In: http://www.ons.dz . Office National des Statistiques, accessed August 26, 2014 (Arabic, French).
  3. ↑ Présentation du Center National du Registre du Commerce (CNRC) ( Memento of the original dated May 9, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mincommerce.gov.dz
  4. ↑ Sam Applegate: Algeria's New Light Rail System. (No longer available online.) In: Mena Rail News. July 12, 2013, archived from the original on March 4, 2016 ; accessed on May 16, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.menarailnews.com