Republican or Catholic Civilisation in French Algeria The Debate on the Application of the Law on the Separation of Church and State in Colonial Algeria, 1890-1914

This thesis explores the debate around the application of the law on the separation of Church and State of 1905 from France in Colonial Algeria from 1890 to 1914. The unique status of Algeria made it so that it was legally part of France, the three départements of Oran, Alger and Constantine were all counted as French départements. Thus it seemed logical that law would be applied in Algeria as there would be no exceptions to any French territory at the time from the law. The application of the law in Algeria nevertheless sparked controversy as the context in which the law would operate was not the same as in France. The presence of an indigenous Muslim population and the dependency of the local Catholic Church on state subsidies raised concerns whether applying the law in Algeria was wise. The French administration in Algeria had also created a special form of hierarchised and centralised Islam with which the laic state could interact with and control. This was achieved through the...Show moreThis thesis explores the debate around the application of the law on the separation of Church and State of 1905 from France in Colonial Algeria from 1890 to 1914. The unique status of Algeria made it so that it was legally part of France, the three départements of Oran, Alger and Constantine were all counted as French départements. Thus it seemed logical that law would be applied in Algeria as there would be no exceptions to any French territory at the time from the law. The application of the law in Algeria nevertheless sparked controversy as the context in which the law would operate was not the same as in France. The presence of an indigenous Muslim population and the dependency of the local Catholic Church on state subsidies raised concerns whether applying the law in Algeria was wise. The French administration in Algeria had also created a special form of hierarchised and centralised Islam with which the laic state could interact with and control. This was achieved through the control of the medersas, by censoring what was taught in these and the fatwas issued by the ulamas, and the recruitment of imams, ulamas and muftis which were proven to be apolitical and loyal to the French state. The Catholic Church in Algeria also served as an assimilative institution as many non-French European immigrants, from Catholic Countries such as Italy, Spain, Malta and Poland, came to Algeria. The application of the law in Algeria would on paper force the French authorities to give up the control they exerted over the unique form of Islam they had created in Algeria, but also give up the unofficial partnership with the Algerian Church with whom the colonial administration cooperated. The debate that originated in France and opposed Catholics and republicans made its way to Algeria and opposed these two ideological camps. What this thesis attempts to do through the analysis of newspaper articles, is to understand what the public opinion on this issue was in Algeria, to bring a nuanced perspective on the debate by highlighting differences within these two ideological camps, and differently from the scholarly literature adopt an approach not based on institutional archives.Show less

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Republican or Catholic Civilisation in French Algeria The Debate on the Application of the Law on the Separation of Church and State in Colonial Algeria, 1890-1914