In the 11th century, following the overthrow of the Fatimid empire and the fall of the Arab, a settlement was founded by various Berbers who came from other regions of Algeria, particularly the highlands, and from Morocco.

They moved to El Milia and its surroundings, but never mixed with Hilali Arab tribes, and later Muslim refugees from Andalusia expelled from Spain.

The tribe, humiliated and ruined by new taxes, held a meeting and decided to attack the next day at dawn and take control of the French military tower.

The French occupation forces then mobilized some 10,000 soldiers to try to quell the uprising, and their superiority in armaments gave them the upper hand.

During the War of Independence, the tribes of the region of El Milia, then part of the historic wilaya II of North Constantine, played a large role in the fight against the settlers, particularly in the attacks of 20 August 1955.

The El Milia region has a Mediterranean climate characterized by warm summers and mild winters but is very humid.