Khedive Tawfik & Urabi Revolution

Tawfik was the son of Khedive Ismail and Princess Shafiq-Nur. Although
he was the eldest son, he was not sent to Europe to be educated like his
younger brothers, but was left to grow up in Egypt.
In 1866, Ismail succeeded in his endeavor to alter the order of succession
to the khediviate. The title, instead of passing to the eldest living male
descendant of Muhammad Ali, was now to descend from father to son.
Ismail sought this alteration mainly because he disliked his uncle, Halim
Pasha, who was his heir-presumptive, and he had imagined that he would
be able to select whichever of his sons he pleased for his successor. But
he found, after the change had been made, that the powers interpreted the
new arrangement as applying strictly to the eldest son. Tawfik therefore
became heir-apparent.

In 1878, Tawfik was appointed president of the council (second Mixed

Cabinet) after the dismissal of Nubar Pasha (first Mixed Cabinet). He
held this office only for a few months; when he was dismissed by his
father, based on the National project of reform (La’iha Wataniyya) that
presented by members of the national society which formed by certain
prominent members of the Chamber of Deputies. It recommended, among
other things, that Egyptians themselves could solve Egypt’s financial
crisis and that dual control should be limited to financial affairs and it
demanded the formation of a national government that would exclude
Europeans.

Ismail formed an all-Egyptian cabinet presided by Sherif Pasha. At this

point, the European countries became dissatisfied and decided to get rid

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of Ismail by requesting the Ottoman Sultan to depose him and appoint his
son Tawfik on 26 June 1879.

Khedive Tawfik gave in to foreign intervention and accepted British and

French directives by refusing to ratify the draft constitution that his father
had ordered Sherif Pasha to prepare. Sherif Pasha, therefore, resigned.
This drew people's attention to Tawfik's tendency toward absolutist
power that the public by then distrusted. The khedive gave orders for
forming a new cabinet presided over by Riad Pasha, who was known for
his despotic tendencies and pro-foreign sympathies. He mistreated and
stifled the budding nationalist movement, leaving the door wide open for
foreign intervention via the return of dual British and French supervision.
On 2 April 1880, the British-French dominated Caisse de la Dette
(Liquidation Committee) was formed, which divided Egypt's revenues in
two parts: part to pay for the debts of the bondholders and the other part
for financing the Egyptian administration. State institutions were
drastically affected by this measure, especially the army that suffered
severe budget cuts. Moreover, the unsympathetic military minister,
Othman Refqi Al-Sharkasi strongly favored the promotion of Turks and
Circassians over Egyptians.

In addition, the growing fiscal crisis in the country sparked the Khedive
to drastically cut the army. From a height of 94,000 troops in 1874 the
army was cut to 36,000 in 1879, with plans to shrink it even more. This
created a large class of unemployed and disaffected army officers within
the country. The disastrous campaign in Ethiopia in 1875-1876 also
angered the officers who felt that the government had sent them unwisely
into the conflict.

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At the same time, a group of Egyptian army officers who opposed the
first mixed cabinet protested the discharging of 2,500 officers and to
halve the salaries of the others. A group of army officers marched on the
Ministry of Finance and occupied the building. Only the personal
intervention of the khedive, who was suspected of instigating the
incident, saved the situation. At this point, Ismail realized that he could
use both the assembly and the army officers to rid himself of foreign
control and Nubar pasha.

The direct interference of Europeans in Egypt's affairs and the deposition

of Khedive Ismail created a nationalist movement composed of Egyptian
landowners and merchants, especially former members of the assembly
and the Egyptian army officers. A secret society of Egyptian army
officers was formed in 1876, comparable to the secret society of Egyptian
notables under the leadership of Sherif Pasha, who was considered as the
leader of the constitutional movement. This movement composed of the
liberal pashas who wanted a constitution that would safeguard their own
vested interests, their private property and allow them a share in the
government. They wanted to limit the autocracy of the ruler.

