Colonial Transformation of Agrarian Society in Algeria

There exists considerable disagreement as to what effect capitalism has on non-capitalist social systems; to what extent is capitalism instrumental in bringing about changes in these systems, and what is the direction of change? These and other related questions are discussed in this article in the case of the colonisation of Algeria from 1830 to about 1900.The first part offers a description of pre-colonial tribal society. Three characteristics are viewed as having been vital for this society: (1) sufficient access to land for its extensive form of agriculture; (2) ability to maintain a certain subsistence balance, and to adjust this balance in case of changing conditions; (3) social institutions which made land inalienable, preserving it for the tribes and the families.The main part of the article is concerned with various ways in which the French appro priated land from Algerian peasants. This was done partly by the administration's expropria tion of land, either as reprisals for resisting the French occupation, or for 'public utility' purposes. An administrative delimitation of the tribes' territories further reduced the land at the disposal of the tribes. The most serious attack on the peasants' land was the generalisation of private property rights as the sole land tenure form, by legal measures and administrative practices. Factors which contributed to 'release' land for the market are considered in some detail.The result of the 19th century colonization process was the creation of an export-oriented colonial agriculture with wine as its major product. Peasant society, deprived of essential means of subsistence, was no longer able to reproduce itself on the basis of its own produc tion. Integrated in the colonial division of labour, its further development was circumscribed by structures that had underdevelopment as their product.