Rebel and Saint: Muslim Notables, Populist Protest, Colonial Encounters (Algeria and Tunisia, 1800-1904) (Comparative Studies on Muslim Societies)

by Julia Clancy-Smith

Julia Clancy-Smith's unprecedented study brings us a remarkable view of North African history from the perspective of the North Africans themselves. Focusing on the religious beliefs and political actions of Muslim elites and their followers in Algeria and Tunisia, she provides a richly detailed analysis of resistance and accommodation to colonial rule.

Clancy-Smith demonstrates the continuities between the eras of Turkish and French rule as well as the importance of regional ties among elite families in defining Saharan political cultures. She rejects the position that Algerians and Tunisians were invariably victims of western colonial aggression, arguing instead that Muslim notables understood the outside world and were quite capable of manipulating the massive changes occurring around them.

Genres: History, Algeria, Middle East, Islam, Tunisia

396 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Dillon Tatum · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an excellent intervention in colonial historiography, and in North African studies. It focuses on Sufi notables and how they interacted, resisted, and often manipulated the Turkish and French colonizers. What is specifically interesting is that her focus on the subaltern does not place them in a "victim" position, instead she gives them back their agency as historical actors. Very well done.

[Justin Michael James Dell · Rating 2 out of 5]

As other reviewers have pointed out, Clancy-Smith's text is a robust exposition of how so-called 'subalterns' in French colonial Algeria and protectorate Tunisia possessed considerable agency, exemplified in particular by their ability to manipulate their European imperial overlords. However, I think I agree with Heather Sharkey's critique of this text, namely that it is essentially a specialist monograph that cannot serve as much use to the general reader. To be sure, this text did reinforce my general knowledge of some of the problems imperial France faced in securing the intractable border between Algeria and Tunisia and the attendant political problems posed by migrations across the frontier. However, a lot of the material Clancy-Smith covers is so recondite - such as the saga of Bu Ziyan - that it is difficult to find any other sources that even address the selfsame subject matter. Particularly vexing are Clancy-Smith's multitudinous references to a dizzying constellation of geographic locations in the Maghrib, with which if one is unfamiliar makes for very disorienting reading.

In short, if you're looking for a general knowledge of the Islamic Maghrib, I would not recommend this book.