In the end of 19th century, almost the 9/10 of the earth is controlled by Europeans. Colonialism was legalized by ideological constructions, according to which non-western people were inferior and incapable to manage themselves. Through propaganda strategies, as well as through culture, those ideas were widely spread and accepted from a big part of society, shaping consent to the invasion in other countries.
In this research project an attempt is made to approach architecture through the prism of postcolonial theory. It is investigated the use of architecture in colonialism, as a means of reinforcement of power relations. In addition, there is a more specific reference to the crucial role colonialism had in the history of modernism: the French colonies in North Africa functioned/served as ‘’experimental terrains’’, καθώςit was there that ideas of modernism were materialized, before they were transferred to Europe. There are presented as case studies two different spatial strategies that were implemented in Morocco, in two different chronological periods, that had to do with the management of the indigenous population, and its spatial exclusion from the European city. In addition, there are presented two unrealized projects from Le Corbusier, for the capitals of Algeria and Ethiopia. In these case studies, it is presented the way that the architectural and urban politics contributed to the support of the colonial authorities and the empowerment of inequality, regardless of the different and seemingly conflicting strategies that were implemented. Moreover, it is described how the ideological constructions which supported the existence of inferior races served as arguments for the subjugation of people, as well as for the whole enterprise of colonialism.