This structure is an artificial shipping channel, opened for the movement of ships in 1869. The Suez Canal is located on the territory of Egypt and serves as a watershed between Eurasia and the African continent, is of major strategic and economic importance. The income from its exploitation is one of the paramount items in the Egyptian economy, comparable to the financial revenues in the tourism sector.
According to the manager, in 2011 alone, more than 17,000 ships were transported through it, adding $ 5 billion to the Egyptian treasury.
Construction of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal on the map (clickable)
The history of construction is rooted in the distant past. The thought of a waterway across the Isthmus of Suez haunted people since ancient times. According to the manuscripts of ancient historians, the canal connecting the right branch of the Nile and the Red Sea was tried by the ancient Egyptian pharaohs in the era of the Middle Kingdom (II millennium BC).
At the end of the 15th century, Venetian merchants also considered the possibility of laying a canal from the Mediterranean coast towards the Gulf of Suez, but their plans were not destined to come true.
The problem of the lack of a short sea route from Europe to the Indian Ocean was especially acute in the second half of the 19th century. Humanity in that era was going through a period of large-scale colonial division. The territory of North Africa, the closest part of the continent to Europe, was a tasty morsel for the leading colonial powers of that time - England, France, Germany and Italy. Egypt, on the other hand, was the object of rivalry between Great Britain and France.
At the same time, Britain was the main enemy of the construction. At that time, she is the owner of the most powerful fleet. Under her control was the sea route to India, which lay through the southernmost point of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope. After the opening of the channel, ships of France, Germany, Spain, Holland and other states, which were serious competitors of England in its sea trade, would have gone through it.
Construction of the Suez Canal (clickable)
Nevertheless, the historic day has come. On April 25, 1859, the main lobbyist (in modern terms) of the construction, the French lawyer and diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps personally, with a pick in his hands, laid the foundation for a great construction project.
Over time, to speed up construction, advanced technologies of that time, dredgers and excavators, were used. In general, the construction of the Suez Canal took 10 years and cost the lives of 120 thousand workers. In total, up to one and a half million people took part in the work.
As a result, 75 million cubic meters of land were excavated. The length of the Suez Canal was 163 km, width 60 meters, and depth 8, which was more than enough for the smooth passage of ships.
During the construction, many workers' settlements grew along the shores of the future structure, some of them eventually grew into large cities: Port Said, Port Fuad, Suez and Ismailia. Nowadays, most of their adult population is involved in serving it.
Suez Canal: photo from space (clickable)
The inauguration of the Suez Canal took place on November 17, 1869. The time for the movement of ships from Europe to India has been significantly reduced. At first, for its passage, sea vessels needed about 36 hours, but after a short time, from March 1887, the situation changed. The ships, which were equipped with electric searchlights, were allowed to navigate at night, which cut the transit time in half. In 1870 through Suez canal made the passage of 486 cargo and passenger ships.
It should be noted that the well-known Statue of Liberty, which is the symbol of the United States, was initially planned to be installed in Port Said, and it was supposed to be called "The Light of Asia". However, the Egyptian leadership decided that transporting the statue from France and then installing it was too costly.
Second Suez Canal
The construction of the second stage of the Suez Canal began quite recently, in August 2014, and already on July 25, 2015, its trial operation took place. The construction of the parallel line was due to the fact that two-way, uninterrupted traffic of ships in both directions was ensured. The length of the new one was 72 kilometers.
The opening ceremony took place on August 6, 2015. The Egyptian President arrived at the site of the procedure aboard the Al-Mahrusa yacht, the one that became known as the ship that first sailed the old Suez Canal in 1869.
Suez Canal video
The Suez Canal is very distinctive. The water in it is level with the bank, so that the channel gives the impression of a giant, filled to the brim with a ditch. It seems that the slightest wave - and the water splashes over the edge onto the coastal sand. It is very amusing to watch the passage of large ocean ships along the channel: one gets the impression that they are going straight through the desert ...
The idea of digging a rope across the Isthmus of Suez dates back to ancient times. Ancient historians, in particular Strabo and Pliny the Elder, report that the Theban pharaohs of the era of the Middle Kingdom tried to build a canal connecting the right branch of the Nile with the Red Sea. The first reliable historical evidence of the connection of the Mediterranean and the Red Seas by the canal dates back to the reign of Pharaoh Necho II (end of the 7th - beginning of the 6th century BC).
The expansion and improvement of the canal was carried out by order of the Persian king Darius I. who conquered Egypt, and later - Ptolemy Philadelphus (first half of the 3rd century BC). However, in 767, the rope system connecting the Nile with the Red Sea was destroyed by order of the Arab Caliph al-Mansur. Since then, no work has been carried out to restore this ancient trade route.
The prerequisites for the implementation of a technically complex and time-consuming project appeared only in modern times. The construction of the Suez Canal is associated with the name of Ferdinand de Lecceps, the French consul of wine in Alexandria in 1832-1833. and consul in Cairo in 1833-1837. Having conceived this grandiose enterprise, Lesseps established friendly contacts with the Khedive of Egypt, Muhammad Ali. However, Lesseps never succeeded in convincing either Ali or his successor, Khedive Abbas I, of the need to build a canal. Nevertheless, in the end Lesseps' persistence was rewarded: on November 30, 1854, he received the coveted firman from the hands of Khedive Said, who replaced Abbas I ( decree), which granted him a concession for the construction of the Suez Canal. At the same time, Lesseps himself was named in the text of the firman with the words “our friend”.
Under the terms of the agreement, Egypt granted the "General Company of the Suez Rope of the Sea", headed by Lesseps, the right to build and operate the rope for a period of 99 years. At the same time, 75% of the operating income went to the "General Company", 15% - to the Egyptian government, and 10% - to the founders of the company. The company was completely exempt from taxes for 10 years. and then pledged to pay only 10% of taxes.
The initial capital of the company was 200 million francs, divided into 400 thousand shares of 500 francs each. The largest number of shares was purchased by France -207 111. England, Austria. Russia and the United States did not purchase a single share, but 85,506 shares were retained for their share. In order to support the company, Khedive Said bought the remaining 177,642 shares, thus concentrating in his hands almost 44% of all shares.
French contractors Lynnand de Belfon and Mougel completed the technical design for the Suez Canal route. Its foundation took place on April 25, 1859. On this day, Lesseps with the members of the Board of the company arrived at the place where the city of Port Said, named after Khedive Said, soon grew up. After a short speech on the momentous event, Lesseps drew the first furrow with his own hand along the line that marked the contour of the canal.
The construction of the canal simultaneously employed from 20 to 40 thousand workers. Lesseps was able to provide the construction with a labor force only by getting the Khedive Said to publish a firman about the forced mobilization of peasants. Village elders were ordered to round up the residents of nearby villages for construction. Due to the unbearable working conditions on the construction of the Suez Canal, according to some sources, up to 120 thousand Egyptians died.
In the first period of earthwork, almost everything was done by hand. The loose soil did not allow the soil to be transported in wheelbarrows, and often it was necessary to lift the wheelbarrow and carry it by hand to the unloading point. Difficulties were compounded by the fact that the terrain chosen for the rope was damp and swampy. Even a shallow trench, dug to mark the channel of the future canal, was filled with water in an hour. Then the workers lined up in a chain across the constantly deepening channel, from one bank to the other. That. who was in the center, the water reached the waist. Having lifted a clod of earth from the bottom of the trench with a shovel, they passed it along the entire chain. At the edge, the earth was folded into canvas bags. Having filled the bag, the worker climbed up the slope and dumped the earth there.
Only at the final stage of construction were steam engines used. The huge volume of earthwork required the improvement of earthmoving equipment. In particular, especially for the construction of the Suez Canal, gigantic dredgers, conveyors, excavators, and cargo launches with lifting devices were created. In 1863, mechanical repair shops were opened in Port Said.
The final cost of the canal was 560 million francs, i.e. almost three times the original estimates. At the same time, Egypt took over more than 60% of the financial expenses.
In March 1869, the waters of the Mediterranean Sea poured into the Bitter Lakes lying on the route of the canal, and six months later, on November 15, the grand opening of the canal took place.
Numerous Turkish, Egyptian, Austrian, French, Russian, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Spanish frigates, yachts, postal and passenger steamers lined up in Port Said harbor on both sides of the wide four hundred meter channel. A fresh sea breeze fluttered multicolored flags and pennants. Music thundered, the air trembled from the roar of fireworks. The French Empress Eugenie, Prince Murat, Egyptian Vice-President Khedive Ismail, Emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz Joseph, Crown Prince of Prussia, Prince Henry of the Netherlands, Prince Ludwig of Hesse, General Banquo - Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the US Senate arrived at the opening of the canal. , the leader of the Sahara Rif Republic Abdel Kader, ambassadors of a number of European powers, including the Russian ambassador to Constantinople N.P. Ignatiev, who arrived in Port Said on the Yakhont clipper. Among the guests of honor invited to the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal were N.M. Chikhachev and N.N. Sushchev, as well as the artist I.K. Aivazovsky and writer V.A. Sollogub.
The splendor with which the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal was furnished was legendary. The composer Giuseppe Verdi was commissioned especially for the festivities an opera on the Egyptian theme - "Aida". However, Verdi did not manage to finish the opera (he completed work on it only in 1871), and the Troubadour was staged in its place at the Cairo Opera House, the construction of which was also timed to coincide with this occasion.
At 3 o'clock in the afternoon on November 16, all the invitees gathered on the shore. Behind a triumphal arch decorated with flowers, there was a view of three luxurious pavilions, built on a sandbank. The middle one was intended for guests of honor, on the left there was a blue pavilion for Christian services, on the right - a green one for Muslim. After the solemn speeches, a parade of the guard of Khedive Ismail took place, and in the evening there was a large fireworks display. The people were jubilant. Only the main hero of the occasion, Lesseps, tore his hair out of despair: they had just brought him an urgent telegram: "Everything is lost - the steamer that was making a test passage along the canal ran aground."
The conference went on all night. It turned out that in a terrible hurry they did not have time to complete the deepening of the main channel of the canal, and instead of the envisaged 8 m depth in many places it turned out to be much less. This jeopardized the passage of ships with a large draft. Most of the participants in the meeting were inclined to postpone the opening ceremony. And at this critical moment, only Lesseps was able to keep his cool. At his insistence, a strong-willed decision was made: to open the rope and let some of the ships of small displacement pass through.
At 8 hours 15 minutes in the morning on November 17, the yacht of the French Empress "Aigle" moved through the rope. Behind her is the frigate of the British ambassador, and then a string of various ships. The fairway was marked with red buoys. At about 8 pm, not far from Ismailia, the caravan had to anchor: the steamer Pelusius ran aground and blocked the way for the rest of the ships. Then new complications began to arise: it turned out that in several places the rope was almost twice as small as the planned 8 m. Nevertheless, the first 48 ships passed through the Suez Canal.
