Collaboration and "Pacification": French Conquest,

Moroccan Combatants, and the Transformation

of the Middle Atlas
MOSHE GERSHOVICH

In his seminal essay, "Non European foundations of How and why did the French become increas-
European Imperialism: sketch for a theory of collabo- ingly dependent upon Moroccan troops in the latter
ration," Ronald Robinson delineates the process by stages of the conquest drive?
which early nineteenth century "informal" imperialism Who were the Moroccans who enlisted in
transformed itself into the "New Imperialism" of the French military formations? What motivated them to
latter part of that century. He emphasizes "the crucial do so? What rapport did they develop with their
role of collaborative systems in the transition from ex- French superiors and counterparts?
ternal imperialism to the takeover" and identifies the What effects did the service of thousands of
collaborating mechanism as "mutual interests and inter- Moroccans in the French army have on their lives and
dependence" between European interest groups and on their native communities?
indigenous ruling elites. The rationale for this relation- What relationship could be established between
ship derived from the Eurocentric concept according to French recruitment practices and the transformation
which, "if empire could not be held on the cheap, it was of the indigenous population, specifically the Ber-
not worth having at all." Hence, "without indigenous berophone tribal inhabitants of the Middle Atlas
collaboration... Europeans [could not] have conquered mountain range?
and ruled their non-European empires."'
Thus, Robinson has provided us with a rudimentary Lyautey and the Moroccan Elites
"theory of collaboration" that should serve as "a pro- Any discussion of French policy in Morocco ought to
gramme for future study."^ Indeed, over the three dec- begin with Marshal Louis Hubert Lyautey (1854-1934),
ades that separate us from the publication of his article, France's first resident-general in Morocco (1912-1925).
much work has been done both on the theoretical as- In his actions, Lyautey fits well Robinson's characteriza-
pects of empire-building, colonialism and decoloniza- tion of "a handful of European pro-consuls [who]
tion,3 and on specific case studies, including that of managed to manipulate the polymorphic societies of
France in Morocco.'' Some of this research has ventured Africa and Asia."'' While Lyautey's actual tenure in Ra-
beyond the boundaries outlined in the Robinson article bat spanned less than a third of France's "moment" in
to incorporate not merely the collaboration or resistance Morocco, indirectiy his infiuence perpetuated to the end
of elites, but also the involvement of subaltern groups of the Protectorate era through a number of his self-
in the process.5 proclaimed disciples who succeeded him at the summit
The purpose of this essay is to reexamine the nature of the French administration.''
of Franco-Moroccan collaboration through the prism of Lyautey's personal convictions provide the key for the
French military strategy and "native" policies," specifi- understanding of his colonial philosophy in general and
cally insofar as they involved the utilization of Moroc- his approach to collaboration with indigenous Moroc-
cans as military manpower. The questions to be devel- can groups in particular. A staunch royalist and devout
oped herein include the following: Catholic, Lyautey was somewhat of a misfit in the Jln-de-
What policies and methods did the French siecle militantiy secularist atmosphere of the Third Re
army implement in its twenty-year campaign (1907- public. His progressive social views made him equally
1934) to conquer (or "pacify") Morocco? unpopular in the metropolitan army's supreme com-
In what ways did French strategy depend on the mand.* In a way, Lyautey may have sought not only a
collaboration of indigenous groups?
© Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 24:1 (2004)
 140 Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 24:1 (2004)

refuge in the colonial world, but also a new terrain upon convince them to switch sides. Otherwise, Lyautey pre-
which to recreate his image of France, the one irreversi- ferred a brief, decisive demonstration of French military
bly altered by the Revolution of 1789. If such was the might hoping to spare its protracted, expensive use. A
case, then Morocco could be argued to have been the fictional "Native Affairs" officer, hero of a contempo-
ideal laboratory for a royalist experiment, with its long- rary novel, summarized this concept of colonial warfare
established and solidly legitimized system of govern- based on "peaceful penetration:"
ment at the summit of which stood the 'Alawi Sultan The dissidents are not our enemies and our mission is
and his administration (the Makh^an). Having success- not to destroy their land by fire and blood, but to
fully neutralized the former to a mere figurehead in the study them, understand them, and to bring them to
person of Mawlay Yusuf,' Lyautey moved to assure the our side...we use force only as a last resort...but
good will of the latter, whom he regarded as Morocco's once the battle is over you must use all means to ne-
natural leadership, its aristocracy.'** gotiate and begin the politics of taming. Conquer and
Lyautey's colonial philosophy called for a lasting col- then extend your hand to the conquered.'^
laboration, or "association" as contemporary terminol- Lyautey himself was categorical in stressing the differ-
ogy would have it," between French officials and their ences between colonial warfare and a European-style
indigenous counterparts, drawn from among the various campaign of annihilation. "One does not fight Abd el-
elites: tribal, clerical, mercantile, etc. In order to assure Krim as one fights Marshal Hindenburg," he remarked
the sustainable cooperation of the Moroccan "aristoc- cynically in 1925, referring to the heavy-handed tactics
racy" and its ability to maintain its control over society, used by his fellow Marechal de France, Philippe Petain, in
Lyautey initiated a francophone educational system de- his dealing with the Rifian revolt."^
signed primarily if not exclusively for fils de notables. The Petain's ability to wage such a lavish campaign was fa-
jewel of these schools was the Royal Military Academy cilitated by the fiow of metropolitan troops, which dou-
(located at the Dar al-Baida palace in Meknes) that was bled the French order of battle in Morocco from 75,300
inaugurated in 1919 and outlasted French rule in Mo- men in April 1925 to about 150,000 four months later.
