Navigation guide Refugee populations in the UK: Algerians - ICAR

Historical context
There is a wide range of online 3 historical sources on Algeria and a growing body of work published in
English, as well as a large number of publications in other languages, particularly French. This section
provides a brief overview of early events in Algeria’s history and the background to the current conflict.
The turbulent history up to the current conflict
The original inhabitants of North Africa were Berber speaking people. There is a great diversity of Berber
languages; the site Ethnologue cites 13 separate Berber groups currently resident in Algeria, although many
of these are very small. By far the most significant are Kabyle, currently spoken by at least 2.5 million people
and Chaouia, spoken by 1.4 million. These groups resident in what is now Algeria came under Roman,
Vandal and Byzantine influence before the eighth century conquest of the Arabs which profoundly changed
the character of the area. Under the influence of the Arabs, Berbers gradually converted to Islam and in the
areas of Arabic settlement they intermarried. Berber communities remained relatively distinct in the
mountainous areas and these are the areas of strong Berber nationalism today. The Spanish made a
number of brief incursions in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries but they were repelled by Ottoman forces.
Algeria became part of the Ottoman empire in the sixteenth century.
The area remained under Ottoman control until it was invaded by the French in 1830. For several decades
the French remained relatively concentrated on the coast. From 1830 to 1847, the French fought a series of
battles with the charismatic figure Abdel-Kader who galvanised Algerian resistance and remains a significant
national hero. After they had put down the final 1871 rebellion, the French government began to promote
European settlement more actively and the number of Europeans grew. In 1900, there were 500,000
Europeans living in Algeria and by the end of the Second World War this number had grown to more than a
million. 4 These settlers were known as pieds noirs and took control of the most fertile land. They included
not only French but significant groups of Italian and Spanish settlers. As new generations were born and
raised away from Europe their own identity evolved, autonomous from Europe and associated very much
with North Africa. The French administered Algeria not as a separate colonial territory but as an integral part
of France. Uniquely among French colonies, it was subdivided into three departments. 5 The bond between
France, Algeria and successive generations of pieds noirs settlers was captured in the notion of l’Algérie
Française. The strength of this bond must be appreciated if the tremendous violence of the 1954-62 war,
which resulted in Algerian independence, is to be understood.
The first mobilisation for Algerian independence occurred not in Algeria, where the French kept a very tight
control over any political developments, but in France. There was a significant Algerian population in France
by the 1920s and these emigrants were, and have remained, extremely politically active. 6 The war of 1954-
62 was extremely traumatic for both sides and comparisons have inevitably been made between this and
the current conflict. Algeria achieved independence on 5 July 1962, though it is a significant reflection of the
symbolic importance of the liberation struggle that the most significant day in the Algerian calendar is not 5
3 Amongst the most comprehensive is the book length study at the Library of Congress [accessed 5 May 2004].
4 Stora, B. (1991) Histoire de l’Algérie coloniale (1830-1954). La Découverte, Paris.
5 French colonies were administered in one of three ways: first as an Overseas Department (Département Outre Mer,
DOM, such as Martinique today); secondly as an Overseas Territory (Territoire Outre Mer, TOM, such as New
Caledonia today), or thirdly as a Protectorat, (as was the case for Morocco and Tunisia). Algeria was the only
exception.
6 Stora, B. (1992) Ils venaient d’Algérie: l’immigration algérienne en France 1912-1992. Fayard, Paris.
Navigation guide to refugee populations: Algerians
©ICAR 2004, moral rights Michael Collyer
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