MOHAMMEDAN PERIOD Muslim Conquest of Egypt.--Towards the end of the year 639 an army of some 4,000 men was sent against Egypt under the command of `Amr (see 'AMR-513N-EL-Ass), by the second caliph, Omar I. The commander marched from Syria through El `Arish, easily took Farama or Pelusium, and thence proceeded to Bilbeis, where he was delayed for a month; having captured this place, he proceeded to a point on the Nile called Umm Dunain, the siege of which also occasioned him some difficulty. After tak ing it, he crossed the Nile to the Fayum. On June 6 of the f ollow ing year (64o) a second army of 12,000 men, despatched by Omar, arrived at Heliopolis (On). `Amr recrossed the river and joined it, but presently was confronted by a Roman army, which he defeated at the battle of Heliopolis (July 640) ; this victory was followed by the siege of Babylon, which after some futile attempts at negotiation was taken on Good Friday, April 6, 641. `Amr next proceeded in the direction of Alexandria, which was surrendered to him on Nov. 8, 645, on the condition that it should be occupied by the Muslims on Sept. 29 of the following year. The interval was spent by him in founding the city Fostat (Fustat), near the modern Cairo, and called of ter the camp (Fossatum) occupied by him while besieging Babylon; and in re ducing those coast towns that still offered resistance. The Thebaid seems to have surrendered with scarcely any opposition.
The ease with which this valuable province was wrenched from the Roman empire appears to have been due to the treachery of the governor of Egypt, Cyrus, patriarch of Alexandria, and the in competence of the Roman generals. The former, called by the Arabs Mukaukis (Muqauqis) from his Coptic name Pkauchios, had for ten years before the arrival of `Amr maintained a fierce persecution of the Jacobite sect, to which the bulk of the Copts belonged. During the siege of Babylon he had been recalled and exiled, but after the death of Heraclius had been reinstated as patriarch by Heraclonas, and was welcomed back to Alexandria with general rejoicing in Sept. 641. Since Alexandria could neither have been stormed nor starved out by the Arabs, his motives for surrendering it, and with it the whole of Egypt, have been vari ously interpreted, some supposing him to have been secretly a convert to Islam. The notion that the Arab invaders were wel comed and assisted by the persecuted Copts, conflicts with the fact that the invaders treated both Copts and Romans with the same ruthlessness; but the dissensions which prevailed in the Christian communities certainly weakened resistance to the common enemy. An attempt was made in the year 645 with a force under Manuel, commander of the Imperial forces, to regain Alexandria ; the city was surprised, and held till the summer of 646, when it was again stormed by 'Amr. In 654 a fleet was equipped by Constans with a view to an invasion, but it was repulsed, and partly destroyed by storm. From that time no serious effort was made by the Eastern empire to regain possession of the country. The terms on which the Arabs received the submission of Egypt were those on which conquered communities were ordinarily taken under Muslim protection. In return for a tribute of money and food for the troops of occupation, the Christian inhabitants of Egypt were to be excused military service, and to be left free in the observance of their religion and the administration of their affairs.
From 639 to 968 Egypt was a province of the Eastern caliphate, and was ruled by governors sent from the cities which at different times ranked as capitals. Like other provinces of the later Abbasid caliphate its rulers were, during this period, able to establish quasi-independent dynasties, such being those of the Tulunids who ruled from 868 to 905, and the Ikshidis from 935-969. In 969 the country was conquered by Jauhar for the Fatimite caliph Mo`izz, who transferred his capital from Mandia (q.v.) in the Maghrib to Cairo. This dynasty lasted till 1171, when Egypt was again embodied in the Abbasid empire by Saladin, who, however, was himself the founder of a quasi-independent dynasty called the Ayyubites or Ayyubids, which lasted till 1252. The Ayyubites were followed by the Mameluke dynasties, usually classified as Bahri from 1252-1382, and Burji from 1382-1517 ; these sov ereigns were nominally under the suzerainty of Abbasid caliphs, who were in reality instruments of the Mameluke sultans, and resided at Cairo. In 1517 Egypt became part of the Ottoman empire and was governed by pashas sent from Constantinople, whose influence about 1707 gave way to that of officials chosen from the Mamelukes who bore the title Sheik al-balad. After the episode of the French occupation, government by pashas was restored ; Mehemet Ali (appointed pasha in 18o5) obtained from the Porte in 1841 the right to bequeath the sovereignty to his descendants, one of whom, Ismail Pasha, received the title Khedive.
Period Under Governors Sent from the Metropolis of the Eastern Caliphate.—The first governor of the newly acquired province was the conqueror `Amr, whose jurisdiction was pres ently restricted to Lower Egypt ; Upper Egypt being assigned to Abdallah b. Sa`d, who subsequently obtained Lower Egypt also, `Amr being recalled, owing to his unwillingness to extort from his subjects as much money as would satisfy the caliph. In the troubles which overtook the Islamic empire with the accession of Othman, Egypt was greatly involved, and it had to be reconquered from the adherents of Ali for Moawiya (Mo`awiyah) by `Amr, who in A.H. 38 was rewarded for his services by being reinstated as governor, with the right to appropriate the surplus revenue instead of sending it as tribute to the metropolis. In the con fusion which followed on the death of the Omayyad caliph Yazid the Egyptian Muslims declared themselves for Abdallah b. Zobair, but their leader was defeated in a battle near Ain Shams (Dec. 684) by Merwan b. Hakam (Merwan I.) who had assumed the caliphate, and the conqueror's son Abd al= Aziz was appointed gov ernor. They also declared themselves against the usurper Mer wan II. in 745, whose lieutenant al-Hautharah had to enter Fostat at the head of an army. In 75o Merwan II. himself came to Egypt as a fugitive from the Abbasids, but found that the bulk of the Muslim population had already joined with his enemies, and was defeated and slain in the neighbourhood of Giza in July of the same year. The Abbasid general, Salih b. Ali, who had won the victory, was then appointed governor.
During the period that elapsed between the Muslim conquest and the end of the Omayyad dynasty the nature of the Arab occu pation had changed from what had originally been intended, the establishment of garrisons, to systematic colonization. Conversions of Copts to Islam were at first rare, and the old system of taxa tion was maintained for the greater part of the first Islamic century. The nature of this fiscal system is illustrated by papyri which show that the old division of the country into "districts" (nomoi) was maintained. To the inhabitants of these districts de mands were directly addressed by the governor of Egypt, while the head of the community, ordinarily a Copt, but in some cases a Muslim, was responsible for compliance with the demand. An official called "receiver" (qabbal) was chosen by the inhabitants of each district to take charge of the produce till it was delivered into the public magazines, and received 5% for his trouble. Other evi dence shows that the sum for which each district was responsible was distributed over the unit in such a way that artisans and tradesmen paid at a rate similar to that which was enforced on those employed in agriculture. The researches of Wellhausen and Becker have made it clear that the difference which is marked in later Islam between a poll-tax (jizyah) and a land-tax (kharaj) did not at first exist : the papyri of the 1st century know only of the jizyah, which, however, is not a poll-tax but a land-tax (in the main). The development of the poll-tax imposed on mem bers of tolerated cults seems to be due to various causes, chief of them the acquisition of land by Muslims, who were not at first allowed to possess any, the conversion of Coptic landowners to Islam, and the enforcement (towards the end of the 1st century of Islam) of the poll-tax on monks. The treasury could not afford to lose the land-tax, which it would naturally forfeit by the first two of the above occurrences, and we read of various expedients being tried to prevent this loss. Such were making the Christian community to which the proselyte had belonged pay as much as it had paid when his lands belonged to it, making proselytes pay as before their conversion, or compelling them to abandon their lands on conversion. Eventually the theory spread that all land paid land-tax, whereas members of tolerated sects paid a personal tax also; but during the evolution of this doctrine the relations between conquerors and conquered became more and more strained, and from the time when the control of the finance was separated from the administration of the country (A.D. 715) com plaints of extortion became serious.
The beginning of the Abbasid period was marked by the erection of a new capital to the north of Fostat, bearing the name `Askar or "camp." Apparently at this time the practice of farming the taxes began, which naturally led to even greater extortion than before; and a fresh rising of the Copts is recorded for the fourth year of Abbasid rule. Governors were frequently changed. The three officials of importance whose nomination is mentioned by the historians in addition to that of the governor were the commander of the bodyguard, the minister of finance and the judge. Towards the beginning of the 3rd Islamic century the practice of giving Egypt in fief to a governor was resumed by the caliph Mamun, who bestowed this privilege on `Abdallah b. Tahir, who in 827 was sent to recover Alexandria, which for some ten years had been held by exiles from Spain. `Abdallah b. Tahir decided to re side at Baghdad, sending a deputy to Egypt to govern for him; and this example was afterwards followed. In 828, when Mamun's brother Motasim was feudal lord, a violent insurrection broke out in the Hauf, occasioned, as usual, by excessive taxation; it was partly quelled in the next year by Motasim, who marched against the rebels with an army of 4,000 Turks. Rebellion broke out re peatedly in the following years, and in 831 the Copts joined with the Arabs against the Government ; the state of affairs became so serious that the caliph Mamun himself visited Egypt, arriving at Fostat in Feb. 832; his general Afshin fought a decisive battle with the rebels at Basharud in the Hauf region, at which the Copts were compelled to surrender ; the males were massacred and the women and children sold as slaves.
