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Martyrs · Church Fathers · basilicas · North Africa

The Ancient Church
of North Africa.

Carthage, Hippo and Thagaste were not edges of the early Church. They were places where saints witnessed, bishops taught and Christian communities built at extraordinary scale. Journey from those ancient foundations to the living Catholic Church of Algeria and Tunisia.

See all places on the mapBuild a North Africa pilgrimage
12 pilgrimage places2 countries3 spiritual chapters
A regional collection—not a continuous route

These destinations span Tunisia and Algeria and should be planned as separate journeys. Border access, local transportation and admission to religious communities can change; arrange sensitive visits through official custodians and current local Church contacts.

UNESCO Carthage information ↗

Three pilgrimage chapters

An ancient center—and a Church that still lives.

This is more than an archaeology list. Each chapter connects physical places to the people, prayer and ecclesial memory that make them meaningful for a Catholic traveler.

Tunis · Carthage

Carthage: martyrs, bishops and basilicas

Begin with the city that formed a great school of Latin Christianity: the witness of Perpetua and Felicity, the episcopacy of St. Cyprian and the monumental churches of late-antique Carthage.

  1. Stop 1Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul and St. OliviaCathedral · Tunis
  2. Stop 2Christian Carthage Archaeological SitesArchaeological Site · Carthage
  3. Stop 3Carthage Amphitheatre — Witness of Sts. Perpetua and FelicityMartyr Site · Carthage
  4. Stop 4Basilica of Damous El KaritaArchaeological Site · Carthage
  5. Stop 5Basilica of St. Cyprian at CarthageArchaeological Site · Carthage
Thagaste · Hippo · Tipasa

In the African homeland of St. Augustine

Follow Augustine from his birthplace at Thagaste to the city he served as bishop, then widen the view through Tipasa’s Palaeochristian Mediterranean landscape.

  1. Stop 1Ancient Thagaste — Birthplace of St. AugustineArchaeological Site · Souk Ahras
  2. Stop 2Hippo Regius — Church of St. AugustineArchaeological Site · Annaba
  3. Stop 3Basilica of St. Augustine of HippoBasilica · Annaba
  4. Stop 4Tipasa Early Christian Archaeological SitesArchaeological Site · Tipasa

The complete collection

Every North Africa destination

01
Ancient Thagaste — Birthplace of St. AugustineArchaeological Site · Souk Ahras, Ancient Thagaste
→02
Christian Carthage Archaeological SitesArchaeological Site · Carthage, Tunis Governorate
→03
Hippo Regius — Church of St. AugustineArchaeological Site · Annaba, Ancient Hippo
→04
Basilica of St. Augustine of HippoBasilica · Annaba, Hippo
→05
Basilica of Our Lady of AfricaBasilica · Algiers, Bologhine
→06
Tipasa Early Christian Archaeological SitesArchaeological Site · Tipasa, Tipaza Province
→07
Carthage Amphitheatre — Witness of Sts. Perpetua and FelicityMartyr Site · Carthage, Tunis Governorate
→08
Basilica of Damous El KaritaArchaeological Site · Carthage, Tunis Governorate
→09
Basilica of St. Cyprian at CarthageArchaeological Site · Carthage, Bordj Djedid
→10
Monastery of Tibhirine and Graves of the Blessed Martyrs of AlgeriaMartyr Site · Tibhirine, Médéa Province
→11
Basilica and Sanctuary of Our Lady of Santa CruzBasilica · Oran, Oran Province
→12
Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul and St. OliviaCathedral · Tunis, Tunis Governorate
→

Travel with historical humility

Distinguish witness, tradition and archaeology.

The martyrs and bishops are historically real; the surviving structures are often fragmentary; and some ancient identifications remain debated. Catholic Tourist labels those distinctions so that devotion can be strengthened by truth rather than overstatement.

Read our editorial approach →