France claimed the Sahara was artificially drawn and never integral to Algeria

Evidence

In simplest terms, the French view was that the Algerians had no more right to the vast desert under-belly than the Indians had to Texas. Pedantically, Joxe explained how the frontiers of the Sahara were purely artificial, created arbitrarily by French cartographers. Historically, geographically and racially it had never had any connection with Algeria, and what was understood by Algeria was that narrow strip bounded by the Atlas mountains and the Mediterranean; traditionally the Algerians, claimed Joxe, had always been drawn northwards rather than southwards. Meanwhile, France had consistently accorded the Sahara special status. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1437

Categorization

• DEFINE: Shows the French articulation of Algeria’s geographic identity as Mediterranean-facing.
• XREF: connects to: France’s Sahara claims rested on cartographic fictions until oil made it valuable.; De Gaulle abandoned the Sahara as an artificial construction in September 1961.; The Sahara dispute turned on oil wealth rather than geography or history. (+2 more)

Related

• The Sahara dispute turned on oil wealth rather than geography or history. (similarity 0.93)
• De Gaulle abandoned the Sahara as an artificial construction in September 1961. (similarity 0.92)
• France’s Sahara claims rested on cartographic fictions until oil made it valuable. (similarity 0.91)
• The French economy’s prosperity rested on Saharan oil and gas (similarity 0.83)
• Saharan oil discovery added an economic motive to France’s Algerian war (similarity 0.82)
• Saharan oil gave France a new economic motive to win the war (similarity 0.80)
• Algeria’s oil nationalization triggered French economic retaliation (similarity 0.79)
• Saharan oil gave France a vastly increased economic motive for retaining Algeria (similarity 0.79)
• Pieds noirs never honestly wanted Algérie française but a protected white-ruled Algeria (similarity 0.79)
• The Algerian war cost France ten times what the oil was worth (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• France could not contemplate Algerian withdrawal because Algeria was legally part of France #contradicts (0.60) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1649
• Saharan oil discovery added an economic motive to France’s Algerian war #expands (0.50) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 753