Algerian War for Independence [IB history of the americas]

Ahmed Ben Bella

an Algerian politician, soldier and socialist revolutionary, who led the FLN & organized the shipment of foreign weapons as well as coordinating political strategy; ultimately served as the first president of Algeria from 1963 to 1965

Charles de Gaulle

leader of Free French forces & became provisional president of France immediately after World War 2; declared that Algerians had the right to determine their own future and claim their independence

World War 1

Algeria was asked to contribute more to the French war effort than any other country in "French North Africa," and provided capital, products and men for the war and factory work; Algerian nationalism took root after the First World War with the formation of several movements, some seeking independence and others wanting more rights while still retaining links with France (result of exposure to democracy and the unstable aftermath of the war, which caused unemployment & poverty)

World War 2

large numbers of both Muslim and European Algerians served with Free France during this war; Algeria was controlled by a Vichy administration, until it joined the Free French after an invasion by Allied forces in 1942; the experiences of the war, new attitudes towards colonialism and the reluctance of the French to make changes led to the emergence of a more assertive form of nationalism after the war; The French government was determined to maintain control

of Algeria in order to maintain their reputation on the world stage; there was significant political, social and economic inequality between the 1 million colons and the 9 million Muslims in post-war Algeria.

Setif Massacre

a series of attacks by French colonial authorities and pied-noir settler militias on Algerian civilians in 1945 around the market town of Sétif; the first violent clash involving Algerian nationalists & provoked a harsh response from French authorities

Battle of Philippeville/ massacre

a series of raids launched on 20 August 1955 on various cities and towns of the Constantine region by FLN insurgents and armed mobs; widely considered to be a major turning point in the Algerian War, as the massacre of the pieds-noirs, followed by the violent French reprisals, created an irreparable divide between the European and the native communities

Battle of Algiers

a campaign of urban guerrilla warfare carried out by the FLN against the French Algerian authorities from late 1956 to late 1957; gave ethical sanction to armed struggle and popular resistance to colonial occupation and imperial power, which ultimately damaged the reputation of France in favor of Algerian forces

Evian Accords

a set of peace treaties signed on 18 March 1962 in Évian-les-Bains, France, by France and the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic, the government-in-exile of FLN; sought Algeria's independence from France; both France & Algeria made concessions in order to support the agreement (e.g. Algerian property rights would be respected & French companies would get preferential rights when permits were granted to exploit the oil and natural gas reserves in the Sahara for 6 years)

North African Star

an early Algerian nationalist organization founded in 1926; dissolved first in 1929, then reorganized in 1933. but was later finally dissolved in 1937; can be considered a forerunner of the FLN; formed by Messali Hadj

Party of the Algerian People

a successor organization of the North African Star; led by veteran Algerian nationalist Messali Hadj; tried to mobilise urban workers and peasant farmers, but was soon banned by the French authorities

FLN/ALN

the FLN was the principal nationalist movement during the Algerian War and the sole legal and ruling political party of the Algerian state until other parties were legalised in 1989; the ALN was the armed wing of the nationalist National Liberation Front of Algeria during the Algerian War

OAS

extremist Organisation de l'Armée Secrète; established by pied noir extremists and mutinous army generals to wage a war of terror and prevent an Algerian victory; targeted the French as well as Algerians in vicious attacks in the final stages of the war

GPRA

Provisional Government of the Algerian People; a diplomatic and political tool for the FLN; allowed sympathetic governments to extend official recognition to it

harkis

native Muslim French who served as auxiliaries in the French Army during the Algerian War of Independence from 1954 to 1962; sometimes applies to all French Muslims who supported French Algeria during the war

Violette Plan

reforms proposed by Popular Front government in France; colons opposed any reforms that would give more rights to

