Mauretania Caesariensis

Quick Facts: Who was Mauretania Caesariensis?

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Mauretania Caesariensis

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A major Roman province in northwest Africa, centered on modern-day Algeria.

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Origins & Early Life

Mauretania Caesariensis (Latin for "Caesarean Mauretania") was a Roman province located in present-day Algeria. The full name refers to its capital Caesarea Mauretaniae (modern Cherchell). The province had been part of the Kingdom of Mauretania and named for the Mauri people who lived there. Formerly an independent kingdom, and later a client state of Rome, it was annexed into the Empire formally during the reign of Claudius and divided into two provinces about 42 AD. A third province, named Mauretania Sitifensis, was later split off from the eastern portion during the reign of Diocletian in 293 AD.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

During and after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, most of the hinterland area was lost, first to the Vandal Kingdom and later to the Mauro-Roman Kingdom, with Roman administration limited to the capital of Caesarea. The land was reconquered by Rome during the reign of Justinian. This province was a part of Praetorian prefecture of Africa, later Exarchate of Africa. The Muslim conquest of the Maghreb brought an end to Roman rule in Mauretania, permanently this time, which became ruled by the Umayyad Caliphate as part of Medieval Muslim Algeria. In the middle of the 1st century, Roman emperor Claudius divided the westernmost Roman province in Africa, named Mauretania ('land of the Mauri', hence the word Moors), into Mauretania Caesariensis (named after its capital, Caesarea in Mauretania, one of many cities named Caesarea after the imperial cognomen that had become a title) and Mauretania Tingitana.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Mauretania Caesariensis included eight colonies founded by the Emperor Augustus: Cartennae, Gunugus, Igilgili, Rusguniae, Rusazus, Saldae, Zuccabar, Tubusuctu; two by the Emperor Claudius: Caesarea in Mauretania, formerly the capital of Juba II, who gave it this name in honour of his patron Augustus, and Oppidum Novum; one by the Emperor Nerva: Setifis; and in later times, Arsenaria, Bida, Siga, Aquae Calidae, Quiza Xenitana, Rusucurru, Auzia, Gilva, Icosium and Tipasa in all 21 well-known colonies, besides several municipia and oppida Latina. Under Diocletian's Tetrarchy reform, the easternmost part was broken off from Mauretania Caesariensis as a separate small province, Mauretania Sitifensis, called after its inland capital Setifis (now Sétif) with a significant port at Saldae (presently Béjaïa). At the time of Diocletian and Constantine the Great, both Sitifensis and Caesariensis were assigned to the administrative Diocese of Africa, under the Praetorian prefecture of Italy. Tingitana belonged to the Diocese of Hispania under the Praetorian prefecture of Gaul, so it was an enclave separate from the European territory of the Diocese and Prefecture it belonged to. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, a Germanic Vandal Kingdom was founded, but the remaining Eastern Empire (now known to historians as the Byzantine Empire) recaptured the area around 533.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Mauretania Caesariensis

True or False: “The primary export commodity from Mauretania Caesariensis was gold mined near the capital city.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): The principal exports mentioned were valuable woods; the Amazigh or Mauri were highly regarded for their military service.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Mauretania Tingitana — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: A major Roman province covering modern northern Morocco, centered on Tingis.
• Mauri — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: Latin designation for the Berber population of Mauretania, influencing the term 'Moors'.
• Maurice Allais — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: Pioneering French economist and physicist, Nobel laureate for market theory.
• Maurice Béjart — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: Pioneering choreographer who developed modern ballet, blending expressionism and vast themes.
• Maurice Bishop — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: Grenadian revolutionary and politician who led the New JEWEL Movement (NJM).
• Maurice Blanchot — Chrono-Wiki Encyclopedia Entry: Influential French writer and philosopher exploring death and poetic meaning.

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