Serkadji prison, Former prison and memorial museum in the Casbah of Algiers, Algeria
The prison de Serkadji is a former detention facility in the upper Casbah of Algiers, currently being converted into a memorial museum. The stone building follows a cross-shaped layout designed to allow central surveillance, with thick outer walls and a position on high ground overlooking the sea.
The building was erected in 1856 by the French colonial administration on the foundations of an older Ottoman fortification. After independence in 1962, the site kept functioning as a prison for some years before a decision was made to close it and dedicate it to historical memory.
A stone stele in the courtyard lists the names of those executed within these walls, and visitors can stop to read them one by one. Former prisoners have described hearing the voices of condemned men calling out in the early morning hours, a memory that still shapes how Algerians relate to this place today.
The site is in the upper Casbah, a neighborhood of steep and winding lanes, so sturdy footwear makes the walk more comfortable. Since the conversion to a museum is still ongoing, it is worth confirming visiting conditions before heading there.
On the night of April 19, 1962, 26 prisoners escaped through a tunnel they had dug under the courtyard, only days before the ceasefire that ended the war. The tools they used were reportedly supplied by the prison administration without its knowledge, making the breakout one of the strangest episodes in the building's history.
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