This event finally crushed the Coptic nation, which never again made head against the Muslims. In the following year the caliph Motasim, who surrounded himself with a foreign bodyguard, withdrew the stipends of the Arab soldiers in Egypt; this measure caused some of the Arab tribes who had been long settled in Egypt to revolt, but their resistance was crushed, and the domina tion of the Arab element in the country from this time gave way to that of foreign mercenaries, who, belonging to one nation or another, held it for most of its subsequent history. Egypt was given in fief to a Turkish general Ashnas (Ashinas), who never visited the country, and the rule of individuals of Turkish origin prevailed till the rise of the Fatimites, who for a time interrupted it. The presence of Turks in Egypt is attested by documents as early as 8o8. While the governor was appointed by the feudal lord, the finance minister continued to be appointed by the caliph. On the death of Ashnas in 844 Egypt was given in fief to another Turkish general Itakh, but in 85o this person fell out of favour, and the fief was transferred to Montasir, son of the caliph Mota wakkil. In 856 it was transferred from him to the vizier Fath b. Khaqan, who for the first time appointed a Turkish governor. The chief places in the State were also filled with Turks. The period between the rise of the Abbasids and the quasi-independent dy nasties of Egypt was marked by much religious persecution, occasioned by the fanaticism of some of the caliphs, the victims being generally Muslim sectarians. (For Egypt under Motawakkil see CALIPHATE.) Tulunid Dynasty.—In 868 Egypt was given in fief to a Turkish general Bayikbeg, who sent thither as his representative his stepson Ahmad b. Ulan, the first founder of a quasi-inde pendent dynasty. When in 87o his stepfather died, the fief was given to his father-in-law, who retained him in the lieutenancy, and indeed extended his authority to Alexandria, which had till that time been outside it. The enterprise of a usurper in Syria in the year 872 caused the caliph to require the presence of Ahmad in that country at the head of an army to quell it ; and although this army was not actually employed for the purpose, it was not disbanded by Ahmad, who on his return founded a fresh city called Kata'i`, "the fiefs," S.E. of modern Cairo, as quarters for it. On the death of Ahmad's father-in-law in the same year, when Egypt was given in fief to the caliph's brother Mowaffaq (famous for his defeat of the Zanj), Ahmad secured himself in his post by extensive bribery at headquarters; and in the follow ing year the administration of the Syrian frontier was conferred on him as well. By 875 he found himself strong enough to ref us. to send tribute to Baghdad, preferring to spend the revenues of Egypt on the maintenance of his army and the erection of great buildings, such as his famous mosque; and though Mowaffaq advanced against him with an army, the project of reducing Ahmad to submission had to be abandoned for want of means. In 877 and 878 Ahmad advanced into Syria and obtained the submission of the chief cities, and at Tarsus entered into friendly relations with the representatives of the Byzantine emperor.
In 882 relations between Ahmad and Mowaffaq again became strained, and the former conceived the bold plan of getting the caliph into his power, which, however, was frustrated by Mowaffaq's vigilance; but an open rupture was the result, as Mowaffaq formally deprived Ahmad of his lieutenancy, while Ahmad equally formally declared that Mowaffaq had forfeited the succession. A revolt that broke out at Tarsus caused Ahmad to traverse Syria once more in 883, but illness compelled him to return, and on May io, 884, he died at his residence in Kata'i`. He was the first to establish the claim of Egypt to govern Syria, and from his time Egypt grew more and more independent of the Eastern caliphate. He appears to have invented the fiction which afterwards was repeatedly employed, by which the money spent on mosque-building was supposed to have been furnished by dis coveries of buried treasure.
He was succeeded by his son Khomaruya, then 20 years of age, who immediately after his accession had to deal with an attempt on the part of the caliph to recover Syria. By 886 Mo waffaq found it expedient to grant Khomaruya the possession of Egypt, Syria, and the frontier towns for a period of 3o years, and ere long, owing to the disputes of the provincial governors, Kho marfiya found it possible to extend his domain to the Euphrates and even the Tigris. On the death of Mowaffaq in 891 the Egyptian governor was able to renew peaceful relations with the caliphs, and receive fresh confirmation in his possessions for 30 years. The security which he thereby gained gave him the oppor tunity to indulge his taste for costly buildings, parks and other luxuries, of which the chroniclers give accounts bordering on the fabulous. After the marriage of his daughter to the caliph, which was celebrated at enormous expense, an arrangement was made giving the Tfilunid sovereign the viceroyalty of a region extending from Barca on the west to Hit on the east ; but tribute, ordinarily to the amount of 300,00o dinars, was to be sent to the metropolis. His realm enjoyed peace till his death in 896, when he fell a victim to some palace intrigue at Damascus.
His young son and successor Abu'l `Asakir Jaish was murdered after a reign of six months by his troops, who gave his place to his brother Harun. In the eight years of his government the Tulunid empire contracted, owing to the revolts of the deputies which Harun was unable to quell, though in 898 he endeavoured to secure a new lease of the sovereignty in Egypt and Syria by a fresh arrangement with the caliph, involving an increase of tribute. The following years witnessed serious troubles in Syria caused by the Carmathians, which called for the intervention of the caliph, who at last succeeded in defeating these fanatics; the offi cer Mohammed b. Solaiman, to whom the victory was due, was then commissioned by the caliph to reconquer Egypt from the Tulunids, and after securing the allegiance of the Syrian prefects he invaded Egypt by sea and land at once. Before the arrival of these troops Harun had met his death at the hands of an assassin, or else in an affray, and his uncle Shaiban, who was placed on the throne, found himself without the means to collect an adequate army. Fostat was easily taken by Mohammed b. Solaiman at the beginning of 905, and after the infliction of severe punishment on the inhabitants Egypt was once more put under a deputy, `ha al-Naushari, appointed directly by the caliph.
In the middle of the year 914 Egypt was invaded for the first time by a Fatimite force sent by the caliph al-Mandi 'Obaidallah, now established at Kairawan. The Mandi's son succeeded in tak ing Alexandria, and advancing as far as the Fayum; but once more the Abbasid caliph sent a powerful army to assist his viceroy, and the invaders were driven out of the country, though the Fatimite caliph continued to maintain active propaganda in Egypt. In 919 Alexandria was again seized by the Mandi's son, afterwards the caliph al-Qa`im, and while his forces advanced northward as far as Ushmunain (Eshmunain) he was reinforced by-a fleet which arrived at Alexandria. This fleet was destroyed by a far smaller one sent by the Baghdad caliph to Rosetta ; but Egypt was not freed from the invaders till the year 921, after reinforcements had been repeatedly sent from Baghdad to deal with them. The extor tions necessitated by these wars and the incompetence of the viceroys brought Egypt into a miserable condition ; and the numerous political crises at Baghdad prevented for a time any serious measures being taken to improve it. After a struggle be tween various pretenders to the viceroyalty, Mohammed b. Tughj, son of a Tulunid prefect of Damascus, was sent by the caliph to restore order; he had to force his entrance into the country by an engagement with one of the pretenders, Ibn Kaighlagh, in which he was victorious, and entered Fostat in Aug. 935.
In the year 944 he was summoned to Mesopotamia to assist the caliph, who had been driven from Baghdad; and he proposed, though unsuccessfully, to take the caliph with him to Egypt. At this time he obtained hereditary rights for his family in the government of that country and Syria. The Hamdanid Saif addaula shortly after this assumed the governorship of Aleppo, and became involved in a struggle with the Ikshid, whose general, Kaffir, he defeated in an engagement between Homs and Hamah (Hamath). In a later battle he was himself defeated by the Ikshid, when an arrangement was made permitting Saif addaula to retain most of Syria, while a prefect appointed by the Ikshid was to remain in Damascus. The Buyid ruler, who was now supreme at Baghdad, permitted the Ikshid to remain in possession of his viceroyalty, but shortly after receiving this confirmation he died at Damascus in 946.
