Gourara

Late modern period

In the 1890s, the French administration and military called for the annexation of the Tuat, the Gourara and the Tidikelt, a complex that had been part of the Moroccan Empire for many centuries prior to the arrival of the French in Algeria. According to Alfred Le Chatelier, French soldier, ceramicist and Islamologist, Tuat, at any moment of history, had not been an integral part of Morocco. The inhabitants never depended from them more than a few years. On every occasion they would affirm their independence and free themselves of any religious vassalage. In 1893, the French government authorized Jules Cambon to occupy the Gourara and the Tidikelt, letting him go so far as to gather his forces at El Golea, then only rescinded the order at the very last moment when his troops were about to depart. The actual intervention in the Gourara-Tuat-Tidikelt did not take place until the very end of 1899. The military contingent escorting the mission quickly routed the Saharans and took advantage of the opportunity to occupy the oasis of In Salah.