A few years after the opening of the canal, it became clear that its construction revolutionized international shipping. The extremely advantageous geographical position of the canal has led to a significant reduction in the distance between Europe and the eastern countries. In particular, the route from Trieste to Bombay is 37 days shorter, from Genoa by 32, from Marseille by 31, from Bordeaux, London or Hamburg by 24. Compared to the roundabout route around Africa, the Suez Canal provides fuel savings from 25 to 50%. Today, 15% of world trade is carried out through the rope, 97% of all dry cargo ships in the world and 27% of all oil tankers pass through it. Thanks to the rope, the eastern Mediterranean has become one of the busiest areas of international trade.
Eight years of inactivity of the rope (1967-1975) caused damage to world trade, which is estimated at about 12-15 billion dollars. Navigation on the Suez Rope resumed on June 5, 1975. This was preceded by a lengthy clearing of the canal from mines.
At present, three caravans of 60-80 ships pass through the Suez Rope daily. The income from the operation of the canal is one of the main profitable items of the Egyptian national budget. The number of ships passing by the rope is constantly growing, as this sea route continues to be cheaper than the route around the Cape of Good Hope.
1978-1985 the rope has been modernized. Its width has been increased by 1.5 times and the fairway has been deepened by approximately 45%. Currently, the rope can be used by vessels with a draft of up to 53 feet and a displacement of up to 150 thousand tons, which make up about 50% of the world merchant fleet, as well as tankers with a displacement of up to 270 thousand tons with a full load.
On October 25, 1980, traffic was opened along the automobile tunnel named after V.I. Ahmed Hamdi, named after an Egyptian general who died during the 1973 war. This tunnel is located 17 km north of Suez. Its length is 1640 m.
The Suez Canal will connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea. Thus, the waterway from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean is significantly reduced. There is no need to go around Africa, which is a huge plus for maritime shipping. The canal is considered the geographical border between Asia and Africa.
This important sea route was put into operation on November 17, 1869. It connected 2 seaports - Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea and the port of Suez - north of the Gulf of Suez of the Red Sea. The lands of the Sinai Peninsula extend to the east of the canal, and the western coast belongs to Africa. This waterway is considered the property of Egypt and brings the state treasury at least $ 5 billion annually, passing through about 18 thousand ships.
At the beginning of its operation, the length of the waterway was 164 km with a depth of 12 meters. Today, after several extensions, the length has increased to 193 km with a depth of 24 meters. The length of the northern access is 22 km, the channel itself is 163 km long and the length of the southern access is 9 km. The width of the water table varies from 120 to 150 meters. Towards the bottom, the width narrows and reaches 45-60 meters.
The waterway connecting the Red and Mediterranean Seas has no locks. This is very convenient, since ships can get from one salt reservoir to another without any obstacles.
There are lakes on the canal. These are Big Bitter Lake and Small Bitter Lake. The Bolshoi is located to the north, and its water surface area is 250 square meters. km. The area of Small Gorky Lake is 30 sq. km. As for the currents, in the winter months the water from the bitter lakes flows to the north, and in the winter it receives water from the Mediterranean Sea. South of the lakes, the current changes depending on the ebb and flow.
The ancient Egyptians set themselves the task of connecting the Nile River with the Gulf of Suez. They needed it in order to establish a trade route with Punt, an ancient state located on the Horn of Africa. The goods were very valuable - ebony, various paints, ivory, gold, animal skins, myrrh (gum resin).
It is assumed that as early as the 19th century BC. e. such a channel was laid, and the Nile joined the Red Sea. This waterway was tirelessly maintained by the pharaohs in working order. But centuries passed, people and states changed. The water bridge gradually lost its relevance and fell into decay, and then again there was a need for its restoration.
The ancient Greek historian Herodotus reports that in the 7th century BC. e. The Egyptians began to dig the canal again, but did not finish it. Only 100 years later, the Persian king Darius I completed the construction of this waterway. In the III century BC. e. he passed into the possession of Ptolemy Philadelphus, who became king of Ancient Egypt after the death of Alexander the Great. Judging by the mentions of ancient historians, the water stream was so wide that 2 ships freely diverged on it. In the 2nd century AD, the Roman emperor Troyan deepened the canal and widened it. But then another era began, and the waterway from Africa to the Red Sea was abandoned.
Centuries flashed by, and Napoleon Bonaparte stood at the head of France. In 1798, he ordered a thorough study of the construction of the Suez Canal, which could connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea. A commission was organized, but its conclusion disappointed the emperor. Experts have come to the conclusion that the water level of the Red Sea is 9 meters higher than that of the Mediterranean Sea. That is, it was necessary to build a whole cascade of locks. The emperor was also named the amount of all works - 45 million francs.
But it was not the financial issue that prevented Napoleon from carrying out the construction. Circumstances intervened. The emperor was overthrown and sent into exile on the island of St. Helena, and talk of a grandiose project died out by itself.
40 years have passed and other experts have already proved that the French commission was wrong. There is no water drop. After that, the idea was born to build a channel. She began to actively promote Ferdinand de Lesseps is a French diplomat with extensive connections and an excellent reputation. With his idea, he interested the ruler of Egypt, Muhammad Said Pasha. This man once studied in Paris and received an excellent education.
Said Pasha gave Lesseps a concession for construction work, which began in 1859. The cost of the work was estimated at 200 million francs. For this amount, shares were issued and sold against future dividends. The governments of Egypt and France acted as guarantors, so this financial project was considered quite reliable.
The construction work was extremely difficult. People worked in the desert under the incinerating rays of the sun. The main problem was the supply of workers not with building materials, but with water. Fortunately, the bed of an old canal was discovered, which was used in antiquity. It was through it that they let fresh water from the Nile.
However, the technical and household issues that were not foreseen at the beginning very quickly "ate" the amount originally included in the estimate. I had to issue additional shares. The total cost of all costs was almost 580 million francs. Lesseps promised to build the waterway in 6 years, but the work dragged on for almost 11 years.
First, we made the northern part of the water section and went to the long-dried bitter lakes. They were depressions with a depth of 8-10 meters below sea level. Then came the turn of the southern part, which was connected to the Gulf of Suez.
The grand opening of the new waterway, which shortened the route from the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean by 8 thousand km, took place on November 17, 1869. The celebration was attended by representatives of almost all European powers. The celebrations lasted for a week, and their cost was 30 million francs.
In 1888, the maritime powers signed the International Convention. It guaranteed free passage through the canal for ships of all states. However, during the World Wars, Great Britain and its allies exercised control over this strategically important area. In 1956, Egyptian President Nasser announced the nationalization of the canal.
This caused a great commotion in the world, as 20% of all world traffic and 80% of US oil traffic were carried out through the Suez Canal. Economic interests gave rise to a war in which Egypt was defeated, and a strategically important waterway fell under the jurisdiction of the UN.
Another conflict arose in 1973, when the Arab-Israeli war began. Active military operations were going on in the canal area, and its work was paralyzed. The waterway started working only in June 1975. Currently, it is under the jurisdiction of Egypt and brings good money to the state treasury.
Ship on the canal
The carrying capacity of the waterway is 76 vessels per day. The movement is one-way. One ship is assigned from 12 to 16 hours. First there are ships from Suez, then ships from Port Said. Oncoming ships diverge in Bolshoy Gorky Lake. The movement is organized strictly according to the schedule.
Huge laden tankers cannot navigate the shallow waterway due to their deep draft. Therefore, they are unloaded, bypass the channel and are loaded again at the other end of it. This creates certain inconveniences. The transportation of such goods is carried out by ships belonging to Egypt.
In 1981, an underwater car tunnel was commissioned near Suez. It passes right under the bottom of the Suez Canal and connects the Sinai Peninsula with Africa. This architectural creation is considered one of the landmarks of Egypt. In 2001, railway and road bridges were opened in the northern part of the waterway. The road bridge is 70 meters high. The railway bridge is a drawbridge. Thus, these structures do not impede the passage of ships of any size.
For the world economy, this man-made creation is of great importance. It saves a lot of time, and, therefore, reduces the cost of transportation. The benefits are obvious, all that remains is to hope for a stable political situation in this troubled region..
The Gulf of Suez separates the Sinai Peninsula from Africa, the Suez Canal opens the shortest route from Europe to the countries of Asia and East Africa.
The Suez Canal is one of the most important waterways in the world. This waterway begins in Europe and the Mediterranean Sea, passes through the Suez Canal and goes to the Indian Ocean, to the countries of Asia and Africa. The channel runs between the dry and sparsely populated Sinai Peninsula and the Eastern Desert, its largest ports are and.
The Gulf of Suez of the Red Sea has an elongated shape and is one of three branches formed as a result of the movement of the earth's crust 20 million years ago, when the Arabian Peninsula broke away from Africa. Other branches are itself and the Gulf of Aqaba, located to the east.
The climate here is very hot, there are no permanent rivers, and only dry wadi beds run into the bay, without bringing a drop of water for years. Therefore, evaporation in the bay is very high, and the salinity is higher than in many other marine areas of the World Ocean. On the other hand, all year round the water in the bay is very warm and unusually clear (visibility reaches 200 m), which created conditions for the development of coral reefs.
Throughout the history of human civilization, the Gulf of Suez region was the most important center of world trade, for the possession of which the greatest empires of antiquity fought.
People settled down on the coast of the bay 30 thousand years ago. 6 thousand years ago the great Egyptian culture was born here. A thousand years ago, the entire territory was occupied by Arab tribes. For a while, the Turks settled here, creating the Ottoman Empire, but then left, leaving these lands to the Arabs.
In the XX century. small coastal fishermen villages have become centers of thriving resorts, flooded with millions of tourists who appreciate the beauty and climate of the Gulf of Suez.
Tourism is not the only wealth of the bay: at the entrance to it, in the Gems region, on the western coast, there are rich deposits of oil and natural gas.
In the middle of the Gulf of Suez and along the Isthmus of Suez, there is a conditional border between Africa and Asia.
In the northern part of the bay is the Egyptian city of Suez, where the navigable Suez Canal begins, linking the Red Sea with the Mediterranean.
The Suez Canal (in Arabic "Kana al-Suwais") has significantly shortened the route for ships that previously had to go around Africa to get into the Indian Ocean. The canal crosses the Isthmus of Suez in its lowest and narrowest part, passing several lakes along the way.
The main difference between the Suez Canal and similar ones is that there is an even terrain and there are no locks on the canal, and sea water moves freely along it.
Attempts to build a canal between the Mediterranean and the Red Seas were made in ancient times. Around 1300 BC. e., during the reign of the pharaohs Seti I and Ramses II, in ancient Egypt, the Pharaonic channel was laid, connecting the Nile River and the Red Sea.
With the decline of Ancient Egypt, the channel collapsed. In the III century. BC e., under the Egyptian king Ptolemy II, the canal was restored, and in the days of ancient Rome it was called "Trajan's River" - in honor of the Roman emperor.