rocco. As I have shown elsewhere, the primal purpose These reinforcements came equipped with advanced
of the school, which was the only one of its kind weapon systems including some making their debut on
throughout the French colonial empire, was not to train the Moroccan scene such as tanks, attack planes, and
first-rate Moroccan officers for the French army, but heavy artillery. Lyautey and his subordinates could only
rather to prepare its handpicked cadets to succeed their dream of employing such a magnitude of military force
fathers as tribal and urban chieftains at the end of their in their handling of Moroccan armed resistance. Not
military careers.'^ only were they frequently challenged with cuts of their
manpower due to demobilization and the overstretching
Destruction, Seduction, Alteration: "Pacific of French overseas military commitments, they also had
Penetration" of the Moroccan Countryside to take into account the metropolitan public's sensitivity
Behind the lofty rhetoric about "indirect rule" and to casualties and the need to "spare French blood" in
"respect" of indigenous customs (not to mention the the wake of the Great War."
"civilizing mission") uttered by Lyautey and other "en-
lightened" French colonialists, stood a clear self-serving "Perfect Mercenaries": Moroccan Soldiers in
motive (endorsed or even demanded by the metropoli- French Uniforms
tan government and public) to minimize costs and keep The obvious solution for both problems was to en-
an empire "on the cheap." However, the ability of the large the size of the Moroccan contingent within the
Protectorate to ensure the tranquiUty (and hence eco- French occupation corps in Morocco. Moroccan sol-
nomic exploitation) of what Lyautey had termed "Maroc diers, particularly those labeled as "auxiliaries" (supple-
utili'^^ necessitated a solution to the problem of the tives), were cheaper to maintain and their attrition in bat-
armed resistance ("dissidence" in contemporary colonial tle would not cause as great a stir in Paris as would the
terminology) exercised by Moroccan tribal groups. loss of French conscripts. Hence, by the time the "paci-
Lyautey's reputation as an effective and progressive fication" campaign reached its peak and conclusion in
colonial administrator relied in part upon his professed the early 1930s, it evolved, as Daniel Rivet aptly phrases
adherence to non-violent methods in his dealing with it, "from a war against Moroccans to a war among Mo-
armed resistance. This "oil-stain" strategy, originally roccans."'^
attributed to Lyautey's mentor Joseph GaUieni,''' called The increase in the number of Moroccans mobilized
for the implementation of a variety of services such as by the French for the conquest of their own country
field infirmaries and markets on the verge of the rebel- manifested itself in their growing share of casualties.
lious territory in order to attract hostile populations and For example, a compliment of reports on casualties
 Gershovich: Collaboration and Pacification 141

sustained by the groupe mobile of the Tadla region in the Comparison between pre-war and current units of
summer of 1923 put the total of killed and wounded at the armee d'Afrique shows great decline in quality.
231, of whom 194 (eighty-four per cent) were Moroc- Luckily, 'our' Moroccans are stiU mercenaries and we
cans, mostly auxiliaries (154). Nine years later, a sum- can still find among them the virtues which made the
mary of the 1932 summer operations throughout glory of the old armee d'Afrique.'^'^
southern Morocco listed 651 casualties of whom 429 Reputed for their superb physical endurance, courage
(sixty-six per cent) were auxiliaries.^' Another indicator and resiliency, submission to rigorous discipline (often
of the growing contribution of Moroccans to the con- attributed to their presumed "fatalism") and overall de-
quest drive concerns the awarding of citations. As pendability, Moroccan soldiers became a popular choice
shown in Table 1 (see below), Moroccans (mostly for interwar overseas assignments in sensitive locations
"back-up" troops by a 2:1 ratio) constituted twenty-five such as the Levant and the Rhineland,^^ as well as being
per cent of all decorated troops during the last phase of stationed in metropolitan France. They were also used in
combat in Morocco. Indeed, their share seemed to in- the Rif campaign where they helped suppress the anti-
crease as the conquest of their country reached its ze- Spanish revolt.^-* Still, the arena where Moroccans
nith. In sum, the abiUty of the French army to consoli- serving the French military cause during the interwar
date its control over the Moroccan countryside could period gained most of their combative experience in-
not have been achieved without the contribution of volved the conquest of their own country.
