Topic 11. The Greeks of Egypt

1. Topic 11. The Greeks of Egypt

2. Phase 1: 1805- 1855 Greeks had been present in the Ottoman province of Egypt for centuries. Mohammed Ali, vizier and then semi-autonomous ruler of Egypt from 1805 to 1848, endeavoured to westernize the country. Actively encouraged Greeks to settle in Egypt. Prominent among the early settlers were the Tossizza brothers and Etienne Zizinia.

3. The Millet-I Rum The Greeks of Egypt were, as everywhere else in the Ottoman Empire, were governed by the leader of the Orthodox Church. In Egypt, they were under the immediate jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Alexandria. The Millet-I Rum in Egypt was dominated numerically by Arab Orthodox, especially Syrians. To the Egyptians, the Greeks were the “Roumi” people.

4. Ismail Pasha Khedive became the new vizier. 1855: Greece became a Capitulatory Power. Greek citizens in Egypt would henceforth be covered by the laws of Capitulation: under the legal jurisdiction the Greek Consulate; exempt from Ottoman laws; no taxes, etc. Greeks from kingdom began to migrate; Ottoman Greeks in Egypt obtained Greek citizenship. Greeks quickly became the dominant merchant community. Phase 2. 1855-1882

5. King Cotton The American Civil War, 1861-1864. Egyptian cotton filled the void. Prices soared and huge profits were to be made. Because of the extensive Greek diaspora commercial network, Greek merchants were ideally poised to dominate the cotton trade. Key merchant families, like the Benakis, the Rodochanacis, and the Averoffs began to accumulate huge fortunes.

6. Greeks played key roles at every stage of the process. • Provided loans to Egypt peasant farmers. • Transportation for farms to ginning factories. 4. Greeks owned 75% of all cotton gins by 1900. 5. 25% of all exported cotton went through Greek owned brokerage houses. 6. 30% of other brokerage houses were run by Greeks.

7. Ioannis Sakellaridis developed a new strain of cotton, the “Sakel”. It quickly became the most sought after cotton in the world.

8. Alexandria

9. Secularization The Evangelismos Cathedral of Alexandria. When Greece became a Capitulatory Power in 1885 a power struggled ensued between Athens and Constantinople over who controlled the Greeks of Egypt. Secular Greek communities established in Alexandria and Cairo; recognized by the Patriarchate in 1863. Orthodox Arabs still in the Millet, but not in the Communities.

10. The British Arrive: 1882 1876: Sultan declared Egypt to be bankrupt. Consortium of European, mainly British, financiers take control of its finances. 1875: Establishment of Mixed Courts makes even more attractive to foreign merchants. 1882: after months of rioting, British troops invade. Though still a possession of the Ottoman Sultan, Britain ruled Egypt. British, French and other western merchants houses take over the economy. Even though Greeks were not the leading merchants any more, they still experienced a Golden Age of prosperity under British rule.

11. Construction on the Suez Canal began in 1858, and many Greeks islanders migrated as construction workers After the canal was opened, Greeks, because of the naval experience, were hired to operate it.

12. The opening of the Suez Canal expanded even further the export economy of Egypt, and Greeks in the cotton trade grew even richer.

13. Emmanuel Benaki The rich and famous: this is the scene of the announcement of the engagement of two of richest Greek families, the Benaki and the Choremi in 1888. The Greek community was strictly endogamous.

14. Giorgios Averoff is another prime example of the Alexandrian elite. He migrated from Ottoman Epiros during the 1850s. Became a Greek citizen but spent most of his life in Egypt. Amassed a vast fortune in the cotton industry. He was one the ones who answered the call of Trikoupis. He moved between Athens and Alexandria and supported public works in both cities, including paying for the Olympic Stadium for the 1896 games.

15. Greeks became prominent in numerous other industries, tanning, food production, and others. Nestor Gianaclis: the King of the Egyptian Cigarette. Developed a vast and lucrative industrial and commercial empire. His products were known around the world.

16. As well owning numerous cigarette factories, Gianaclis also founded Egypt’s first winery.

17. The majority of the Greeks in Egypt what “Middle Class”– especially shop-keepers, small vendors and clerks. See the chart. "The Greek to the ordinary [Egyptian] man in the street was that Dimitri or Apostoli who arrived in the village a poor man, opened a small grocery and within a few years became the owner of a large commercial enterprise and extensive properties." , Mahmoud Abul-Fath in “Al-Ahram” newspaper, October 12, 1924.

18. The Greek Bourgeoisie at Play.

19. 1914: The British Protectorate. Status of non-Greek citizen Greeks- 1913- 1918. Emergence of Egyptian nationalism. 1919: anti-Greek riots in Cairo and Alexandria. 1922: the double dilemma: Lausanne and Declaration of Independence. Lord Kitchner

20. Egypt became an independent Constitutional Monarchy under King Fu’ad I. Britain still “overseeing” power. Beginning the process of Egyptianization. The Greeks, like all “resident aliens” lost their political rights. Non-Greek citizen Greeks became Egyptians. The Communities were stripped of their legal status.

21. 1937: Treat of Montreaux: abolition of Capitulations and Mixed Courts. Greeks were either Egyptians or “foreigners” who needed visa, permits, etc. Arabic began to be required in the Greek schools. “Al-Yunani Al-Mutamassir” [“The Egyptianized Greek”] newspaper began to be published. Greek leftists (see the article by Gorman) and students began to support the Egyptian anti-imperial cause.

22. 1940s: the Last Gasp

23. After WWII, Egyptians grew disillusioned with the monarchy over its failure to achieve full independence from Britain. Black Saturday: January 26, 1952. Anti-foreigners rioting. July 17, 1952: The Free Corps coup.

24. Gamal Abdel-Nasser became leader of Egypt. Independence, nationalization, and socialism. 1956: The Suez Crisis: Egypt fights Britain, France and Israel. Seizes and nationalizes the canal. Britons and French expelled and foreign property confiscated. Over the course of 1961 and 1962, Nasser enacted the full confiscation of foreign property. Greeks left en masse, many migrating to Canada.

25. Constantine Cavafy Constantine Cavafy. No cultural figure better captures the liminal aspect of the Greeks of Egypt. Cosmopolitan, muliti-lingual, and uncertain of his own cultural identity, his poetry truly captures the essence of diaspora.