The idea of a canal linking the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea dates back to ancient times. It was Senause, Pharaoh of Egypt, who linked these two seas to each other for the first time in 1874 B.C, but that canal was abandoned and reopened many times, First by Nkhaw, then during the Persian invasion of Egypt, by king Darius I, who ordered it completed and reopened in 510 B.C. It remained in good condition during Ptolemy’s era, but fell in to ruin afterwards. The Romans Emperor, Trajan re-dug the canal in 117 B.C., and the Arab ruler Amir Ibn-Abbas was the last person who reopened the canal in 640 A.D. Over the years it fell again into ruin and was completely abandoned.
At last, on November 30, 1854, a French engineer Ferdinand De- Lesseps signed a concession with the Egyptian government to dig Suez Canal. On April 25, 1859, the digging began, and it continued for 10 years. More than 1.5 million Egyptian workers took part, of whom more than 125,000 lost their lives. On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened with great ceremony at the northern Terminus, Port Said.
At that time, the canal was 163 kilometers long, about twice the length of Panama Canal. “The Suez Canal was also easier to construct than Panama Canal because it crosses flat, sea - level terrain and requires no locks. About 24 miles (39 Kilometers) of the canal are channels dredged through lakes. Most of the banks of the other 77miles (123 Kilometers) are reinforced with stone, or steel to help prevent erosion.
Suez Canal emerged on the political scene in 1956 when Egyptian president Jamal Abd- ol- Nasser nationalized the canal in response to the British, French and American refusal of a loan for building the Aswan High Dam. He said: “The revenue of the canal would help finance the High Dam project (Suez Canal, p.2).” The colonial countries rejected this decision and froze Egypt’s funds in European Banks. Matters became worse when the UK, France and Israel triggered the tripartite aggression on October 29, 1956, to force Egypt to relinquish its stance, giving the three countries enough room to occupy the Suez Canal. The canal has been closed for one year, but under the pressure of the United Nations, the British and French were ordered to withdraw from the Canal Zone, and the United Nations subsequently decided that the Suez Canal did in fact belong to Nasser (Building the Suez Canal p.146). “In 1963 Egypt paid the last compensation to the Suez Company shareholder and become sole owner of the waterway (Suez Canal,p.3).”
The Suez Canal was closed for the second time in 1967 during the Arab- Israeli war. Thus no more oil was pumped to Europe, and prices of good rose. It cost $150 million for Britain but more for Egypt. About 5,000 Egyptians died. Egypt’s financial loss rose. Also 63 ships and marine units were sunk to block the canal. When Egypt reopened the canal after 8 years, she reconstructed and modernized it. Now, the Suez Canal is 193 kilometers long. The present capacity of Suez Canal is more than 25,000 vessels annually.
The Suez Canal is distinctive because:
It is the largest canal in the world with no locks.
Compared with other waterways, the percentage of accidents is almost zero.
Navigation goes day and night.
It is liable to be widened and deepened when required to cope with expansion in ship size.
The Suez Canal has a strategic location because it links two oceans and two seas, the Atlantic and Mediterranean via Gibal Taregh to Port Said, and the Indian Ocean and Red Sea via Bab –Al- Mandab and the Gulf of Suez to the Port of Suez. It also connects Africa to the Middle East, Which makes it good trade location.
The Suez Canal transports 14 % of the total world trade, 26% of oil exports, and 41% of the total volume of goods and cargo to the Persian Gulf.
saving of 86% in distance is achieved to port the goods from Black Sea to the Persian Gulf. All these have made this canal a strategic trade area, where each country wants to have some room. Thus the Suez Canal pumps $5 million in to Egyptian exchequer daily! Today, when the Canal Zone presents a lush, busy appearance, it is difficult to imagine that in 1855 it was just a part of that almost uninhabited, waterless, and windblown desert which stretched eastward from Nile Valley across to Syria.
At last, on November 30, 1854, a French engineer Ferdinand De- Lesseps signed a concession with the Egyptian government to dig Suez Canal. On April 25, 1859, the digging began, and it continued for 10 years. More than 1.5 million Egyptian workers took part, of whom more than 125,000 lost their lives. On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened with great ceremony at the northern Terminus, Port Said.
At that time, the canal was 163 kilometers long, about twice the length of Panama Canal. “The Suez Canal was also easier to construct than Panama Canal because it crosses flat, sea - level terrain and requires no locks. About 24 miles (39 Kilometers) of the canal are channels dredged through lakes. Most of the banks of the other 77miles (123 Kilometers) are reinforced with stone, or steel to help prevent erosion.
Suez Canal emerged on the political scene in 1956 when Egyptian president Jamal Abd- ol- Nasser nationalized the canal in response to the British, French and American refusal of a loan for building the Aswan High Dam. He said: “The revenue of the canal would help finance the High Dam project (Suez Canal, p.2).” The colonial countries rejected this decision and froze Egypt’s funds in European Banks. Matters became worse when the UK, France and Israel triggered the tripartite aggression on October 29, 1956, to force Egypt to relinquish its stance, giving the three countries enough room to occupy the Suez Canal. The canal has been closed for one year, but under the pressure of the United Nations, the British and French were ordered to withdraw from the Canal Zone, and the United Nations subsequently decided that the Suez Canal did in fact belong to Nasser (Building the Suez Canal p.146). “In 1963 Egypt paid the last compensation to the Suez Company shareholder and become sole owner of the waterway (Suez Canal,p.3).”
The Suez Canal was closed for the second time in 1967 during the Arab- Israeli war. Thus no more oil was pumped to Europe, and prices of good rose. It cost $150 million for Britain but more for Egypt. About 5,000 Egyptians died. Egypt’s financial loss rose. Also 63 ships and marine units were sunk to block the canal. When Egypt reopened the canal after 8 years, she reconstructed and modernized it. Now, the Suez Canal is 193 kilometers long. The present capacity of Suez Canal is more than 25,000 vessels annually.
The Suez Canal is distinctive because:
It is the largest canal in the world with no locks.
Compared with other waterways, the percentage of accidents is almost zero.
Navigation goes day and night.
It is liable to be widened and deepened when required to cope with expansion in ship size.
The Suez Canal has a strategic location because it links two oceans and two seas, the Atlantic and Mediterranean via Gibal Taregh to Port Said, and the Indian Ocean and Red Sea via Bab –Al- Mandab and the Gulf of Suez to the Port of Suez. It also connects Africa to the Middle East, Which makes it good trade location.
The Suez Canal transports 14 % of the total world trade, 26% of oil exports, and 41% of the total volume of goods and cargo to the Persian Gulf.
saving of 86% in distance is achieved to port the goods from Black Sea to the Persian Gulf. All these have made this canal a strategic trade area, where each country wants to have some room. Thus the Suez Canal pumps $5 million in to Egyptian exchequer daily! Today, when the Canal Zone presents a lush, busy appearance, it is difficult to imagine that in 1855 it was just a part of that almost uninhabited, waterless, and windblown desert which stretched eastward from Nile Valley across to Syria.
No comments:
Post a Comment