Urabi Revolution:

During that time, Ahmed Urabi emerged as a national hero. He was the
son of a rich village leader, which allowed him to get a decent education.
After completing elementary education in his home village, he enrolled at
Al-Azhar University to complete his schooling. He entered the army and
moved up quickly through the ranks of the army, reaching Lieutenant
Colonel by age 20. The modern education and military service of Urabi,
an Egyptian Fellah, would not be possible without the modernizing
reforms of Said Pasha, which abolished the exclusive access to the
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Khedivate's military ranks held by a minority caste of Turkish, Balkan
and Circassian extractions, and conscripted soldiers and recruited
students throughout Egypt regardless of class and ethnic backgrounds in
order to form a "modern" and "national" Egyptian military and
bureaucratic elite class.

After gaining popularity and support from army officers, Urabi submitted
a statement requesting the dismissal of Othman Refqi on 15 January
1881. In response, Riad Pasha arrested them. At this point, a military
revolt broke out; some military troops responded by setting Urabi and his
associates free. The officers and their soldiers then went to Abdeen
Palace and demanded the dismissal of the minister of war. In addition,
they began to make demands regarding their status in the military
summarized as follows:

– A cash allowance for feeding, clothing and increase the salary in

general.

- Non-deduction of salaries for holidays.

- Military pay half fare railways.

Khedive Tawfik accepted their demands and appointed Mahmoud Sami

Al-Baroudi as Minister of War.

In 1881 a link, if not a merger, was formed between the Urabists and the
National Society or constitutional movement. This expanded group took
the name Al Hizb al Watani al Ahli, the National Popular Party . In the
morning of 9 September 1881 and as a result of interacted with Sherif
Pasha, Urabi gave orders to military units to come to Abdeen Square to
present newly formulated demands, not only of the army but also of the

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nation. They now asked for the dismissal of Riad’s cabinet, the formation
of European-style deputies’ council, and an increase in the size of the
military forces. Tawfik, who was suspected of instigating the incident in
an attempt to get rid of Riad, could do nothing but to comply.

A new cabinet was formed headed by Sherif Pasha. However, the alliance
between Sherif Pasha and Urabi was less solid less than it appeared.
Britain and France were watching anxiously the developments in Egypt.
In January 1882, Britain and France sent the" First Joint Memorandum"
in which they expressed their support for the Khedive and opposed any
move that might cripple his powers in a way that could eventually harm
the foreign interests. The note caused nothing but a vehement reaction of
the people. They also asked for precluding the council from discussing
the state budget. Accordingly, Sherif Pasha resigned when the council of
deputies insisted on discussing the budget, in response for Urabi’s advice.
A newly appointed cabinet now headed by Mahmoud Sami Al-Barudi
included Urabi who was made minister of war, the first native-born
Egyptian to assume the post since Mohammed Ali established the
Egyptian army.

However, Britain did not approve this course of events. It called for an
international conference in Constantinople in June 1882 to consider “the
Egyptian question” and its developments. Although, during the
conference, the participating states pledged not to intervene in Egyptian
affairs, the British delegate moved that the phrase “except in case of
utmost necessity” be added to the language of the conference declaration.

Meanwhile, the conflict between Urabi and Tawfik forced the latter to
finally bid for help from the European powers. In effect, Britain seized

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the opportunity of Urabi’s possession of the Egyptian forts in Alexandria
as a “case of utmost necessity” and an excuse to intervene.

Under the pressure of the foreign fleets anchoring off the coast, sectarian
riots broke out between Egyptians and the Greek minority in Alexandria.
The riots left a number of deaths. The exact cause of the revolt is
uncertain; both the Khedive and Urabi have been blamed for starting it,
but there is no proof of either allegation. An ultimatum was sent to the
Egyptian government by the British fleet, demanding the evacuation of
the city's forts within 24 hours. The Egyptian government ignored the
ultimatum and the bombardment of Alexandria began. The forts did not
resist for long and soon British troops were able to land. Khedive Tawfik
and his children retreated to Ras Al-Tin palace where they were received
by the British commander. The khedive obligingly declared Urabi a rebel
and deprived him of his political rights. Urabi in turn obtained a religious
ruling, a fatwa, signed by three Al Azhar shaykhs, deposing Tawfiq as a
traitor who brought about the foreign occupation of his country and
betrayed his religion. Urabi also ordered general conscription and
declared war on Britain.

