The Copts of Egypt

The Challenges of Modernisation and Identity

Vivian Ibrahim

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780857736321
• Edition: 1
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Middle Eastern History
• Index: History

The Coptic Christians of Egypt have traditionally been portrayed as a 'beleaguered minority', persecuted in a Muslim majority state and by the threat of political Islam. Vivian Ibrahim offers a vivid portrayal of the community and an alternative interpretation of Coptic agency in the twentieth century, through newly dicovered sources. Dismissing the monolithic portrayal of this community, she analyses how Copts negotiated a role for themselves during the colonial and Nasserist periods, and their multifaceted response to the emergence of the Muslim Brotherhood. She examines reform within the Church itself, and how it led to power struggles that redefined the role of the Pope and Church in Nasser's Egypt. The findings of this book hold great relevance for understanding identity politics and the place of the Coptic community in the fast-changing political landscape of today's Egypt.

PART I

INTER-COMMUNAL RELATIONS: THE COPTS AND THE STATE (1805–1946)

1

RELIGION AND STATE-BUILDING IN THE KHEDIVAL PERIOD (1798–1882)

Muhammad ‘Ali and the Khedival Period

The beginnings of the modern Egyptian state are usually accredited to the policies of Muhammad ‘Ali (1769–1849), who along with his successors, brought about a period of great economic, political and social change to Egyptian society in the nineteenth century.¹ This process had an impact on the Copts in both social and political spheres.² Muhammad ‘Ali became the ruler of Egypt in 1805 when he deposed his chief Mamluk rival with the support of the ‘ulama’ of Cairo. Between 1809 and 1812 he succeeded in destroying the remnants of the power of the Mamluks, who had up until the French invasion of 1798 been the nominal rulers of Egypt.³ Following the entrapment and massacre of the Mamluks at the citadel in 1811, Muhammad ‘Ali followed a comprehensive program of political modernisation.⁴ The policies by Muhammad ‘Ali and his successors, contributed to blurring the social, political and legal boundaries between residents in Egypt. Exact records of the numbers in the various communities in Egypt are difficult to find given the fact that no births or deaths were registered until the latter half of the nineteenth century.⁵ Nonetheless, a rough calculation was made in the late-1820s to ascertain the size of the population. This was based on the number of houses in Egypt and the assumption that the inhabitants of each house in the cities amounted to eight dwellers, with four in the provinces. British travel writer Edward Lane estimated 2,500,000 inhabitants in Egypt. Of these numbers, 1,750,000 were Muslim Egyptians, while there were 150,000 Copts, representing the largest ethnically ‘Egyptian’ Christian community in Egypt. Lane also calculated that the number of Turko-Circassians in Egypt was 10,000 whilst Syrian, Greek and Jewish communities amounted to 5,000 inhabitants each, and were mainly based in urban centres such as Cairo and Alexandria. Armenian Christians were said to number 2,000, and the remaining 70,000 were uncertain and variable.⁶

Born around 1769 to an Albanian family in the town of Kavala in the Ottoman Empire, now in modern-day northern Greece, Muhammad ‘Ali’s own ethnic origin is a highly contested question, particularly in post-revolutionary Egypt; he has widely been considered to be the founder of the modern Egyptian state.⁷ Muhammad ‘Ali was clearly a member of the Ottoman elite. He arrived in Egypt under the direction of the Ottoman Sultan in 1801 with 6,000 Albanian troops part of a 10,000 man Ottoman force, sent to collaborate with British forces against the French.⁸ Yet his subsequent modernisation policies were geared towards the development of Egypt as a separate political entity from the Ottoman Empire. In 1831, Muhammad ‘Ali invaded Syria and threatened the viability of the empire itself, prompting the intervention of European powers.⁹ His policy served to centralise and consolidate his own control over Egypt, thus securing his dynasty’s future. Muhammad ‘Ali linked the idea that a soldier of Ottoman Turkish origin, and his dynasty, could not only rule Egypt, but become an integral part of it. This was much to the dismay of the chronicler ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti, who became reknown for his accounts of Egypt.¹⁰ Soon after Muhammad ‘Ali came to power he wrote:

