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Egypt's location and geography made possible the Suez Canal. Millenia before the Canal was built, the Istmus of Suez was a major trading route and efforts began to build a canal. And trade only increased in modern times. Ferdinand de Lesseps visited Egypt (1832). He began to plan a project to construct a sea levl canal across the Isthmus, but little progress was made until 1854 when he visited Egypt again. The Viceroy of Egypt, Said Pasha, granted him a concession for his proposed canal. With the backing of Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie, he raised half the funds by popular subscription in France. Work was begun in 1859 and the canal was formally opened in 1869. De Lesseps who surmounted enormous engineering, diplomatic, and administrative difficulties was awarded many honors and widely proclaimed throughout France. The Canal itself had a significant impact on world trade and for Britain helped to strengthen the connection with their main colony--India. This had been a factor even before the Canal was built. Napoleon launched an offensive in Egypt even before beginning his great coninental campaigns (1798-1801). Port Said on the Mediterranan end became an important city with a international character until Nasser natinalized the Canal (1956). Port Tewfik is of lesser importance. There were three major military campaigns involving Suez. The Central Powers (Ottomans with German assistance) tried to take it in World War I (1915). The Axis (Italians and Germans) attempted to take it in World War II (1940-42). After Nassar nationalized the Canal, the Isrealis, British, and French seized the Canal, but were forced to give it back (1956). The Canal also feartured in subsequent Middle Eastern wars. The development of Middle Eastern oil increased the importance of the Canal. Arab instability, however, reduced the reliability of the Canal. And the development of super-tankers has reduced somewhat the importance of the Canal. The economics of oil around the Caoe if Good Hope coimpeted with the cost of widening the Canal.
Egypt's location and geography made possible the Suez Canal. Millenia before the Canal was built, the Istmus of Suez was a major trading route and efforts began to build a canal. And trade only increased in modern times. The geography of trade was obvious in ancient times, but construction efforts mostly ficused on the Nile. The first efforts to develop an intrastructure to favilitate trade were west–east canals to make possiblle boat travel from the Nile River to the Red Sea. The goal here was to improve trade with both Msopotmia (through Basara) and both India and East Africa. The first known such canal is attributed to the Pharoah Senusret II or Ramesses II #rd century BC). Another effort may have used the earlier effiorts was constructed under the reign of Necho II. The first fully functional canal was built Persian Emperor Darius I agter the conquest of Egyopt (2nd millennium BC).
We do not have details about the use of the Canal constructed by Darius. The Canal operated from Bubastis on the Nile to the Red Sea. An inscription on a pillar at Pithom documents that it was again reopened, by Ptolemy II Philadelphus (270/69 BC). Arsinoe reports that Ptolemy constructed a navigable lock, with sluices, at the Heroopolite Gulf on the Red Sea. This allowed the vesselks to move, but prevented salt water from the Red Sea from mingling with the fresh water in the canal which would have destroyed Egyptian agriculture.
Napoleon launched an offensive in Egypt even before beginning his great continental campaigns (1798-1801). Egyot at the time was an Ottoman province. Napoleon cnceived the campaign as part of a commercial campaign. He wanted to defend French trade interests and to weaken Britain's access to India which Britain had seized from France as part of the SEven Years War/French and Indian War conflict. He was also inteested in scientific endeviors. He did not fully understand the strength of the Royal Navy and Lord Nelson. The major outcome was the discovery of the Rosetta Stone and the understanding of ancient hieroglyphics.
Ferdinand de Lesseps visited Egypt (1832). He began to plan a project to construct a sea levl canal across the Isthmus, but little progress was made until he visited Egypt again (1854). The Viceroy of Egypt, Said Pasha, granted him a concession for his proposed canal. With the backing of Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie, he raised half the funds by popular subscription in France. Work was begun in 1859 and the canal was formally opened in 1869. De Lesseps who surmounted enormous engineering, diplomatic, and administrative difficulties was awarded many honors and widely proclaimed throughout France. De Lesseps success was in part because Suez was basically a stright forward digging operation--- massive but uncomolicated digging operation. When he attempted the more complicated Panama Canal he failed miserablly.
The British were not at first sold on the idea. Interestung as the Canal had a significant impact on world trade and for Britain helped to strengthen the connection with their main colony--India. This had been a factor even before the Canal was built and an overland connectoin was developed across the istmus. Construction on the Canal began (1858) and took 10 years to cmplete. Constructionn was largely a massive dredging operation- an enormous undertaking before the develooment of power tools. This was done by forced labor (corvée) of Egyptian workers during the first few years. There are no detailed numbers, but some 30,000 people arebelieved to have been working on the canal at any given time. In all, more than 1.5 million people from different countries were employed. Thousands of workers died, many from cholera and similar epidemics. [Wilson] The Canal was opened (1869). This was still the era of sail power and wooden nships, although that had begun to change. The Suez Canal as it was deveoped extended 120 miles (193 km) between Port Said (Būr Saʿīd) in the north and Suez in the south. There were also dredged approach channels, both north of Port Said into the Mediterranean and south of Suez. The canal construction does not dsigned take the shortest route across the isthmus which is only 75 miles (121 km). Instead it utilized several natural lakes to reduce the the area that had to be dug. These included Lake Manzala (Buḥayrat al-Manzilah), Lake Timsah (Buḥayrat al-Timsāḥ), and the Bitter Lakes—Great Bitter Lake (Al-Buḥayrah al-Murrah al-Kubrā) and Little Bitter Lake (Al-Buḥayrah al-Murrah al-Ṣughrā). The Suez Canal is an open cut sea level canal with seasonably variable differences of about 10-30 cm between Port Said and Port Tawfik/Suezin the south. There are no locks. Much of the Canal is straight lengths, but there are eight major bends. The Canal is bounded by the low-lying Nle Delta and River. To the east is the elevated, rugged, and arid Sinai Peninsula. Before the construction of the canal (1869), the only important settlement was Suez. Here there was some 3,000 to 4,000 inhabitants. The towns that now exist along its banks date to the period after tge Canal was construction. Al-Qanṭarah may be an exception.