As the nation was more committed to the nationalist leader, Urabi was
able to build strong fortifications at Kafr AL-Dawar. The Egyptians
withstood the British attacks for nearly five weeks. When British troops
failed to penetrate the fortresses, they changed their strategy and decided
to invade Egypt via the Suez Canal. Urabi had planned to fill in the
Canal, but Ferdinand de Lesseps manipulated him into thinking that the
canal was neutral territory. The British did not respect such neutrality,
and used the canal to launch a military force. The Egyptian army suffered
a defeat at Tal Al-Kabir on 9 September 1882 and Cairo was once again

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occupied by a foreign European army on 13 September, almost 84 years
after the entry of Napoleon's troops.

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 Egypt under British Occupation

On 25 September 1882, Khedive Tawfik arrived at Cairo and was

received by the British with military pomp. A military court was
established to try Urabi and his associates. He and several other patriotic
officers were sentenced to death. But realizing that Orabi's execution
might entail a fresh uprising, the court's ruling was changed to perpetual
exile to the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) after the officers were stripped
of their military rank and their property confiscated. Thus ended the
Urabi revolution and the beginning of the 70-year British occupation.

Although, Egypt became a British colony, but no changes took place in

her international legal status until 1914, as Egypt was still regarded as
part of Ottoman Empire.

The British government dispatched Lord Dufferin, the British Consul in

Istanbul, to examine the situation in Egypt and make some
recommendations.
His report recommended legislative and administrative reforms in
addition to continuing the British presence in Egypt. His instructions
were to make recommendations for reforms which would “afford
satisfactory guarantees for the maintenance of peace, order and prosperity
in Egypt, for stability of the Khedive’s authority, for the judicious
development of self-government and for the fulfillment of obligations
towards the foreign powers”.

For the judicious development of self-government, Dufferin’s report

proposed that there should be two representative institutions, a
Legislative Council and a General Assembly. The Legislative Council

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would have thirty members- sixteen elected by the members of the
provincial councils, the rest nominated by the Khedive. The legislative
Council would be a consultative only, it could express wishes, but it
could not initiate legislation. The General Assembly would have forty-six
elected members, the other thirty six would be the Khedive’s ministry and
the members of the Legislative Council. It had the right only to veto the
imposition of a new tax.

The Dual Control system was annulled after difficult negotiations with
the French and the two controllers were replaced by a single British
financial advisor. Sir Evelyn Baring, who later became Lord Cromer in
1891, was appointed as a British agent and a consul general in Egypt.

Baring, who placed himself as the de facto ruler of Egypt, focused his
interests on financial reforms at least to pay Egypt's foreign debt to other
states to keep off other rivals.

During the first phase of the British occupation, actual power came to be
vested in the hands of the British administrator, Lord Cromer. This was
during the reigns of Tawfik and his son, Abbas Helmi II. The British
occupation policy was to appoint British advisers to each of the
government ministries, including the ministers of Finance, Justice, Public
Works, Education, but also the army and the police, which meant, in
effect, they acted as ultimate authorities and effectively held all
government power. Khedive Tawfik expressed no opposition whatsoever
to this policy.

Abbas succeeded his father, Tawfik, as a Khedive when he was only 17.
Contrary to his father, Abbas showed nationalistic tendency and had a

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desire to lessen the influence of the British in the country.
Lord Cromer resumed his attempt to dominate Egypt's political life.

Abbas inaugurated his reign by dismissing the pro-British prime minister

and appointing a nationalist in his position but he was later forced by
`Lord Cromer to appoint Riyadh Pasha following a controversy. Abbas
sympathized with the nationalist movement and had contacts with
Mustafa Kamel, a charismatic nationalist lawyer, who adopted the issue
of Egypt independence.
The Khedive even supported nationalist figures financially and sent many
of them to Europe. His nationalist tendency and his encouragement for
those figures were meant to offset his powerlessness with the British.
Nevertheless, his attempts collided with Cromer's plans and the latter
eventually gained ascendancy over the Khedive.
When Abbas himself found the popularity of the nationalists rising at his
own expense, he began disengaging himself.
In 1895, and under pressures from Cromer, Mustafa Fahmy was
appointed as prime minister.

