19th century
Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Alexandria, Egypt
Aiming to modernise Egypt, Khedive Isma’il (1863–79) invested heavily in education and public works. He established mixed courts governed by the French civil code for cases involving foreigners and abolished consular jurisdiction. Under his rule, Egypt plunged into debt, verging on bankruptcy in 1876, and he was forced to agree to British and French supervision of Egyptian public expenditures.
19th century
Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Alexandria, Egypt
As ruler of Egypt (1805–48), Mohammad \'Ali Pasha carried out an intense modernisation policy. His government hired European professionals and technicians and removed obstacles to the activities of European immigrants.
Tunis, 2 November 1846
State Archives of Florence
Florence, Italy
This treaty amended a 1822 treaty between Tunisia and Tuscany. It decreed that while the “Grana”, Jews who had migrated to Tunisia from Livorno (Tuscany, Italy) in the 17th century, remained under the jurisdiction of the Bey; those who moved to Tunisia from Tuscany after 1822 and registered at the Tuscan Consulate were placed under Tuscan jurisdiction and protection.
1857
Archives Nationales
Tunis, Tunisia
In 1857, under French and British pressure, the Bey of Tunisia issued a declaration of rights known as the “Fundamental Pact”. The Pact granted equal rights to subjects of different religions. It also included provisions in favour of foreigners, such as the right to reside and own real estate in the country, and freedom of trade.
1861
Archives Nationales
Tunis, Tunisia
In 1857, the Bey of Tunisia charged a committee, headed by his prime minister, with the task of drafting a constitution. It was ratified in April 1861 – the first constitution in an Arab country. The Constitution reasserted the rights of foreigners, which had already been granted under the Fundamental Pact of 1857.
12 mai 1881
Archives Nationales
Tunis, Tunisia
After the establishment of the protectorate, France created a system of French courts in Tunisia. Consular jurisdiction was abolished and only two sets of judicial systems remained: French courts for all the Europeans, and Tunisian courts for all the Tunisians, Muslims and Jews.
Treaty of the French Protectorate, 12 May 1881
1881
Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie
La Manouba, Tunis, Tunisia
In 1881, French military intervention in Tunisia forced the local ruler, the Bey of Tunis, to sign the Treaty of Bardo, granting France a protectorate over the country. Nominally, the Tunisian government remained in place, but it operated under French supervision. The Bey’s decrees required the approval of the French authorities. The Treaty also gave France the power to run foreign policy on behalf of Tunisia.
An Italian cartoon in support of Ahmad Urabi's movement against foreign control of Egypt's finances
1882
State Library of Modern and Contemporary History
Rome, Italy
Under Khedive Tawfiq (1879–92), 60 per cent of Egypt’s annual revenues went to pay public debts. Discontent in the country rose. In 1881, Ahmad Urabi, an army colonel of peasant origins, led a protest movement against European domination of Egypt’s affairs and in order to place constitutional limits on the Khedive’s power. In 1882, he was appointed minister of war and began working for the creation of a national assembly.
Europeans leaving Alexandria (Egypt) during the antiforeign rioting in June 1882
1882
State Library of Modern and Contemporary History
Rome, Italy
In May 1882 the UK and France, concerned about access to the Suez Canal and their financial investments in Egypt, sent a fleet to Alexandria, hoping to weaken Urabi’s nationalist movement. The presence of the fleet only worsened tensions. In June, anti-foreigner rioting erupted in Alexandria and left several hundreds dead, including about 50 foreigners.
The Court Martial at the Palace of Justice
1882
Vallicelliana Library
Rome, Italy
Following extensive anti-foreigner rioting, the British fleet bombed Alexandria on 11 July 1882, and two days later British troops occupied the city. Fearing for the security of the Suez Canal, the British government sent over 30,000 soldiers and a total of 40 warships to Egypt. Although formally independent, Egypt effectively became a British protectorate.
1882
Vallicelliana Library
Rome, Italy
Urabi positioned modern cannons to strengthen the defence of Alexandria. On 10 July the British admiral demanded that Egypt remove them. Urabi did not comply, and on 11 July the British fleet started bombing the city (the French government disagreed with the bombing and had withdrawn its ships). British ships bombed Alexandria for ten and a half hours.
The Palace of the Poste Italienne (Ruins)
1882
Vallicelliana Library
Rome, Italy
Urabi positioned modern cannons to strengthen the defence of Alexandria. On 10 July the British admiral demanded that Egypt remove them. Urabi did not comply, and on 11 July the British fleet started bombing the city (the French government disagreed with the bombing and had withdrawn its ships). British ships bombed Alexandria for ten and a half hours.
The Consuls’ Square [Alexandria, Egypt] after the Fire
1882
Vallicelliana Library
Rome, Italy
Urabi positioned modern cannons to strengthen the defence of Alexandria. On 10 July the British admiral demanded that Egypt remove them. Urabi did not comply, and on 11 July the British fleet started bombing the city (the French government disagreed with the bombing and had withdrawn its ships). British ships bombed Alexandria for ten and a half hours.
Reggio Calabria, 21 September 1882
State Archives of Reggio Calabria
Reggio Calabria, Italy
According to a 1882 census, 18,665 Italians were living in Egypt at the time. The anti-foreigner rioting that erupted in Alexandria in June 1882 pushed immigrants such as Filippo Codispoti into fleeing the country.