[1] Saïda was a stronghold of Abd al-Qadir, the Algerian national leader, who burned the town as French forces approached it in 1844.

[citation needed] It is nicknamed the city of waters, because of its abundant underground springs.

The area is forested and the main products of the town are cereals, wool, leather and bottled mineral waters.

[1] Saïda is located in north-western Algeria, on the southern slopes of the Tell Atlas mountain range at the northern fringe of the High Plateaus.

The city lies on the right bank of the Wadi Saïda, protected by wooded mountains on the opposite shore that rise steeply from the valley floor to an elevation of some 4,000 feet (1,200 metres).