Following the Algerian War of Independence (1954–1962), the future of French archaeology in Algeria, including at the Roman legionary base at Lambaesis became less certain. With its excavation history rooted in the period of French conquest of Algeria in the nineteenth century, Lambaesis offers a revealing lens through which to examine the colonial foundations of archaeological practice on Roman frontiers in Algeria, in particular, the involvement of the French Foreign Legion. This paper argues that the Algerian War of Independence constituted a second important, and largely overlooked episode in the site’s modern history.

As conflict intensified, the Foreign Legion once again became militarily active in the region surrounding Lambaesis, reactivating the physical and ideological proximity links between Roman frontier remains, modern military presence, and political authority. The war meant that archaeology, decolonisation, and armed conflict intersected again, sometimes reviving older colonial patterns, and at time creating new narratives. This paper explores how Roman frontier heritage was cared for, mobilised and reinterpreted during this period. The paper focuses on how colonial administration, archaeological administration, and the Foreign Legion operated in proximity to one another, negotiating access, authority, and the use of the Roman past within shifting political and security contexts.

Finally, I consider the implications of these entanglements for understanding Roman frontiers simultaneously as ancient heritage and as landscapes marked by modern conflict. In doing so, the paper contributes to broader debates on histories of archaeological missions in countries formerly colonised by European powers, cultural diplomacy, and the ethical challenges of narrating Roman frontier heritage in anti-colonial contexts.

First Author: Anna Walas

Keywords:
North Africa
Anticolonial archaeology
UNESCO
historiography of archaeology
Roman frontiers