Algeria Citadel.. The secrets of the "Casbah Fortress" and the story of the 7 batteries
In November 2020, he announced the opening of the Citadel of Algiers or the "Casbah Fort", one of the most beautiful historical monuments built in the sixteenth century, during the Ottoman era, to visitors, thus restoring its glory and luster after being closed for about 40 years. This castle has stories and secrets behind it, so what do you ?know about building the seven batteries
The castle was built in the Ottoman era by order of Commander Oruj Barbarossa
The "Algeria Citadel" is located south of the ancient Kasbah in the capital, Algiers (1516-1592), and was the seat of government during the late Ottoman era.
According to the identifying sign of this landmark, "The castle was built during the Ottoman era (1515-1830) in the year 932 AH, corresponding to 1516 AD, by order of Commander Uruj Barbaros or "Baba Uruj." Captain and naval commander in the Ottoman era.
The castle gained special importance after the Dey of Algeria, Ali Khoja, ordered in 1817 to transfer the seat of government from the "Geneina" palace (it was the center of power) to the Citadel of Algeria.
Castle facilities
The castle includes many buildings and annexes, such as the Dai Palace, which was built in several stages, while the harem wing was the most important, according to what was mentioned in the sign, in addition to the Dai Mosque, which is the last building built by the Dai Hussein (1773-1838) when he arrived at the castle in 1838. 1818.
With regard to the Janissary quarter, it was the residence of the aghawat, as it was the first residence of the Dey's harem before it was moved to the Dey's palace.
The Janissary bath or the Agha bath consists of two parts, a part for the bath and the second part for the stove. As for the Janissary mosque, it was dedicated to the Janissaries (the Janissary army was founded in 1520 AD).
The castle has a storehouse for gunpowder or Dar Al-Baroud, as it is called, inside which gunpowder was made to supply the soldiers and the army. Dar Al-Baroud comes in an octagonal shape, and it also reflects a rare model of architecture in the Maghreb and Arab countries.
The castle also adorns the Palace of the Beys, which dates back to the Ottoman period (1515-1830). It used to receive Beylik of Oran (west of the country), Beylik of Constantine (east of the country) and Beylik of Titari (north of the country) when they delivered taxes. It also contains a barracks consisting of three levels, the first was intended for storing Janissary equipment and the second was a resting place for soldiers, while the third was designated for guarding.
he 7 batteries
During the Ottoman era, the castle was surrounded by 7 batteries (watch towers), one of which was demolished by the French colonization of Algeria (1830-1962), and the other was converted into a shed. Two batteries were also allocated for observation from the northern side, while another battery was used for observation on the southern side of the capital (facing the sea).
According to the document, "part of the battery collapsed in 2012, forcing the authorities to intervene immediately and restore it."
Whoever visits the "Castle of Algeria" notices the presence of a small model that shows the shape of the castle with all its contents, and its aim is to introduce the landmark and provide explanations to visitors about it.
And after the restoration operations that affected different parts of it, some of which have completed their restoration operations, while some other parts are still witnessing restorations, the Citadel of Algeria has become a destination for visitors, especially school children, university students and researchers, and it is also a destination for visitors to the city of Algeria from residents of neighboring states and the interior and foreign tourists as well. .
Visitors kiss
In addition to receiving visitors, the castle witnessed the hosting of many cultural and artistic events that Algeria celebrates on national and other occasions, including its hosting of the Amazigh Heritage Month (January 12-19 / January 2021) in celebration of the Amazigh New Year 2971 .. and other activities during the past year.
In the year 2022, the Citadel celebrated Heritage Month (April 18 - May 18, 2022), under the slogan "Our intangible heritage is identity and authenticity", amid rich programs presented by multiple exhibitions on construction and restoration, an exhibition on photographic archives and traditional clothing, as well as seminars and workshops on Making traditional utensils, traditional foods, and popular dishes..and others.
It also programmed, on the occasion of the celebration of the African Child’s Day, which falls on June 16 of each year, as well as the Children’s Day, framed visits to the various facilities of the castle were carried out by schoolchildren representing different parts of the capital, in addition to the arrival of foreign tourist delegations as guests to the castle, including a delegation of members of the German Parliament, which He visited the castle last May, and so on.
Algeria's celebration of this castle comes by attracting visitors, students and researchers, after it remained closed for four decades due to the deterioration of its condition, due to several circumstances, especially during the black decade of the nineties of the last century.
Also, the delay in its restoration, according to researchers, is due to conducting studies and research on the castle, which took time to restore it according to international and accurate standards and open it to the public, which happened after the completion of the restoration of some important parts, including the "Janissary Quarter", "The Janissary Bath", "The Fort". No. 5", and "Al-Day Mosque", according to specialists.
The restoration process of the castle took a long time due to the studies that were carried out around it
Restoration and rehabilitation operations have reached advanced stages at sites in the castle, such as Kasseri al-Day, the beys, the gunpowder factory, and the stores of the janissaries.
Source: websites