Moroccan combatants. In addition to the enlisted soldiers who served within
the regular ranks of the French army,25 there were thou-
Table I: Citations awarded to Moroccan Soldiers sands others recruited as "auxiliary" or "back-up"
and Members of Back-up Formations, 1912-1933 troops. They included dozens of small-scale company-
Data drawn from periodic listings in the Ordres Generaux size units (150-165 men, including a handful of French
of the Protectorate's monthly publication, bulletin Offi- commanding personnel) known as Goums whose origins
cial, available at the archives of the French Protectorate could be found in the French conquest of the Algerian
archives, located at the annex of the French Foreign countryside in the 1840s and who made their debut in
Office archives (MAE) in Nantes. Morocco in 1908.26

Total Moroccan Recipietits Percentage

Years The Utility and Limitations of the "Partisans"
Citations Total Regulars Back-up ofTotal
In addition to these regular and semi-regular troops
1912-1918 1,502 151 84 67 10
1919-1926 2,787 439 234 205 15
were various formations of Moroccan irregulars, collec-
5.662 1,430 451 979 25 tively labeled "partisans." Most "partisans" were mobi-
Total 9,951 2,020 769 1,251 20
lized on an ad-hoc basis for specific operations and dis-
charged at the end of the annual fighting season. These
Note: Moroccan regular units included some Algero- "partisans" were raised from among the recently sub-
Tunisian elements. Precise determination of nationality dued tribal population as part of the protection treaty
based on Arabic names alone could not always be made. {aman) that regulated its formal surrender. Other "parti-
Officers who were not identified as Moroccan were not sans" were organized in more permanent formations
included, as were members of units whose identity was that were commanded by indigenous chieftains who had
uncertain allied themselves with the French, such as the "Grand
* * * Qa'idr of the South, notably the Glawa clan.^''
The distinguished service record of Moroccan rifle- Who were those "partisans" who took part in the an-
men {tirailleur^) and cavalrymen (spahis) in the trenches of nual operations orchestrated by the French army to
the Western Front and other theaters of operations eradicate the tribal resistance in the Moroccan country-
during the "Great War" of 1914-18 helped to erase ear- side? What motivated them to fight on the French side
lier misgivings about their loyalty and reUability.^o Unlike against their fellow countrymen? How were they used
other French overseas possessions such as Algeria and by the French and in what ways did they contribute to
Senegal, compulsory conscription was never introduced the success of the conquest drive? A contemporary arti-
in Morocco.21 Moroccan recruits were thus enlisted as cle written by Captain Tarrit, a French intelligence and
contracted volunteers who were eligible to serve up to "native affairs" officer {Affaires Indigenes; henceforth AI)
(and in some cases even beyond) fifteen years. They who participated in these operations sheds interesting
were regarded as professional career soldiers, "perfect light on these questions:^^
mercenaries" as their French commanders Uked to refer
to them. Thus, a 1934 study on the utilization of Mo- It could be said that the partisans often form the ba-
roccan soldiers in the French army states: sic shock inflicted against the enemy and it is thanks
 142 Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 24:1 (2004)

to them that the regular troops do not suffer higher of civilians (mosdy women) exercised by the goumiers in
casualties. [However] this does not mean that the their batdes in Italy during the latter parts of that war.33
partisans could replace the regular soldiers. Such a Authentic and reliable as some of these anecdotes may
conclusion wiU be a great error. The irregulars per- be, they smack of an anachronisdc and disdncdy pater-
form better when they know that behind them exist a nalisdc colonial atdtude that ought to be treated with a
soUd force, capable of helping them in attack and degree of skepdcism.
provide cover in case of failure. Missing from these broad characterizadons is any
According to Tarrit, meaningful reference to Moroccans as individuals with a
The partisan's departure for combat is made with joy. disdnct personality, concrete biography, and purposeful
The women are chanting and they encourage the existence. My current oral history project of Moroccan
fighters to kill as many [of their] enemies as possible. veterans of the French army is meant to address this
Once he smells gunpowder, the partisan knows omission.34 Through dozens of interviews conducted
nothing but combat. He becomes extremely impres- with Moroccan war veterans, most of whom enlisted
sionable, capable of running straight towards the en- during the 1930s and fought in World War II, I intend to
emy. reconstruct the collecdve biography of this group and
The propensity of the "partisans" for unruly conduct examine the validity of the colonial perceptions pre-
on the batdefield had its advantages as "Sometimes this sented above. While the full scope of that project ex-
could cause complete panic within the enemy's ranks." ceeds the boundaries of this paper, some of my provi-
However, it also carried a risk to the French officers sional conclusions may provide a useful perspecdve on
who may be "exposed to the serious danger of being this matter. Such is the case with respect to the reasons
left behind and falling into the enemy's hands." Hence, that led young Moroccans of Middle Adas tribal origins
the military's AI apparatus attempted to discipline the to enlist in the French army.
