German and Ottoman Propaganda in Egypt during World War I

Abstract

This article analyses German and Ottoman efforts made to promote a Muslim uprising in Egypt in World War I through intelligence and propaganda operations. The article refers to documents of the Russian Consulate General in Cairo from the Archives of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire as well as published documents from German archives. Turning to the said sources, the author makes an attempt at analysing both institutional and non-institutional aspects of German and Ottoman propaganda in Egypt and, more particularly, rumours. The topic has not been studied previously in Russian historical literature. However, it may help understand the effort taken by Ottomans and Germans to promote Jihad in different parts of the Muslim world and the difficulties they faced while doing so. The German Supreme Command hoped that the use of new transport and communication technologies would help implement the rebellion strategy in the Muslim world. However, new technologies did not solve the structural problems that German propaganda faced in Egypt and other Muslim colonies of the Entente. Even though many Egyptians were sympathetic to the military efforts of the Ottomans and Germans, the majority of them wanted to abstain from getting involved in the conflict. Rumours were an indicator of the events taking place in Egypt and had many different functions. Germany’s attempt to cause an uprising in Egypt (and in other parts of the Muslim world) made jointly with the Ottoman Empire failed but the ideas of the power of pan-Islamism and the possibility to instrumentalise Islam outlasted World War I.