In 642, the Arabs conquered Egypt and hastened to restore a strategically important channel, calling it "Khaleej Amir El-Muminin", or the channel of the Lord of the Faithful. However, in 776, the Arabs themselves filled it up in order to direct trade through the main areas of the Arab Caliphate. There were plans to restore the canal at the end of the 15th century. Venetians, in the middle of the XVI century. under the Turks, in the Ottoman Empire, as well as at the end of the 18th century. during the Egyptian expedition of French troops under the command of Napoleon, but these plans were not destined to come true.
The canal was only built in the second half of the 19th century.
In 1854, the French diplomat and entrepreneur Ferdinand de Lesseps managed - with incredible efforts - to obtain from the Egyptian ruler Said Pasha a concession for the construction of a canal between the Gulf of Suez of the Red Sea and the Pelusian Gulf of the Mediterranean Sea for a period of 99 years from the date the canal began operation. After this period, the canal was to become the property of Egypt.
The construction of the canal began on April 25, 1859. A gigantic work was done. The construction of the canal was facilitated by dry lakes that were on its way, they were below sea level, which made it easier to lay. Despite this, a colossal amount of soil had to be removed. The work was carried out by hand, under the rays of the sun, in a waterless desert. Egyptian fellahs worked on the construction, which local authorities brought here 60 thousand people a month, while the population of Egypt is only 4 million people. It is not surprising that about 120 thousand people died from hard work and epidemics.
Lesseps failed to meet the six-year deadline, as stipulated in the contract: the work took 11 years.
The grand opening of the Suez Canal took place on November 17, 1869. For this event, as well as for the opening of a new theater in Cairo, the Italian composer G. Verdi, commissioned by the Egyptian Khedive, wrote the opera Aida.
The initial depth of the channel fairway was 7.94 m, width - 21 m.
In 1875, under pressure from international debts, the Egyptian government was forced to cede its share in the canal to the British. Egypt lost control of the canal and profits. England became the owner of the channel. During the First and Second World Wars, Great Britain controlled all shipping on the canal. Egyptian ships paid the same fees for passage through the canal as ships of foreign countries, and could not use the channel for communication within the country.
On July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the channel. Britain, France and the US first tried to "internationalize" the channel. When these attempts failed, British, French and Israeli forces began the so-called Suez War of 1956, which lasted a week. The canal was partially destroyed, but later rebuilt by Egypt with the help of the allies.
After the Six-Day Arab-Israeli War in 1967, the canal was closed again. This happened again during the Arab-Israeli war in 1973. After the end of the war, the canal had to be cleared of mines by the forces of the USSR Navy for a long time.
Egypt is constantly working to deepen the canal. Now the canal makes it possible to pass loaded ships with a draft of up to 20.1 m, a displacement of up to 240 thousand tons, a height of up to 68 m and a width of up to 77.5 m.
The Suez Canal has only one fairway, but to facilitate the passage of ships there are several sections where ships diverge. Currently, about 8% of the world's maritime traffic passes through the canal. On average, 48 ships pass through the canal per day; traffic along the canal is one-way.
The exploitation of the Suez Canal is Egypt's second largest source of income after tourism.
On the canal route there are large Egyptian cities: Port Said (with Port Fouad) on the Mediterranean Sea, Ismailia - approximately in the middle, and Suez (With Port Tawfiq) on the Red Sea.
The sights of the Suez Canal are the Ahmed Hamdi road tunnel under the canal bottom, the Shohada 25 January cable-stayed road bridge, a unique power line with 221 m high masts and the El Ferdan railway bridge.
Gulf of suez
Location: northwestern section of the Red Sea, between Africa and the Sinai Peninsula (Asia).
Countries facing the bay: Arab Republic of Egypt.
Language: Arabic.
Currency unit: Egyptian pound.
The most important port: Suez. 478 553 people (2004).
Suez kakal Location: between Africa and the Sinai Peninsula (Asia).
Pools: Indian and Atlantic Oceans.
The most important ports (population, cargo turnover): Suez (300 million tons), Port Said (603,787 people / s. 1 million tons, 2010), Ismailia (750,000 people, 2010), Port Fuad (560,000 people, 2003) ...
Largest lakes: Big Bitter Lake, Small Bitter Lake, Manzala, Timsakh (Crocodile), Bala.
Lenght: 314 km.
Maximum width: 32 km.
Average depth: 40 m.
Maximum depth: 70 m.
Tides: semi-daily, height - 1.8 m.
Salinity: 40-42% o.
Average annual water temperature: up to 30 ° C.
Difference in water level during currents: from 0.5 m to 1 m.
Length: 193.25 km.
Depth: 24 m.
Width: 205 m.
Suitable sites: northern - 22 km, canal itself - 162.25 km. southern - 9 km.
Channel transit time: about 2 pm
Vessel speed depending on tonnage and category: 11-16 km / h.
Minerals (Gulf of Suez): oil and natural gas.
Cocoa operation:$ 5.2 billion (2011).
■ Ahmed Hamdi Road Tunnel.
■ Road bridge "Shohada 25 January".
■ Power line.
■ El Ferdan Railway Bridge.
■ Coral reefs in the Gulf of Suez.
■ Since there are no locks on the Suez Canal, seawater north of Bolshoy Gorky Lake flows northward in winter and southward in summer.
■ On a 38-kilometer stretch from Port Said to Kantara, the canal route runs along Lake Manzala, which is actually a shallow lagoon in the Mediterranean.
■ Design work in the canal zone was carried out by French and Italian specialists, and the canal was built by the General Company of the Suez Canal, which belonged to Lesseps, although it was legally considered Egyptian. The Egyptian government got 44% of the shares, France - 53%, other participants - 3%.
■ In 1863, the Egyptian khedive (ruler) Ismail Pasha banned the use of forced labor in the construction of the Suez Canal. But Ferdinand de Lesseps was able to get Egypt to pay forfeits in the amount of 84 million francs in cost reimbursement.
■ The Suez Canal has significantly reduced the duration of sea voyages: if the route from Marseille (France) to Bombay (India) around Africa was 16.7 thousand km, then through the Suez Canal it was 7.3 thousand km, and from Odessa to Vladivostok instead of 25.6 thousand km total 14.8 thousand km.
■ The Suez Canal used 1,600 camels to deliver water to workers until a freshwater canal from the Nile was built in 1863.
Expand content
Collapse content
The Suez Canal is an artificial shipping canal located in Egypt, dividing Eurasia and the African continent. It was opened to sea traffic in 1869. The canal is of great strategic and economic importance. Cash receipts from the operation of the canal are an important source of income for the Egyptian economy and rank second after financial receipts from tourism.
The Suez Canal is waterway of international importance. The length is 161 km from Port Said (Mediterranean Sea) to Suez (Red Sea). Includes the channel itself and several lakes. Built in 1869, width 120- 318 m, depth on the fairway - 18 m, no locks. The volume of transportation is 80 million tons, mainly oil and oil products, ferrous and non-ferrous metal ores. It is considered a conditional geogr. border between Africa and Asia. (Brief Geographical Dictionary)
The Suez Canal is a navigable, lockless canal in Egypt, connects the Red Sea at Suez with the Mediterranean at Port Said, crossing the Isthmus of Suez. Opened in 1869 (construction lasted 11 years). The authors of the project are French and Italian engineers (Linan, Mougel, Negrelli). Nationalized in 1956, before that it belonged to the Anglo-French "General Company of the Suez Canal".
As a result of the Arab-Israeli military conflicts, the canal trial was interrupted twice - in 1956–57 and 1967–75. It is laid along the Isthmus of Suez and crosses a number of lakes: Manzala, Timsakh and Bol. Bitter. To supply the canal zone with river water from the Nile, the Ismailia Canal was dug. The route of the canal is considered a conditional geographical border between Asia and Africa. Length 161 km (173 km with offshore approaches). After reconstruction, the width is 120-318 m, the depth is 16.2 m. up to 55 ships: two caravans in the south and one in the north. channel passage time - approx. 14 hours. In 1981, the first stage of the canal reconstruction project was completed, which made it possible to carry through it tankers with a deadweight of up to 150 thousand tons (upon completion of the second stage - up to 250 thousand tons) and cargo ships with a deadweight of up to 370 thousand tons. k. - the second most important source of income for the country. (Dictionary of modern place names)
The Suez Canal is a lockless navigable canal in Egypt, on the border between Asia and Africa, connects the Red Sea near the city of Suez with the Mediterranean Sea near the city of Port Said. The shortest waterway between the ports of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Opened in 1869 (construction lasted 11 years). Nationalized in 1956, before that it belonged to the Anglo-French General Company of the Suez Canal. It is laid along the deserted Isthmus of Suez and crosses a number of lakes, including Bolshoye Gorkoye. To supply the canal zone with river water from the Nile, the Ismailia Canal was dug. L. Suez Canal 161 km (173 km with sea approaches), lat. (after reconstruction) 120-318 m, depth. 16.2 m. Allows per day on Wed. up to 55 ships - two caravans in the south, one in the north. The average time for passing the channel is approx. 14 hours. (Geography. Modern Illustrated Encyclopedia)
The Suez Canal is one of the world's most important artificial waterways; crosses the Isthmus of Suez, stretching from Port Said (on the Mediterranean) to the Gulf of Suez (on the Red Sea). The length of the canal, the main channel of which runs almost directly from north to south and separates the main part of Egypt from the Sinai Peninsula, is 168 km (including the 6 km length of approach channels to its ports); the width of the water surface of the canal in some places reaches 169 m, and its depth is such that vessels with a draft of more than 16 m can pass through it.
The Suez Canal is navigable lockless sea channel in the north-east. ARE connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. The northern coastline is the shortest waterway between the ports of the Atlantic and Indian oceans (8-15 thousand km less than the route around Africa). The Suez Canal Zone is considered a conditional geographic border between Asia and Africa. The Suez Canal was officially opened for navigation on November 17, 1869. The length of the canal is about 161 km, the width at the water surface is 120-150 m, along the bottom - 45-60 m. The depth along the fairway is 12.5-13 m. The average time spent on the passage ships through the canal, 11-12 h. Main ports of entry: Port Said (with Port Fouad) from the Mediterranean Sea and Suez (with Port Taufik) from the Red Sea.
The Suez Canal route runs along the Isthmus of Suez in its lowest and narrowest part, crossing a number of lakes, as well as the Menzala Lagoon. To supply the canal zone with river water from the Nile, the so-called Ismailia freshwater canal was dug.
The Suez Canal is a canal that connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean and is essential for international shipping. The legal regime of the canal is determined by the Constantinople Convention of 1888, which stipulates that, both in wartime and in peacetime, the canal is "always free and open to all commercial and military courts, regardless of flag." The blockade of the canal was declared unacceptable.
