Anglo-Egyptian War

The British conquest of Egypt, also known as the 2nd Anglo-Egyptian War (Arabic: الحرب الإنجليزية المصرية, romanised: al-Ḥarb al-Injlīzīyah al-Miṣrīyah), occurred in 1882 between mostly Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom.

Egypt was a country under growing foreign influence from global powers during the 19th century. In the early 1880s, the situation became explosive following the revolt of an army officer, Ahmed 'Urabi, against Tewfik Pasha, alongside the growth of anarchist numbers in the country. The British intervened with the support of other colonial powers to colonise Egypt and succeeded in crushing the Egyptian-Sudanese forces. The anarchists who attempted to join the revolt were cut off from the insurgent troops and were unable to do so.

Ultimately, the war ended with a significant British takeover and occupation, the trial and exile of 'Urabi, the firm entry of Egypt into the British colonial empire, and the crushing of the anarchist movement in Egypt for at least two decades. It established firm British influence over Egypt at the expense of the Egyptians, the French, and the Ottoman Empire, whose already weak authority became nominal.

History

General background

In 1881, an Egyptian army officer, Ahmed ‘Urabi (then known in English as Arabi Pasha), mutinied and initiated a coup against Tewfik Pasha, the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan, in order to end British and French influence over the country. In January 1882 the British and French governments sent a "Joint Note" to the Egyptian government, declaring their recognition of the Khedive's authority. On 20 May, British and French warships arrived off the coast of Alexandria.