TUNISIA - /الجمهورية التونسية/ République tunisienne

Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa, covering 163,610 square kilometres (63,170 square miles). Its northernmost point, Cape Angela, is also the northernmost point on the African continent. Tunisia is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia's population was 11.7 million in 2019. Tunisia's name is derived from its capital city, Tunis (Berber native name: Tunest), which is located on its northeast coast. Geographically, Tunisia contains the eastern end of the Atlas Mountains, and the northern reaches of the Sahara desert. Much of the rest of the country's land is fertile soil. Its 1,300 kilometres (810 miles) of coastline include the African conjunction of the western and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Basin and, by means of the Sicilian Strait and Sardinian Channel, feature the African mainland's second and third nearest points to Europe after Gibraltar. 

In ancient times, Tunisia was primarily inhabited by Berbers. Phoenician immigration began in the 12th century BC; these immigrants founded Carthage. A major mercantile power and a military rival of the Roman Republic, Carthage was defeated by the Romans in 146 BC. The Romans occupied Tunisia for most of the next 800 years  and left architectural legacies like the amphitheatre of El Jem.After a series of campaigns beginning in 1534 to conquer and colonize the region, the Ottoman Empire established control in 1574 and held sway for over 300 years afterwards. French colonization of Tunisia occurred in 1881. Tunisia gained independence with Habib Bourguiba and declared the Tunisian Republic in 1957. In 2011, the Tunisian Revolution resulted in the overthrow of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, followed by parliamentary elections. The country voted for parliament again on 26 October 2014, and for President on 23 November 2014. As a result, Tunisia is the only country in North Africa classified as "Free" by the Freedom House organization and is also considered by The Economist's Democracy Index as the only democracy in the Arab World.

The first stamps were issued for the French protectorate of Tunisia on 1 July 1888, marked "Régence de Tunis" (Regency of Tunis). Tunisia achieved independence from France on March 20, 1956 as the Kingdom of Tunisia. A year later, Tunisia was declared a republic.

The covers posted on April 21, 2014 and I received them on May 15, 2014.