The second of this dynasty was the Ikshid's son Unjfir, who had been proclaimed in his father's time, and began his govern ment under the tutelage of the negro Kaffir. Syria was immedi ately overrun by Saif addaula, but he was defeated by Kaffir in two engagements, and was compelled to recognize the overlord ship of the Egyptian viceroy. At the death of Unjur in 961 his brother Abu'l-Hasan `Ali was made viceroy with the caliph's con sent by Kaffir, who continued to govern for his chief as before. The land was during this period threatened at once by the Fati mites from the west ; the Nubians from the south, and the Carmathians from the east; when the second Ikshidi died, Kaffir at first made a pretence of appointing his young son Ahmad as his successor, but deemed it safer to assume the viceroyalty himself, setting an example which in Mameluke times was often followed. He occupied the post little more than three years, and on his death in 968 the aforementioned Ahmad, called Abu'l-Fawaris, was appointed successor, under the tutelage of a vizier named Ibn Furat, who had long served under the Ikshidis. The acces sion of this prince was followed by an incursion of the Carmath ians into Syria, before whom the Ikshidi governor fled into Egypt, where he had for a time to undertake the management of affairs, and arrested Ibn Furat, who had proved himself incompetent.
The administration of Ibn Furat was fatal to the Ikshidis and momentous for Egypt, since a Jewish convert, Jacob, son of Killis, who had been in the Ikshid's service, and was ill-treated by Ibn Furat, fled to the Fatimite sovereign, and persuaded him that the time for invading Egypt with a prospect of success had arrived, since there was no one in Fostat capable of organizing a plan of defence, and the dissensions between the Buyids at Bagh dad rendered it improbable that any succcur would arrive from that quarter. The Fatimite caliph Mo`izz li-din allah was also in correspondence with other residents in Egypt, where the Alid party from the beginning of Abbasid times had always had many supporters; and the danger from the Carmathians rendered the presence of a strong Government necessary. The Fatimite general Jauhar, who enjoyed the complete confidence of the Fatimite sov ereign, started from Rakkada at the beginning of March 969 with the view of seizing Egypt.
Before his arrival the administration of affairs had again been committed to Ibn Furat, who, on hearing of the threatened in vasion, at first proposed to treat with Jauhar for the peaceful surrender of the country; but the majority of the troops at Fostat preferred to make some resistance, and an advance was made to meet Jauhar in the neighbourhood of Giza. He had little difficulty in defeating the Egyptian army, and on July 6, 969, entered Fostat at the head of his forces. The name of Mo`izz was immediately introduced into public prayer, and coins were struck in his name. The Ikshidi governor of Damascus, a cousin of Abu'l-Fawaris Ahmad, endeavoured to save Syria, but was defeated at Ramleh by a general sent by Jauhar and taken prisoner. Thus the Ikshidi dynasty came to an end, and Egypt was transferred from the Eastern to the Western caliphate, of which it furnished the metropolis.
Meanwhile Mo`izz had been summoned to enter the palace that had been prepared for him, and after leaving a viceroy to take charge of his western possessions he arrived in Alexandria on May 31, 973, and proceeded to instruct his new subjects in the particular form of religion (Shi'ism) which his family repre sented. As this was in origin identical with that professed by the Carmathians, he hoped to gain the submission of their leader by argument ; but this plan was unsuccessful, and there was a fresh invasion from that quarter in the year after his arrival, and the caliph found himself besieged in his capital. The Carmathians were gradually forced to retreat from Egypt and from Syria, and Mo`izz was able to take the offensive against the Byzantines, with whom his generals fought in Syria with varying fortune. Before his death he was acknowledged as caliph in Mecca and Medina, as well as Syria, Egypt and North Africa as far as Tangier.
In the reign of the second Egyptian Fatimite 'Aziz billah, Jauhar, who appears to have been cashiered by Mo`izz, was again employed at the instance of Jacob b. Killis, who had been raised to the rank of vizier, to deal with the situation in Syria, where a Turkish general Aftakin had gained possession of Damascus, and was raiding the whole country ; on the arrival of Jauhar in Syria the Turks called the Carmathians to their aid, and after a cam paign of many vicissitudes Jauhar had to return to Egypt to im plore the caliph himself to take the field. In Aug. 977 `Aziz met the united forces of Aftakin and his Carmathian ally outside Ramleh in Palestine and inflicted a crushing defeat on them, which was followed by the capture of Aftakin; this able officer was taken to Egypt, and honourably treated by the caliph, thereby incurring the jealousy of Jacob b. Killis, who caused him, it is said, to be poisoned. This vizier had the astuteness to see the necessity of codifying the doctrines of the Fatimites, and himself undertook this task; in the newly-established mosque of el-Azhar he got his master to make provision for a perpetual series of teachers and students of his manual. It would appear, however, that a large amount of toleration was conceded by the first two Egyptian Fatimites to the other sects of Islam, and to other communities. Indeed at one time in 'Aziz's reign the vizierate of Egypt was held by a Christian, Jesus, son of Nestorius, who appointed as his deputy in Syria a Jew, Manasseh b. Abraham. These persons were charged by the Muslims with unduly favouring their co-religion ists, and the belief that the Christians of Egypt were in league with the Byzantine emperor, and even burned a fleet which was being built for the Byzantine war, led to some persecution. `Aziz attempted without success to enter into friendly relations with the Buyid ruler of Baghdad, 'Adod addaula. He then tried to gain possession of Aleppo, as the key to `Irak, but this was prevented by the intervention of the Byzantines. His North African posses sions were maintained and extended by 'Ali, son of Bulukkin, whom Mo`izz had left as his deputy; but the recognition of the Fatimite caliph in this region was little more than nominal.
His successor `Abu `Ali al-Mansur, who reigned under the title al-Hdkim bi'amr allah, came to the throne at the age of I r, being the son of 'Aziz by a Christian mother. He was at first under the tutelage of the Slav Burjuwan, whose policy it was to favour the Turkish element in the army as against the Maghribine, on which the strength of the Fatimites had till then rested ; his conduct of affairs was vigourous and successful, and he concluded a peace with the Greek emperor. After a few years' regency he was assassinated at the instance of the young sovereign, who at an early age developed a dislike for control and jealousy of his rights as caliph. He is branded by historians as the Caligula of the East, who took a delight in oppression and persecution. He is perhaps best remembered by his destruction of the church of the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem (roio), a measure which helped to provoke the Crusades, but was only part of a general scheme for converting all Christians and Jews in his dominions to his own opinions by force. A more reputable expedient with the same end in view was the construction of a great library in Cairo, with ample provision for students; this was modelled on a similar institution at Baghdad. It formed part of the great palace of the Fatimites, and was intended to be the centre of their propaganda. At times, however, he ordered the destruction of all Christian churches in Egypt, and the banishment of all who did not adopt Islam, though he nevertheless continued to employ Christians in high official positions. His system of persecution was not aban doned till in the last year of his reign (i020) he thought fit to claim divinity ; the violent opposition which this aroused among the Muslims probably led him to adopt milder measures towards his other subjects, and those who had been forcibly converted were permitted to return to their former religion and rebuild their places of worship. Whether his disappearance at the begin ning of the year 1021 was due to the resentment of his outraged subjects, or, as the historians say, to his sister's fear that he would bequeath the caliphate to a distant relative to the exclusion of his own son, will never be known. In spite of his caprices he appears to have shown competence in the management of external affairs; enterprises of pretenders both in Egypt and Syria were crushed with promptitude ; and his name was at times mentioned in public worship in Aleppo and Mosul.
