Founded in 670, Kairouan flourished under the Aghlabid
dynasty in the 9th century. Despite the transfer of the
political capital to Tunis in the 12th century, Kairouan
remained the Maghreb's principal holy city.
Located in the centre of Tunisia in a plain at an almost
equal distance from the sea and the mountain, Kairouan
is the most ancient Arabo-Muslim base of the Maghreb
(670 AD) and one of its principal holy cities. Capital of
Ifriqiya for five centuries, it was a place of outstanding
diffusion of Arabo-Muslim civilization.
Haffouz is a town and commune in the Kairouan
Governorate