Egypt History in Ottoman Times
The Egyptians almost welcomed the Turks. They had suffered from taxation and famine and had grown weary of it. They thought the Turks were possibly the deliverers from the Circassian brutality and they were right. Turkish Sultan Selim came to Cairo, he started to rebuild the city .The next centuries Egypt History had a stable political system and wealth.

      In May of 1516, The mameluk Sultan al Ghury headed his army to face the Turks. The Mamelukes were badly defeated on August 24, 1516 north of Aleppo. Up to fourteen thousand Mamelukes and a huge army were defeated by treachery and artillery. The Sultan al Ghury was killed on the battlefield and it was crucial event in Egypt History.

      Under the Ottoman's Egypt was divided into twenty-four districts and each had its own Mameluk bey, which was formerly called an emir. Each of these beys were governed by the sultan in Istanbul. The Mameluk beys surrounded themselves with slaves who collected taxes for them and had baronial authority in Egypt History at that time.

      Throughout the early Egypt History and later on Cairo remained an important city because of the wheat that fed the people of Istanbul and Eastern Europe Cairo became once again a port for fruits and grains that headed for Asia and Europe.

      Tributes were collected by the Turks in the ports, but the Mamelukes took most of the money before the tribute was levied. The ordinary person was left with almost nothing because of local Mamelukes. The peasant was completely exploited and it was one of the worst exploitation in Egypt History. Therefore Turks intervened again on behalf of ordinary people in 1695, when a famine struck Cairo and the people demonstrated outside the Citadel.

      Most of the Turkish rulers were very good in Egypt History. Osman Bey Zulficar was rather intelligent as was Ridwan al Gelfi. Al Gelfi was the chief of the corps of Azabs who were the Turkish mercenaries. He built several beautiful homes in Egypt. He did manage to leave a good impression on Cairo. The only monument of his that remains today is a gate on the Citadel called Bab el Azab.

      The Turkish manners and ways of life seemed to make impression on the Egyptians, especially in art science and on Egypt History. Turks are influenced from great Egyptian art too. Socially, Egyptians did not use the Turkish language and the people of Cairo managed to keep their own identity and The Turks built mosques which are artistically creative and which became one of the most beautiful mosques in Egypt History.

      However in the last years of 18th century Ottoman Empire was in decline and the beautiful days were over in Egypt History. In the year between 1796 and 1797, the Egyptians revolted against the Turks. They wanted something to be done about the new taxes and the economic misery that had been oppressing them for some time.

      It was during this time in Egypt History that Napoleon arrived on the coast of Alexandria. The Mamelukes were not strong enough to fight the French. Murad would not believe it when he was told that Napoleon had arrived. Britain and Ottoman Empire decided to defend Egypt against aggressive Napoleon.

      British soldiers led by Sir Ralph Abercromby landed at Abukir on March 8, 1801. The Turks landed at al Arish on the eastern frontier of Egypt. The French knew that it was all over by this point for their occupation in Egypt History.

      The Ottoman flag flew over the city because officially the Turks were in control of Cairo, but the British were in control of the Citadel.

      Mohammed Ali became pasha of Egypt with some help from his Albanian troops in 1806, five years after the British had left Cairo to the Turks. The Porte reluctantly acknowledged him the ruler of an independent state within the Ottoman Empire. He would rule Egypt for forty-three years, in which most of the years Egypt would be his private estate and Cairo would be his private city. He would become one of the most important rulers in Egypt History.

      Mohammed Ali knew that eventually he would have to contend with the Mamelukes if he ever wanted to control Egypt. They were always feudal owners in Egypt History and there were still the feudal owners of Egypt land the land was still the source of wealth and power in Egypt like always in Egypt History. In 1804 and 1805, Ali began to attack the Mamelukes. In one of the Mameluke's attempts at a defense, they forced their way into the city to fight him there. Ali's Albanians captured or killed most of the Mamelukes, which was the first serious blow to the Mameluke's. During this clash the city was pillaged so badly that the people revolted against the Turkish governor and elected Mohammed Ali as pasha.

      By 1808 Mohammad Ali was powerful enough to confiscate all of the land in Egypt, even the lands which were part of an Egyptian organization of religious endowment. He set up a system of omdehs, who were local government representatives, and mudirs, who were provincial governors. This system remained in effect until 1952 in Egypt History.

      He immediately began to spread his new kingdom with his sons Tusun, who was his favorite, and Ibrahim as his best generals. Istanbul invited them to war with the Wahhabis of Arabia and was able to get personal control of the Red Sea coast. This meant that he control the Red Sea on both sides. He occupied Sudan and began to modernize Egypt like it has never been before in Egypt History. There were armories, factories, shipyards and canal systems were built by foreign experts for the first time in Egypt History that he imported to help. Some Egyptians were even sent abroad to study, especially in France for the first time in Egypt History.

      The Europeans began to be the privileged class of Egypt like never been before in Egypt History. Ali created monopolies in the trading and manufacturing areas which he shared with the European consuls. They had no choice but to agree to his outrageous terms, but they did reap the benefits anyway. The Europeans began to come to Egypt History for different reasons than before. They were either the archaeologists which are very interested in Egypt History or the tourists. The first archaeologist was Giovanni Belzoni in Egypt History. The other members of the trio were John Lewis Burckhardt who was the Anglo-Swiss traveler, scholar and explorer. He discovered many Pharaonic sites of Egypt History that Belzoni exploited later. Another was Herbert Salt who was the British consul in Cairo. He was a business partner with Belzoni and he made a fortune from the antiquities of Egypt History, he shipped to Europe in large amounts. Burckhardt did the discovery and Belzoni and Salt robbed the sites of Egypt. Belzoni and Salt were the ones who sent to England the head of Memnon, the trunk of Ramses and the straight left Pharaonic arm which is in the British Museum's Egyptian section about Egypt History. Auguste Mariette came to Cairo in 1850 and is probably the most respected archaeologist in Egypt. He is the person who founded the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and collected most of what is inside.