His son Abu'l-Hasan `Ali, who succeeded him with the title al-Zahir li'i`zdz din Allah, was 16 years of age at the time, and for four years his aunt Sitt al-Mulk acted as regent ; she appears to have been an astute but utterly unscrupulous woman. After her death the caliph was in the power of various ministers, under whose management of affairs Syria was for a time lost to the Egyptian caliphate, and Egypt itself raided by the Syrian usurpers, of whom one, Salih b. Mirdas, succeeded in establishing a dynasty at Aleppo, which maintained itself after Syria and Palestine had been recovered for the Fatimites by Anushtakin al-Dizbari at the battle of Ukhuwanah in 1029. His successor, Abu Tamim Ma'add, who reigned with the title al-Mostansir, was also an in fant at the time of his accession, being little more than seven years of age. The power was largely in the hands of his mother, a negress, who promoted the interests of her kinsmen at court, where indeed even in Hakim's time they had been used as a counterpoise to the Maghribine and Turkish elements in the army. In the first years of this reign affairs were administered by the vizier al-Jarjara'i, by whose mismanagement Aleppo was lost to the Fatimites. At his death in 1044 the chief influence passed into the hands of Abu Sa`d, a Jew, and the former master of the queen-mother, and at the end of four years he was assassinated at the instance of another Jew (Sadakah, perhaps Zedekiah, b. Joseph al-Falahi), whom he had appointed vizier. In this reign Mo`izz b. Badis, the 4th ruler of the dependent Zeirid dynasty which had ruled in the Maghrib since the migration of the Fati mite Mo'izz to Egypt, definitely abjured his allegiance and returned to Sunnite principles and subjection to the Baghdad caliphate. The Zeirids maintained Mandia (see ALGIERS), while other cities of the Maghrib were colonized by Arab tribes sent thither by the Cairene vizier. This loss was more than compen sated by the enrolment of Yemen among the countries which recognized the Fatimite caliphate through the enterprise of one 'Ali b. Mohammed al-Sulaihi, while owing to the disputes be tween the Turkish generals who claimed supremacy at Baghdad, Mostansir's name was mentioned in public prayer at that metrop olis on Jan. 12, 1058, when a Turkish adventurer Basasiri was for a time in power. The Egyptian court, chiefly owing to the jealousy of the vizier, sent no efficient aid to Basasiri, and after a year Baghdad was retaken by the Seljuk Toghrul Beg, and the Abbasid caliph restored to his rights. In the following years the troubles in Egypt caused by the struggles between the Turkish and negro elements in Mostansir's army nearly brought the country into the dominion of the Abbasids. After several battles of various issue the Turkish commander Nasir addaula b. Haman occupied Cairo, and at the end of 1068 plundered the caliph's palace; the valuable library which had been begun by Hakim was pillaged, and an accidental fire caused great destruction. The caliph and his family were reduced to destitution, and Nasir addaula began nego tiations for restoring the name of the Abbasid caliph in public prayer ; he was, however, assassinated before he could carry this out, and his assassin, also a Turk, appointed vizier. Mostansir then summoned to his aid Badr al-Jamali, an Armenian who had displayed competence in various posts which he had held in Syria. Early in 1074 he arrived in Cairo accompanied by a bodyguard of Armenians; he contrived to massacre the chiefs of the party at the time in possession of power, and was given by Mostansir com plete control of affairs. The period of internal disturbances, which had been accompanied by famine and pestilence, had caused usurpers to spring up in all parts of Egypt, and Badr was com pelled practically to reconquer the country. During this time, however, Syria was overrun by an invader in league with the Seljuk Malik Shah, and Damascus was permanently lost to the Fatimites; other cities were recovered by Badr himself or his officers. The time of Mostansir is otherwise memorable for the rise of the Assassins (q.v.), who at the first supported the claims of his eldest son Nizar to the succession against the youngest Ahmed, who was favoured by the family of Badr. When Badr died in 1094 his influence was inherited by his son, al-Af dal Shahinshah, and this, at the death of Mostansir in the same year, was thrown in favour of Ahmed, who succeeded to the caliphate with the title al-Mosta'li billah.
The succeeding caliph, Abu'l-Maimun `Abd al-Majid, who took the title al-Ha fiz lidin allah, was his predecessor's cousin and of ripe age. His reign was disturbed by the factions of the soldiery, and for a time he became subject to his own son Hasan. before his death in 1149 he had recovered his authority. His son Abu'l Mansur Isma`il, who was 17 years old, succeeded him with the title al-Zafir lia'da allah. From this reign to the end of the Fati mite period we have the journals of two eminent men, Usamah b. Muniqdh and Umarah of Yemen, which throw light on the leading characters. The civil dissensions of Egypt were notorious at the time. The new reign began by an armed struggle between two commanders for the post of vizier, which in Jan. 1150 was decided in favour of the Amir Ibn Sallar. This vizier was pres ently assassinated by the direction of his stepson `Abbas, who was raised to the vizierate in his place. This event was shortly fol lowed by the loss to the Fatimites of Ascalon, the last place in Syria which they held; its loss was attributed to dissensions be tween the parties of which the garrison consisted. Four years later (April 1154) the caliph was murdered by his vizier `Abbas, according to Usamah, because the caliph had suggested to his • favourite, the vizier's son, to murder his father; and this was fol lowed by a massacre of the brothers of Zafir, followed by the raising of his infant son Abu'l-Qasim 'ha to the throne.
The new caliph, who was not five years old, received the title al-Fa'iz binasr allah, and was at first in the power of `Abbas. The women of the palace, however, summoned to their aid Tala'i` b. Ruzzik, prefect of Ushmunain, at whose arrival in Cairo the troops deserted `Abbas, who was compelled to flee into Syria, taking his son and Usamah with him. 'Abbas was killed by the Franks near Ascalon, his son sent in a cage to Cairo where he was executed, while Usamah escaped to Damascus.
The infant Fa'iz, who had been permanently incapacitated by the scenes of violence which accompanied his accession, died in 116o. Tala'i` chose to succeed him a grandson of Zafir, who was nine years of age, and received the title al-adid lidin allah. Tala'i`, who had complete control of affairs, introduced the practice of farming the taxes for periods of six months instead of a year, which led to great misery, as the taxes were demanded twice. His death was brought on by the rigour with which he treated the princesses, one of whom, with or without the connivance of the caliph, organized a plot for his assassination, and he died in Sept. 116o. His son Ruzzik inherited his post and maintained himself in it for more than a year, when another prefect of Upper Egypt, Shawar b. Mujir, brought a force to Cairo, before which Ruzzik fled, to be shortly afterwards captured and beheaded. Shawar's entry into Cairo was at the beginning of 1163 ; after nine months he was compelled to flee before another adventurer, an officer in the army named Dirgham. Shawar's flight was directed to Damas cus, where he was favourably received by the prince Nureddin, who sent with him to Cairo a force of Kurds under Asad al-din Shirguh. At the same time Egypt was invaded by the Franks, who raided and did much damage on thy coast. Dirgham was defeated and killed, but a dispute then arose between Shawar and his Syrian allies for the possession of Egypt. Shawar, being un able to cope with the Syrians, demanded help of the Frankish king of Jerusalem Amalric (Amauri) I., who hastened to his aid with a large force, which united with Shawar's and besieged Shirguh in Bilbeis for three months ; at the end of this time, owing to the successes of Nureddin in Syria, the Franks granted Shirguh a free passage with his troops back to Syria, on condition of Egypt being evacuated (Oct. 1164). Rather more than two years later Shirguh persuaded Nureddin to put him at the head of another expedition to Egypt, which left Syria in Jan. 1167, and, entering Egypt by the land route, crossed the Nile at Itfih (Atfih), and encamped at Giza; a Frankish army hastened to Shawar's aid. At the battle of Babain (April I I, 116 7) the allies were defeated by the forces commanded by Shirguh and his nephew Saladin, who was presently made prefect of Alexandria, which surrendered to Shirguh with out a struggle. Saladin was soon besieged by the allies in Alexan dria; but after 75 days the siege was raised, Shirguh having made a threatening movement on Cairo, where a Frankish garrison had been admitted by Shawar. Terms were then made by which both Syrians and Franks were to quit Egypt, though the garrison of Cairo remained; the hostile attitude of the Muslim population to this garrison led to another invasion at the beginning of 1168 by King Amalric, who after taking Bilbeis advanced to Cairo. The caliph, who up to this time appears to have left the adminis tration to the viziers, now sent for Shirguh, whose speedy arrival in Egypt caused the Franks to withdraw. Reaching Cairo on Jan. 6, 1169, he was soon able to get possession of Shawar's per son, and after the prefect's execution, some ten days later, he was appointed vizier by the caliph. After two months Shirguh died of indigestion (March 23, 1169), and the caliph appointed Saladin as successor to Shirguh; the new vizier professed to hold office as a deputy of Nureddin, whose name was mentioned in public wor ship after that of the caliph. Nureddin loyally aided his deputy in dealing with Frankish invasions of Egypt, but the anomaly by which he, being a Sunnite, was made in Egypt to recognize a Fatimite caliph could not long continue. On Sept. 17, 1171, the name of the Abbasid caliph was substituted for that of 'Adid in . public worship. The latter's death occurred almost at the same moment, and it is uncertain whether he ever heard of his deposi tion. The last of the Fatimite caliphs was not quite 21 years old at his death.
Saladin at his death divided his dominions between his sons, of whom 'Othman succeeded to Egypt with the title Malik al Aziz `Imdl al-ain. The division was not satisfactory to the heirs, and after three years (beginning of 1196) the Egyptian sultan conspired with his uncle Malik al-`Adil to deprive Saladin's son al-Afdal of Damascus, which had fallen to his lot. The war between the brothers was continued with intervals of peace, during which al-'Adil repeatedly changed sides : eventually he with al-`Aziz besieged and took Damascus, and sent al-Afdal to Sarkhad, while al-`Adil remained in possession of Damascus. On the death of al-`Aziz on Nov. 29, 1198, in consequence of a hunting accident, his infant son Mohammed was raised to the throne with the title Malik al-Mansur Nasir al-din, and his luncle al-Afdal sent for from Sarkhad to take the post of regent. So soon as al-Afdal had got possession of his nephew's person, he started on an expedition for the recovery of Damascus: al-`Mil not only frustrated this, but drove him back to Egypt, where on Jan. 25, 1200, a battle was fought between the armies of the two at Bilbeis, resulting in the defeat of al-Afdal, who was sent back to Sarkhad, while al= Adil assumed the regency, for which after a few months he substituted the sovereignty, causing his nephew to be deposed. He reigned under the title Malik al `Adil Saif al-din. His name was Abu Bakr.