The fundamental provision of the Convention is its decision that. that "no actions allowed by war, and no actions hostile or aimed at disrupting the free navigation of the canal, will not be allowed in the canal and in its entrance ports," even in the event that Egypt turns out to be one of the belligerent parties to the Egyptian government, by The Convention has the right to take the measures necessary to implement it, maintain public order and protect the country in the canal zone, however, it should not create obstacles to the free use of the canal. After nationalizing the General Company of the Suez Maritime Canal, the Egyptian government declared in a declaration dated April 24, 1957 that it would "abide by the terms and spirit of the 1888 Constantinople Convention." and that “the rights and obligations arising from it remain unchanged”.
(Encyclopedic Dictionary of Economics and Law. 2005.)
The Suez Canal is navigable lockless sea channel in the north-east. OAR; connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas; the most important link in the international. communications: provides the shortest route between Atlantic, Indian and Pacific approx. L. OK. 161 km (together with sea approaches laid along the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Suez - approx. 173 km), width along the water surface - 120-150 m, along the bottom - 45-60 m; depth - 12.5-13 m. One-way traffic, by caravans with pilotage. Average time of passage along the northern route is 11-12 hours. Ch. ports - Port Said, El Kantara, Ismailia, Suez with Port Taufik.
(Soviet Historical Encyclopedia)
The Suez Canal connects the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. It is a conditional border between Eurasia and Africa.
The Suez Canal has a long history. The construction began in the II millennium BC, but only in 1859 it was opened for the movement of sea transport. The Suez Canal has not lost its significance at the present time. Now the income from the operation of the canal makes up a significant part of the national budget of Egypt.
The idea of digging a canal across the Isthmus of Suez dates back to ancient times. Ancient historians report that the Theban pharaohs of the era of the Middle Kingdom tried to build a canal connecting the right branch of the Nile with the Red Sea.
The ancient Egyptians built a navigable canal from the Nile to the Red Sea for approx. 1300 BC, during the reign of Pharaohs Seti I and Ramses II. This canal, which was first dug as a channel for the flow of fresh water from the Nile to the Timsakh Lake area, began to be extended to the Suez under Pharaoh Necho II c. 600 BC and brought it to the Red Sea a century later.
The expansion and improvement of the canal was carried out by order of the Persian king Darius I, who conquered Egypt, and later - Ptolemy Philadelphus (first half of the 3rd century BC). At the end of the era of the pharaohs in Egypt, the canal fell into decay. However, after the Arab conquest of Egypt, the canal was rebuilt in 642, but in 776 it was filled up to direct trade through the main areas of the Caliphate.
During the construction of the modern Suez Canal, part of this old channel was used for the construction of the freshwater Ismailia Canal. Under the Ptolemies, the old canal was maintained in working order, it was abandoned during the rule of Byzantium, and then rebuilt under Amr, who conquered Egypt during the reign of Caliph Omar. Amr decided to connect the Nile with the Red Sea to supply Arabia with wheat and other food from the Nile Valley. However, the canal, the construction of which was undertaken by Amr, calling it "Khalij Amir al-mu'minin" ("Canal of the Lord of the Faithful"), ceased to function after the 8th century. AD
At the end of the 15th century. the Venetians were studying the possibilities of laying a canal from the Mediterranean Sea to the Gulf of Suez, but their plans were not implemented. At the beginning of the 19th century. Europeans mastered the way to India through Egypt: along the Nile to Cairo, and then on camels to Suez. The idea of constructing a canal across the Isthmus of Suez, which would significantly reduce the cost of time and money.
The idea of building the Suez Canal arose again in the second half of the 19th century. The world during this period was going through an era of colonial division. North Africa, the closest part of the continent to Europe, attracted the attention of the leading colonial powers - France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain. Egypt was the subject of rivalry between Britain and France.
Britain became the main opponent of the construction of the canal. At that time, she possessed the most powerful fleet in the world and controlled the sea route to India through the Cape of Good Hope. And if the channel is opened, France, Spain, Holland and Germany could send their low-tonnage vessels through it, which would seriously compete with England in sea trade.
And only in the 19th century the canal got a new life. Napoleon Bonaparte, while in Egypt on a military mission, at the same time visited the site of the former majestic structure. The ardent nature of the Corsican caught fire with the idea to revive such a grandiose object, but the engineer of his army, Jacques Leper, cooled the ardor of the commander with his calculations - they say the level of the Red Sea is 9.9 meters higher than the Mediterranean, and if they are connected, it will flood the entire Nile delta with Alexandria, Venice and Genoa. It was not realistic at that time to build a canal with gateways. In addition, the political situation soon changed and Napoleon was not up to the construction of a canal in the sands of Egypt. As it turned out later, the French engineer was wrong in his calculations.
In the second half of the 19th century, another Frenchman, Ferdinand de Lesseps, was able to organize the construction of the Suez Canal. The success of this venture was based on personal connections, irrepressible energy, and the adventurism of a French diplomat and entrepreneur. In 1833, while working as a French consul in Egypt, Lesseps met Bartolemy Anfanten, who infected him with the idea of building the Suez Canal. However, the then Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali reacted coolly to the grandiose undertaking. Lesseps continues his career in Egypt and becomes a mentor to the ruler's son. Between Ali Said (that was the name of the son of the Egyptian Pasha) and the mentor, friendly and trusting relationships began, which in the future will play a primary role in the implementation of the grandiose plan.
The plague epidemic forced the French diplomat to leave Egypt for a while and move to Europe, where he continues to work in the diplomatic field, and in 1837 he married. In 1849, at the age of 44, Lesseps retired, disillusioned with politics and a diplomatic career, and settled to live on his estate in Chene. Four years later, two tragic events take place in the life of the Frenchman - one of his sons and his wife die. Staying on your estate becomes an unbearable torment for Lesseps. And suddenly fate gives him another chance to return to active work. In 1854, his old friend Ali Said became the Khedive of Egypt, who called Ferdinand to him. All thoughts and aspirations of the Frenchman are now occupied only by the channel. Said Pasha, without much delay, gives the go-ahead for the construction of the canal and promises to help with cheap labor. All that remains is to find money to finance the construction, draw up a project and solve some diplomatic delays with the nominal ruler of Egypt - the Turkish sultan.
Returning to his homeland, Ferdinand Lesseps goes out to his old friend Anfontaine, who all these many years with his like-minded people worked on the project and estimate of the Suez Canal. The former diplomat manages to convince them to hand over their developments, promising to include Anfontaine and his comrades among the founders of the channel in the future. Ferdinand never fulfilled his promise.
The canal project is in his pocket and Ferdinand Lesseps rushes in search of money - first of all he visits England. But in Foggy Albion, they reacted coolly to this venture - the mistress of the seas was already receiving huge profits from trade with India and she did not need competitors in this business. The United States and other European countries also did not support the French adventure. And then Ferdinand Lesseps takes a risky step - he starts a free sale of shares in the Suez Canal Company at 500 francs per security.
In Europe, a wide advertising campaign is being carried out, its organizer also tries to play on the patriotism of the French, calling to beat England. But the financial tycoons did not dare to get involved in such a dubious event. In England, Prussia and Austria, a ban was generally imposed on the sale of company shares. Great Britain is carrying out anti-publicity for the French adventure project, calling it a soap bubble.
Unexpectedly, the French middle class - lawyers, officials, teachers, officers, merchants and money lenders - believed in the success of this venture. The shares began to sell like hot cakes. In total, 400 thousand shares were sold, of which 52% were bought in France, and 44% were acquired by an old friend Said Pasha. The total share capital of the company was 200 million francs, or 3 billion modern dollars. The Suez Canal Company received huge benefits - the right to build and operate the canal for 99 years, tax exemption for 10 years, 75% of future profits. The remaining 15% of the profits went to Egypt, 10% went to the founders.
And then came this historic day - April 25, 1859. The mastermind of construction, Ferdinand Lesseps, personally took a pickaxe in his hands and laid the foundation for a grandiose construction project. Under the scorching Egyptian sun, 20 thousand local fellahs, as well as Europeans and residents of the Middle East, worked. Workers died from epidemics of cholera and dysentery, there were problems with the supply of food and drinking water (1600 camels were used to deliver it). Construction continued for three years continuously until Britain intervened. London put pressure on Istanbul, and the Turkish sultan on Said Pasha. Everything stopped and the company was threatened with complete collapse.
And here personal connections played a role again. Lesseps' cousin Eugene was married to the French emperor. Ferdinand Lesseps had previously wanted to enlist the support of Napoleon III, but he did not show much desire to help. For the time being. But since the shareholders of the Suez Canal Company had thousands of French nationals, its collapse would have led to social upheaval in France. And this was not in the interests of the French emperor and he forced the Egyptian Pasha to change his mind.
By 1863, the company had built an auxiliary canal from the Nile to the city of Ismailia to supply fresh water. In the same year, 1863, Said Pasha dies and Ismail Pasha comes to power in Egypt, who demands to revise the terms of cooperation. In July 1864, the arbitration court under the leadership of Napoleon III considered the case and ruled that Egypt should pay compensation to the Suez Canal Company - 38 million was due for the abolition of the forced labor of Egyptian fellahs, 16 million for the construction of a fresh water canal and 30 million for seizure lands granted to the Suez Canal Company by the former ruler Said Pasha.
For further financing of the construction, several bonded loans had to be made. The total cost of the canal rose from 200 million francs at the start of construction to 475 million by 1872, and in 1892 reached 576 million francs. It should be noted that the then French franc was backed by 0.29 grams of gold. At current gold prices (about $ 1,600 per trinity ounce), the 19th century French franc equals 15 US dollars for the 21st century.
Dredgers and excavators were used to speed up the construction. The construction of the Suez Canal took 10 years and cost 120,000 workers' lives. A total of 1.5 million people participated in the construction of the canal, and 75 million cubic meters of land were excavated. The canal was 163 kilometers long, 8 meters deep, 60 meters wide. By the time the construction was completed, there were 7,000 inhabitants in Port Said, a post office and a telegraph office were in operation.
And now the long-awaited moment of the official opening of the channel has come. On November 16, 1869, 6,000 guests came to Port Said, and 28 million francs were spent on their reception. Among those invited were the crowned persons - Empress Eugenia of France, Emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz Joseph I, Dutch and Prussian princes. Russia was represented by the ambassador to Constantinople, General Ignatov. Initially, the highlight of the opening show program was supposed to be the opera Aida, but the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi did not have time to finish it on time. Therefore, we got along with a ball.
