Anglo-French Connections and Cooperation against “Islamic” Resistance, 1914–1917

Abstract

This chapter argues for the importance of considering the commonalities and connections regarding British and French policies and actions toward the administration of Islamic practice and Muslim peoples, from around 1870 to the 1920s. This chapter analyses three case studies of connections, cooperation, and exchange regarding the Anglo-French administration of Muslim peoples. Firstly, Anglo-French interactions around the Sanussiyya, a North African Sufi order active in both empires’ African territories. Secondly, Anglo-French cooperation regarding the supposed threat of Mahdism, examining British military and intelligence support given to the French during their suppression of an uprising in Niger during 1917. Thirdly, Anglo-French cooperation in relation to the British invasion of Darfur in 1916, when the French provided assistance and support to the British as a result of the threat they believed Sultan Ali Dinar posed to their territories due to his proclamation of jihad.