Port Said on the Mediterranan end became an important city with a international character until Nasser nationalized the Canal (1956). Port Tewfik is of lesser importance. Port Said is located in northeastern Egypt at theentrance to the Canal. It is a modern vity only created as the Canakl was built (1859). Port Said began as an international city.
It flourished during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. It was populatee by a wide variety of nationalities and religions, primarily from Mediterranean countries creaing a tolerant, cosmopolitan community. Rudyard Kipling commented, "If you truly wish to find someone you have known and who travels, there are two points on the globe you have but to sit and wait, sooner or later your man will come there: the docks of London and Port Said". There are many substantial houses with grand old balconies on all floors. This provided a distinctive look. The city had more of a Europeam Mediterranean look than an Egyptian city. Britain was preparing to leave Egypt, but the rise of the NAZIs in Gernmany caused the British Governmenht to delay this. The British pressed Egyopt to accept thevAnglo-Egyptian Treaty (1936). After Workd War II, the Egyotian Givernment begn to oressure the Britisj to leave. The Egyptian Revolution escalated this dynamic (1952). President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal (1956). Britain and France in colludsion with Israel invade Egypt. The main battle occurred in Port Said which was the center of the Suez Crisis. The last foreign soldier soldier with drew (December 1956). The Europeans began to leave the city. After the Six-Day War (1967), the Suez Canal was closed by an Egyptian blockade. The Egyptian Givernment evacuated the opopulation as part of the preoparation for the Yom Kippur War (1973). The city has since been re-inhabited since the reopening of the Canal. Port Said was declared a duty-free port (1976) prividing an attraction for people transiting the Canal and attracting many Egyptians.
There were three major 20th century military campaigns in which Suez played a major role.
The Central Powers (Ottomans with German assistance) tried to take Suez by land, attacking from Palestine in World War I (1915). The offensive was a complete failure and the British would eventually mount an offensive into Palestine from Egypt. The Ottomans would be distracted by the Arab revolt stoked by Lawrence, including the seizure of Aqaba. Because France was in the War throughout to support the Royal Navy, the Allies controlled the Mediterranean throughout the War. Thus Allied naval ships and cargo vessels were able to use Suez and the short route to India. The tiny Austrian Navy was bottled up in the northern Adriatic. The only real danger was German U-boats. Notably, a young Karl Dönitz would lose his U-boat and be captured by the British.
World War II was very different. Italy entered the War on the Axis side and France was knocked out of the War by the Germans (1940). The Royal Navy was not only smaller than in World War I, but they had to try to hold the line in the Mediterranean alone without the French. The Italians essentially closed off the Mediterranean to Allied shipping when they entered the War (June 1940). Of course at the same time, Suez isolated the Otalians in East Africa and unlike the Allies, the Italians could not go around the Cape. Not only would there be air strikes from Italy, but the under-strength Royal Navy would have to fight it out with the powerful Italian fleet. This meant that that cargo vessels supping the Desert Army and India and the Far East had to make the much longer route around the Cape of Good Hope. Suez as a result was not used heavily. The Allied freighters docked at Port Tewfiq, and used the railway to convey supplies and troops to the Desert Army. The canal was used by warships and the occasional freighter intended for Malta or Tobruk. Most Malta convoys, however, came from the western end of the Mediterranean. This longer Allied freighter route was significant because the greatest restraint on the Allied war effort was shipping. And closing the Mediterranean meant that these trips would require even more shipping. The Axis (Italians and Germans) attempted a much more significant effort to take Suez, this time from Italian Libya (1940-42). And Rommel's Afrika Korps came very close to taking Suez only being stopped at El Alamein, a few miles from Alexandria (July 1942). The Egyptian Young Officer Movement was already active in the Egyptian Army and would have welcomed the Germans with open arms. .
After Nassar nationalized the Canal, the Isrealis, British, and French seized the Canal, but were forced to give it back (1956). The Canal also feartured in subsequent Middle Eastern wars.
The development of Middle Eastern oil increased the importance of the Canal. Arab instability, however, reduced the reliability of the Canal. And the development of super-tankers has reduced somewhat the importance of the Canal. The economics of oil around the Caoe if Good Hope coimpeted with the cost of widening the Canal.
Wison, Arnold. T.The Suez Canal (1939).
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