On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened for shipping. The sea route from Western Europe to India was reduced by 24 days. Initially, it took ships 36 hours to pass the channel, but from March 1887, ships with electric searchlights were allowed to navigate at night, which halved this time. In 1870, 486 ships passed through the canal, which transported 436 thousand tons of cargo and 26750 passengers. At the same time, a fee of 10 francs was charged for the transportation of a ton of net cargo (from 1895 they began to charge 9.5 francs). This did not pay off the costs of maintaining the channel and the company was threatened with bankruptcy. But since 1872, the canal began to generate profits, which in 1895 amounted to 55.7 million francs (revenues - 80.7 million, expenses - 25 million). In 1891, a good dividend was paid per share with a par value of 500 francs - 112.14 francs (in subsequent years, payments were slightly less). In 1881, shares in the Suez Canal were in such great demand that the exchange price peaked at 3475 francs. In his homeland, Ferdinand Lesseps becomes a national hero. In 1875, the Egyptian Pasha sold his stake in the Suez Canal Company to the British government. In 1888 in Constantinople the legal status of the canal was fixed by international convection. This document guaranteed freedom of navigation along the canal for all countries in peacetime and wartime.
The opening of the Suez Canal was attended by the Empress of France Eugenia (wife of Napoleon III), the Emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz Joseph I with the Minister-President of the Hungarian government Andrássy, the Dutch prince with the princess, the Prussian prince. Never before has Egypt known such celebrations and received so many distinguished European guests. The celebration lasted seven days and nights and cost Khedive Ismail 28 million gold francs. And only one point of the celebration program was not fulfilled: the famous Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi did not manage to finish the opera “Aida” ordered for this occasion, the premiere of which was supposed to enrich the opening ceremony of the channel. Instead of the premiere in Port Said, a large festive ball was held.
In 1956, Egypt nationalized the canal and since then the Suez Canal has been one of the largest sources of income for the country's budget.
The Suez Canal is one of Egypt's main sources of income, along with oil and tourism.
The Egyptian Suez Canal Authority (SCA) reported that in 2009, 17,155 ships passed through the canal, which is 20% less than in 2008 (21,170 ships). For the Egyptian budget, this meant a reduction in revenues from the operation of the canal from US $ 5.38 billion in the pre-crisis 2008 to US $ 4.29 billion in 2009.
According to the head of the Canal Administration Ahmad Fadel, 17,799 ships passed through the Suez Canal in 2011, which is 1.1 percent less than a year earlier. At the same time, the Egyptian authorities earned $ 5.22 billion on the transit of ships ($ 456 million more than in 2010).
In December 2011, the Egyptian authorities announced that tariffs for the transit of goods, which have not changed over the past three years, will rise by three percent from March 2012.
According to 2009 data, about 10% of the world's maritime traffic passes through the canal. The passage through the canal takes about 14 hours. On average, 48 ships pass through the canal per day.
Since April 1980, in the area of the city of Suez, an automobile tunnel has been operating, passing under the bottom of the Suez Canal, and connecting the Sinai and continental Africa. In addition to technical excellence, which made it possible to create such a complex engineering project, this tunnel attracts with its monumentality, is of great strategic importance and is rightfully considered a landmark of Egypt.
In 1998, a power line was built over the canal in Suez. The pillars of the line, standing on both banks, are 221 meters high and are located 152 meters from each other.
In 2001, traffic was opened on the El Ferdan railway bridge, 20 km north of the city of Ismailia. It is the longest swing bridge in the world, and its swing sections are 340 meters long. The previous bridge was destroyed in 1967 during the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The Suez Crisis of 1956 was a complex problem with tangled causes and far-reaching implications for international relations in the Middle East. Tracing the origins of the crisis will lead us to the Arab-Israeli conflict in the late 1940s, as well as to the decolonization that swept the globe in the mid-20th century and led to a conflict between imperialist powers and peoples seeking independence.
Before the Suez Crisis ended, it deepened the Arab-Israeli conflict, exposed a deep standoff between the United States and the Soviet Union, dealt a mortal blow to British and French imperial claims in the Middle East, and enabled the United States to achieve a prominent political position in the region.
The Suez Crisis had a complex origins. Egypt and Israel remained technically at war after the armistice agreement ended their 1948-1949 hostilities. Efforts by the United Nations and various states to reach a final peace agreement - especially the so-called Alpha Peace Plan, proposed by the United States and Great Britain in 1954-1955 - did not lead to an agreement. In an atmosphere of tension, serious clashes on the Egyptian-Israeli border nearly sparked a resumption of full-scale hostilities in August 1955 and April 1956. After Egypt bought Soviet weapons in late 1955, sentiment began to rise in Israel aimed at a preemptive strike that would damage the positions of Egyptian Prime Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser and undermine Egypt's combat capability before he masters Soviet weapons. ...
By then, Britain and France had grown tired of Nasser's challenge to their imperial interests in the Mediterranean basin. Britain viewed Nasser's campaign to withdraw British military forces from Egypt - in accordance with the 1954 agreement - as a blow to its prestige and military capabilities. Nasser's campaign to increase his influence in Jordan, Syria and Iraq has convinced the British that he is seeking to cleanse the entire region of their influence. French officials were irritated by the fact that Nasser supported the struggle of the Algerian rebels for independence from France. By early 1956, American and British statesmen had agreed on a top-secret policy, codenamed Omega, aimed at isolating and limiting Nasser's actions through a variety of subtle political and economic measures.
The Suez Crisis erupted in July 1956 when Nasser, left without economic assistance from the United States and Great Britain, retaliated by nationalizing the Suez Canal Company. Nasser took over a British and French firm to demonstrate his independence from European colonial powers, to avenge Britain and the United States' refusal of economic aid, and to reap the company's profits earned in his country. This triggered a four-month international crisis, during which Britain and France gradually concentrated their military forces in the region. They warned Nasser that they were ready to use force to restore their rights to the channel company if he did not give up. British and French officials secretly hoped that this pressure would ultimately lead to the removal of Nasser from power, with or without military action on their part.
The immediate reason for the crisis was, as it seemed to many political observers at the time, an overly bold step by the Egyptian leadership headed by President G.A. Nasser, who announced on July 26, 1956 the nationalization of the "General Company of the Suez Sea Canal", which belonged to the Anglo-French capital. This act, in turn, was preceded by the decision of Washington, London, as well as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to refuse to provide loans to Egypt for the construction of the grandiose Aswan hydrotechnical complex. In retaliation, President Nasser "quite logically" decided to raise funds to finance the project from the proceeds of the operation of the Suez Canal passing through Egyptian territory.
The true reasons for the crisis were hidden in the West's discontent with the "anti-imperialist revolution" in Egypt in 1952-1953, in the "impermissible" withdrawal of the Egyptian leadership from Western tutelage and its transition to Arab-nationalist positions with an orientation towards the Soviet Union and its headed block of states.
The efforts of the leading Western countries after the nationalization of the channel focused on Nasser's persuasion to disavow this decision. The entire arsenal of political, diplomatic, propaganda and practical means was used: from various kinds of conferences with the participation of the channel's user countries, numerous meetings at the UN headquarters on this issue, influencing public opinion through the media and recalling pilots to direct threats of military intervention ... Putting forward various options for solving the problem, the West strove at any cost to preserve the financial trough escaping from its hands, but Cairo, of course, held on not without the support of the entire Arab world, the Non-Aligned Movement, but, most importantly, such a military and political giant as the Soviet Union.
So, considering the causes of the Suez crisis, it is necessary to dwell on the fact that the military conflict occurred as a result of the exacerbation of socio-economic and political contradictions between the authorities of Egypt, Israel, the United States and European states.
1. The desire of Israel to weaken the position of Egypt in the Middle East.
2. The desire of the Egyptian government to free itself from the influence of England and France.
3. Nationalization of the Suez Canal by Egypt.
It should be admitted that the United States, which formally took a neutral position in the conflict and from time to time even sharply criticized the Franco-British for their “excessive militarism”, also played an important role in the "resilience" of the Egyptian leadership. Washington really was not very happy with the policy of London and Paris in connection with the Suez crisis, because, firstly, it considered it unacceptable to "dissipate" the efforts of its Western allies and divert their attention from the crisis in the Soviet bloc, which was brewing, not without their help, more important for the West. (due to events in Hungary).
Secondly, he believed that the emerging acute problem in the Middle East was clearly at the wrong time, since it coincided with the peak of the election campaign for the election of the President of the United States on November 6, 1596. Thirdly, in Washington, it was not unreasonable to regard the planned military intervention of its Western European allies as according to plans to create a powerful pro-Western (and anti-Soviet, of course) block of Arab states based on the Baghdad Pact.
At the same time, the United States was aware that London and Paris, which fundamentally took the path of forceful pressure on Egypt, would not tolerate American harshness in relation to the coordinated policy of the "great European powers", which was very fraught with a crisis in the military-political alliance of NATO. ...
By this time, the regional ally of the United States, Israel, had already irrevocably, "for the company" with Britain and France, decided to take advantage of the situation to strike at Egypt. All this made Washington, in the person of the experienced Secretary of State D.-F. Dulles to maneuver, which at first caused some surprise of the European allies, and then sharp criticism from the British and French prime ministers E. Eden and G. Mollet, respectively. Running a little ahead, we emphasize that such behavior of Washington at a critical moment for its European allies was not forgotten by them, especially in Paris, which since then, regardless of which political trends were at the helm of the government, was wary of US policy.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower approached the Suez Crisis on the basis of three basic and interrelated premises. First, while he sympathized with the desire of Britain and France to return the company that operated the canal, he did not dispute Egypt's right to take the company away, subject to the payment of adequate compensation, as required by international law. Eisenhower thus sought to prevent a military confrontation and settle the canal dispute at the diplomatic level before the Soviet Union exploited the situation for political gain. He instructed Secretary of State John Foster Dulles to resolve the crisis on terms acceptable to Britain and France through public statements, negotiations, two international conferences in London, the creation of the Suez Canal Users Association and discussions at the United Nations. By the end of October, however, these efforts were fruitless, and Anglo-French preparations for war continued.
Second, Eisenhower sought to avoid a break with Arab nationalists and included Arab statesmen in his diplomacy to end the crisis. His refusal to support Anglo-French forces against Egypt was partly due to his understanding of the fact that Nasser's seizure of the canal company was widely popular among his own and other Arab peoples. Indeed, Nasser's surge in popularity in Arab states blocked Eisenhower's efforts to resolve the canal crisis in partnership with Arab leaders. Saudi and Iraqi leaders have rejected US proposals to criticize Nasser's actions or challenge his prestige.
Third, Eisenhower sought to isolate Israel from the canal dispute out of fear that the mixing of the Israeli-Egyptian and Anglo-French-Egyptian conflicts would ignite a fire in the Middle East. In this regard, Dulles denied Israel the right to vote in diplomatic conferences convened to resolve the crisis, and did not allow Israel's complaints about Egyptian policies to be discussed during United Nations hearings. Sensing a rise in Israeli militancy against Egypt in August and September, Eisenhower arranged limited arms shipments from the United States, France and Canada in the hopes of reducing the danger of the Israeli situation and thus preventing an Egyptian-Israeli war.
