La Marsa Convention
LA MARSA CONVENTION
the document that formally established the french protectorate over tunisia.
The La Marsa Convention was signed in June 1883 and ratified by the French Chamber of Deputies in April 1884. The force behind the convention was Paul Cambon, resident general in Tunisia from 1882 to 1886. The convention provided for a French loan to the bey, allowing him to settle his debts to other European states and thereby bringing an end to the International Financial Commission. With these measures, France won control over the Tunisian economy and, with the protectorate in place, the political affairs of Tunis as well.
Bibliography
Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge, U.K., and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
matthew s. gordon