Though the early years of his reign were marked by numerous disasters, famine, pestilence and earthquake, of which the second seems to have been exceedingly serious, he reunited under his sway the whole of the empire which had belonged to his brother, his generals conquered parts of Mesopotamia and Armenia, and in 1215 he got possession of Yemen. He followed the plan of divid ing his empire between his sons, the eldest Mohammed, called Malik al-Kamil, being his viceroy in Egypt, while al-Mu'azzam `Isa governed Syria, al-Ashraf Musa his eastern and al-Malik al Auhad Ayyub his northern possessions. His death occurred at Alikin (1218), a village near Damascus, while the Franks were besieging Damietta, which was defended by al-Kamil, to whom his father kept sending reinforcements. Damietta was taken by the Franks on Nov. 6, 1219; al-Kamil thereupon proclaimed the Jihad, and was joined at his fortified camp, afterwards the site of Mansura, by troops from various parts of Egypt, Syria and Mesopotamia, including the forces of his brothers 'ha and Musa. With these allies, and availing himself of the advantages offered by the inundation of the Nile, al-Kamil was able to cut off both the advance and the retreat of the invaders, and on Aug. 31, 1221, a peace was concluded, by which the Franks evacuated Egypt.
For some years the dominions of al-`Adil remained divided between his sons : when the affairs of Egypt were settled, al-Kamil determined to reunite them as before. Various cities in Palestine and Syria were yielded to Frederick II. as the price of his help against the son of Mu`azzam 'Isa, who reigned at Damascus with the title of Malik al-Nasir. About 1231-32 Kamil led a confed eracy of Ayyubite princes against the Seljuk Kaikobad into Asia Minor, but his allies mistrusted him and victory rested with Kaikobad (see SELJvxs). Before Kamil's death he was mentioned in public prayer at Mecca as lord of Mecca (Hejaz), Yemen, Zabid, Upper and Lower Egypt, Syria and Mesopotamia.
At his death (May 8, 1238) at Damascus, his son Abu Bakr was appointed to succeed with the title Malik al-`Adil Saif al-din; but his elder brother Malik al-Salih Najm al-din Ayyub, after various adventures, supplanted him and entered Cairo as sultan in June I24o. His administration is highly praised by Ibn Khalli kan, who lived under it. He made large purchases of slaves (Mamelukes) for his army, and when the inhabitants of Cairo complained of their lawlessness, he built barracks for them on the island of Roda (Rauch), whence they were called Bahri or Nile Mamelukes, which became the name of the first dynasty that originated from them. Much of his time was spent in campaigns in Syria : eventually he succeeded in recovering most of the Syrian cities. Jerusalem was occupied in 1244. His name is corn memorated by the town of Salihia, which he built in the year I 246 as a resting-place for his armies on their marches through the desert from Egypt to Palestine. In 1249 he was recalled from the siege of Horns by the news of the invasion of Egypt by Louis IX., and in spite of illness he hastened to Ushmum Tanna, in the neighbourhood of Damietta, which he provisioned for a siege. Damietta was taken on June 6, 1249, owing to the treachery of its commanders : 54 chieftains were afterwards executed for this by the sultan. On Nov. 22 the sultan died at Mansura, but his death was carefully concealed by the amirs Lajin and Aktai, acting in concert with the Queen Shajar al-durr, till the arrival from Syria of the heir to the throne, Turdnshah, who was proclaimed some four months later. At the battle of Fariskur. April 6, 125o, the invaders were utterly routed and the French king fell into the hands of the Egyptian sultan. The sultan, who himself had had no share in the victory, advanced after it from Mansura to Fariskur, where his conduct became menacing to the amirs who had raised him to the throne, and to Shajar al-durr by whom he was overthrown.
After the death of the Sultan Turanshah, his step-mother at first was raised to the vacant throne, but the rule of a queen caused scandal to the Muslim world, and Shajar al-durr gave way to this sentiment by marrying Aibek, the captain of the retainers, and allowing the title sultan to be conferred on him. For policy's sake, however, Aibek nominally associated with himself on the throne a scion of the Ayyubite house, Malik al-Ashraf Musa, who died in prison (12 5 2 or 1254). Aibek meanwhile immediately be came involved in war with the Ayyubite Malik al-Nasir, who was in possession of Syria, with whom the caliph induced him after some indecisive actions to make peace : he then successfully quelled a mutiny of Mamelukes, whom he compelled to take refuge with the last Abbasid caliph Mostasim in Baghdad and elsewhere. On April Io, 1257, Aibek was murdered by his wife Shajar al-durr, who was indignant at his asking for the hand of another queen : but Aibek's followers immediately avenged his death, placing on the throne his infant son Malik al-Mansur, who, however, was almost immediately displaced by his guardian Kotuz, on the plea that the Mongol danger necessitated the presence of a grown man at the head of affairs. In 126o the Syrian kingdom of al-Nasir was destroyed by Hulaku (Hulagu), the great Mongol chief, founder of the Ilkhan Dynasty (see MONGOLS), who, having finally over thrown the caliph of Baghdad (see CALIPHATE), also despatched a threatening letter to Kotuz; but later in the same year Syria was invaded by Kotuz, who defeated Hulagu's lieutenant at the battle of `Ain Jalut (Sept. 3, 1260), in consequence of which event the Syrian cities all rose against the Mongols, and the Egyptian sultan became master of the country with the exception of such places as were still held by the crusaders.
Before Kotuz had reigned a year he was murdered at Salihia by his lieutenant Bibars (Oct. 23, 1260), who assumed the sov ereignty with the title of Malik al-Qahir, presently altered to al-Zdhir. He had originally been a slave of Malik al-Salih, had distinguished himself at the battle after which Louis IX. was captured, and had helped to murder Turanshah. Sultan Bibars. who proved to be one of the most competent of the Bahri Mame lukes, made Egypt the centre of the Muslim world by re-estab lishing in theory the Abbasid caliphate, which had lapsed through the taking of Baghdad by Hulagu, followed by the execution of the caliph. Bibars recognized the claim of a certain Abu'l-Qasim Ahmed to be the son of Zahir, the 35th Abbasid caliph, and installed him as Commander of the Faithful at Cairo with the title al-Mostansir billah. Mostansir then proceeded to confer on Bibars the title sultan, and to address to him a homily, explaining his duties. The sultan appears to have contemplated restoring the new caliph to the throne of Baghdad ; but the force which he sent with him for this purpose was quite insufficient, and Mostansir was defeated and slain. This did not prevent Bibars from main taining his policy of appointing an Abbasid for the purpose of conferring legitimacy on himself ; but he encouraged no further attempts at re-establishing the Abbasids at Baghdad, and his prin ciple, adopted by successive sultans, was that the caliph should not leave Cairo except when accompanying the sultan on an expedition.
The reign of Bibars was spent largely in successful wars against the crusaders, the Armenians and the Sel jukids of Asia Minor. He further reduced the Isma`ilians or Assassins, whose existence as a community lasted on in Syria after it had nearly come to an end in Persia. He made Nubia tributary, therein extending Muslim arms .farther south than any previous sultan had brought them. His authority was before his death recognized all over Syria (with the exception of the few cities still in the power of the Franks), over Arabia, with the exception of Yemen, on the Euphrates from Birah to Kerkesia (Circesium) on the Chaboras (Khabur), whilst the amirs of north-western Africa were tributary to him. He was the first sultan who acknowledged the equal authority of the four schools of law, and appointed judges belonging to each in Egypt and Syria; he was thus able to get his measures approved by one school when condemned by another.
On July I, 1277, Bibars died. His son Malik al-Sa`id was soon superseded by his father-in-law, Kald'dn, a Mameluke who had risen high in the former sovereign's service. Kala`un, without pursuing any career of active conquest, successfully defended Syria from a Mongol invasion which he defeated in 1281 at the battle of Horns (Emesa). He did much to consolidate his do minions, and especially to extend Egyptian commerce, for which purpose he started passports enabling merchants to travel with safety through Egypt and Syria as far as India. He directed his energies towards capturing the last places that remained in the hands of the Franks, and proceeded to take Markab, Latakia and Tripoli (April 26, 1289). In 1290 he planned an attack on Acre, but died (Nov. Io) in the middle of his l reparations. Under him we first hear of the Burjite Mamelukes, who owe their name to the citadel (Burj) of Cairo, where 3,700 of the whole number of 12,000 Mamelukes maintained by this sovereign were quartered. He also set an example, frequently followed, of the practice of dismissing all non-Muslims from Government posts : this was often done by his successors with the view of conciliating the Muslims, but it was speedily found that the services of the Jewish and Christian clerks were again required. He further founded a hospital for clinical research on a scale formerly unknown.
