This week in History and Politics we introduce: Khedive Ismail’s Army

Isma’il Pasha, “Ismail Paşa” in Turkish Language, known as Ismail the Magnificent (December 31, 1830 – March 2, 1895). Ismail, of Albanian descent, was born in Cairo and was Wāli and subsequently Khedive (ruler) of Egypt and Sudan from 1863 until he was removed at the behest of the British in 1879.

Khedive Ismail’s goals for Egypt were similar to those of his grandfather, Muhammad Ali. He wanted Egypt to become virtually independent of the Ottoman Empire, a political and military power in the eastern Mediterranean and an economic partner of Europe.

Ismail achieved a considerable degree of independence from the Porte (from Sublime Porte, the term for the High Gate that came to be synonymous with the Ottoman government) by making large payments to the Ottoman treasury. For example, in return for increasing Egypt’s annual payment to the Ottoman treasury from £175,000 to £400,000, Sultan Abdul Aziz allowed Ismail to change the rule of succession from the oldest surviving male heir of Muhammad Ali to direct male primogeniture in his family. The sultan also granted Ismail the formal title of khedive, which elevated his standing to a position closer to royalty.

Khedive Ismail’s attempt to make Egypt independent foundered eventually because of the gap between the revenues the country could produce and the expenses necessary to achieve his goals. He attempted to generate more income by increasing agricultural productivity, chiefly by bringing more land into cultivation through expensive irrigation projects such as the construction of canals and dams.

During his reign, an additional 506,000 hectares were brought under cultivation, representing a sizeable increase in both production and income. To service the cotton crop, which was the basis of Egypt’s prosperity, roads, bridges, railways, harbours, and telegraph lines had to be constructed. During Ismail’s reign, 112 canals, 13,440 kilometres long, were dug; 400 bridges were built; 480 kilometres of railroad lines were laid; and 8,000 kilometres of telegraph lines were erected.

Towns and cities were modernized by the expansion of public services such as water distribution, transport, street lighting, and gas supply. Public education was reorganized and expanded, and a postal service was established. The army and bureaucracy were expanded and modernized. In short, Khedive Ismail undertook the construction of the infrastructure of a modern state.

American Confederate Soldiers in his army

After the completion of the Suez Canal, Ismail was struggling with debt to Europe, and a possible takeover of Egypt by European interests. If, for instance, he could have depended on his army he would at least have had some sort of support against the European embrace and against rising popular hatred. If he’d been a Mameluke sultan he would simply have purchased a new supply of Mamelukes to replace his corrupt Turkish and Albanian officers. But the Mameluke system was dead, so he looked around for other outsiders and he found them in the United States of America.

There was a lot of sense in this idea because American officers in the 1860′s knew more about modern war then any soldier in Europe. The Civil War, the first modern war, was just over, and the Southern states were full of officers and gentlemen who were penniless and futureless but not yet finished with soldiering. In 1869, Ismail employed an American officer, Captain Thadeus P. Mott of the late Union army to engage American officers for the Egyptian army. Within the year, Mott brought to Cairo an Indian figher named General W. Loring, two more generals, nine colonels, two majors and a doctor and a professor of geology. All but four of the soldiers had served in the Confederate army, so they were mostly Southerners.

They brought a different flavor to Cairo, and a since of the American wild west, even though they most often dressed in an Arab style. It would seem that one of the most colorful characters was a Mjaor Morgan. One night, for instance, he was at the Theatre Francais with General Loring and another American officer, Colonel Chaillesion. The prefect of Cairo’s police, Ali Bey, who was wearing a very fancy uniform, came into the buvette and ordered Major Morgan, who was after all a junior officer in service to the Khedive, to get him a glass of water. Morgan was incredulous. He carefully filled his glass with water and threw it in Ali Bey’s face, and then slapped the Bey hard to make sure the insult was understood. Ali Bey hurried up the steps to the royal box, furious, and reported the matter to Ismail, who more or less said, “Serves you right,” and added, “I did not bring Americans here to wait on you… Go and ask his pardon,” which Ali Bey did.

