EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH Egypt Versus the United States Under the British Djeinaba Diallo United States History 1 EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH 2 Egypt Versus the United States Under the British Colony The British empire comprised of dominions, colonies, protectorates, and other conquered territories whose center of power was the United Kingdom. This empire made many territories around the world under its control, making it one of the most extensive and long-lasting empires in history. Egypt and the United States of America were some of the territories that submitted to this rule. Egypt became under the control of the British in 1882 until the year 1956 when the last British forces withdrew in respect to the Anglo-Egyptian agreement. On the other hand, the British empire colonized America from the year 1607 to the year 1783 after the American Revolution (Balanya et al., 1994). Egypt and America, as heritages of the British colony, shared some similarities and differences in various aspects such as in revolution, the style used to colonize, the language used for official communication from the royal families, etc. This paper explores the differences and similarities in British rule in Egypt and America with respect to various aspects. The Differences between Egypt and America under the British Colony The British monarchs encouraged the development of colonies as the new source of power as colonies were considered sources of wealth and wealth in itself. This saw the government of Britain grant charters to business people and groups who would aid this process. The main reason for colonizing the United States was political. However, the main reason for occupying Egypt in 1882 was to put down a revolt of Egyptian armies for fear of the Suez Canal falling into the hands of an unfriendly power. The British wanted to keep control of the trade route that ran through Egypt to the Red Sea on its way to India. This makes the main reason for colonizing Egypt to be economical even though to achieve this; they had to extend their political EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH 3 powers first. As compared to the United States, where the British changed the social structure, in Egypt, they just focused trade and manipulating the people to increase cotton production and to control the economy; they never interfered with the social fabric. In the United States, the British used the indirect rule to control the people and resources. However, in Egypt, they used the direct rule to govern. The British rulers appointed officials to oversee various projects and the fixation of the economy. Because France had an interest in Egypt, the British had to avoid this, by all means, one of which was to select officials to monitor the people. The American revolution was free and prosperous, unlike the Egyptian revolution that broke out from the poor people who were also oppressed. Over the decades, the Mubarak regime exposed Egyptians to cruel military dictatorship, which destroyed the Egyptian middle class. Mubarak family accumulated a lot of wealth and stored in foreign banks and real estate. Also, by 1776 when America was undergoing a revolution, under three million Americans living in the colony (Wells, 2015). On the side of Egypt, the stakes were higher. At the time of the American Revolution, Great Britain was distracted by various political and military events on the European continent that there was no clear strategy for taming the rebels, unlike Egyptians who faced the full military force. Egyptians faced multi-billion dollar police with cameras and their huge numbers as protection, while American patriots were supported by many bodies like the French Navy (Taylor, 2013). There was neither an outside force, be it a United Nations declaration nor a nongovernmental organization that came into the Egyptians' rescue during the revolution like America, which got significant financial and military support from other European countries. Finally, during the time of the British colonization of Egypt, French was the lingua franca that was used between foreigners and Egyptians and amongst foreigners themselves. Government EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH 4 notices from the royal family, timetables of trains, and all other official or all legal documents were in French (Mak, 1882). However, British rule in the United States used English as the official language. All the legal proceedings and communication from various authorities were in English. The Similarities between Egypt and America Under the British colony The British had similar interests in both America and Egypt. The cause for revolution in both of these colonies was the same. In both cases, the colonies wanted the freedom to control their own government and resources. The British imposed taxes without consulting the government in both instances, igniting a revolution in both countries. The colonies felt that they should not pay these taxes and high-interest rates that the British government subjected them to. Some Egyptians, for example, resented the European control of their economy, citing higher interest rates of the loans that the colonizers expected them to pay. Also, both of these countries were regarded as sources of wealth and power. The Virginia Company, for example, was chattered by the British government because it aided colonists to enter into new worlds. Power and wealth were measured by the number of territories that were conquered by the colonizer. Based on the success of Spain, the British had their appetite for colonizing the United States boosted as they believed that gold and silver existed in abundance in America (Haring, 1915). Thus colonizing America was for economic reasons just as it were in colonizing Egypt. The British wanted to control the trade route that runs from Egypt through the Red Sea to India. One of the impacts of colonization was that in both countries, the British developed robust infrastructure and protected the territories from external enemies. The British rule caused cultural erosion in both of these countries as, during the colonial period, the British encouraged their culture and demeaned the colonies' customs and language. In Egypt, they encouraged the use of EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH 5 French while in America, they used English for formal or official purposes. The aftermath of the British rule saw stronger bilateral ties between these former colonies and their colonizer, the British that has lasted to date. Both of these countries enjoy strong bilateral relations even after gaining their independence. The British rule may have differed from country to country, depending on the prevailing conditions during the time of colonization and the core reasons for colonization. However friendly the British might have been in some states, the call for revolution made it clear that the colonies felt oppressed and their rights infringed by the British rule. The most profound similarities and differences in British activity in America and Egypt appeared to be the need for revolution, political, and economic affairs. However, even after these countries got their independence, bilateral ties between them and the former British Empire is excellent. The positive effects of colonization are still celebrated to date. EGYPT AND THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE BRITISH 6 References Balanya, J., Segarra, C., Prevosti, A., & Serra, L. (1994). Colonization of America by Drosophila subobscura: the founder event and a rapid expansion. Journal of Heredity, 85(6), 427432. Haring, C. H. (1915). American gold and silver production in the first half of the sixteenth century. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 433-479. Mak, L. (1882). British in Egypt: Community. Crime and Crises, 1922. Taylor, P. M. (2013). The American Revolution. Manchester University Press. Wells, R. V. (2015). Population of the British Colonies in America Before 1776: A Survey of Census Data. Princeton University Press.
