Although Egypt was an Ottoman province from the time of the Mamaluke wars, in its later years the Albanian born Muhammad Ali (Mehmet in Turkish) became its governor. He fought a war with the Ottomans over his desire for hereditary rule of Egypt, during which he conquered Syria and Palestine temporarily, but after the Oriental Crisis of 1840 was subdued by European allies of the Sultan and forced back to Egypt.

At this point, although still nominally an Ottoman province, Egypt was run almost autonomously until Khedive Tawfiq signed the "capitulations," giving extensive power to British and French bankers and investors. Their interest in the area became so great that Britain was led to intervene in the country. In 1882 Britain invaded Egypt with 20,000 troops from the UK and 7,000 from India, and though an Egypian army opposed them, they swiftly defeated the Egyptian forces and brought the country under almost total British control. Egypt remained an Ottoman province until a British protectorate was declared during World War I.

[edit] See also

• History of Ottoman Egypt