Confrontation with King Yohannesson (John)

Ismail wanted an empire, one that included the Sudan, Ethiopia, and the caravan routes to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Several expeditionary forces were sent out to appropriate new territory. Famed British adventurer Charles “Chinese” Gordon was placed in command of the Sudan and equatorial regions. Chaillé-Long led a coastal expedition as far south as Zanzibar and the Comoro Islands (however, British pressure on Egypt soon forced the recall of his party). In 1875 an inexperienced Danish officer, Colonel Søren Arendrup, led an expedition to Abyssinia (modern-day Ethiopia). His objective was to conquer the trade route from the Red Sea port of Massowah west to Khartoum, where Ismail hoped to establish a rail route. Arendrup told Abyssinia’s ruler, King John, that he wished to meet and redraw the boundary between Egypt and Abyssinia. Instead, King John quickly raised an army, and ambushed and wiped out most of Arendrup’s force.

Chapter 11 -  Descent Into The Maelstrom: Egypt invades the Somali Coast, Harar, and Awsa

“In this country every stranger is an enemy worth killing”

(Werner Munzinger)

The massacre demanded a response from Egypt, but opinions on how to proceed were mixed. The American officers wanted to defeat John’s army and conquer Abyssinia. The more cautious Egyptians wanted to simply make a show of force. An army of 12,000 was raised, and dispatched to Massowah. Miscommunication and confusion would mark the entire campaign. After several months of preparation, the force set out for the interior of Abyssinia. Transportation and supply were in a shambles, and after a march of about three days, the army was forced to stop in the Gura Valley.

On March 7, 1876, King John engaged an Egyptian force of about 4,500 men. The Egyptians, who were still waiting for a sizeable portion of their force to reach the Gura valley, were routed (hundreds of men were slaughtered after running into a ravine), and retreated into their fort. Egyptian forces in a smaller fort at the head of the valley did nothing to support their countrymen; the commander feared he would be attacked if he acted. On March 9 the Abyssinians attacked the main fort, but sustained heavy losses. Following the battle, Egyptian soldiers ventured out and massacred wounded Abyssinian soldiers left on the field; that night, the Abyssinians retaliated by murdering almost 600 Egyptian prisoners. Over the course of the next month the Egyptians strengthened the two forts in the valley, but the fighting was over.

The campaign against Abyssinia had served no purpose, only succeeding in killing thousands of men and draining Ismail’s coffers. The American officers in Egypt were now largely shunned or ignored, mostly relegated to minor tasks or left twiddling their thumbs. The experiment was almost at its end.

The veterans from a strange land returned home to varying circumstances. Some wrote books, or gave lectures on their experiences. Others went on to distinguished careers in foreign service. Charles Stone became the chief engineer in charge of erecting the Statue of Liberty. This most American of symbols had originally been proposed to stand at the entrance way to the Suez Canal. With help from Samuel Lockett and James Morgan, Stone oversaw design and construction of the foundation and pedestal, as well as the final assembly of the statue (at left is an original drawing from the construction project). He was also given the honor of serving as grand marshal during the dedication ceremonies on Oct. 28, 1886. Ironically, Stone caught a chill during the festivities and died three months later.

Some did not return home. Six Americans died during their period of service; another five would die from diseases or circumstances related to their stint in Africa; one deserted and was never seen again. Raleigh Colston would spend much of the rest of his life as an invalid. While those remaining did not know it at the time, the veterans of Egypt were the vanguard of a new and powerful nation, an America that would soon project its doctrine of democracy and free enterprise around the globe.

Time Line

1859 American colonel William Loring travels to Europe, the Middle East and Egypt. He meets Egypt’s ruler, Saïd. Construction begins on the Suez Canal.

1861 The American Civil War begins. Egyptian cotton exports begin to skyrocket.

1862 Saïd dies; Ismail becomes Viceroy of Egypt.

1865 The Civil War ends. Bottom falls out of the Egyptian cotton market.

1866 Ismail purchases the right of primogeniture from the Ottomans.

1867 Ismail purchases the title of Khedive from the Ottomans. In a meeting with Ismail, French sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi proposes the construction of a large statue at the entrance of the Suez Canal. While not commissioned, the project will lead to the creation of America’s Statue of Liberty.

1868 Ismail meets Thaddeus Mott in Constantinople. Mott convinces the Khedive to use American Civil War veterans to help modernize the Egyptian army.

1869 The Suez Canal opens amid great fanfare. Mott enlists the aid of William Sherman to find volunteers for the Egyptian army. Their first recruit is William Loring. Ismail is forced to turn over his new ironclad ships to the Ottoman Empire.

1870 Loring and Henry Hopkins Sibley arrive in Egypt. They are soon followed by another 18 Americans. Charles Stone begins establishing schools for the men in each army battalion.

