Ottoman Egypt in the mid eighteenth century- local interest groups and their connection with and rebellions against the sublime Porte and resistance to state authority

Engel, Mucahide Nihal (2017). Ottoman Egypt in the mid eighteenth century- local interest groups and their connection with and rebellions against the sublime Porte and resistance to state authority. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This research is an attempt to understand the relations between the Ottoman imperial government and the local administrators of Egypt, namely the mamluk beys. Gaining more financial and political power, they commenced to challenge the authority of the Ottoman governor of Egypt in the mid-eighteenth century alongside the incessant struggles between each other. Using a variety of Ottoman archival documents and contemporary narrative sources, I examine the factors behind the mamluk beys’ authority expansion that resulted in uprising of Ali Bey al-Kabir (Bulutkapan).
Throughout the dissertation I pursue two arguments, which address key issues in Ottoman political historiography. The first argument concerns with the underlying causes of the mamluk beys’ extended authority. I show that short-tenured governors encountered with financially and politically powerful local components, which may be considered as a result of the decentralized administration system of the Ottoman Empire. Mamluk beys’ ambition to accumulate more financial income led them to contact European consuls directly in order to open Suez trade for them.
The second argument concerns the centre-periphery relations of the Ottoman Empire. I show that, although they gained power and challenged the pasha, the mamluk beys did not establish an autonomous administration during the eighteenth century. The Ottoman Empire managed the short-term uprising of Ali Bey quickly by taking due precautions.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):