Oh Egypt look at your children [Awladik], whilst they are scattered far and tortured, you [Egypt] have been colonised by the worst of the Turks and Jews […] they wage war against your children, they kill your heroes, they overcome your knights and destroy your role, they live in your castles, and corrupt your children. [ 19^th Dhu al-Qa’dah /January 1807]¹¹

The Question of Religious Equality

Muhammad ‘Ali pursued a strategy for the inclusion of all the inhabitants of Egypt within its territorial entity; this was implemented through policies of religious and ethnic tolerance, commenting that ‘I do not wish there to be any difference between my subjects based on difference of religion, the only difference is the way that they pray in their temples’.¹² Christians were allowed, for the first time, to ring church bells as well as to carry the crucifix in public.¹³ Muhammad ‘Ali also helped to facilitate pilgrimages to the Holy Land, which in previous centuries had been hampered by restrictions. A Decree issued in 1819 also eased the sanction on building churches, which had previously been subject to limitations.¹⁴ Writing in 1954, historian Jacques Tajer claimed that Muhammad ‘Ali never refused a request by Copts to build a Church; this would become a point of contention later in the twentieth century.¹⁵ Four Copts were also nominated to the position of provincial governors in the 1830s.¹⁶ These developments were viewed very favourably, by both Coptic commentators and European contemporaries travelling through Egypt, as one of the brightest periods in the modern history of the Coptic Church.¹⁷

The significance of Muhammad ‘Ali’s reign, with regards to Coptic religious expression, is illustrated by the changing nature of dress codes. Traditionally, the Copts had worn similar clothes to the Muslims, although it was largely distinguishable by a black, blue, grey or light brown turban.¹⁸ By 1818, however, Al-Jabarti highlighted with some displeasure and apprehension, new developments in Coptic life which placed Copts on a more equal footing:

A gathering of the opposite sects of the millats [amongst whom the] Coptic and Greeks [were called upon] and [told] that they should continue wearing blue and black robes but not wear white turbans; [this was because] they had exceeded their allowance in all aspects, they turban [themselves] in coloured cashmere shawls [that are] expensive in price. They ride elegant horses and mules, [and] in front and behind them [are] servants with sticks in their hands; they hit the [local] people out of their [Copts and Greeks] way, it is not assumed by the observer that they [Copts] are any less than in the highest employment of the state; some go out into the countryside and carry arms. [Jumada al-Ula 1232H/ 9^th March– 7^th April 1818] ¹⁹

Similarly, before the accession of Muhammad ‘Ali, Copts and Jews were not permitted to ride horses, but it seems that this restriction was lifted in Egypt despite being upheld in Syria even after Ibrahim Pasha’s (1789–1848) invasion in 1831.²⁰ Al-Jabarti provides an eloquent illustration of the attitude of a Muslim ‘alim towards the improved status of non-Muslim religious groups in the early period of Muhammad ‘Ali’s rule.

Another recorded case of Muhammad ‘Ali’s more lenient attitude towards millat groups, is taken from 1844 when Sidhoum Bishoi, a Coptic scribe residing in the town of Damietta, was accused of insulting Islam. With popular backing, the governor of the province forced Bishoi to convert to Islam or face a public flogging. Bishoi chose the latter and later died from his wounds. He was consecrated a martyr on 25^th March 1844. Upon hearing of this, Muhammad ‘Ali ordered the exile of the governor for his actions.²¹ The apparent shift in policy towards the Copts, along with other religious and non-indigenous groups, served a dual purpose: firstly, Muhammad ‘Ali’s policies of tolerance assisted, to a certain extent, to legitimise his own rule as he was keen to establish his credentials and that of his family as the new rulers of Egypt. Secondly, the process of state centralisation and modernisation which was being implemented, required the integration of groups such as the Christians who were better trained than the Muslim population in the fields of accountancy and land surveying.