"partisans" and to incorporate them solidly within the When asked about their time in the French army,
structure of the groupe mobile that included various regu- nearly all my interviewees denied any quest for glory or
lar and auxiliary formations of infantry, cavalry, and ar- other warlike tendency. Their prime modvadon was so-
tillery. Specifically, "the [French] intelligence officer em- cio-economic in nature; they regarded a military career
ploys with the partisans a mounted goum, which serves ("working for the French," as virtually all veterans
as his 'personal guard,' a solid reserve to restore order would term it) to be their best if not their sole opportu-
and combat panic. The goumiers" notes Tarrit, " are ex- nity to escape the poverty and deprivadon in the Mo-
cellent soldiers as long as they are together, but they roccan countryside. Recoundng his enlistment as a gou-
tend to lose themselves when left alone in unfamiliar mier in 1943, Timour Ali Oubassou^^ speaks for many
surroundings."^' other veterans when he says: "I wanted to have money
and to escape misery and oppression. At the dme I
Born Warriors or Glorified Shepherds? Image and knew that the world had been at war and that we would
Realities of Moroccan Combatants be sent abroad where the war was more difficult. How
The French attitude towards the Berberophone tribal ever, I didn't have any other choice."
populadon they encountered in batde or mobilized to Very few of the veterans I met and interviewed had
serve in their armed forces was thus based on the per- enlisted in the French army prior to the end of "pacifi-
ception that they were "born warriors" {guerriers par ata- cadon" in 1934, and therefore encountered direct com-
vism^), trained from infancy to use the rifie. For the bat against "dissidents." Those who did tend to express
mountainous Moroccan, notes Captain Maurice Duro- no pardcular feelings about the "job" they were assigned
soy, to do. Having enlisted in 1926 and fought against the
[W|ar is a permanent state. At a young age he accom- Rifians in 1926, Saoudi Salah Ben Ibrahim^^ recounts:
panies his father and learns to shoot the rifle he In 1933 and early 1934 I was involved in the war
would later carry with him as a sign of his courage. against the Ait Baamran. They were less fierce than
He loves to appear brave in the eyes of women; he the Rifians, although Moroccans like us. Fighdng
loves danger, loves attacking the enemy, and he loves amongst ourselves, we were execudng orders and
to plunder.^' trying to stay alive.
One can find resonance of this imagery in the stories One should note in this respect that most rural Moroc-
told of Moroccan tirailleurs charging barehanded against cans (notably those of the Berberophone regions) had a
German tanks during the futile Belgian campaign of vague nodon at best of collecdve "Moroccan" idendty.
1940, shouting "Yallah el-Maghreb,"^'^ or in accounts of According to one veteran, Morabet Moha Ouala, prior
the brute savagery, mad bravery, and gross mistreatment to his enlistment in the French army he had never been
 Gershovich: Collaboration and Pacification 143

"in contact with Arabic-speaking Moroccans."^^ It is negative perceptions, retired Moroccan veterans have
also worth mentioning that many Moroccans who tended to keep to themselves.
served in the French army originated in communities The overwhelming majority of veterans live in de-
and families that had resisted fiercely the intrusion of plorable conditions. Aged, sick, frail, they pass the re-
French colonialism and their incorporation within the maining years of their lives in poverty and purposeless-
orbit of the protectorate. Indeed, the line separating ness, desperately reliant upon the assistance of their
resistance and collaboration appears to have been very offspring to survive. The medals and other citations
fine, almost non-existent sometimes, as yesterday's foe they earned as tokens of their heroism and loyalty, while
became today's friend. Best exemplifying this ambiguity carefully guarded and proudly displayed in front of the
perhaps, was the switch made by Assou ou Ba Slam, foreign visitor, can hardly make up for the insultingly
leader of the heroic struggle of the last factions of the meager pensions and disability payments that the veter-
Ait 'Atta at Bou Gafer (Jabel Saghro) in 1933, to qa'id ans receive from France. It is hardly surprising, there-
and loyal supporter of the Protectorate until its end in fore, that the single common opinion on which virtually
1956.38 all veterans seem to agree is that France has mistreated
Assou ou Ba Slam's loyalty to France manifested itself them and ought to compensate them better for the sac-
during the last days of the Protectorate when he helped rifices they made on its behalf.