      In the 1840s and 1850s, Mohammed Ali greatly enjoyed the European attention and interest in Egypt. He knew that it was a gold mine if he could figure out how to attach Egypt to the ever-expanding industrial and trading riches in Europe. There were two things that really made this possible for Egypt History. Ali introduced cotton to Egypt History in 1822 and in 1845 Lieutenant Thomas Waghorn carried the mail from Bombay to London in thirty days, which was a record time. He used an overland route through Egypt History to do this.

      The cotton in Egypt History was a native form called baladi. The Europeans needed a superior quality of cotton and in 1818, the Ethiopian cotton, called Maho, was shown to Mohammed Ali. Jumel, a Frenchman that had been in America, knew about this kind of cotton and convinced Mohammed Ali to grow a plot near the Heliopolis obelisk. By 1820, three bales had been shipped to Trieste. Mohammed Ali then put Jumel in charge of his cotton plantations.

Mohammed Ali began to sell the entire crops for a year at a fixed price for the first time in Egypt History. Money began to flow into Egypt like it has been never been before in Egypt History.
The cotton industry also brought the credit system to Cairo, but not in a good way. Europe kept enticing Mohammed Ali and his successors to continue borrowing at the incredibly high interest rates that eventually gave France and England the excuse to foreclose on the Egyptian economy and control all Egyptian life. Eventually Mohammed Ali was in such debt that an American consul, Gliddon, went to England to interfere in Egypt. No one would do a thing in England. Gliddon said that the peasants in Egypt had a right to plant what they wanted, but to no avail.
Another thing that would give Egypt History its biggest lift was the direct route from India across Egypt to England. This was the first stage in the step to the Suez Canal. The Canal would not be started until 1859 and after Mohammed Ali's death. It was finally opened in 1869 and thereafter tied Egypt and Egypt History to Europe.

      By the time the canal was opened, Ismail, Mohammed Ali's grandson was ruling Egypt. The European influence did good and bad for Cairo. Ismail intentionally divided Cairo into east and west areas because he wanted to built a Paris on the Nile. He then built two new boulevards in the old city and cut the city into quarters. Ismail's new quarter was set on a French plan and was the organization of modern Cairo. This area is called Ismailiya.

      Gas was brought to Cairo by Ismail in 1870, which was eventually replaced in 1898 with electricity. This made Cairo one of the earliest cities in the world to use electricity. Building was very heavy during a period of about ten years. Many homes were built as well as buildings. So much money was spent during this period that there seemed to be an endless supply of money. However, the money came from heavy taxation of everyone and everything and large loans from Europe. He was in such debt that in 1875 Ismail had to sell his shares of the Suez Canal to the British for four million pounds.

      In 1876, a group of Europeans told Ismail that he owed 91 million pounds. In 1879 the British and French did what Ismail had been expecting them to do for a long time. They told Ismail to abdicate, which he did because there was nothing else that he could do. The people wouldn't even help him because of the heavy taxes that he had levied on them. The people hated him. He finally gave in and left the country for Europe and died in exile in 1895.

      Ismail's son, Tawfik, inherited what was left of Egypt. The taxes that were placed on the people were even more harsh than before. Everything was taxed like never been before in Egypt History. A revolt was started by a man who liked to call himself Ahmad the Egyptian. He was the son of a peasant and became colonel of Tawfik's army. Arabi started speaking out for the peasants. The revolt began in 1881 with mutiny in the army itself. The rest of the country joined in immediately. Four thousand men marched to the square outside Abdin Palace and told the khedive to come out. Tawfik wasn't there, but when he did arrive, the palace was surrounded by soldiers that had cannons pointed at the palace.

      Tawfik had to sneak into the palace by the back way. He was advised by some of his leaders to appeal to the troops. He walked down the staircase with his British comptroller, Auckland Colvin, on one side and General Charles P Stone on the other. Tawfik asked the troops what they wanted. Arabi told him they wanted liberty, an assembly of notables, a constitution and all Egyptians to be equal under the law. Tawfik asked for time to think about it. Later Arabi was called to the palace and he either apologized to him or thanked him. The Egyptians have never forgotten it or forgiven him. Arabi was made minister for war. The British and French were aware what was happening and sent a fleet of ships to Alexandria like the Mohammad Ali era in Egypt History.

      On July 11, 1882, the British bombarded Alexandria. Russian and American warships were in the harbor as well and the Europeans scrambled to get to the ships. Arabi had lined up along the Suez Canal hoping to stop the British. However, the British did go up the canal and landed at Ismailiya. On September 14, the British cavalry reached Abbasiya in Cairo. Arabi went out to Abbasiya and handed his sword over to the British. He has never been forgiven for this action either. Major Watson was an intelligence officer who entered the fortress alone. He ordered the commandant to get up and get out of the Citadel. The keys were handed over to Watson. After this date , officially Egypt was not the member of Ottoman Empire and there was a complete change in Egypt History.