The Évian Accords were a set of

peace treaties A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an agreement to stop hostilities; a surren ...

signed on 18 March 1962 in

Évian-les-Bains Évian-les-Bains (), or simply Évian ( frp, Èvian, , or ), is a commune in the northern part of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. In 2018, it had a population of 9,100. A high-market holida ...

, France, by

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic, the government-in-exile of FLN (), which sought Algeria's independence from France. The Accords ended the 1954–1962

Algerian War The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence,( ar, الثورة الجزائرية '; '' ber, Tagrawla Tadzayrit''; french: Guerre d'Algérie or ') and sometimes in Algeria as the War of 1 November ...

with a formal cease-fire proclaimed for 19 March and formalized the status of Algeria as an independent nation and the idea of cooperative exchanges between the two countries.

Content of Évian Accords

The Évian Accords consisted of 93 pages of detailed agreements and arrangements. In essence these covered cease-fire arrangements, prisoner releases, the recognition of full sovereignty and right to self-determination of Algeria, in addition to guarantees of protection, non-discrimination and property rights for all Algerian citizens. A section dealing with military issues provided for the withdrawal of French forces over a period of two years, with the exception of those garrisoning the French military base of Mers El Kébir. Other provisions pledged that there would be no sanctions for any acts committed prior to the ceasefire. French President

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Governm ...

wanted to maintain French interests in the area, including industrial and commercial primacy and control over Saharan

oil reserves An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

. In addition, the European French community (the ''colon'' population), the ''

pieds-noirs The ''Pieds-Noirs'' (; ; ''Pied-Noir''), are the people of French and other European descent who were born in Algeria during the period of French rule from 1830 to 1962; the vast majority of whom departed for mainland France as soon as Alger ...

'' and indigenous Sephardi Jews in Algeria were guaranteed religious freedom and property rights as well as French citizenship with the option to choose between French and Algerian citizenship after three years. In exchange, Algeria received access to technical assistance and financial aid from the French government. Algerians were permitted to continue freely circulating between their country and France for work, although they would not have political rights equal to French citizens. The OAS right-wing movement opposed the negotiations through a series of bombings and an assassination attempt against De Gaulle at

Clamart Clamart () is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. The town is divided into two parts, separated by a forest: ''bas Clamart'', the historical centre, and ''petit Clamart'' with urbani ...

in Paris in August 1962. The agreements included an article which stated that "Algeria concedes to France the use of certain air bases, terrains, sites and military installations which are necessary to it." The agreement specifically permitted France to maintain its naval base at Mers El Kébir for another fifteen years and facilities for underground nuclear testing in the Sahara; France withdrew from the base in 1967, only five years after the agreement.

The vote

In a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...

held on 8 April 1962, the French electorate approved the Accords, with almost 91% in favour. The final result was 17,866,423 in favour of Algerian independence, and 1,809,074 against. On 1 July, the Accords were subject to a second referendum in Algeria, where with 5,975,581 voted for independence and just 16,534 against. De Gaulle pronounced Algeria an independent country on 3 July.

The negotiators

Outcome of Agreements

The historian

Alistair Horne Sir Alistair Allan Horne (9 November 1925 – 25 May 2017) was a British journalist, biographer and historian of Europe, especially of 19th- and 20th-century France. He wrote more than 20 books on travel, history, and biography. Early life, ...

comments that most provisions of the agreements were to be overtaken by events.Alistair Horne, page 521 ''A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962', ' The wholesale exodus of almost all of the million-strong

European community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lis ...

immediately prior to independence made the three year transition clauses a

dead letter Dead letter mail or undeliverable mail is mail that cannot be delivered to the addressee or returned to the sender. This is usually due to lack of compliance with postal regulations, an incomplete address and return address, or the inability t ...

, while the widespread killings of Muslims who had served as auxiliaries ( harkis) with the French Army was in direct contravention of the amnesty provisions of the treaty.

References

Bibliography