The Ottoman Turks conquered the country in the mid-16th century, and the three States or "Wilayat" of Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan (which make up Libya) remained part of their empire with the exception of the virtual autonomy of the Karamanlis. The Karamanlis ruled from 1711 until 1835 mainly in Tripolitania, but had influence in Cyrenaica and Fezzan as well by the mid 18th century.
2010-03-26T13:53:08Z Roxanna 1160x1056 (29795 Bytes) {{Information |Description={{en|1="United States of North Africa" (proposal by President [[en:Habib Bourguiba]] for Tunisia, Algeria and Libya 1973) and "Arab Islamic Republic" (proposal by [[en:Muammar al-Gaddafi]] for a uni