Muslim Algerians, and rejected the French government's Violette Plan in 1939; proposed the extension of French

citizenship with full political rights to certain categories of Algerian Muslims,including army officers, elected officials, university graduates and professionals.Abbas and other moderates welcomed the plan as a step towards achieving

their aims, but Messali Hadj rejected it as a new 'instrument of colonialism' designed 'to split the Algerian people by separating the élite from the masses'; pieds noirs rejected it and created so many objections and obstacles that it was

never implemented; failure of the reform plan prompted Abbas to move his support from the concept of assimilation to the goal of a Muslim Algeria

pieds noirs

a person of European origin who lived in Algeria during French rule, especially one who returned to Europe after Algeria was granted independence; although they only made up about 10% of the Algerian population, they dominated the economic & political stage in Algeria; overwhelmingly supported colonial French rule in Algeria & were opposed to Algerian nationalist groups such as the FLN

Ottoman Empire

a Muslim empire based in Turkey that lasted from the 1300's to 1922; part of the Algerian territory was under Ottoman rule, a geographical area referred to as the Regency of Algiers

scorched earth policy

the practice of burning crops and killing livestock during wartime so that the enemy cannot live off the land or have adequate resources domestically; France used this practice when taking over Algeria while also forcibly relocating many Algerians to less fertile areas of the country; a brutal conquest,

which destroyed the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Algerians; tens of thousands of French troops, and many more Algerians, were killed in the process

nationalism

a strong feeling of pride in and devotion to one's country; one of the driving factors of the Algerian independence movement; especially in the face of cultural assimilation into France; brought pride to the Algerian people, thus giving them a passion to fight for self determination

ulema movement

belief that Algerian nationalism could only succeed with a return to the principles of Islam; although significant in stirring up a sense of religious and national consciousness among Algerians, it did not play a practical political role in the growth of resistance

guerilla warfare

a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tactics, and mobility, to fight a larger and less-mobile traditional military; used by Algerian forces against the French in order to make up for their lack of technology & numbers

Abd al-Qadir

Resisted French colonization in the 1930’s, became an icon to Algerian independence movements in the 20th century

Assimilation & Algeria

Algeria wasn’t just a colony of France, it was considered part of France by the French government. This led to many French citizens moving here and the spread of French culture and language to Algeria.

Berbers/ Amazigh (Kabyle Myth)

The French started the myth that Berbers were more adept to assimilation into French culture than muslims, creating a divide between the two communities.

Divide & Rule (in Algeria)

The French colonial government divided the populace of Algeria by creating a narrative that Berbers were more adept to assimilation than Muslims. This led to animosity between the groups that can still be seen today.

External Factors that led to rise to independence and nationalism

In WW2, Algeria was used as the base for the French government in exile. After the war, the French gave independence to most of their colonies but not Algeria.

“Era of Broken Promises”

Period after WW2 when French government promised reforms and more rights to Algerians after helping fight the war, Algerian requests were denied over and over

French Fourth Republic & Algeria

Under the fourth french republic, France released many of its colonies but not Algeria, as it was believed to be part of France, Government promised reforms but never followed through, replaced by fifth republic which gave Algeria independence

Internal Factors that led to rise to independence and nationalism

Within Algeria, the colons held most of the land but most lived within the city, leaving the native Algerians as poor peasants and field laborers, Algerians had little to no representation in government, France was also extracting cash crops and oil, taking all the profits, leaving Algeria poor

Maghreb Region

French region of colonized Africa, consists of Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, French gave independence to Tunisia and Morocco before Algeria, North Western part of Africa

Movement for the Triumph of Democratic Liberties (MTLD)

Founded after WW2, one of the first groups to call for total independence but mostly fought for more rights/ workers rights at first, tried to resist through democratic channels such as politics and elections

Settler colonialism (and how it relates to Algeria)

Many citizens from France and other European countries moved to Algeria after colonization to live there permanently, were called pied noirs or colons and had all the political power and most of the economic power, treated Algerians poorly.

Women and the Algerian War

Algerian women helped the ALN in guerilla warfare, planting bombs, transporting weapons and in medical care.

Young Algerians (led by Ferhat Abbas)/ Assimilationists

Compromised mainly of young educated Algerians, fought for equal rights under French rule rather than independence, one of the first resistance movements.