The Economic Activities of Foreigners in Egypt, 1920–1950: From Millet to Haute Bourgeoisie

Abstract

Lord Cromer, British Consul-General in Egypt and virtual ruler of the country, was fond of arguing that Egypt could never become a homogeneous, unitary nation state, like Britain or France. Because of its location astride the Suez Canal and at the meeting point of Africa and Asia, the country, Cromer believed, would always attract large foreign populations and would be of vital importance to foreign powers. Its institutions must take account of diverse interests and peoples. To be sure Cromer used this vision self-seekingly, denying Egyptian nationalists many of their demands for increased self-government. But he had to heed the foreigners in Egypt, for they had become an influential group in the nineteenth century. A booming economy, peace and political stability, uninterrupted except for the short-lived ‘Urābī revolt (1879–1882), the fashioning of European law courts, called the Mixed Tribunals, administering French law through foreign judges, and then the presence of British troops and administrators from 1882 onwards all conspired to make Egypt seem an attractive Middle Eastern country to British, French, Belgian, Italian, Greek, Armenian, and Syrian immigrants.