Leptis Parva

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Leptis Parva,(not to be confused with Leptis Magna in Tripolitania) was an ancient city on the eastern coast of Tunisia by the Gulf of Hammamet in close proximity to the modern city of Monastir. It was founded as a Phoenician colony sometime during the 8th century BCE, around the time Carthage was founded, and was a commercial city. It was a prominent city during the Phoenician period, but became a less important city during the Punic rule of the region, c.600BCE to 146BCE. It was incorporated into the Roman Republic with the destruction of Carthage in 146BCE, but gained more autonomy than it had during Punic Era. Julius Caesar used it as his base of operations in 46BCE during his winter campaign against supporters for Pompey lead by Titus Labienus. It remained an important city even during the Byzantine Period and was one of the most important cities in North Africa. It suffered the same fate that the other great cities, including Leptis Magna and Carthage, suffered at the hands of invading Arabs, who virtually destroyed the city in the 7th century CE. It was abandoned, never to be settled again.