1871 Loring is put in charge of Egypt’s coastal defenses, including Alexandria. Aida debuts at the Cairo Opera House.

1872 William Sherman visits Egypt. The shooting affray in Alexandria takes place. King John is named emperor of Ethiopia.

1873 Cornelius Hunt becomes the first American to die in the service of Egypt. Free schools for the education of soldiers’ sons are opened.

1874 Ismail gives Charles “Chinese” Gordon control of the Sudan and equatorial regions. Charles Chaillé-Long travels to Uganda to establish relations with King M’Tesa. On the return journey, he discovers Lake Kioga. Ismail spends some $15 million on the weddings of three of his children.

1875 The last large influx of American officers, as 11 more arrive. American-led expeditions explore the desert regions of Darfur and Kordofan. Søren Arendrup and much of his Egyptian expeditionary force are wiped out by King John. The Abyssinian campaign begins. Ratib Pasha is put in charge of the expedition, Loring is named second-in-command. Troops begin sailing to Massowah. With his debt problems mounting, Ismail sells more than 175,000 shares of stock in the Suez Canal to England.

1876 Henry Irgins becomes the final American to join the Egyptian army. Ratib’s army moves into Abyssinia and occupies the Gura Valley. King John attacks the invaders, and nearly routs Ratib’s main force. The Egyptians successfully repel a second Abyssinian attack. By mid-year, the Egyptians abandon the interior and return home. Two commissions begin examining Egypt’s debt problems; English and French overseers are appointed to the Egyptian Ministry of Finance.

1877 Russia and Turkey go to war; Egypt sends a token force to Bulgaria. Alexander Mason discovers the Semliki River. Loring’s anonymous account of the Gura debacle, “The Egyptian Campaign In Abyssinia,” is printed in Europe and America. Chaillé-Long publishes an account of his explorations, Central Africa: Naked Truths of Naked People. Egypt’s debt crisis worsens.

1878 Former President Ulysses Grant visits Egypt. The British and French impose financial control over the Egyptian government. The new ministry decides to eliminate more than 80 percent of the army. Nine of the ten remaining American officers are discharged from the Egyptian army, leaving only Charles Stone. Ismail turns his private property over to his creditors.

1879 Four hundred unpaid Egyptian officers riot; Ismail dismisses the foreign-controlled government. The British and French pressure the Ottoman sultan to depose the Khedive. Ismail is forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Tewfik.

1880 William Dye’s Moslem Egypt and Christian Abyssinia is published.

1881 The Arabi revolt begins. The Mahdi begins his rebellion in the Sudan.

1882 Arabi takes control of the Ministry of War. The British and French demand his removal; riots break out across the country. The British shell Alexandria (the French do not, and lose almost all influence in Egypt). A British land force defeats Arabi at Tel-el-Kebir. In the Sudan, an Egyptian army of 6,000 is massacred by the Mahdi’s forces.

1883 An Egyptian army of 7,000 under General William Hicks is destroyed by the Mahdi near El Obeid. Charles Stone leaves the Egyptian army.

1884 Loring’s A Confederate Soldier in Egypt is published. An Egyptian army under British general Valentine Baker is defeated by the Mahdi. “Chinese” Gordon arrives in Khartoum.

1884 The Berlin Conference and the formalization of the Scramble for Africa

1885 In January, following a ten-month siege, Charles “Chinese” Gordon is killed in the Siege of Khartoum by the Mahdist Sudanese army. A British relief expedition belatedly arrives two days later. The Mahdi dies in June.

1886 Bartholdi’s Statue of Liberty makes its debut (with help from Charles Stone, Samuel Lockett and James Morgan). Loring passes away in New York City.

1887 Stone dies in New York.

1889 King John is killed while fighting Mahdist forces in the Sudan.

1889 Soldiers of the British armed forces sell Sayid Muhammad Hassan an official gun.

1890 Tewfik dies at the age of 50.

1895 Ismail dies in Constantinople; he is buried in Cairo.

1899 Britain finally reconquers the Sudan from the Mahdists. One of Lord Horatio Kitchener’s cavalry officers is a young Winston Churchill. William Dye passes away.

1900 an Ethiopian expedition which had been sent to arrest or kill Sayid Muhammad Hassan looted a large number of camels of the Mohammed Subeer Ogaden sub-clan. In answer to his appeal, Hassan attacks the Ethiopian garrison at Jijiga on 4 March of that year and successfully recovered all the looted animals. This success emboldened Hassan and also enhanced his reputation. The Dervish State was born.