Figure 1.--Here we see a Moroccan camel driver boy at a French supply depot in Morocco. France unlike Germany could import food. The press caption read, "Man and beast in everybpart of the world are working for the success of Alied arms. Even in far-off Morocco the natives are valiantly stiving their best to aid la belle patrie. The photo shows camal driven by native boy, hauling sacks of wheat at one of the wheat depots of the French army in Morocco. Here the Government stores its wheat for shipment to France to feed the army and people."

Moroccan crises preceeded World War I. At the heart of these crises was Morocco's strategic location, Morocco wasd one of the few areas of Africa yet to be colonized, largely because none of the great powers wanted it in the hands of their rivals. Morocco like Spain and Gibraltar was situated at the entrance to the Mediterranean and thus of considerable strategic importance. There was also mineral and agricultural weakth. Any one of the Moroccan cries could have set off World War I. The First Moroccan Crisis (1905) reflect Germany's arrival late in the colonial competition. These imperialist confrontations were one of various indicents that could have set off the War. It showed Kaiser Wilhelm's reckless willingness to use war or the threat of war in European relations. Morocco became a protectorate of Spain and France just before the War (1912). At the time, Morocco was surrounded by French West Africacto the south and French-controlled Algeria to the east. Morocco was thus aligned with the Allies during the War. Moroccan regiments fought as part of the French Armée d'Afrique on the Western Front. We can not find much information about them. We believe that they were all volunteers. We are not sure why Moroccans would have volunteered to fight in the French army during the War. Pay may have been a factor. Moroccan Goumiers were auxilleries to the French forces in Morrocco and elsewhere in Africa. The Goumiers enabled General Hubert Lyautey to withdraw an important portion of the regular French military forces from Morocco for deployment on the Wesrern Front. They remained separate from the Armée d'Afrique. Moroccan soldiers fought alongside U.S. Marines at some of the major engagements of the war winning Allied Hundred Days Campaign, including Chateau Thierry, Mont Blanc and Soissons (1918). One estimates places Moroccan war deaths at 6,000 men. After the War attitudes toward colonialism began to change in France. This combined with Morocco's history and other factors meant that French authority in Morocco was more tenuous than either Algeria and Tunisia.

Created: 4:41 AM 3/6/2011
Last updated: 4:41 AM 3/6/2011