The French occupation of Tunisia began in spring 1881, and would end only with the independence of Tunisia in 1956. The present day Republic of Tunisia, al Jumhuriyah at-Tunisiyah, has a population of close to ten million people, almost all of whom are Arab-Berber. ...

General Jules Aimé Bréart entered Tunis between May 3 and May 6, 1881. He had in his possessions the Bardo Treaty establishing a protectorate on Tunisia, cabled to him on the eve by the French government. On May 11, General Bréart, the general consul Théodore Roustan and the General Pierre Léon Mauraud, accompanied by an armed escort, presented to the bey of Tunis, residing in Ksar Saïd, the clauses of the Bardo Treaty. Surprised, Sadok Bey requested several hours for reflexion, and immediately gathered his cabinet. Some of its members insisted that the bey should escape towards Kairouan to organize the resistance, but Sadok Bey finally decided to accept the protectorate. The Bardo Treaty was signed by both parties, under the threat of the French troops. This article is about states protected and/or dominated by a foreign power. ... The Bey of Tunis is the title of the Head of state of Tunisia. ... Mosque of Oqba Kairouan (Arabic القيروان) (variations include Kairwan, Kayrawan, Al Qayrawan) is a city in Tunisia, about 160 kilometres south of Tunis. ...