The Antiquity as a colonial tool

the uses of the past in the creation of the Sahara Inland Sea Project

Abstract

This article analyzes the past uses of the project to create the Sahara Inland Sea, conceived by François Élie Roudaire between 1874 and 1885. The aim was to transform the chotts (saline lakes) of southern Tunisia and Algeria into a new sea, altering the local climate to favor agriculture and commercial expansion, in order to facilitate the settlement of European colonists. It is argued that the project was influenced by a current of geographers, military men, and explorers interested in classical sources, especially Herodotus' mention of the Triton Sea, which prominently existed in the region of the chotts. Roudaire analyzed historical sources to prove this other myth, based on the idea that his proposal was a restoration of the ancient nature of the Sahara. It was argued that this space had been contemplated in Antiquity, mainly in the idea of ​​the granary of Rome, thanks to the model of civilization that they provided. The subsequent Muslim occupation would have interrupted this process, contributed to environmental degradation and increased desertification. The French, who saw themselves as heirs to ancient Rome, imagined recreating this scenario. However, Roudaire and his contemporaries faced difficulties in reconciling the new geographic and geological data with historical sources, reflecting the ongoing disciplinary transformations and the European fascination with Antiquity. In this way, the classical sources served as an instrument of legitimization of a colonial enterprise. The historical link reinforced the narrative that the Sahara had once been (and could once again be) a space of civilization.