save the life of a French AI officer who had been be- The deplorable conditions of most veterans' lives, a
sieged in his field bureau at Iknioun. This incident and painful contrast to the confident, healthy gaze emanat-
others that erupted throughout the Moroccan country- ing from their youthful pictures, can serve as a metaphor
side during the second half of 1955 marked the culmi- to the transformation of their native communities of
nation of the brief nationalist uprising that resulted in Berberophone Middle Atlas tribes from virtual freedom
the French decision to terminate the Protectorate and to forced integration within a centralized state structure.
restore Moroccan independence. Torn between their As one poem recited among those rural, mountainous
professional duty to their colonial master and their sym- dwellings states:
pathy to their brethrens fighting to free themselves were Could I but rub my cheeks with mud
thousands of Moroccan soldiers, many among whom Or be carried away into the hereafter in the fullness
had fought for the liberation of France a decade earlier of time
and had just returned from a grueling tour of duty in Now that cowards are supreme in the land of he-
Indochina where they had been exposed to extensive
indoctrination efforts by the Vietminh.^' The passage of the "heroic age" was the inevitable out-
Most Moroccan soldiers remained in the service of come of the systemic and efficient French "pacifica-
France and continued the exercise of their duties. A few, tion" campaign of 1907-1934 that disarmed the tribes
however, deserted and joined the ranks of the Libera- and brought an end to their perpetual conflicts. Along
tion Army that staged a brief guerrilla campaign against with the imposition of submission to the central gov
French targets during the last year of the Protectorate."*" ernment (namely the Protectorate) came the paving of
Only a handful of the scores of veterans I interviewed roads and other infrastructure developments that made
claimed to have joined the ranks of the resistance their once isolated hamlets accessible and thus more
movement, although many more declared (retrospec- easily controllable from the outside. Those roads would
tively) sympathy for its cause and resentment at the re- be used not only to stifle any future separatist attempt
pressive actions undertaken against it by the French. by the region's inhabitants,'*^ but also to attract its youth
to leave it amidst continued economic hardship in
Conclusions: The Transformation of the Middle search of a better future elsewhere in Morocco and in
Atlas recent times overseas.
France's departure from Morocco marked the end of The Moroccans who enlisted and fought within the
the Franco-Moroccan military relationship and sent ranks of the French army during the 1930s and 1940s
thousands of its former indigenous agents, military and were among the first Middle Atlas inhabitants to have
civilians alike, to retirement. For those who had found encountered the outside world and experienced first-
their livelihood fighting for France, reintegration into hand its lure and opportunities. Many demobilized sol-
civil society often came with some difficulty since, as diers declined to return to their native communities,
one veteran put it, "people were against France and re- finding instead a second career as police agents and
jected anyone who had served France. People consid- permanent residence in special housing projects erected
ered those who had worked for France to be traitors. by the French authorides during the late 1940s in Mo-
Even my wife used to think that way."'*' Faced with such rocco's largest cities, most notably Casablanca. Some
 144 Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middk East, 1A:\ (2004)

veterans, whose post-military careers led them to other

parts of Morocco and the world, have chosen to retire ''It should be noted that Lyautey's immediate successor at the
back to their Middle Atlas families to discover at the residency, Theodore Steeg actually committed himself to policies
twilight of their lives that their stories of courage and that sharply contradicted Lyautey's concepts about imperialism,
sacrifice are often forgotten by a new generation for particularly insofar as the encouragement of the migration of
whom the age of heroes is nothing more than a blurred European settlers was concerned. That policy is often referred to
as the "Algerianization" of Morocco. On the implication of
history.
Steeg's approach to French agricultural planning in Morocco see
Will D. Swearingen, Moroccan Mirages: Agrarian Dreams and
Deceptions, 1912-1986 (Princeton: Princeton University Press,
NOTES 1987), 51-54.
This essay originated as a paper, presented at the annual ^ h e conventional view of Lyautey's biography used to regard
meeting of the American Historical Association, Chicago, his departure overseas to Indochina in 1894 as an act forced
January 2003. I wish to thank the Charles Martin Fund and upon him by the army's general staff See for example William
the Department of History at UNO for facilitating my par- A. Hoisington, Lyautej and the French Conquest of Morocco (New
ticipation in that conference. York: St. Martin's Press, 1995), 5. However, in his study of
'Ronald Robinson, "Non European foundations of Euro- Lyautey's early career (Lyautey avant Lyautey p^aris: L'Harmattan,
pean Imperialism: sketch for a theory of collahoration," in 1997], 53-63), Pascal Venier argues that the decision to go
Roger Owen and Bob SutcMffe, eds.. Studies in the Theory of overseas was initiated by Lyautey himself.
