The Maghreb

28.3.2: The Maghreb

With the decay of the Ottoman Empire, in 1830 the French invaded and seized Algiers. This began the colonization of French North Africa, which expanded to include Tunisia in 1881 and Morocco in 1912.

Learning Objective

Discuss the French presence in Northern Africa and how these colonies differed from others

Key Points

  • French North Africa, which at the height of French colonial control amounted to most of the Maghreb region, began with the French invasion of Algeria in 1830.
  • From 1848, when France officially made Algeria a colony, until independence in 1962, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France. Algeria became a destination for hundreds of thousands of European immigrants.
  • The French protectorate of Tunisia was established in 1881 during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire at the hands of the Russians, and lasted until Tunisian independence in 1956.
  • During French rule of Tunisia, major developments and improvements were undertaken in several areas, including transport and infrastructure, industry, the financial system, public health, and administration, although French businesses and citizen were favored, to the anger and resentment of the Tunisians.
  • The French Protectorate in Morocco was established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912; it had been a Spanish protectorate since 1884.
  • In opposition to the approach taken in Algeria and Tunisia, in Morocco, the French abandoned their typical assimilationist approach to culture and education, instead using urban planning and colonial education to prevent cultural mixing and uphold the traditional society of Morocco.

Key Terms

pieds-noirs
A term referring to Christian and Jewish people whose families migrated from all parts of the Mediterranean to French Algeria, the French protectorate in Morocco, or the French protectorate of Tunisia, where many lived for several generations. They were expelled at the end of French rule in North Africa between 1956 and 1962. The term usually includes the North African Jews, who had been living there for many centuries but were awarded French citizenship by the 1870 Crémieux Decree.
protectorate
A dependent territory that has been granted local autonomy and independence while still largely controlled by another sovereign state. In exchange, the dependent state usually accepts specified obligations, which ay vary depending on the nature of their relationship. They are different from colonies as they have local rulers.
Maghreb
Previously known as Barbary Coast, this area is usually defined as much or most of the region of western North Africa or Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. The traditional definition includes the Atlas Mountains and the coastal plains of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya.

French North Africa was a collection of territories in North Africa controlled by France and centering on French Algeria. At its height, it was a large part of the Maghreb.

The origins of French North Africa lay in the decline of the Ottoman Empire. In 1830, the French captured Algiers and from 1848 until independence in 1962, Algeria was treated as an integral part of France. Seeking to expand their influence, the French established protectorates to the east and west of it. The French protectorate of Tunisia was established in 1881 following a military invasion, and the French protectorate in Morocco in 1912. These lasted until 1955 in the case of Morocco and 1956 when full Tunisian independence arrived.

Until its independence, French Algeria had been part of metropolitan France (i.e., not an overseas territory) since before World War I.

French North Africa ended soon after the Évian Accords of March 1962, which led to the Algerian independence referendum of July 1962.

French Algeria

The French conquest of Algeria took place between 1830 and 1847. It was initiated in the last days of the Bourbon Restoration by Charles X, as an attempt to increase his popularity among the French, particularly in Paris where many veterans of the Napoleonic Wars lived. He intended to bolster patriotic sentiment and distract attention from ineptly handled domestic policies. In 1827, an argument between Hussein Dey, the ruler of the Ottoman Regency of Algiers, and the French consul escalated into a naval blockade. France then invaded and quickly seized Algiers in 1830, and rapidly took control of other coastal communities. Amid internal political strife in France, decisions were repeatedly made to retain control over the territory, and additional military forces were brought in over the following years to quell resistance in the interior of the country. The methods used to establish French hegemony reached genocidal proportions and war, as famine and disease led to the death of between 500,000 and 1 million Algerians.

A painting depicting French soldiers firing upon the Algerian army at the gates of Algiers during the invasion of Algeria.

French Invasion of Algeria: Fighting at the gates of Algiers in 1830.

From 1848 until independence, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France. The vast arid interior of Algeria, like the rest of French North Africa, was never considered part of France. One of France’s longest-held overseas territories, Algeria became a destination for hundreds of thousands of European immigrants known as pieds-noirs. However, indigenous Muslims remained a majority of the territory’s population throughout its history. Gradually, dissatisfaction among the Muslim population with its lack of political and economic status fueled calls for greater political autonomy and eventually independence from France. Tensions between the two population groups came to a head in 1954, when the first violent events of what was later called the Algerian War began. The war concluded in 1962 when Algeria gained complete independence following the March 1962 Evian agreements and the July 1962 self-determination referendum.

