Combatants of Muslim Origin in European Armies in the Twentieth Century: Far From Jihad

Description

During the two World Wars that marked the 20th century, hundreds of thousands of non-European combatants fought in the ranks of various European armies. The majority of these soldiers were Muslims from North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent. How are these combatants considered in existing historiography? Over the past few decades, research on war has experienced a wide-reaching renewal, with increased emphasis on the social and cultural dimensions of war, and a desire to reconstruct the experience and viewpoint of the combatants themselves. This volume reintroduces the question of religious belonging and practice into the study of Muslim combatants in European armies in the 20th century, focusing on the combatants' viewpoint alongside that of the administrations and military hierarchy. Cover page Halftitle page Title page Copyright page Contents List of Illustrations Notes on Contributors Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction What do we mean by ‘combatants of Muslim origin’? Native soldiers and imperial order Islam, forms of loyalty and resistance Islam in European armies: Between institutionalization and practice A Muslim experience of war? Notes 1 Algerians in the French Army, 1914–1918: From Military Integration to the Dawn of Algerian Patriotism France enrols Algerians in the army France in the eyes of Algerians: A harsh climate The ‘human climate’: How the soldiers were welcomed Feelings of exile, between nostalgia and identity Incorporating the French army: Between tragedies and integration Identity claims, call for jihad and ‘loyalism’ Algerians in the French army at war: Respected soldiers The military order: More egalitarian than the colonial order? In Algeria: Hopes of a better tomorrow, and disillusions Conclusion Notes Bibliography 2 Feeding Muslim Troops during the First World War The pre-war experience of food management in imperial forces The challenge of preserving religious dietary requirements in wartime Preserving food practices to enforce discipline and invigorate morale Setting up separate food lines for meat The faithful’s dilemma about dietary laws: ‘Has God dispensed us all?’30 A massive presence of traditional food practices in wartime narratives Adaptation to lower food standards and tensions Conclusion Notes Bibliography 3 Muslim Askaris in the Colonial Troops of German East Africa, 1889–1918 The Arab coastal elite The ‘Sudanese-askaris’12 ‘Heathens’ becoming Muslim askaris Muslim politics contested Muslim loyalty on trial: The Mecca letters German global strategies and the dynamics of the First World War Conclusion Notes Bibliography 4 Turkic Muslims in the Russian Army: From the Beginning of the First World War to the Revolutions of 19171 Turkic Muslims in the Russian Army immediately prior to the First World War Russian Muslims fighting in the First World War The revolutions of 1917: A growth in political awareness Conclusion Notes Bibliography 5 Between ‘Non-Russian Nationalities’ and Muslim Identity: Perceptions and Self-Perceptions of Soviet Central Asian Soldiers in the Red Army, 1941–1945 Introduction Historical background The Great Patriotic War The Soviet–German propaganda war for the hearts and minds of Central Asian soldiers Conclusion Notes Bibliography 6 Islam, a ‘Convenient Religion’? The Case of the 13th SS Division Handschar1 Creation of the 13th SS Division and the role of the Bosnian Muslim elite Islam in the 13th SS Division: From the ideological project to the ordinary religious life SS imams: Between ideological radicalization and relative autonomy Conclusion Notes Bibliography 7 The Officer for Muslim Military Affairs in the First French Army, 1944–1945: An Agent of Control or an Intermediary? From the Corps of Arabic Military Interpreters to the Corps of Officers for Muslim Military Affairs: Expertise, control and protection The AMM officer in the French Liberation Army: A protector of Muslim combatants, or an intelligence agent? Conclusion Notes Bibliography 8 Haunted by Jinns: Dealing with War Neuroses among Muslim Soldiers during the Second World War ‘Primitivism’ and ‘fatalism’ among Muslim combatants Religion, culture and race Conclusion Notes Bibliography 9 ‘Allah Might Provide the Fuel’: Muslim Sailors in British Colonial Navies, from the Second World War to Independence Race and recruitment Discrimination and protest Nationalism and decolonization Conclusion Notes Bibliography Glossary Index