Imperialism (London: Longman, 1972), 117-141 'Lyautey regarded his choice of the mild-tempered Mawlay
^Robinson, "Non European foundations," 138 and 141. Yusuf to replace his independent-minded brother, 'Abd al-Hafiz
^Examples of works on Imperialism and European empire- in August 1912 to be his "loveliest invention." See Daniel Rivet,
building include Tony Smith, The Pattern of Imperialism: The Lyautej et I'institution du protectorat franfaise au Maroc (Paris:
United States, Great Britain, and the late industriali^ng world since L'Harmattan, 1988), 1: 170.
1815 (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press,
See Daniel Rivet, "De la societe fran^aise a la societe maro-
1981); Michael W. Doyle, Empires (Ithaca and London: Cornell
caine: l'itineraire aristocratique de Lyautey," in Actes du colloque
University Press, 1986); Jurgen Osterhammel, Colonialism,
Doctrine, Sciences ou Pratiques Sociales (Nancy: PUN, 1985-1986), 3:
trans. Shelley Frisch (Princeton: Markus Wiener Publishers,
235. On Lyautey's shaping of the dual Protectorate-Makhzan
1997); Alice L. Conklin and Ian Christopher Fletcher, eds.,
bureaucracy see also Alan Scham, Lyautey in Morocco: Protectorate
European Imperialism, 1830-1930: Climax and Contradictions
Administration, 1912-1925 (Berkeley: University of California
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1999). On the process of
Press, 1970).
decolonization, see Raymond E Betts, Decoloni^tion (London,
" O n the evolution of French colonial philosophy see Ray
Routledge, 1998).
mond F. Betts, Assimilation and Association in French Colonial Theory,
••A useful general introductory work on the history of 1890-1914 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1961).
French colonialism is Robert Aldrich, Greater France: A History
i^Moshe Gershovich, "A Moroccan St.-Cyr." Middle Eastem
of French Overseas Expansion (New York: St. Martin's Press,
Studies 28:2 (1992). In that article I also discuss the mutation of
1996). On the painful process of the dismantling of the
Lyautey's initial intention to make enrollment in the military
French empire see Anthony Clayton, The Wars of French De-
academy exclusively available to members of the Moroccan
colonisation (London: Longman, 1994).
elites. By the late 1920s the school had to "democratize" and
The best study of the transition of Morocco from infor- enlarge its social base in order to jusdfy its existence.
mal imperialism to direct European domination remains Ed- "Lyautey coined this term in his General Directives for 1922
mund Burke III, Prelude to Protectorate in Morocco: Precoloniaithat was submitted on 14 December 1921; included in Pierre
Protest and Resistance, 1860-1912 (Chicago and London: Univer- Lyautey, ed., Lyautey lAfricain: Textes et lettres du Marechal Lyautey
sity of Chicago Press, 1976). The most recent study of the (Paris: Plon, 1953-1957), 157. In that directive Lyautey stated
evolution of Franco-Moroccan relationship during the course that "The goal to achieve is not the occupation...of the entire
of the Protectorate era is Daniel Rivet, JL« Maroc de Lyautej a Marocgeographique, but...to spread the effective French Protec-
Mohammed V: le double visage du protectorat (Paris: Denoel, 1999). torate over all of Maroc utile." Under the latter rubric he in-
^The study of subaltern history as past of the "postcolo- cluded all parts of the country that he had deemed indispensable
nial" or "post-orient list" discourse is most commonly associ- for internal security and development. He refrained, however,
ated with South Asia and the Indian subcontinent, although from delineating the specific boundaries of those two units.
recendy it began to be applied to other cases of post-colonial '••The "oil-stain" concept called for a slow, methodical pro-
societies. For an application of this discourse in the context gression in the process of "pacification," in a manner that would
of Moroccan soldiers see Driss Maghraoui, "The Moroccan allow for French influence to spread through a "dissident" area
Colonial Soldiers: Between Selective Memory and Collective with minimal resistance. On the evolution On the evolution of
memory," in 7\li Abdullatif Ahmida, ed., Beyond Colonialism and that concept see Douglas Porch, "Bugeaud, Galiieni, Lyautey:
Nationalism in the Maghrib: History, Culture, and Politics The Development of French Colonial Warfare," in Peter Paret,
(Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, New York: Palgrave, ed.. Makers of Modem Strategji (Princeton: Princeton University
2000), 49-69. Press, 1986). An earlier edidon of the ardcle, written by Jean
^Robinson, "Non European foundations," 118. Gottman, appeared in the 1952 edition ofthe volume.