In the Western military history literature on the Suez crisis, in those years and especially at the present time, the fact of "incredible patience" that distinguished London and Paris, for more than three months, "persuaded" the Egyptians to make a compromise, is constantly emphasized.
The actual state of affairs, including on the basis of documents and memoirs of Western politicians, rather speaks of the planned preparation for the formation of the out of control ”of Egypt.
There were good reasons for this, and all three members of the coalition had good reasons. For example, London could not forgive Nasser for the withdrawal of British troops from bases from Egypt in 1954-1956. in the Suez Canal zone, accompanied by the anti-British campaign in the Arab media; the forced removal in March 1956 of the influential in the Middle East commander of the Arab Legion in Jordan, the British General Glabba and the expulsion, not without the assistance of the Egyptians, British officers from the same country, and much more.
France was extremely annoyed not only with the moral, but also with the substantial material assistance of Nasser Egypt to the national liberation movement in Algeria and with subsidizing the anti-French campaign in other subjects of the Arab Maghreb.
The list of Israeli claims against Egypt as the leader of the Arab world was even broader and more substantial. By this historical period of time Tel Aviv was ready to use military violence against Egypt in the conditions of the incessant attacks of "Palestinian terrorists" and the actual blockade of the only exit of the Israeli state to the Red Sea through the Gulf of Aqaba. The plans to "punish" Egypt, as we see, were accumulating, with the nationalization of the channel a new stage began in the preparation for war.
It is noteworthy that at first the Americans were also invited to the discussion by the British and French of concrete plans of military action against Egypt, represented, for example, by representatives of the US Embassy in London. These facts refute the official statements of the American side that Washington was allegedly not aware of specific plans for an invasion. Moreover, later these statements were denied, for example, by the head of American intelligence Alain Dulles, the brother of the then US Secretary of State. Analyzing the American position, one should nevertheless admit that, as the plans of military action were concretized, the British and French, and then the Israelis, tried to avoid contacts with their overseas partner on this issue, although this does not mean that Washington did not know about the real military preparations. ...
Paris and London have developed several options for aggression against Egypt. First, a plan for Operation Railcar was prepared, which provided for the participation of 80,000 British and French troops in large-scale operations to seize Alexandria and attack Cairo. An auxiliary landing from the side of the Red Sea to the southern banks of the channel was also considered. However, this plan was rejected, and instead a new option was developed for the allies to seize the Suez Canal zone, ensure air superiority over all of Egypt with the achievement of the final result in the form of the overthrow of the military-political leadership headed by President Nasser
After a number of changes and clarifications, the final war plan was named "Musketeer", which provided for two phases of action: the neutralization of strategically important objects and targets through massive air strikes throughout Egypt, and then a direct invasion of the channel zone. On September 1, 1956, Paris officially invited its British partners to involve Israel in the war on its side. Initially, the British disagreed with this idea.
The fact is that relations between London and Tel Aviv were then strained: London, in the spirit of the UN resolution of November 29, 1947, called on Israel to clear the Arab lands seized by it as a result of the Arab-Israeli war of 1948-1949. However, the British were forced to "forget" about this, changing their position to please, as they thought, the now doomed joint (West European-Israeli) invasion plan.
Its essence was the initial Israeli aggression against Egypt and the rapid occupation of Sinai, and then the actions of the Anglo-French troops under the pretext of "disengaging the warring parties" with the subsequent consolidation of their presence in the channel zone.
Initially, Israeli Prime Minister D. Ben-Gurion expressed his dissatisfaction with Israel's role as the instigator of the armed conflict. Then, as compensation, he put forward a number of conditions affecting the consolidation of Israel's territorial acquisitions in Jordan and Lebanon, and the transfer of jurisdiction over the Gulf of Aqaba to him with the subsequent recognition of these decisions by Egypt. However, the British severely curtailed Tel Aviv's appetites, leaving the Israelis hoping for their bargaining ability, but after the end, as they hoped, of a victorious war. As a result, the secret so-called Sevres Treaty was signed, according to which the Israeli part of the joint operation was named "Kadesh". And yet the Israelis decided to play it safe.
Before the strikes on the Egyptian forces in the Sinai, the Israeli military command decided to land a landing 45 km from the canal, at the Mitla pass, thereby cutting off the southern crossed part of the Sinai Peninsula from the northern one, with subsequent reinforcements there by land. In the event of a possible refusal of the allies to satisfy the territorial demands of Israel, Tel Aviv considered it appropriate to present the actions of its armed forces as just an "anti-partisan raid."
On the eve of the war, in order to distract attention, Israel carried out a military raid on the West Bank of the Jordan River. The ploy worked, and all the attention of the Arab world shifted to Jordan, into which Iraq even brought its division. At the same time, under the guise of exercises, Great Britain and France began the transfer of their military contingents to Cyprus and Malta. The United States, wishing to monitor and control the situation, from the end of the summer began to pull up the ships of the 6th Fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean.
25 thousand British and the same number of French were supposed to take part in the joint military operation. Taking into account the naval and auxiliary forces, the number of the British-French expeditionary force exceeded 100 thousand people. All in all, about 230 thousand soldiers and officers of the three countries, 650 aircraft and over 130 warships were concentrated for the intervention.
The Egyptian armed forces on the eve of the invasion numbered 90 thousand people, 430 mostly outdated tanks and 300 self-propelled guns. The Air Force had about two hundred aircraft, of which 42 were combat-ready. Of the thirty thousand Egyptian forces on the Sinai Peninsula, only 10 thousand were part of the regular units, the rest were part of the militia volunteer formations.
In general, the number of Israel's troops, intended for operations on the Sinai Peninsula, outnumbered the Egyptians by one and a half, and in some areas - more than three times; British-French troops landing in the Port Said area had more than fivefold superiority over the Egyptians. It should be admitted that these figures indicate obvious failures of the Egyptian military-political leadership (and its intelligence, in particular), which did not advance the grouping of its troops in the Sinai and in the channel zone.
The Israeli offensive against Egyptian troops in the Sinai Peninsula, which began in accordance with the approved scenario on October 29, 1956, was deployed simultaneously in three directions: along the Mediterranean coast with an auxiliary maneuver to encircle and destroy Egyptian troops in the Gaza region; through the Mitla pass to Suez and Ismailia; and on a limited scale along the coasts of the Gulfs of Suez and Aqaba. The fighting on the first day of the aggression was conducted mainly in the southern, Suez direction. On October 29, an Israeli airborne assault force (from the 202nd Airborne Brigade) landed in the Mitla Pass area, after which French aircraft began delivering military equipment, ammunition, fuel, food and water. Moved to Israel the day before the invasion, 60 French jet fighters with Israeli markings, but with French crews, supported the actions of the Israeli ground forces. In total, during the war, they made more than 100 sorties. At the same time, ships of the British and French fleets headed for the Egyptian shores.
For the Israelis, however, things did not go exactly as they planned. After the landing near the Mitla Pass, the Israelis faced active actions of the Egyptian Air Force to support ground forces (Egyptian pilots were trained by Soviet specialists). Unexpectedly, the Israelis were given a lot of trouble by the difficult terrain, the constant failure of not entirely new military and auxiliary equipment.
By the end of the day on October 30, having completed an almost 300-kilometer march, the rest of the 202nd airborne brigade reached the landing on the pass. She could not move further - to the canal, meeting organized resistance from only five companies of the Egyptians, who took up positions along the only passage leading to the canal.
The central Israeli grouping as part of the 38th divisional group on the night of October 30 crossed the border with practically no losses and rushed to the canal in the direction of Ismailia. However, there was no triumphant march here either. Despite the fact that by November 2 the Israelis managed to push the Egyptians back to the canal and establish a strong connection with the 202nd Airborne Brigade, their losses were unplanned high - more than 100 people were killed and wounded, including the commander of one of the brigades.
The Northern Group of Forces of Israel, consisting of two brigades, was supposed to occupy northern Sinai and cut off the Gaza Strip. In the course of heavy two-day fighting, the opposing Egyptian reinforced infantry brigade was dismembered, in which the powerful fire of the French cruiser Georges Leguy provided substantial assistance. And here the Israelis were not without significant losses: more than 200 killed and wounded, although in general the task was completed. To this should be added about a hundred more killed and wounded during the capture by November 3 of the Gaza Strip, defended by the Palestinians and Egyptians.
On November 2, an infantry brigade of the Israeli Armed Forces began to move to the south in order to occupy Sharm al-Sheikh (near the Red Sea). The next day, the units of this unit faced fierce resistance from the Arabs, but after receiving reinforcements, including from the 202nd brigade, which approached the city from the west, the task was completed with minimal, this time, losses (10 people killed and 32 wounded). Moreover, the Israeli aviation, providing support to its ground forces, for the first time used napalm against the defenders of Sharm el-Sheikh. On November 5, Israeli landings occupied the Saudi Arabian islands of Tiran and Sanafir in the Tirana Strait, taking full control of it.
When invading Egypt, the Israelis and their European partners correctly chose the "sensitive point" of the Egyptian military machine - the troop command and control system for targeted destruction. By air and sea strikes against command posts and communications centers, the allies "wreaked havoc on the Egyptian command and control levels at all levels." This, mainly the Arabs, later explained the relatively low resilience of their servicemen directly on the battlefield. In the air, in addition to the more or less successful accomplishment of missions to support ground forces, the Egyptian Air Force proved to be mediocre, irrevocably losing 4 MiG-15s and 4 Vampires in the first 48 hours of the war. On the Soviet Il-28 bombers assigned to Egypt, Egyptian pilots also could never accurately fulfill the tasks assigned to them. The destroyer Ibrahim al-Awal of the Egyptian Navy shelled the port of Haifa on October 30 without causing serious damage to the Israelis, but the next day the destroyer was attacked from the air and surrendered to the enemy without resistance. This, in fact, the naval participation of the Egyptians in the war and was limited.
Meanwhile, just a day after the Israeli invasion of Sinai, Great Britain and France, in accordance with the scenario, presented an ultimatum to the "warring parties": to withdraw troops 10 miles from the canal and allow Franco-British troops to temporarily occupy the Suez Canal zone as a "separating force". The curiosity of the situation was that the Israelis were still 30 miles from the canal, but it seems that no one expected that the ultimatum would be accepted.
Not having received consent to their demands, on the evening of October 31, the British and French began massive raids on Egyptian airfields and other military and civilian targets. The air operation continued until November 5. 2000 sorties were made. However, the coalition allies faced unforeseen circumstances. So, already ready to take off, the aircraft had to "hang up" due to the fact that the reconnaissance of targets was carried out poorly. In addition, it was necessary to reorient the bombers intended to attack the main and largest airbase of the Egyptian Air Force - "Cairo-West", as the US Air Force planes landed on it to take out American citizens.