Kala`un was followed by his son Khalil (Malik al-Ashraf Saldh al-din), who carried out his father's policy of driving the Franks out of Syria and Palestine, and proceeded with the siege of Acre, which he took (May 18, 1291) after a siege of 43 days. The capture and destruction of this important place were followed by the capture of Tyre, Sidon, Haifa, Athlit and Beirut, and thus Syria was cleared of the crusaders. He also planned an expedition against the prince of Lesser Armenia, which was averted by the surrender of Behesna, Marash and Tell Haman. The disputes between his favourite, the vizier Ibn al-Sals, and his viceroy Baidara, led to his being murdered by the latter (Dec. 12, 1293), who was proclaimed sultan, but almost immediately fell a victim to the vengeance of the deceased sultan's party, who placed a younger son of Kala`un, Mohammed Malik al-Ndsir, on the throne.
With his death the decline of the Bahri dynasty began. It lasted until 1381, when the heir of the dynasty was formally supplanted by the powerful Mameluke Barka, known as sultan under the title Malik al-Zahir. But the 4o years before this event are marked by a succession of feeble and sometimes infant, sultans and by frequent revolutions in the palace and disorders in the provinces. Before the end the unity of the empire had become little more than superficial and its existence was threatened by Tartar hordes from further Asia.
(D. S. MA. ; F. M. S.) The Turkish Period.-The sultan, Selim, left with his viceroy, Khair Bey, a guard of 5,000 janissaries, but otherwise made few changes in the administration of the country. The register by which a great portion of the land was a fief of the Mamelukes was maintained, and it is said that a proposal made by the sultan's vizier to appropriate these estates was punished with death. The Mameluke amirs were to be retained in office as heads of 12 san jaks into which Egypt was divided; and under the next sultan, Suleiman I., two chambers were created, called respectively the greater and the lesser divan, in which both the army and the ecclesiastical authorities were represented, to aid the pasha by their deliberations. Six regiments altogether were constituted by the conqueror, Selim, for the protection of Egypt; to these Sulei man added a seventh, of Circassians. In 1527 the first survey of Egypt under the Ottomans was made, in consequence of the official copy of the former registers having perished by fire. Egyptian lands were divided in it into four classes-the sultan's domain, fiefs, land for the maintenance of the army, and lands settled on religious foundations.
It would seem that the constant changes in the Government caused the army to get out of control at an early period of the Ottoman occupation, and at the beginning of the 17th century mutinies became common. In 1604 the governor, Ibrahim Pasha, was murdered by the soldiers and his head set on the Bab Zuwela ; in 1609 they declared war on Mohammed Pasha. He, however, signally defeated them, and effected much-needed financial re forms. Meanwhile the prestige of the governors was threatened in another direction; for the troubles that beset the metropolis of the Ottoman empire tended to weaken the respect of the Egyptians for its representatives at Cairo. In July 1623 there came an order from the Porte dismissing Mustaf a Pasha and appointing `Ali Pasha governor in his place. The officers met and demanded from the newly-appointed governor's deputy the customary gratuity ; when this was refused they sent letters to the Porte declaring that they wished to have Mustafa Pasha and not `Ali Pasha as governor. `Ali Pasha's efforts, on landing, to assert himself were unsuccessful, and soon after a rescript ar rived from Constantinople, confirming Mustafa Pasha in the governorship. Simi larly, in 1631, when the army took upon themselves to depose the governor, Musa Pasha, in indignation at his execution of Kitas Bey, an officer who was to have com manded an Egyptian force required for service in Persia, the Porte approved the conduct of the army and appointed one Khalil Pasha as Musa's successor. Not only was the governor unsupported by the sultan against the troops, but each new governor regularly inflicted a fine upon his outgoing predecessor, under the name of money due to the treasury; and the out going governor was not allowed to leave Egypt till he had paid it. Besides the extor tions to which this practice gave occasion the country suffered greatly from famine and pestilence. The latter, in the spring of 1619, is said to have carried off 635,00o persons, and in 1643 completely desolated 23o villages.
His next move turned out fatally, Abu'l-Dhahab was sent with a force of 30,00o men (A.D. 17 71) to conquer Syria; and agents were sent to negotiate alliances with Venice and Russia. Abu'l Dhahab's progress through Palestine and Syria was triumphant ; but, after capturing Damascus, he entered into secret negotiations with the Porte, by which he undertook to restore Egypt to Otto man suzerainty. He then proceeded to evacuate Syria, and marched with all the forces he could collect to Upper Egypt, occu pying Assiut in April 1772. Ismail Bey was sent by `Ali Bey with a force of 3,00o to check his advance; but at Bssatin Ismail with his troops joined Abu'l-Dhahab. `Ali Bey received information to the effect that his friend Zahir of Acre was willing to give him refuge, and left Cairo for Syria (April 8, 1772), one day before the entrance of Abu'l-Dhahab.
At Acre 'All's fortune seemed to be restored. A Russian vessel anchored outside the port, and supplied him with stores and ammunition, and a force of 3,00o Albanians. He sent one of his officers, `Ali Bey al-Tantawi, to recover the Syrian towns evacuated by Abu'l-Dhahab, and now in the possession of the Porte. He him self took Jaffa and Gaza, the former of which he gave to his friend Zahir of Acre. In Feb. 1773 he started for Egypt at the head of an army of 8,000 men, and on April 19 met the army of Abu'l Dhahab at Salihia. `All's forces were successful at the first en gagement ; but when the battle was renewed two days later he was deserted by some of his officers, and prevented by illness and wounds from himself taking the conduct of affairs. The result was a complete defeat for his army, after which he declined to leave his tent ; he was captured after a brave resistance, and taken to Cairo, where he died seven days later.
After `Ali Bey's death Egypt became once more a dependency of the Porte, governed by Abu'l-Dhahab as Sheikh al-Balad with the title pasha. He shortly afterwards received permission from the Porte to invade Syria, with the view of punishing `Ali Bey's supporter Zahir, and in the course of the campaign he died. One of his deputies, Ismail Bey, now became Sheikh al-Balad, but was soon involved in a dispute with Ibrahim and Murad, two of the colleagues of `Ali Bey who had deserted him at Salihia. They after a time succeeded in driving Ismail out of Egypt and establishing a joint rule (as Sheikh al-Balad and Amir al-Haj j respectively) similar to that which had been tried previously. In 1786 an expedi tion was sent by the Porte to restore Ottoman supremacy in Egypt; and Ismail Bey was again made Sheikh al-Balad and a new pasha installed as governor. In Jan. 1791 a terrible plague began to rage in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt, to which Ismail Bey and most of his family fell victims. Owing to the need for competent rulers Ibrahim and Murad Bey were sent for and reinstated in their dual government. These two persons were still in office when Bonaparte entered Egypt.
Arabic poetry is in the main encomiastic and personal, and from the beginning of the Omayyad period sovereigns and governors paid poets to celebrate their achievements; of those of impor tance who are connected with Egypt there is again a lengthy list from the 2nd to the 9th centuries. Poets distinguished for special lines are al-Hakim b. Dani` al, d. 6o8, author of the Shadow-play; and al-Busiri (Mohammed b. Said), d. 694, author of the ode in praise of the prophet called Burdah. A list of poets of the 11th century is given by Khafaji in his Raihanat al-alibbd.
The needs of the Egyptian court produced a number of elegant letter-writers, of whom the most famous were 'Abd al-Rahiin b. 'Ali al-Baisini, ordinarily known as al-Qadi `al-Fadil, d. 596, secre tary of Stare to Saladin and other Ayyubite sultans; 'Imad al-din al-Ispahani, d. 597, also secretary of State and official chronicler; and Ibn 'Abd al-Zahir, d. 692, secretary of State to Bibars I. and succeeding sultans; he was followed by his son Fath al-din, to whom the title "Secret writer" was first given.
In the subject of law Egypt boasts that the Imam Shafi'i, founder of one of the schools, resided at Fostat from 195 till his death in 204; his system, though displaced for a time by that in vented by the Fatimites, and since the Turkish conquest by the Hanifite system, has always been popular in Egypt.
Among Egyptian mystics the most famous as authors are the poet Ibn al-Farid, d. 632, and Abd al-Wahhab Shabrani, d. 973. Abu'l-Hasan al-Shadhili (d. 656) is celebrated as the founder of the Shadhili order ; but there were many others of note. The dic tionary of physicians, compiled in the 7th century, enumerates nearly 6o men of science who resided in Egypt ; the best-known among them are Said b. Bitriq, Moses Maimonides and Ibn Baitar. Of Egyptian miscellaneous writers two of the most cele brated are Ibn Daqiq d. 702, and Jalal al-din Suyuti.