 Gershovich: Collaboration and Pacification 145

'^Jacques Weygand, Goumier de I'Atlas (Paris: Flammarion, colonial masters, including a significant participation on their
1954), 42 and 101. The son of the French Chief-of-Staff at part in the Spanish Civil War of the late 1930s in which they
the time, Lieutenant Weygand served as a "Native Affairs" fought on the Fascist side. See Maria Rosa deMadariaga, "The
officer in the Moroccan bled (countryside) during the 1930s. Intervention of Moroccan Troops in the Spanish Civil War:
'^Quoted in Hubert-Jacques, UAventure riffaine et ses dessousA Reconsideration," European History Quarterlj 22:1 (1992): 67-
politiques (Paris: Bossard, 1927), 292. On the Rif War see C.R. 97.
Pennell, A Country with a Govemment and a Flag: the Rif War in 25The size of the interwar Moroccan contingent in the
Morocco, 1921-1926 (Outwell, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, Eng- French army was originally set in 1920 by an inter-ministerial
land, Middle East and North African Studies Press ; Boulder, commission that examined the future recruitment of colonial
Co.: L. Rienner, 1986). soldiers. The commission established a quota of 32,000 Mo-
^^An example of this line of thinking could be found in a roccan recruits. However, by the outbreak of the Second
note sent by Lyautey to the War Ministry in Paris, dated 23 World War the actual size of the Moroccan contingent nearly
November 1924. Asking for metropolitan reinforcement to tripled in size to 90,000, as noted in a detailed study on the
meet a projected attack from the Rif (that did eventually ma- history of the Moroccan tirailleurs. See part two of Lt. Col.
terialize in April 1925), Lyautey states that as of the 1920 Lugand, "Historique des Tirailleurs Marocains," Revue Histori-
campaign he has attempted to make use of indigenous troops que de IArmee 8:3 (September 1952): 32.
in order to "avoid the shedding of French blood, the sparing 2^he fuU title of this corps was Moroccan Mixed Goums.
of which is our greatest interest." A copy of the note can be Originally it was designated to be "a temporary back-up tribal
found in file 66 of serie 3H: Maroc at the French military ar- force raised for specific operations," as defined by a 7
chives {Service Historique de lArmee de Terre [SHAT]) at Chateau December 1909 memorandum by the Section dAfrique of the
de Vincennes. metropolitan General Staff, Serie l H {Algerie), file 1013,
'SRivet, Lyautej et I'institution du protectorat franfaise au Maroc, SHAT/ Vincennes. The goums proved to be highly useful,
2:79. flexible and cost-effective, so much so that their number was
"These reports can be found in files 271 and 281 of serie doubled within six years and kept climbing until it reached
3H: Maroc respectively. fifty by the early 1930s. They operated side-by-side with
^''The history of Moroccan units during the two world regular French troops and were fuUy integrated within French
wars, and other overseas operations falls beyond the scope of operations aimed at "pacifying" the Moroccan countryside.
this essay. For information on that subject see Anthony Clay The rich history of the Moroccan goums has been the sub-
ton, France, Soldiers and Africa (London: Brassey's Defence ject of numerous works, the latest being Edward L. Bimberg,
Publishers, 1988), 94-105, 262-306 and passim; Moshe Ger- The Moroccan Goums: Tribal Warriors in a Modem War (Westport,
shovich, French Military Rale in Morocco: Colonialism and its Con- CT: Greenwood Press, 1999). For a French perspective see
sequences (London: Cass, 2000), 172-177. also Jacques Augarde, La longue route des tabors (Paris : France
Initial metropolitan doubts were based on the April 1912 Empire, 1983); Yves Salkin, Jacques Marineau and Jean Saulay,
uprising of several units from the pre-colonial Moroccan eds., Histoire des Goums Marocains (Paris: Kaumia, 1985).
army that were stationed in Fez. On this issue see Burke, Vrel- ^•'On the Glawa see Maxwell, Gavin, Lj)rds of the Atlas. The
ude to'Protectorate,180-187; Jacques, Hubert, L^s joumees sang- Rise and Fall of the House of Glaoua 1893-1956 (London: Arrow,
lantes de Fe^ 17-18-19 avril 1912 : les massacres, redts militaires, 1991). Being left in complete control over parts of southern
responsabilities (Paris: Librairie Chapelot, 1913). Morocco where French presence had been weak or nonexist-
2'The introduction of conscription to Morocco was seri- ent, the GttM Qa'ids took full advantage of the situation to
ously considered by an inter-departmental commission, dominate and abuse the native population under their com-
headed by General Mangin, which studied the matter between mand. The French authorities were well aware of the mis-
1920-1922. However, Lyautey ruled the idea out citing the chief, but tended to dismiss it to maintain the support of their
incomplete "pacification" of Morocco as his main cause. local allies.
