History of France Intolerance in Algeria - Middle East Prospect Part 2

History of intolerance of France in Algeria
Illustrated in particular by that of Oran
and Prospect for the Middle East
By Didier Bertin - February 5, 2010

PART 2

 

2-PARTICULAR CASE OF ORAN

The French army occupied “Mers El Kebir” (near Oran) and Oran in 1831. Upon the arrival of the French army, we could say that Oran was essentially a Jewish city, because the Jewish people constituted about 75 % of its 3 800 inhabitants, which also included 750 Christians and only 250 Muslims.

From 1841, General Louis Juchault de Lamoricière who organized the first battalion of Zouaves and the first Arabic Desk built away from Oran a zone to group together the Muslim population. The name of this Zone was at first the Village Djallis which meant village of the Foreigners and was afterward named “New Town” but in fact was called "Village Negre" (Negro Village) by the civilian French people until Independence. The latter name reflected the ostracism, and the contempt in which the Muslims were held.

In 1848, Oran became officially a Municipality. In this time Oran was limited to the Jewish district and to the low districts near the docks (called thereafter Marine district) and extended over the heights only from 1890. The population increased gradually mainly with the arrival of Spanish and French immigrants, to reach in 1960, a population of 220 000 French people and of 180 000 Muslims, I.E. 400 000 inhabitants. Oran thus had a large majority of European inhabitants who achieved main part of the economic activity based on trade. As a result the city remained quite inactive many years after independence. By its population and activity, Oran was quite similar to a Spanish Presidio and was a quite new city. Oran was thus different of other Algerian Cities.

If Oran was a Jewish city in 1830, it quickly became after 1870, an anti-Jewish city.

From 1870, Oran became a favorable ground for the development of Ultra right-wing plebs, violently anti-Semite and racist much before Germany. Before World War 2, Oran gathered numerous admirers of the Franco, Mussolini. "The plague of Oran was brown." This aspect of the City and more generally of French Algeria is perfectly illustrated by the History of Jewish community of Oran.

In 1958, Oran, the most European city of Algeria, was called on May 13th to imitate Algiers by supporting the Army against the Republic. On 5th July, 1962, I.E. 2 days after the independence, Oran undergoes its 10th major disaster as this is shown hereunder when the new Algerian Army slaughtered European people: 3000 were reported definitively missing and only few hundreds of bodies were found. The present French army which was still present did not intervene to prevent this massacre despite it was informed of it. The city emptied quickly of its European population who left essentially for France.

Oran 10 major disasters

1.          The earthquake in 1790,

2.          The plague in 1794,

3.          The Cholera en1849

4.          The reign of the extreme right and the anti-Jews from 1871

5.         Oran elected in 1897 the first official anti-Jews Mayor of French History, Gobert

6.         Oran elected in 1925, the second Anti-Jews Mayor of the French History, Molle, who also became Member of Parliament

7.         Oran elected in 1932, an anti-Jews Member of Parliament, named Pares

8.         Oran elected in 1935, the third Anti-Jews Mayor of the French History, Former Abbot Lambert

9.          Success of pro-German Vichy’s Regime in 1940 and abrogation of Cremieux’ s decree.

10.       Massacre of July 5th, 1962 – 3000 European people were slaughtered            by the new Algerian army at a short distance from the French Army ignoring voluntarily the situation.

Albert Camus wrote his novel “the plague” from 1940 to 1942 in Oran, the major disasters out of the plague are numerous to inspire him and in particular the brown plague until the liberation of the city by the US army from 8the November 1942. The Novel was published in 1947. Albert Camus went to Oran as teacher in a school welcoming the Jewish students who were all fired from Public school as a result of anti-Semitic laws.

III-The situation of Jewish population in Algeria and particularly in Oran

1-Situation Jews in Algeria, example of 1800 - 1830 period

In Algiers, the Jewish community was often a victim of Janissaries’ anger. In 1805, as we already said, the partner of Mr Bacri was murdered by Janissary (Turkish soldier) and this was the signal of a sacking of the Jewish district. The Consul of France, Dubois-Thainville accommodated 200 Jews in Embassy‘s premises to save them from slaughter. In 1806 in Algiers, Janissaries organized another plunder and massacred 300 Jews. In Constantine seventeen Jewish young girls were kidnapped to be offered to the Dey. 

According to William Shaller, Consul of USA in Algiers in 1830, the Jews were particularly mistreated: They could go out of the city without authorization only on Wednesdays and Saturdays and had to make demeaning tasks that the Muslims did not want to do. The system of hierarchy did not authorize the Jews to resist to the violence of Muslims.

2 - SPECIAL SITUATION OF ORAN

A-Exclusion of Jews in Spanish presidios

The Jewish population of Ouahran increased with the arrival of Jews from Mallorca in 1287and then gradually with those of Spain fleeing “Reconquista and Inquisition.”
The Spaniards tolerated the presence of Jews in the Spanish presidio of Oran long time after Reconquista, while they were forbidden to stay in Spain. This tolerance lasted 160 years but in 1669, Marques Los Veles, Captain General of Oran brutally expelled all the Jews out of Oran as a spasm of Reconquista then  glorified with the support of Madrid.

The Jews played an important role in the Muslim Spain and Andalusia, but knew in Catholic Spain mostly contempt and violence even before the Inquisition:  For example, Toledo Valencia and experienced pogroms in 1391. When the Spaniards left Oran from 1708 to 1732, Jews were authorized to return under the protection of Turkey. But when the Spaniards came back in Oran in 1732, they again expelled the Jews together with the Turkish people out of the city. In 39 years the Spaniards expelled twice the Jews out of the city of Oran.
Again, when the Spaniards abandoned Oran in 1792, the Turks requested the Jews to come back in the city and offered them advantages because they wanted  to repopulate the city destroyed by the earthquake of 1790.
The Jews of Oran had a very different History from those of the rest of Algeria and passed from Spanish tolerance to hatred and after to Turkish protection. Thus the Jews of Oran seemed to have had with Turkish, a different relation from that of the Jews of Algiers and Constantine. However, the Jews of Oran "as such", that is to say, as an 'inhabitants of Oran” when they were allowed to be, met the Turks only briefly in parentheses of History.