During the conflict, the Americans more than once presented surprises to their European allies, not only in the political arena, but also in the theater of military operations. So, for example, the US Navy submarine violated the order of battle of the French operational forces with its appearance, as a result of which the allies had to stop maneuvering, force it to surface so as not to accidentally ram it. A little later, the aircraft carrier strike group of the US Navy, led by the aircraft carrier "Coral Sea", did not coordinate actions with a similar British one, as a result of which collisions of not only ships, but also planes nearly occurred. An even more unpleasant incident occurred already within the coalition itself, when on November 3, an Israeli plane attacked a British cruiser near Sharm al-Sheikh, which brought British-Israeli military ties to the brink of severing and prompted the British to demand the exclusion of Israeli officers from the joint allied headquarters.
Meanwhile, Allied air raids on Egyptian targets continued, albeit with rather low bombing accuracy. The conditions for the actions of the Franco-British aviation were very favorable. Especially the fact that President Nasser, considering his pilots much worse prepared than their Western opponents, gave instructions to avoid air battles with them and concentrate entirely on confrontation with the Israeli Air Force. There were only sporadic aerial victories of the Egyptians over the Franco-British.
In general, the Egyptians suffered significant losses in both manpower and equipment. However, it was still a long way to the implementation of the set goal - the overthrow of the Nasser regime. To bring the plan to its logical conclusion, Great Britain and France launched an invasion with ground forces. It began with airborne assault forces carried out by the Franco-British from bases in Cyprus. On November 5, with the support of aviation, the British parachute brigade captured Port Said, and the French landing brigades captured Port Fouad. On the night of November 6, on the captured bridgeheads, the landing of an amphibious assault began, supported by 122 warships that arrived from Malta and Toulon.
With the growth of the Anglo-French-Israeli aggression, the Egyptian leadership wavered and turned for urgent help to Moscow, which, being completely occupied with the Hungarian events, at first limited itself to warnings about Paris and London. Egyptian resistance on the battlefield declined sharply. The Franco-British were preparing to occupy the central part by November 8, and by November 12 the southern part of the canal zone. But these plans were not destined to come true. The USA and the USSR, relying on the UN mechanism, by joint efforts, finally stopped the war. On November 6, 7 and 8, the British, French and Israeli leaders, respectively, issued ceasefire orders.
Until now, military analysts and historians argue about whose contribution to the end of the military campaign was more significant - Moscow or Washington. Mainly domestic, and earlier also Arab researchers, in favor of the decisive role of the Soviet contribution, cite the USSR's readiness to send regular troops into the combat zone under the guise of volunteers, which "frightened" the Franco-British. Western, mainly American, analysts reject the reality of this version, arguing that Washington would never have allowed the USSR to take military action against its NATO allies, about which it allegedly notified Moscow.
In their opinion, in addition to "friendly" political pressure, the financial and economic pressure of Washington played a role, namely the threat to freeze British financial reserves in US banks and thereby sharply weaken the British currency. In addition, Washington promised to compensate Paris and London for losses in obtaining Middle East oil. And in the British Commonwealth, in connection with the military intervention, a deep crisis arose, and to the disappointment of London, the "tested" allies - Canada and Australia - took a sharply anti-British position.
Be that as it may, but hostilities were stopped. By December 22, 1956, Britain and France had withdrawn their troops, and Israel, using various tricks, was forced to withdraw from the Sinai in March 1957, destroying and destroying all military infrastructure on the peninsula. On November 15, 1956, UN forces began to be deployed in the canal zone. The concept of UN peacekeeping was developed by Canadian Foreign Minister L. Pearson, for which he even received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 (this concept in many ways became the standard for all subsequent similar UN actions).
The biggest losses, naturally, were suffered by the victim of aggression - Egypt: 3,000 military personnel and almost the same number of civilians were killed. The losses in military equipment were also enormous. Israeli casualties - about 200 people, and four times more wounded. Great Britain and France lost a total of 320 people. The Allies announced the loss of five aircraft.
Shocked by the sudden prospect of global conflict, Eisenhower also moved quickly to prevent it. He used political and financial pressure on the belligerents to pass a UN armistice resolution on November 6, which went into effect the next day. He supported the efforts of UN officials to urgently use the UN Emergency Force in Egypt. The tension gradually eased. British and French forces left Egypt in December, and after difficult negotiations, Israeli forces withdrew from Sinai by March 1957.
The Suez crisis, although quickly mitigated, had a profound impact on the balance of power in the Middle East and on the commitments that the United States made in the region. This tarnished British and French prestige among the Arab states and therefore undermined the traditional hold of these European powers over the region. In contrast, Nasser not only endured the test, but increased his prestige among the Arab peoples as a leader who challenged European empires and survived Israel's military invasion. The remaining pro-Western regimes in the region should have turned off the speeches of Nasser's supporters. Although Nasser showed no immediate inclination to become a client of the Soviet Union, American officials feared that Soviet threats to European allies improved Moscow's image in the eyes of Arab states. And the prospect of the establishment of an Arab-Israeli peace in the foreseeable future seemed to be zero.
In response to these aftermaths of the Suez War, the President announced in early 1957 the Eisenhower Doctrine, an entirely new regional security policy. Proposed in January and approved by Congress in March, the doctrine assured that the United States would provide economic and military assistance and, if necessary, use military force to contain communism in the Middle East. To implement the plan, the President's Special Envoy, James P. Richards, toured the region, distributing tens of millions of dollars in economic and military aid to Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Libya.
Although it was never officially recognized, the Eisenhower Doctrine guided U.S. policy in three political disputes. In the spring of 1957, the president allocated economic aid to Jordan and sent American warships to the eastern Mediterranean to help King Hussein crush a rebellion among pro-Egyptian army officers. In late 1957, Eisenhower encouraged Turkey and other friendly states to contemplate invading Syria to prevent the local radical regime from gaining power. When the tumultuous revolution in Baghdad in July 1958 threatened to spark similar uprisings in Lebanon and Jordan, Eisenhower finally ordered American soldiers to occupy Beirut and arrange supplies to British troops occupying Jordan. These measures, unprecedented in the history of American policy towards the Arab states, clearly showed Eisenhower's intention to take responsibility for the preservation of Western interests in the Middle East.
The Suez Crisis was a watershed in the history of American foreign policy. Reversing traditional Western perceptions of Anglo-French hegemony in the Middle East, deepening the problems posed by the revolutionary nationalism that Nasser personified, exacerbating the Arab-Israeli conflict and threatening to give the Soviet Union a pretext to infiltrate the region, the Suez Crisis attracted the United States to a significant, serious and sustained engagement in Middle Eastern affairs.
Some interesting facts about the Suez Canal:
The construction of the canal lasted 10 years from 1859 to 1869, instead of 6 years originally planned;
The length of the canal in 1869 was 163 kilometers, width - 60 meters, depth - 8 meters;
Over the entire period, 1.5 million workers participated in the construction of the canal, of which 120 thousand died;
According to the project, the initial cost of the canal was 200 million francs, by 1872 it had reached 475 million francs, and in 1892 it was 576 million francs;
The 19th century French franc is roughly equivalent to $ 15 2013;
One share of the Suez Canal Company was sold before construction began for 500 francs, and in 1881 the share price reached a record high of 3475 francs;
In 1881, a dividend of 112.14 francs was paid per share.
During the construction of the Suez Canal, settlements appeared on its banks, many of which grew up on the site of workers' settlements. Among the major cities on the Suez Canal are: Port Said, Port Fuad, Suez and Ismailia. Currently, most of the population living on their territory is involved in the maintenance of the Suez Canal.
Port Said is a city in the north-east of Egypt. Port on the Mediterranean Sea at the northern end of the Suez Canal. The city provides services to the Suez Canal, as well as refueling passing ships. The city was founded in 1859 on a sandy spit separating the Mediterranean Sea from the salty coastal Lake Manzala. It was originally built as part of the canal infrastructure. It quickly developed as a duty-free port. Many houses built in the 19th century have survived in the city.
The city is divided into 5 administrative districts: Zuhur, Sharq, Manah, Arab and Dauakhi. Port Said has a well-developed chemical and food industry, cigarette production and fishing. However, the main purpose of the city is closely related to the Suez Canal. Exports rice and cotton through this major Egyptian port. The channel is also being serviced and refueling of passing ships. In the Port Said area, the Suez Canal bifurcates to provide two-way traffic.
The city was founded in 1859 and named after Said Pasha, who at that time was the ruler of Egypt. The economic base of the city is made up of fishing and industry: the production of chemicals, food processing, and the production of cigarettes. Port Said is also the starting point for Egypt's exports of cotton and rice. In August 1882, Port Said was occupied by British troops. Since that time, Port Said has been one of the centers of the anti-British anti-imperialist movement, from 1921 to 1954 there have been more than one uprising.
On November 5-6, 1956, during the Anglo-French-Israeli aggression against Egypt, fierce battles with the Anglo-French landing took place in Port Said. The heroic defense of the city thwarted the plans to capture Egypt. Under pressure from the international community, Great Britain, France and Israel withdrew their troops.
On December 23, 1956, Port Said was completely liberated. More than two and a half thousand Egyptians were killed in the battle for Port Said.
Port Said is recognized as a free economic zone. The special position of the city contributed to the creation of a highly developed transport network in the region and its transformation into a lively commercial city. An extensive network of railways has been created in the region. The airport of the same name is located about 8 kilometers from the city. The International Highway connects Port Said with the Egyptian capital Cairo, while another national road leads to Dumyat and further along the Mediterranean coast.
Port Said is also a resort that is visited by a large number of tourists every year. The swimming season here lasts from May to October. However, mild weather conditions allow sunbathing even in winter. The city has a wide variety of restaurants and cafes, their signature dishes are made from seafood.
It is noteworthy that the Statue of Liberty, which is the symbol of the United States, was originally planned to be installed in Port Said under the name Light of Asia, but the country's leadership decided that transporting the structure from France and installing it was too expensive.
The main attractions of Port Said include the Suez Canal embankment and the National Museum located on it with samples of Egyptian culture from pre-Pharaoh times to the present day. A similar museum of Egyptian civilization in Cairo is only at the stage of creation. In addition, the city has preserved several charming churches - Coptic Orthodox and Franciscan.
War museum
Opened in 1964, the Port Said Military Museum consists of several halls with exhibitions about: the battles of the pharaohs, the invasion of 1956, the wars against Israel (1967 and 1973). In addition, here you can see all kinds of photos, documents, bas-reliefs, paintings, statues, models.
Hotels and restaurants
Despite the fact that Port Said is also considered a beach resort and boasts a couple of sandy beaches, this city remains undeveloped in terms of mass tourism. Which, by the way, has a beneficial effect on the quality of services in local hotels. The cost of accommodation per night is much lower than in the promoted cities of Egypt, but the service is much higher.
There are also plenty of cafes, restaurants and all kinds of eateries; many of them boast picturesque views of the Suez Canal.