Information related to the deliberations of the Mangin ^^Tarrit (Capitan), "Emploi des partisans au Maroc," Revue
Commission can be found in file 2352 of serie 7N at de Cavalerie 33 (March-April 1923): 197-211.
SHAT/Vincennes. ^'Tarrit, "Emploi." The principle that "partisans" and other
22The study, dated 25 October 1934 was prepared by colo- irregulars should never operate without regular units at their
nel de Saint Julien and captain Ouenand, both of whom side appears in the writings of other officers who were in-
served at the time in the 5* Regiment des Tirailleurs Marocains volved in combat in Morocco. See for example Schmidt (ma-
(RTM). It is available in file 162 oiserie IK, containing papers jor; commander of the Bou Denib autonomous cercle), "Con-
of Marshal Franchet d'Espeery at SHAT/Vincennes. siderations sur les Djiouch." Renseignements Coloniaux (annex of
^ O n the integration of three Moroccan battalions within the Bulletin du Comite de lAfrique Franfaise), January 1933.
the ranks of the French Armee du Rhin see Moshe Gershovich, ^See for example C. Damidaux (captain). Combats au Maroc
"The Sharifian Star Over the Rhine: Moroccan Soldiers in 1925-1926 (Paris, Berger-Levrault, 1928), 27.
French Uniforms in Germany, 1919-1925," Morocco: foumal of ^'Maurice Durosoy, "Soldats Marocains," published in the
the Society ofMoroccan Studies 2 (1997): 55-64. July 1932 issue oi Renseignements Coloniaux, 286-290.
^''Moroccan recruits from the northern Spanish occupation 32This story appears in the official history of the 10* RTAf,
zone were also used as combatants in the service of their available in file 308 of serie 34N (regimental history) at the
 146 Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 24:1 (2004)

French war archives in SHAT/Vincennes.

Bimberg, The Moroccan Goums, 63-64,115-116.
further information about this project and some of
its initial finding see Moshe Gershovich, "Stories on the Road
from Fez to Marrakesh: Oral History on the Margins of Na-
tional Identity," Journal of North African Studies 8:1 (Spring
2003): 43-58.
^^Interviewed in Beni MeUal in January 1998.
^"^He was born in 1908 and served in the French army he-
tween 1926-1943, mostly as a tirailleur. My interview with him
took place at his residence in Ksiha in January 1998.
3^My interview with Mr. Morahet, who was born in 1913
and enlisted in the French army in 1936, was conducted in
September 2000 at his residence in Khenifra.
^*See David Hart, "Assii Ba Slam: de la resistance a la 'paci-
fication' au Maroc," in Charles-Andre Julien et. al., eds., Les
Africains (Paris : Edidons J.A., 1977), 5, 77-105.
3'Among the means used hy the Vietminh to convince
North African soldiers to defect was a former World War II
veteran and committed member of the Moroccan Communist
Party, M'hammed Ben Aomar Lahrech. His instrumental role
in the insurgency led to his rising to the rank of general in the
revolutionary North Vietnamese army. On this episode see
Ahdallah Saaf, Histoire dAnhMa (Paris: L'Harmattan, 1996).
••oSee Zaki M'Barek, "La desertion des soldats marocains de
l'armee frangaise a I'Armee de Liberation du Maghreb
(A.L.M.): Role militaire, impact psycho-politique (1955-
1956)," Maroc-Europe 7 (1994): 235-271. An interesting fic-
tional character-representing the soldiers who switched to the
side of the resistance at this time is Faqih in Leila Abouzeid's
novella. Year of the Elephant, trans. Barbara Parmenter (Austin:
University of Texas Press, 1989). A veteran of Indochina
who had lost a leg at Dien Bien Phu, he is helped by the no-
vella's heroine to escape from Casablanca to the Spanish oc-
cupation zone in northern Morocco.
""Tafdoute Elarhi ou Hammou, interviewed in Ouaou-
manna in February 1999.
^'^Isafeen Ghbanin (Rivieres Profondes): Poesies du Mqyen Atlas
Marocain (Casablanca: Waliada, 1993), 197. This collection of
orally recited Berber poems was gathered and translated into
French by Michael Peyton. The translation to English is mine.
•'^On the last attempts to reestablish Berber self-control
after the end of the colonial era see David Hart, "Rural and
Tribal Uprisings in Post-Colonial Morocco, 1957-60: An
Overview and a Reappraisal," in Tribe and Society in Rural Mo-
rocco; special issue of the joumal of North African Studies 4:2
(Summer 1999): 84-102.