Al-Jaghbub
Encyclopedia
Jaghbub is a remote desert oasis village in the eastern Libyan Desert
. It is actually closer to the Egypt
ian town of Siwa
than to any Libyan town of note. The oasis is located in Butnan District and is the administrative seat of the Jaghbub Basic People's Congress
. Supported by reservoirs of underground water and date production, the town is best known for its hard-won self sufficiency. King
Idris of Libya was born in Jaghbub on 12 March 1889.
that extends below sea level. This depression, an area lower than the surrounding region, reaches to about -10 m. To the east the Siwa Oasis
lies in a similar depression and even further east the large Qattara Depression
also lies below sea level.
Movement and home of a long disappeared Islamic university and the former Senussi palace (which is now in rubble). In February 1931, the Italian
colonial administration
led by Marshal Rodolfo Graziani
decided to build a barbed-wire fence
stretching from the Mediterranean port of Bardia to Jaghbub 270 km away. Supervised by armoured patrols and the air force, the fence sought to cut off the rebels from their supply sources and contacts with the Senussi leadership in Egypt. The construction of the fence began in April and was completed in September. This, along with the deportation of almost the entire population of the Jebel Akhdar, was decisive and precipitated the end of the rebellion. The fence still runs along the Libyan-Egyptian border from near Tobruk
, finishing at Jaghbub where the desolate Great Sand Sea
begins.
The construction of the fence was dramatized in the film Lion of the Desert
.
During World War II
Italian and Libyan colonial troops led by Col. Salvatore Castagna resisted for nine months the siege by British troops of vastly superior number. The siege ended with the conquest of Jaghbub on 21 March 1941. The heroic resistance of the Italian troops was vastly celebrated by the fascist regime
and used to minimize the military defeat in Cyrenaica
.
Libyan Desert
The Libyan Desert covers an area of approximately 1,100,000 km2, it extends approximately 1100 km from east to west, and 1,000 km from north to south, in about the shape of a rectangle...
. It is actually closer to the Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian town of Siwa
Siwa Oasis
The Siwa Oasis is an oasis in Egypt, located between the Qattara Depression and the Egyptian Sand Sea in the Libyan Desert, nearly 50 km east of the Libyan border, and 560 km from Cairo....
than to any Libyan town of note. The oasis is located in Butnan District and is the administrative seat of the Jaghbub Basic People's Congress
Basic People's Congress (country subdivision)
Basic People's Congress is the smallest administrative subdivision in Libya.Geographically it corresponds approximately to the level of a township or borough....
. Supported by reservoirs of underground water and date production, the town is best known for its hard-won self sufficiency. King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
Idris of Libya was born in Jaghbub on 12 March 1889.
Geography
The Jaghbub oasis is located in a deep depressionDepression (geology)
A depression in geology is a landform sunken or depressed below the surrounding area. Depressions may be formed by various mechanisms.Structural or tectonic related:...
that extends below sea level. This depression, an area lower than the surrounding region, reaches to about -10 m. To the east the Siwa Oasis
Siwa Oasis
The Siwa Oasis is an oasis in Egypt, located between the Qattara Depression and the Egyptian Sand Sea in the Libyan Desert, nearly 50 km east of the Libyan border, and 560 km from Cairo....
lies in a similar depression and even further east the large Qattara Depression
Qattara Depression
The Qattara Depression is a depression in the north west of Egypt in the Matruh Governorate and is part of the Libyan Desert. It lies below sea level and is covered with salt pans, sand dunes and salt marshes. The region extends between latitudes of 28°35' and 30°25' North and longitudes of 26°20'...
also lies below sea level.
History
It was once the headquarters of the SenussiSenussi
The Senussi or Sanussi refers to a Muslim political-religious order in Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi, Sayyid Muhammad ibn Ali as-Senussi. Senussi was concerned with both the decline of Islamic thought and spirituality and the weakening of Muslim political...
Movement and home of a long disappeared Islamic university and the former Senussi palace (which is now in rubble). In February 1931, the Italian
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
colonial administration
History of Libya as Italian Colony
The History of Libya as an Italian colony began in the 1910s and lasted until February 1947, when Italy officially lost all the colonies of the former Italian Empire.-First years:...
led by Marshal Rodolfo Graziani
Rodolfo Graziani
Rodolfo Graziani, 1st Marquis of Neghelli , was an officer in the Italian Regio Esercito who led military expeditions in Africa before and during World War II.-Rise to prominence:...
decided to build a barbed-wire fence
Frontier Wire (Libya)
The Frontier Wire was a obstacle in Italian Libya, along the with border of Egypt, running from El Ramleh down to Jaghbub. It was built by Italian forces—under the command of General Rodolfo Graziani—in the winter of 1931/1932 due the Italian's struggle with Omar Mukhtar's Senussi resistors...
stretching from the Mediterranean port of Bardia to Jaghbub 270 km away. Supervised by armoured patrols and the air force, the fence sought to cut off the rebels from their supply sources and contacts with the Senussi leadership in Egypt. The construction of the fence began in April and was completed in September. This, along with the deportation of almost the entire population of the Jebel Akhdar, was decisive and precipitated the end of the rebellion. The fence still runs along the Libyan-Egyptian border from near Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
, finishing at Jaghbub where the desolate Great Sand Sea
Libyan Desert
The Libyan Desert covers an area of approximately 1,100,000 km2, it extends approximately 1100 km from east to west, and 1,000 km from north to south, in about the shape of a rectangle...
begins.
The construction of the fence was dramatized in the film Lion of the Desert
Lion of the Desert
Lion of the Desert is a 1981 Libyan historical action film starring Anthony Quinn as Libyan tribal leader Omar Mukhtar, a Bedouin leader fighting the Italian army in the years leading up to World War II and Oliver Reed as Italian General Rodolfo Graziani, who attempted to defeat Mukhtar. It was...
.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Italian and Libyan colonial troops led by Col. Salvatore Castagna resisted for nine months the siege by British troops of vastly superior number. The siege ended with the conquest of Jaghbub on 21 March 1941. The heroic resistance of the Italian troops was vastly celebrated by the fascist regime
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
and used to minimize the military defeat in Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
.
External links
- "Jaghbub, Libya", Falling Rain Genomics, Inc.
- Satellite map at Maplandia.com