XVIIIᵉ siècle – XIXᵉ siècle
Maghrib
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Urban society in the nineteenth-century Maghrib formed a network of towns rooted in Islamic culture, commercial exchange, handicrafts, religious teaching, written learning, and political administration. Although urban populations represented only a minority of the region’s inhabitants, cities concentrated monetary activity and Makhzen power. Their middle classes remained constrained by traditional techniques, rural resistance, European competition, and dependence on political protection.
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Le récit
Urban society was one of the principal forms of social organization in the Maghrib, alongside sedentary villages, tribal groups, and mountain communities. A chain of cities extended from Rabat and Fez in the west to Benghazi and Tripoli in the east, including Tlemcen, Algiers, Constantine, Tunis, Susa, and Kayrawan. These towns expressed the place of the city within Islamic culture and connected distinct regions through commerce and administration.
The cities contained no more than 10 to 15 per cent of the Maghrib’s population, yet they concentrated many of its most lucrative activities. Trade and handicrafts flourished there, including fez manufacturing in Tunis on an almost capitalist scale. Religious teaching, general education, religious law, and political, administrative, and military functions were also centred in towns, where the written word and monetary exchange shaped social relations.
Urban economic development nevertheless faced severe limits. Traditional methods often produced weak quantitative and qualitative results, while subsistence agriculture and rural resistance restricted the city’s influence over the countryside. European merchant capitalists controlled important maritime communications and competed fiercely with local producers. Traders and artisans therefore often accepted Makhzen protection and formed partnerships with high-ranking officials, while many middle-class investors preferred tax farming to independent expansion.
XVIIIᵉ siècle – XIXᵉ siècle
Maghrib
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Urban society in the nineteenth-century Maghrib formed a network of towns rooted in Islamic culture, commercial exchange, handicrafts, religious teaching, written learning, and political administration. Although urban populations represented only a minority of the region’s inhabitants, cities concentrated monetary activity and Makhzen power. Their middle classes remained constrained by traditional techniques, rural resistance, European competition, and dependence on political protection.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Urban society was one of the principal forms of social organization in the Maghrib, alongside sedentary villages, tribal groups, and mountain communities. A chain of cities extended from Rabat and Fez in the west to Benghazi and Tripoli in the east, including Tlemcen, Algiers, Constantine, Tunis, Susa, and Kayrawan. These towns expressed the place of the city within Islamic culture and connected distinct regions through commerce and administration.
The cities contained no more than 10 to 15 per cent of the Maghrib’s population, yet they concentrated many of its most lucrative activities. Trade and handicrafts flourished there, including fez manufacturing in Tunis on an almost capitalist scale. Religious teaching, general education, religious law, and political, administrative, and military functions were also centred in towns, where the written word and monetary exchange shaped social relations.
Urban economic development nevertheless faced severe limits. Traditional methods often produced weak quantitative and qualitative results, while subsistence agriculture and rural resistance restricted the city’s influence over the countryside. European merchant capitalists controlled important maritime communications and competed fiercely with local producers. Traders and artisans therefore often accepted Makhzen protection and formed partnerships with high-ranking officials, while many middle-class investors preferred tax farming to independent expansion.
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