State-Building and Modernisation

Muhammad ‘Ali and his successors implemented a modernisation program which had a dramatic effect on the inhabitants of Egypt. Muhammad ‘Ali initially regarded this policy of modernisation and reform as a necessary process in the construction of a centralised Egyptian state which, had nominal independence from the Ottoman Empire.²² Modernisation took the form of a new army, bureaucracy and greater attention to state-sponsored education. He began the process by creating a new army; having witnessed the military supremacy of the British and French forces which had fought in Egypt, he was convinced of the need of a European-style, disciplined force.²³ The main problem lay in the manpower of the new army; the recruitment of soldiers from the Caucasus and the Ottoman Empire was not a viable option due to his hostile relations with Istanbul after he had declared himself as the independent ruler of Egypt in 1811. Between 1820 and 1824, Muhammad ‘Ali recruited 20,000 men from Sudan, 17,000 of whom died in the training process.²⁴ With few options left, conscription of the Egyptian peasantry commenced in 1822, the officer class was drawn from the Turko-Circassian elites which had supported his rise to power.²⁵ His Nizam al-Jadid (New Organisation) was a large and costly venture, reaching a peak of 115,000 men in 1840, which constituted 12 per cent of the working-age population.²⁶ Copts, by virtue of their status as dhimmi, were not conscripted into the army.²⁷ As described by Lane, ‘the Copts enjoy an immunity for which they are much envied by most of the Muslims: they are not liable to be taken for military service’.²⁸ Instead, Copts were obliged to pay the jizya tax.²⁹ In the 1830s, three different rates were imposed on the community: the richer classes in Cairo and in other large towns paid thirty-six piasters each, the poorest nine piasters, while in the countryside, the jizya was levied on families rather than individuals.³⁰

Given the financial burdens of military modernisation, Muhammad ‘Ali implemented an administrative and fiscal system to cope with the new policies. He began by creating six ministries dealing with foreign affairs, war, navy, finance, industry and education.³¹ Muhammad ‘Ali also divided Egypt into provinces, districts, and sub-districts, thus fostering the development of a highly centralised administration.³² Like the army, the administration was headed by Turko-Circassians whilst Arabs served in subordinate positions. To manage all of his newly implemented reforms, it was necessary to create an efficient but, more importantly, subservient bureaucracy to serve the state.³³

Both administrative and military reforms were paid for, in large part, through agriculture. In 1814, Muhammad ‘Ali abolished the existing system of tax farming and took direct control of land.³⁴ Furthermore, previously large land holdings had been registered as waqf, religious endowment lands, in order to avoid taxation. Muhammad ‘Ali scrutinised the misuse of this system, consequently turning many illegitimate claims of waqf into state properties.³⁵ He also encouraged cultivation projects through tax concessions for peasants willing to cultivate waste land and help in the construction and repair of old canals and dikes in the Delta. The aim was to increase the production of essential crops including rice, sugar and most importantly cotton.³⁶ The re-orientation of Egypt’s economy towards the mass production of cotton was one of Muhammad ‘Ali’s most important achievements, as there was great demand by textile merchants in Britain. This guaranteed that Egypt, at least in the foreseeable future, had a steady means of income. By 1849, cotton accounted for 31 per cent of Egypt’s total exports. Revenue was also raised through the virtual monopoly over trade imports and exports, with Muhammad ‘Ali taking the profits made. In 1836, 95 per cent of exports and 40 per cent of imports were managed through the government. ‘Ali recognised that foreign trade would provide him with a large cash income, a policy which had been inherited from his predecessors.³⁷

The Copts were able to carve out a niche for themselves during the modernisation programs, especially in the field of finance. Whilst many did not have the medical, educational or commercial skills of other Christian communities, such as the Syrians or Greeks, they did have certain professional skills useful to the new administration. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, many Copts were employed as accountants to large private landowners, land surveyors and tax collectors.³⁸ The demand for Copts in these rol...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Author biography
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Illustrations
• List of Tables
• Notes on Transliteration and Translation
• Acknowledgements
• Preface
• Introduction
• PART I Inter-Communal Relations: The Copts and the State (1805–1946)
• 1. Religion and State-Building in the Khedival Period (1798–1882)
• 2. The Making of New National Identities (1882–1919)
• 3. Constitutional Politics and Political Islam (1922–1946)
• PART II Intra-Communal Relations: The Coptic Community from Within (1882–1954)
• 4. Benevolence and Philanthropy (1882–1945)
• 5. Factionalism and Corruption (1882–1945)
• 6. A Coptic Revolution: Harakat Al-Tathir (1952–1954)
• Epilogue
• Appendices
• Notes
• Bibliography