In 1896, British forces launched a military campaign on Sudan and in

1898 they defeated the radical Mahdist movement in Sudan. An Anglo-
Egyptian condominium was signed in 1899 to grant both parties a joint
control on Sudan and a titular authority for the Khedive over the
province. On the other hand, Cromer had an absolute power in Egypt. He
abolished the corvée system imposed on peasants. Under his control, the
country became financially solvent mainly because of the cotton
revenues. However, he discouraged industrialization and higher education
to the advantage of the British occupation, which transformed Egypt to a
source for raw materials for Britain.

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 For that reason, the Egyptian government directed its attention towards
agrarian reform and irrigation projects.
In 1902, the Nile Barrage at Asyut and the Aswan Dam were opened.
Thanks to cotton exports, the economy began recovering and a real estate
boom took part, which transformed cities of Cairo and Alexandria to
models of their European counterparts.

In 1904, the Entente Cordial agreement was concluded between Britain

and France. The agreement purported France's relinquishment of any
whatsoever claims in Egypt. In exchange, France was given control of
Morocco and granted territories near the border of Senegal and Gambia
as well as in Nigeria. The next year Abbas issued a decree, recognizing
Britain's special position in Egypt.

In 1906, Dinshway incident happened. Peasants beat British officers after

they accidentally killed a woman during their shooting trip. When fleeing,
a British officer died of sunstroke. The British prepared a tribunal, in
which they tried the Egyptian peasants. Some were executed and others
were flogged. The villagers were forced to watch the public
implementation of the sentences.

The brutality of the incident provoked the national feeling against the
British and incited Mustafa Kamel to launch a media campaign against
the British occupation. Sir Eldon Gorst replaced Cromer, who was
already approaching retirement, as a consul general.

Gorst was more sympathetic to the aspirations of the Egyptians. As an

Arabic language speaker, Gorst made good relations with the Khedive
and expressed readiness to meet much of the nationalistic demands.
In 1907, Mustafa Kamel founded the Nationalist Party and in 1908, he

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died and was succeeded by Mohamed Farid.
A number of parties were established in that atmosphere.
In 1910 Prime Minister Boutros Ghali was assassinated after Ghali
debated the extension of Suez Canal concession before a government
session. He further angered the nationalists by reviving the 1881 press
law. Also, Ghali had signed the condominium agreement on Sudan, and
he had presided at the Dinshaway trial. Although, his assassination by
Ibrahim Nasif al-Wardani, a nationalist, in February 1910 was clearly
political and not religious in nature, but it set off a wave of Coptic-
Muslim confrontations and led to a more repressive government policy
against the nationalists.
It can be assumed that the period of 1908-1911 witnessed the lowest point
in Muslim-Coptic relations. Many historians blamed British manipulation
of the minority issue for inciting sectarian hostility. Tensions between the
two communities smashed the attempts made by Mustafa Kamel and
some prominent Coptic and Muslim figures in creating a notion of
solidarity between both communities and in including the Copts in the
national movement. The relations were then worsened by the Coptic and
Muslim congresses that made a great stir at the time. It was the very point
at which each community realized that sectarian conflict, mainly incited
by the British policy of “Divide and Rule”, had served only the British
interests by stifling the national movement and it was only their unity that
would make them succeed in their struggle for national independence

Meanwhile, Gorst's policy -which was at odds with many British, brought
about his resignation in 1911. Kitchener replaced Gorst as a British agent
and consul general. Kitchener, who previously served as a commander-
in-chief and a sirdar, introduced a number of restrictions over the
authorities of the Khedive, but he also introduced a new legislative

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assembly. This marked a new parliamentary life in Egypt.

In 1914, and after an assassination attempt, Abbas traveled to Istanbul

while the World War I broke out. Britain immediately declared Egypt as
a protectorate, deposed Khedive Abbas II, and appointed instead of him
his uncle, Hussein Kamel under the title of Sultan.

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