Money, communication and information
You can exchange currency and withdraw cash at the Banque du Caire and the National Bank of Egypt, and cash travel checks at the Thomas Cook office (8: 00-16.30pm), which is located next to the gas station. Sharia Palestine has Amex (9: 00-14: 00 and 18: 30-20: 00 Sun-Thu), post office (8.30-14: 30), telephone center (24 hours) and information office (9: 00-18: 00 Sat-Thu, 9: 00-14: 00 Fri). Internet access can be found at Compu.Net (£ 3 per hour; 9: 00-00: 00) opposite the post office.
How to get there
Uncomfortable trains (£ 18 in second class, 5 hours travel) connect Port Said to Cairo, so it is better to take the bus (15-20 pounds, 3 hours travel, departs every hour). There are also buses to Alexandria (£ 20-22, 4 hours), Luxor (£ 60, 12-13 hours) and Hurghada (£ 45, 7½ hours). A taxi from the bus station to the city center (3 km) will cost £ 5; taxi in the city center - 2 pounds. Fares are quoted as of April 2011.
Port Fouad is a city in the north-east of Egypt. Port on the Mediterranean Sea at the northern end of the Suez Canal. Located on the opposite bank of the Suez Canal from Port Said, with which it forms an agglomeration. Port Fuad was founded in 1927, mainly to reduce overpopulation in Port Said, and was named after King Fuad I, the first holder of the title of King of Egypt in the modern era (previously held the title of Sultan of Egypt). The city is located on a triangular island bounded by the Mediterranean in the north, the Suez Canal in the west, and the relatively new canal between the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean in the east. Most residents work in the Suez Canal.
After the 1967 war, Port Fouad was the only place in the Sinai Peninsula held by the Egyptians. Israel tried to capture Port Fouad several times during the War of Attrition, but failed each time. During the Yom Kippur War, Port Fouad and the surrounding territories were preserved. On the basis of the Camp David Accords in 1978, Israel agreed to return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt peacefully, and later the countries signed a peace treaty. Today Port Fouad is one of the main air defense positions in Egypt.
Suez is a city and major port in the north-east of Egypt. Located at the northern tip of the Red Sea Gulf of Suez, at the southern entrance to the Suez Canal. The city has two harbors: Port Ibrahim and Port Taufi.
In the 7th century, near present-day Suez, there was the eastern end of the canal connecting the Red Sea with the Nile. After the construction of the Suez Canal in 1859, the city acquired the status of an important international port. It was badly damaged during the Arab-Israeli war in October 1973. Rebuilt after 1975.
The main attraction of the city is the Suez Canal itself, which connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas. The canal zone is considered a conditional border between Africa and Eurasia. Since April 1980, a car tunnel has been operating in the city, passing under the canal and is notable for its monumentality. From Suez you can go on a trip to the Small and Big Bitter Lakes. The new history of Egypt is intertwined with the history of the Arab-Israeli conflicts, and this affects the calendar of holidays. One of the most important dates is the end of the war in 1973, which is celebrated on 24 October. This holiday has another name - the Day of the capture of Suez, and in this city it is celebrated on a particularly large scale.
In city restaurants, you can taste traditional local cuisine - dishes made from beans (for example, ful and filafilia) and meat (kebab, sweater, stuffed pigeon). Eggplant is the most popular vegetable, and rice is served as a side dish. A good souvenir from Suez can be a painting or photograph with views of the world famous canal.
Ismailia is a city in northeastern Egypt on the shores of Lake Timsah, which is part of the Suez Canal system. The population is 254 thousand people (1996), 374 thousand people (2005). The 130 km long shipping canal connecting the Suez Canal (near the city) with the Nile (near Cairo) is also called the Ismailia Canal.
Ismailia is located on the banks of the Suez Canal approximately 120 km east of Cairo. Although the city is not one of the most famous tourist destinations in Egypt, there are great opportunities for tourism hidden here. Ismailia offers a variety of alluring attractions for tourists to explore.
Ismailia is rife with a mixture of ancient cultural influences, from the historical period of the Pharaohs to the Roman Empire. Areas such as Tal Al-Maskhota, Tal Al-Azba and Eastern Kantara are just a few of the surrounding areas of significant historical value. The Ismailia Regional Museum is one of the must-see attractions in the city.
Tourists who are already tired of visiting museums can relax and unwind in Mallaha Park. Lake Timsah in the city of Ismailia also offers pristine beaches, calm waters, many entertainment and sporting events.
The weather in Ismailia is comfortable due to the location of the city on Lake Timsah and good planning. Ismailia has many gardens and parks, it is a blooming oasis among the hot and windy deserts. The winters are warm and the summers are hot, and your wardrobe should take this into account. In summer, light-colored clothing is preferable, sunglasses and hats should protect you from the sun. You can also bring adhesive tape, sunscreen lotions, and wet wipes. Bring a light jacket for winter.
After the construction of the Suez Canal, it became necessary to create an infrastructure to connect its banks. Since 1981, in the area of the city of Suez, an automobile tunnel has been operating, passing under the bottom of the Suez Canal, and connecting the Sinai and continental Africa. In addition to technical excellence, which made it possible to create such a complex engineering project, this tunnel attracts with its monumentality, is of great strategic importance and is rightfully considered a landmark of Egypt.
On October 9, 2001, a new bridge was opened in Egypt. Hosni Mubarak on the highway connecting the cities of Port Said and Ismailia. The opening ceremony of the bridge was attended by the then Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Before the opening of the Mihaud viaduct, this structure was the world's tallest cable-stayed bridge. The height of the bridge is 70 meters. The construction lasted 4 years, with the participation of one Japanese and two Egyptian construction companies.
In 2001, traffic was opened on the El Ferdan railway bridge, 20 km north of the city of Ismailia. It is the longest swing bridge in the world, its two swing sections have a total length of 340 meters. The previous bridge was destroyed in 1967 during the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Bridge over the Suez Canal named after Hosni Mubarak is an automobile cable-stayed bridge built in 2001. It crosses the Suez Canal and connects Asia to Africa.
El Ferdan is a railway swing bridge over the Suez Canal, located in the vicinity of the Egyptian city of Ismailia.
It is the longest swing bridge in the world (length - 340 meters). The bridge connects the eastern bank of the Suez Canal with the western (Sinai Peninsula). El Ferdan replaced an old bridge destroyed in the 1967 Six Day War.
Most of the time, the bridge is opened for the passage of ships and is brought down directly for the passage of trains.
The Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel is a car tunnel under the seabed of the Suez Canal. The tunnel is located in the southwestern part of the Sinai Peninsula, and administratively connects the peninsula with the mainland of Africa. It is located at an angle relative to the channel, and with a slight curvature lies from north-west to south-east.
Entry and exit is carried out through specialized checkpoints located on both sides of the tunnel. Both the tunnel itself and the surrounding area are closely guarded by the Egyptian police forces, as well as specialized units of the armed forces of the Republic.
The tunnel is physically located under the seabed of the sea channel, respectively - much below the level of the World Ocean. The tunnel is 1.63 km long and 11.6 m in diameter. The depth relative to the level of the World Ocean: -53.6 m. Above the ceiling of the deepest point of the tunnel lies 47 meters of rock and sea water. The tunnel has one lane in each direction.
The tunnel was originally built by the British government in 1983. However, the seepage of saline water through the reinforced concrete pavement was noticed soon after the construction was completed, and raised many practical questions for the engineers. The salt water quickly corroded the steel and degraded the concrete, leading to systematic problems and severe deterioration of the coating.
In 1992, according to the project of the Japanese government, work began on the reconstruction of the tunnel. During the renovation process, new systems for monitoring and operating the tunnel were introduced. To get rid of the accumulated water, powerful pumping systems were installed at its base - drainage and wastewater. An additional reinforced concrete tunnel pavement was built inside the original.
The Suez Canal includes several lakes: Big Bitter Lake, Small Bitter Lake and Timsakh Lake, which are located between the northern and southern parts of the canal.
Big Bitter Lake is a lake in Egypt. Located between the northern and southern parts of the Suez Canal. The area of the lake is about 250 km². Since the canal has no locks, water from the Red and Mediterranean Seas freely replenishes the water that evaporates from the surface of the lake.
Since the 1967 Six Day War, when the canal was suspended until 1975, 14 ships have been locked in the lake. These ships received the name of the Yellow Flotilla for the color of the sand, with which their decks were entered. The Suez Canal was blocked due to the deliberate flooding of several ships in the fairway by Israeli forces. On the blocked ships, up to the "opening" of the channel on June 5, 1975, shift crews remained.
In October 1967, all 14 captains and crews, having gathered on board the British ship "Melampus", founded the "Big Bitter Lake Association". Its main goals were to maintain and develop friendly relations, mutual assistance, as well as in holding joint events.
Small Bitter Lake is a salt lake in Egypt, located between the northern and southern parts of the Suez Canal. From the south it adjoins the Big Gorky Lake. The area is about 30 km². The shores are sandy, on the east side they are completely deserted.
At the beginning of the Yom Kippur War of 1973, the 130th brigade of the Egyptian army was transferred from Alexandria to the Shluf camp in the Kabrit region on the western shore of Small Gorky Lake, after which it crossed the lake.
Timsah is a lake in Egypt, located approximately in the middle of the Isthmus of Suez.
Lake Timsakh is now adjacent to the Suez Canal. During the construction of the canal, the city of Ismailia was founded on its banks, which now houses the board of the Suez Canal Authority. Before the construction of the canal, Lake Timsakh was one of the inner, shallow lakes of the Sinai. After the construction of the Suez Canal, both sea water from it and fresh water from the Ismail Canal began to flow into the lake. In 1870, the depth of Lake Timsakh in its deepest places reached 22 feet (according to Wilhelm David Koner "Gegenwärtige Tiefe des Suez-Canals" (1870). The name of the lake is translated as Lake of Crocodiles.
The city of Ismailiya now lies on the western shore of the lake, on its southeastern shore there are several beaches. The eastern part of Lake Timsakh passes into the Suez Canal. Until the construction of the Aswan Dam in 1966, which protected Egypt from the flooding of the Nile, previously Lake Timsakh was annually reached by the rivers that flooded Wadi Timulat, which stretched directly from the Nile Delta to Lake Timsakh. The first channel, connecting the lake with the Delta, was laid 4 thousand years ago, during the Middle Kingdom.
After the outbreak of the Six Day War in 1967, the American tanker Observer was imprisoned in Lake Timsakh for many years.
historybook.at.ua - History Books Blog
dic.academic.ru - Glossary of terms
ru.wikipedia.org - The Free Encyclopedia
ria.ru - Rian news
infoglaz.ru - Blog "Infoglaz"
tonkosti.ru - Encyclopedia of Tourism
calend.ru - Site "Calendar of Events"
diletant.ru - Site "Delitant"
flot.com - Russian Navy
i-fakt.ru - Interesting facts
