A colonial soldier and the Algerian war of independence: questions of loyalty and identity for the Bachaga Boualam

© 2017 Natasha BirimacThis thesis examines the impact of colonial occupation and its demise on the life of an Algerian Colonial Soldier: The Bachaga Boualam. Drawing on a vast array of primary sources including books written by Boualam, documents from the French Colonial Archives and newspaper articles the tension between collaboration with and resistance to imperialism is explored. By examining Algeria's history as a colonised country, the loyalty to France which was developed, Boualam's life and the breakdown of colonial structures the thesis allows for a deep analysis about the impact of imperialism on an individual level