(D. S. MA.; ME.) The French Occupation.—Although in reality a move in Napoleon's great game of world domination, the French expedi tion to Egypt had, as its ostensible object, the reinstatement of the authority of the Sublime Porte, and the suppression of the Mamelukes. In the proclamation printed with the Arabic types brought from the Propaganda press, and issued shortly after the taking of Alexandria, Bonaparte declared that he reverenced the prophet Mohammed and the Koran far more than the Mamelukes reverenced either, and argued that all men were equal except so far as they were distinguished by their intellectual and moral excellences, of neither of which the Mamelukes had any great share. In future all posts in Egypt were to be open to all classes of the inhabitants; the conduct of affairs was to be com mitted to the men of talent, virtue and learning; and in proof of the statement that the French were sincere Muslims the overthrow of the papal authority in Rome was alleged. After the battle of Ambabah, at which the forces of both Murad Bey and Ibrahim Bey were dispersed, the populace readily plundered the houses of the beys, and a deputation was sent from al-Azhar to Bonaparte to ascertain his intentions; these proved to be a repetition of the terms of his proclamation, and, though the combination of loyalty to the French with loyalty to the sultan was unintelligible, a good understanding was at first established between the invaders and the Egyptians. The destruction of the French fleet, however, at the battle of the Nile, and the failure of the French forces sent to Upper Egypt (where they reached the first cataract) to obtain possession of the person of Murad Bey, shook the faith of the Egyptians in their invincibility; and in consequence of a series of unwelcome innovations, an insurrection broke out in Cairo on Oct. 22, of which the headquarters were in the Muslim uni versity of Azhar. On this occasion the French general Dupuy, lieutenant-governor of Cairo, was killed. The prompt measures of Bonaparte, aided by the arrival from Alexandria of Gen. J. B. Kleber, quickly suppressed this rising; but the stabling of the French cavalry in the mosque of Azhar gave great and permanent offence. On Dec. 25 a proclamation was issued, reconstituting the two divans which had been created by the Turks ; the special divan was to consist of 14 persons chosen by lot out of 6o govern ment nominees, and was to meet daily. The general divan was to consist of functionaries, and to meet on emergencies.
Napoleon's ill-fated expedition to Syria followed: but in July he retrieved his fortunes by a crushing defeat of the Turkish army that had landed at Aboukir, aided by the British fleet com manded by Sir Sidney Smith. Shortly after his victory Bonaparte left Egypt, having appointed Kleber to govern in his absence, which he informed the sheikhs of Cairo was not to last more than three months. A double expedition shortly after Bonaparte's departure was sent by the Porte for the recovery of Egypt, one force being despatched by sea to Damietta, while another under Yusuf Pasha took the land route from Damascus by al-Arish. Over the first some success was won, in consequence of which the Turks agreed to a convention (signed Jan. 24, i800), by virtue of which the French were to quit Egypt. The Turkish troops advanced to Bilbeis, where they were received by the sheikhs from Cairo, and the Mamelukes also returned to that city from their hiding-places. Before the preparations for the de parture of the French were completed, orders came to Sir Sidney Smith from the British Government, forbidding the carrying out of the convention unless the French army were treated as prisoners of war; and when these were communicated to Kleber he can celled the orders previously given to the troops, and proceeded to put the country in a state of defence. In June, however, he was assassinated by a fanatic named Suleiman of Aleppo, said to have been incited to the deed by a Janissary refugee at Jerusalem. The command of the army then devolved on Gen. J. F. (Baron de) Menou (1750-181o), a man who had professed Islam, and achieved some popularity, counteracted, however, by his declara tion of a French protectorate over Egypt, which was to count as a French colony.
Soon after the evacuation of Egypt by the French, the country became the scene of more severe troubles, in consequence of the attempts of the Turks to destroy the power of the Mamelukes. In defiance of promises to the British Government, orders were trans mitted from Constantinople to Husain Pasha, the Turkish high admiral, to ensnare and put to death the principal beys. Invited to an entertainment, they were either attacked on board the flag ship or fired upon in open boats, in the Bay of Aboukir. They offered an heroic resistance, but were overpowered, and some killed, some made prisoners ; among the last was Osman Bey al Bardisi, who was severely wounded. Gen. Hutchinson, informed of this treachery, immediately assumed threatening measures against the Turks, and in consequence the killed, wounded and prisoners were given up to him. At the same time Yusuf Pasha arrested all the beys in Cairo, but was shortly compelled by the British to release them. Such was the beginning of the disastrous struggle between the Mamelukes and the Turks.
In March 1803 the British evacuated Alexandria, and Mo hammed Bey al-Alfi accompanied them to England to consult respecting the means to be adopted for restoring the former power of the Mamelukes. About six weeks after, the Arnaut (or Albanian) soldiers in the service of the Turkish governor, Moham med Khosrev, tumultuously demanded their pay, and surrounded the house of the defterdar (or finance minister), who in vain appealed to the pasha to satisfy their claims. The latter opened fire from the artillery of his palace on the insurgent soldiery in the house of the def terdar, across the Ezbekia. Tahir, the com mander of the Albanians, then repaired to the citadel, gained ad mittance through an embrasure, and, having obtained possession of it, began to cannonade the pasha over the roofs of the inter vening houses, and then descended with guns to the Ezbekia and laid close siege to the palace. On the following day Mohammed Khosrev made good his escape, with his women and servants and his regular troops, and fled to Damietta by the river. This revolt marks the beginning in Egypt of the breach between the Albanians and Turks, which ultimately led to the expulsion of the latter, and of the rise to power of the Albanian Mehemet Ali (Mohammed Ali, q.v.), who was destined to rule the country for nearly 4o years and be the cause of serious European complications.
A few days later, Ali Pasha Jazairli landed at Alexandria with an imperial firman constituting him pasha of Egypt, and threatened the beys, who now were virtual masters of Upper Egypt, as well as of the capital and nearly the whole of Lower Egypt. Mehemet Ali and al-Bardisi therefore descended to Rosetta, which had fallen into the hands of a brother of Ali Pasha, captured the town and its commander, and returned to Cairo. The troubles of Egypt were now increased by an in sufficient inundation, and great scarcity prevailed, aggravated by the taxation to which the beys were compelled to resort in order to pay the troops; while murder and rapine prevailed in the capital, the riotous soldiery being under little or no control. Meanwhile, Ali Pasha had been endeavouring to set the Albanians and the Mamelukes against each other, by intriguing with each separately. He failed, however, and his troops refusing to sup port him, he surrendered to the beys, while his army was com pelled to retire to Syria. In the hands of the beys Ali Pasha again attempted treachery. This offered a fair pretext to the Mamelukes to rid themselves of a man proved to be a perfidious tyrant. He was sent under a guard of 45 men towards the Syrian frontier; and about a week after, news was received that in a skirmish with some of his own soldiers he had fallen mortally wounded.
The death of Ali Pasha produced only temporary tranquillity ; in a few days (Feb. 12, 18o4) the return of Mohammed Bey al-Alfi (called the Great) from England was the signal for fresh disturbances, which, by splitting the Mamelukes into two parties, accelerated their final overthrow. An ancient jealousy existed between al-Alfi and the other most powerful bey, al-Bardisi, who took active measures to oppose his return. Husain Bey (a relative of al-Alfi) was assassinated by emissaries of al-Bardisi, and Me hemet Ali, with his Albanians, gained possession of Giza, which had been occupied by al-Alfi's partisans. Al-Alfi himself on his way to Cairo encountered a party of Albanians, and with difficulty made his escape to the desert. A change in the fortune of al Bardisi, however, favoured his plans for the future. That chief, in order to satisfy the demands of the Albanians for their pay, gave orders to levy heavy contributions from the citizens of Cairo ; and this new oppression roused them to rebellion. The Albanians, alarmed for their safety, assured the populace that they would not allow the order to be executed; and Mehemet Ali himself caused a proclamation to be made to that effect. Thus the Albanians became the favourites of the people, and took advantage of their opportunity. Seizing the citadel, they once more proclaimed Mohammed Khosrev pasha of Egypt. For one day and a half he enjoyed the title; the friends of the late Tahir Pasha then accomplished his second degradation, and Cairo was again the scene of terrible enormities, the Albanians revelling in the houses of the Mameluke chiefs, whose harems met with no mercy at their hands. These events were the signal for the re appearance of al-Alfi.
The Albanians now invited Ahmed Pasha Khorshid to assume the reins of government, and he without delay proceeded from Alexandria to Cairo. The forces of the partisans of al-Bardisi had established a blockade of the city on the south, and were now ravaging the country on the north. Al-Alfi and Osman Bey had also declared against the pasha and advanced on Cairo, which was in a state of tumult and semi-starvation. At Shubra, however, a northern suburb, a pitched battle was fought in which the Mame lukes were defeated with heavy loss on both sides. This reverse in a measure united the two great Mameluke parties, though their chiefs remained at enmity. The Mamelukes gradually retreated towards Upper Egypt. Thither the pasha despatched three suc cessive expeditions (one of which was commanded by Mehemet Ali) without decisive result.
At this period another calamity befell Egypt; about 3,00o Delis (Kurdish troops) arrived in Cairo from Syria. These troops had been sent for by Khorshid in order to strengthen himself against the Albanians ; and the events of this portion of the history afford sad proof of their ferocity and brutal enormities, in which they far exceeded the ordinary Turkish soldiers and even the Albanians. Their arrival immediately recalled Mehemet Ali and his party from the war, and instead of aiding Khorshid was the proximate cause of his overthrow.
