Algeria in British Travel Writings (1850-1930): Images and Perceptions

Abstract

British travellers started their journeys to Algeria in the wake of the Grand Tour. The Industrial Revolution led to a surge in the number of travellers to Algeria, which was for some time a privilege for aristocratic elite. These travellers left a wealth of literature in the form of travel accounts and holiday guides, which included the description of places, representations of the local people, their culture and their religion. This paper argues that most of these writings, namely in the second half of the nineteenth century, were racist and included stereotypes of the majority Arabic population, especially Arab women, and Islam, the majority religion. It confirms the orientalist discourse prevalent in most of the travel literature on the Orient and suggests that this discourse was defensive of colonialism and imperialism. Nevertheless, this paper argues that this racist discourse faded to a certain extent with the increasing commercialization of holidays to Algeria at the beginning of the twentieth century.