Algiers as Laboratory of the Multicultural Urban Environment of Western European Civilization (1830-1962)

Algiers' colonial transformation (1830–1962) exemplifies how Western urban planning imposed civilizational dominance while preserving multicultural layers. French architects, prioritizing European styles like Neoclassic and Neo-Moorish, demolished parts of the Casbah to build colonial districts, symbolizing Western superiority. The 'Prost' master plan accelerated this shift, using architecture as a tool for segregation—evident in the Diar-el-Mahsoul housing complex—which reinforced social fragmentation. This case reveals Mediterranean multiculturalism's complexities, where architecture became both an instrument of coercion and a means to organize coexistence. Legacy effects persist today, shaping Algiers' fragmented structure and post-colonial identity struggles.

Shvets, Y. (2025). Algiers as Laboratory of the Multicultural Urban Environment of Western European Civilization (1830-1962). Current Problems of Architecture and Urban Planning, (74), 219–237. https://doi.org/10.32347/2077-3455.2025.74.219-237