Mehemet Ali now possessed the title of governor of Egypt, but beyond the walls of Cairo his authority was everywhere dis puted by the beys, who were joined by the army of the silandar of Khorshid; and many Albanians deserted from his ranks. To replenish his empty coffers he was also compelled to levy exactions, principally from the Copts. In these extremes he made an at tempt to exterminate certain of the beys, who were encamped north of Cairo. On Aug. 17, 1805, having been induced by simu lated treachery to enter the city, they marched along the prin cipal street for some distance, with kettle-drums behind each company, and were received with apparent joy by the citizens. At the mosque called the Ashrafia they separated, one party pro ceeding to the Azhar and the other continuing along the main street, and through the gate called Bab Zuwela, where they turned up towards the citadel. I-Iere they were fired on by some soldiers from the houses; and with this signal a terrible massacre began. Some sought refuge in the collegiate mosque Barkukia, while the remainder fought their way through their enemies and escaped over the city-wall. Two Mamelukes had in the meantime suc ceeded in giving the alarm to their comrades in the quarter of the Azhar, who escaped by an eastern gate. A horrible fate awaited those who had shut themselves up in the Barkukia. Having begged for quarter and surrendered, they were immediately stripped nearly naked, and about 5o were slaughtered on the spot; about the same number were dragged away, with every brutal aggravation of their pitiful condition, to Mehemet Ali, chained and left in the court of the pasha's house. On the following morning the heads of their comrades who had perished the day before were skinned and stuffed with straw before their eyes. One bey and two others paid their ransom and were released; the rest, without exception, were tortured and put to death in the course of the ensuing night. Thus ended Mehemet Ali's first massacre of his too confiding enemies.
In consequence of the remonstrances of the English, and a promise made by al-Alfi of 1,500 purses, the Porte consented to reinstate the beys of the 24 provinces, and to place al-Alfi at their head ; but this measure met with the opposition of Mehemet Ali and the determined resistance of the majority of the Mamelukes, who, rather than have al-Alfi at their head, preferred their present condition; for the enmity of al-Bardisi had not subsided, and he commanded the voice of most of the other beys. Al-Alfi was at the time besieging Damanhur, and he gained a signal victory over the pasha's troops ; but the dissensions of the beys destroyed their last chance of a return to power. Al-Alfi and his partisans were unable to pay the sum promised to the Porte; Salih Pasha, who had brought a Turkish force to Alexandria to depose Mehemet Ali, was placated by a payment of 4,000 purses to the Porte; Mehemet Ali was continued in his post, and the reinstatement of the beys was abandoned. Fortune continued to favour the pasha. In the following month al-Bardisi died, aged 48 years ; and soon after, a scarcity of provisions excited the troops of al-Alfi to revolt. That bey very reluctantly raised the siege of Damanhur, being in daily expectation of the arrival of an English army; and died suddenly on Jan. 3o, 1807, at the age of 55. Thus was the pasha relieved of his two most formidable enemies; and shortly after he defeated Shahin Bey, with the loss to the latter of his artillery and baggage and 30o men killed or taken prisoners.
(X. ; ME.) Rule of Mehemet Ali.—Mehemet Ali was now undisputed master of Egypt, and his efforts henceforth were directed pri marily to the maintenance of his practical independence. The su zerainty of the sultan he acknowledged, and at the reiterated com mands of the Porte he despatched, in 181r, an army of 8,000 men, including 2,000 horse, under the command of his son Tustin, a youth of 16, against the Wahhabis (q.v.). After two campaigns of varying fortune, Mehemet Ali took the field in person ; he deposed and exiled the sherif of Mecca, and after the death of the Wah habi leader, Saud II., he concluded, in 1815, a treaty with Saud's son and successor, Abdullah. Hearing of the escape of Napoleon from Elba—and fearing danger to Egypt from the plans of France or Great Britain—Mehemet Ali returned to Cairo by way of Kosseir and Kena. His return was hastened by reports that the Turks, whose cause he was upholding in Arabia, were treacher ously planning an invasion of Egypt.
During Mehemet Ali's absence in Arabia his representative at Cairo had completed the confiscation, begun in 1808, of almost all the lands belonging to private individuals, who were forced to accept instead inadequate pensions. By this revolutionary method of land "nationalization" Mehemet Ali became proprietor of nearly all the soil of Egypt, an iniquitous measure against which the Egyptians had no remedy. The attempt which in this year (1815) the pasha made to reorganize his troops on European lines led, however, to a formidable mutiny in Cairo. This brought Tusun back to Egypt ; but he died in 1816 at the early age of 20. Mehemet Ali, dissatisfied with the treaty concluded with the Wahhabis, and with the non-fulfilment of certain of its clauses, determined to send another army to Arabia, and to include in it the soldiers who had recently proved unruly. This expedition, under his eldest son, Ibrahim Pasha, left in the autumn of 1816. The war was long and arduous, but in 1818 Ibrahim captured the Wahhabi capital of Deraiya. Abdullah, their chief, was made prisoner, and with his treasurer and secretary was sent to Con stantinople, where, in spite of Ibrahim's promise of safety, and of Mehemet Ali's intercession in their favour, they were put to death. At the close of the year 1819, Ibrahim returned to Cairo, having subdued all present opposition in Arabia.
Meanwhile the pasha had turned his attention to the improve ment of the manufactures of Egypt, and engaged very largely in commerce. He created for himself a monopoly in the chief pro ducts of the country, to the further impoverishment of the people, and set up and kept going for years factories which never paid. But some of his projects were sound, such as the excavation (1819-2o) of the Mahmudiya canal, to establish a safe channel between Alexandria and the Nile. The sacrifice of life, however, was enormous (fully 20,000 workmen perished), and the labour of the unhappy fellahin was forced. Another notable fact in the economic progress of the country was the development of the cultivation of cotton in the Delta in 1822 and onwards. The cotton grown had been brought from the Sudan by Maho Bey, and the organization of the new industry—from which in a few years Mehemet Ali was enabled to extract considerable revenues—was entrusted to a Frenchman named Jumel.
In 182o Mehemet Ali ordered the conquest of the eastern Sudan to be undertaken ; it was his ambition to capture the valuable caravan trade then going towards the Red sea, and to secure the rich gold mines which he believed to exist in Sennar. He also saw in the campaign a means of getting rid of the disaffected troops, and of obtaining a sufficient number of captives to form the nucleus of the new army. Nubia, Sennar and Kordofan were re duced ; Khartoum was founded, and in the following years the rule of the Egyptians was largely extended and control obtained of the Red sea ports Suakin and Massawa (see SUDAN, History).
In 1824 a native rebellion of a religious character broke out in Upper Egypt headed by one Ahmad, an inhabitant of Es-Salimiya, a village situated a few miles above Thebes. He proclaimed him self a prophet, and was soon followed by between 20,000 and 30,000 insurgents, mostly unarmed peasants. The insurrection was crushed by Mehemet Ali, and proved the last internal attempt to destroy the pasha's authority.
The fellahin, a patient, long-suffering race save when stirred by religious fanaticism, submitted to the kurbash, freely used by the Turkish and Bashi Bazuk tax-gatherers employed by Mehemet Ali to enforce his system of taxation, monopolies, corvee and con scription. Under this regime the resources of the country were impoverished, while the finances fell into complete and incom prehensible chaos. This is how Egypt in 1838 appeared to the British consul-general, Col. Campbell:— "The Government (he wrote), possessing itself of the neces saries of life at prices fixed by itself, disposes of them at arbitrary prices. The fellah is thus deprived of his harvest and falls into arrears with his taxes, and is harassed and bastinadoed to force him to pay his debts. This leads to deterioration of agriculture and lessens the production. The pasha having imposed high taxes has caused the high prices of the necessaries of life. It would be diffi cult for a foreigner now coming to Egypt to form a just idea of the actual state of the country as compared with its former state. In regard to the general rise in prices, all the ground cultivated under the Mamelukes was employed for producing food—wheat, barley, beans, etc.—in immense quantities. The people reared fowls, sheep, goats, etc., and the prices were one-sixth, or even one-tenth, of those at present. This continued until Mehemet Ali became viceroy in 1805. From that period until the establishment of monopolies prices have gradually increased ; but the great increase has chiefly taken place since 1824, when the pasha established his regular army, navy and factories." This picture of Egypt under Mehemet Ali is, nevertheless, not complete without regard being had to the beneficent side of his rule. Public order was rendered perfect ; the Nile and the high ways were secure to all travellers, Christian or Muslim; the Bed ouin tribes were won over to peaceful pursuits, and genuine ef forts were made to promote education and the study of medicine. To European merchants, on whom he was dependent for the sale of his exports, Mehemet Ali showed much favour, and under his influence the port of Alexandria again rose into importance. It was also under Mehemet Ali's encouragement that the overland transit of goods from Europe to India via Egypt was resumed.