Egypt

Before being imperialized:

The British and French fought

over control; Napoleon briefly
takes control over Upper and
Middle Egypt, but Britain
realizes the direct threat to
their trading routes to India
(currently their colony) and
drives the rest of the French
forces out of Egypt. For a brief
period of time the British held
complete control over Egypt,
but a strong Egyptian leader
named Muhammad Aliled a
powerful army and re-takes
Egypt. Britain doesn't return to
Egypt for 75 years.

Who? What? When? How?

Who?-Britain
What?-The defeat of Muhammad
Alis army at Nisibin and
regaining control over Egypt
(alongside the French)
When?-1882
How?- A series of revolts rose up
in Egypt against the
Europeans, but the French
refused to help silence the
revolt; therefore the British
took initiative and, almost
by accident, found
themselves to be in complete
control over Egypt.

Britains Motives
Britains main motive to
controlling Egypt was to have
a short trading route with its
colony, India. Previously,
British ships would have to
sail around the southern tip
of Africa, the Cape of Good
Hope, to have access to
India. Now, the Suez Canal,
built by the French, provided
a direct route to India. Also, a
lack of cotton in Britain led to
many British companies
investment in Egyptian
cotton production.

Effects
Following Britain sudden
domination over Egypt, the
British had complete control
over the countrys
finances, government
personnel, and the armed
forces. At the outbreak of
the Great War, Britain made
Egypt a protectorate and
closed the Suez Canal to all
but allies and neutral
countries. The end of the
Great War brought
nationalistic feelings into
the Egyptians minds.

Effects (contd)
As Egyptian nationalists saw
how the Ottoman Empire was
being divided, they wanted
independence as well. Riots
broke out in Egypt, and in
1922, Britain ended the
protectorate. However,
Britain still had complete
control over the affairs of
Egypt. For example, if the
King of Egypt decided to
appoint anti-British
government officials, the
British would step in and
force the King to reconsider.

Independence
Year of independence: 1956
How?- Britain was losing control
over Egypt after India
claimed its independence. It
had almost no use for Egypt
anymore, but Britain still
held on to it. The creation of
Israel led to more
nationalism, and a state of
emergency was called in
1951. A strong Egyptian
leader, Colonel Nasser,
eventually takes control and
ousts the Europeans from
Egypt.

Egypt Today
Today, Egypt is in turmoil.
Protests were held against
the former Egyptian
leader, Hosni Mubarak,
which led to the Egyptian
presidents resignation.
Economically, the country
is not faring well either.
Egypt relies heavily on
tourism, but tourism has
died down because no one
wants to go on vacation to
a country in turmoil.

Iran
Before being imperialized:
Iran was a weak country. Most
people lived in the
countryside and provided
food for themselves and
their families. There were
many different tribes;
these tribes did not dispute
regularly due to their
common religion, and they
were governed by a fragile
monarchy.

Who? What? When? How?

Who?- Britain and Russia
What?- Signing of the treaty The
Convention of St. Petersburg
and the partitioning of Iran
(northern part to Russia,
southern part to Britain)
Irans government was not
even considered in this
agreement.
When?- 1907
How?- Both Russia and Britain
wanted Iran for themselves, so
they came to an agreement to
split it between them.

Motives
Britain Britain wanted Iran for
better communication with
India and also its rich supply
of oil. Also, ironically, Britain
wanted it as a buffer for
Russian expansion.
Russia Russia wanted
protection of the southern
flank of its empire and to
prevent Britain from
expanding its empire.
Both Both countries sought to
maintain the social
differences between the
tribes and keep the
government weak and
dependent.

Effects
After oil became invaluable to the
British, oil instigated
competition with other
countries. Those who had
control over oil had control over
those who used it and
ultimately the world economy.
Irans government lost control
over its own country. It declared
itself to be neutral during WWI,
but British forces that guarded
the southern half brought the
fighting to Iran. Following WWI,
British took complete control
over Irans army, treasury,
transport system and
communications network.

Independence
Year of Independence: 1946
How?- During WWII, British
and Russian troops were
still very present in Iran.
However, in 1942, both the
British and the Russians
agreed to respect Irans
independence and
withdraw their troops 6
months after the war
ended. The last troops to
leave Iran were Russias in
1946.

Iran Today
Both politically and
economically, Iran is not
faring very well. Irans
president, Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, is more like a
dictator, and he relies
heavily on religious leaders
as well to aid him with the
countrys affairs. Iran has
closed all trading with the
United States, and they
cannot buy goods from the
US (or the US from them),
which hurts Iran
economically.

Jordan
The British occupied Jordan
(Transjordan) for
communications with
Palestine and the rest of the
Ottoman Empire. In 1922,
the League of Nations offered
Transjordan as a mandate to
Britain, but only 4 years later
did Transjordan declare its
independence. Britain did not
hold too much control over
Jordan due to its lack of
resources, but after its
independence Britain and
Jordan maintained a close
relationship.

Syria and Lebanon

In 1922, the French received
and approved mandate over
Syria and Lebanon. The
French then proceeded to
build roads, improve town
planning, encourage
agriculture, and establish the
University of Damascus. The
government, though, is
where the French and Syrians
disagreed (they have very
different views on how to
govern the country). The
French believed they would
be in control for a long period
of time, but the Syrians
fought for independence.

Syria and Lebanon (contd)

At the beginning of WWII,
Syria and Lebanon were
occupied by both Britain
and France. In 1946, the
French promised the Syrian
population independence,
and by the end of the year
(and WWII), Syria had
gained its independence
and a place in the newly
founded United Nations.

Bibliography
http://www.mideastweb.org/iranhistory.htm
http://regentsprep.org/Regents/global/themes/imperialism/middleeast
.cfm
http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his312/lectures/egypt.htm
http://www.britishempire.co.uk/maproom/egypt.htm
http://revcom.us/a/089/iran-en.html
http://www.britishempire.co.uk/maproom/transjordan.htm
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/578856/Syria/29921/TheFrench-mandate