Batna

Batna was inhabited by Chaoui tribes and there were previous settlements in the area but they were in ruins by the 18th century. The first solid foundations (a military encampment) of the city were erected by a French garrison in 1844, with a strategic mission to create a permanently guarded access point for the main Sahara road. Batna's geographical location offers a natural break through the Atlas Mountains. The ancient cities of Timgad and Lambese, built around the first century CE, are living examples of the importance that the Romans gave to commercial control over the region. The inhabitants of the city revolted against the French authorities at the beginning of colonization. Thereafter they organized the Algerian revolution against French colonialism. …

Located in the Aurès Mountains (part of the Atlas Mountains), at 1,048 metres (3,438 ft) above sea level, Batna has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk) with Mediterranean influences and an average annual precipitation of 326 millimetres (12.8 in). Summers are moderately hot (by Saharan standards) and dry and winters are chilly and wetter, with the possibility of snowfall.