Mostaganem

Mostaganem is in Northwest Algeria.

Understand
Mostaganem has its origins circa the 11th century as a Punic town with the name Murustage, from where it passed through some Muslim dynasty hands. But after being captured by Ottoman admiral Barbarossa in the 16th century, it became one of those fun Barbary Coast towns that dabbled in piracy with sea corsairs, probably leading up to the stuff that pricked James Madison's conscience and emanated in the Barbary Wars. Eventually, France secured Mostaganem as a garrison though and then it became independent like the rest of Algeria in 1962.