French Protectorate of Tunisia

The French protectorate of Tunisia was established in 1881 during the French colonial Empire era and lasted until Tunisian independence in 1956.

Tunisia formed a province of the decaying Ottoman Empire but enjoyed a large measure of autonomy under the bey Muhammad III as-Sadiq. In 1877, Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. Russian victory foreshadowed the dismemberment of the empire, including independence for several Balkan possessions and international discussions about the future of the North African provinces. The Berlin Congress of 1878 convened to resolve the Ottoman question. Britain, although opposed to total dismantling of the Ottoman Empire, offered France control of Tunisia in return for Cyprus. Germany, seeing the French claim as a way to divert attention from vengeful action in Europe (where France suffered defeat at Prussian hands in 1870-1) and little concerned about the southern Mediterranean, agreed to allow France to rule in Tunisia. Italy, which had economic interests in Tunisia, strongly opposed the plan but was unable to impose its will.

The French presence in Tunisia came five decades after their occupation of neighboring Algeria, when the French were inexperienced and lacked the knowledge to develop a colony. Both countries were possessions of the Ottoman Empire for three centuries, yet had long ago attained political autonomy from the Sultan in Constantinople. Before the French arrived, Tunisia began modern reforms, but financial difficulties mounted until the installation of a commission of European creditors. After its occupation, the French government assumed Tunisia’s international obligations. Major developments and improvements were undertaken by the French in several areas, including transport and infrastructure, industry, the financial system, public health, and administration. Yet French business and its citizens were favored, which angered Tunisians. Their nationalism was early expressed in speech and in print; political organization followed. The independence movement was already active before World War I, and continued to gain strength against mixed French opposition. Its ultimate aim was achieved in 1956 when it became the Republic of Tunisia.

A painting of the Congress of Berlin, which depicts a few dozen men standing and sitting around a large table, some of them shaking hands.

Congress of Berlin: A depiction of the Congress of Berlin, which resulted in France receiving Tunisia from Britain.

French Protectorate in Morocco

France officially established a protectorate over Morocco with the Treaty of Fez in 1912, ending what remained of the country’s de facto independence. From a legal point of view, the treaty did not deprive Morocco of its status as a sovereign state. The Sultan reigned but did not rule. Sultan Abdelhafid abdicated in favor of his brother Yusef after signing the treaty. On April 17, 1912, Moroccan infantrymen mutinied in the French garrison in Fez, in the 1912 Fez riots. The Moroccans were unable to take the city and were defeated by a French relief force.

In establishing their protectorate over much of Morocco, the French had the experience of the conquest of Algeria and of their protectorate over Tunisia; the latter was the model for their Moroccan policy. There were, however, important differences. First, the protectorate was established only two years before the outbreak of World War I, which brought with it a new attitude toward colonial rule. Rejecting the typical French assimilationist approach to culture and education as a liberal fantasy, Morocco’s conservative French rulers attempted to use urban planning and colonial education to prevent cultural mixing and uphold the traditional society upon which the French depended for collaboration. Second, Morocco had a thousand-year tradition of independence; though it was strongly influenced by the civilization of Muslim Iberia, it had never been subject to Ottoman rule. These circumstances and the proximity of Morocco to Spain created a special relationship between the two countries.

Under the protectorate, French civil servants allied themselves with the French colonists and their supporters in France to prevent any moves in the direction of Moroccan autonomy. As pacification proceeded, the French government promoted economic development, particularly the exploitation of Morocco’s mineral wealth, the creation of a modern transportation system, and the development of a modern agriculture sector geared to the French market. Tens of thousands of colonists entered Morocco and bought large amounts of the rich agricultural land. Interest groups that formed among these elements continually pressured France to increase its control over Morocco.

In late 1955, Mohammed V successfully negotiated the gradual restoration of Moroccan independence within a framework of French-Moroccan interdependence. The sultan agreed to institute reforms that would transform Morocco into a constitutional monarchy with a democratic form of government. In February 1956, Morocco acquired limited home rule. Further negotiations for full independence culminated in the French-Moroccan Agreement signed in Paris on March 2, 1956. On April 7 of that year France officially relinquished its protectorate in Morocco.

Attributions