Philanthropy and Self-Identification in Late Ottoman Egypt

In the nineteenth-century Ottoman Empire, philanthropy was one of the most efficient tools that the Ottoman ruling elite used to bolster their legitimacy in the eyes of the population. The most common method of performing philanthropic deeds at this time was the collection of iane, or donations, from different segments of society. These donations were then used for a variety of purposes, ranging from supporting the Ottoman army, to providing aid to refugees and building orphanages. Moreover, in line with the dominant ideas of the period, performing philanthropical acts came to be seen as a way to express one’s patriotic or nationalist feelings.¹ Not surprisingly, the Egyptian ruling elite also made use of philanthropy to legitimize their position in Egypt.

By the end of the nineteenth century, Egypt was ruled by the members of the Mehmed Ali Pasha dynasty, who held the title of “khedive” and who had a special place within the Ottoman administrative structure. Even though Egypt was technically still a province of the Ottoman Empire at this time, since the British Occupation of Egypt in 1882 Ottoman political control over the province was mostly nominal. Due to this “special” place held by Egypt within the Ottoman Empire, most of the literature that analyzes the philanthropic efforts of the Egyptian ruling elite approaches the topic from an Egypt-centric perspective, without taking the wider Ottoman context into consideration.² I take a different approach in this paper and focus on the philanthropic deeds which the members of the Egyptian ruling family undertook during the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 and the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913 in their efforts to help the Ottoman Empire. Following the works of scholars such as Khaled Fahmy, Ehud Toledano and Adam Mestyan, who analyze nineteenth-century Egypt within the framework of the Ottoman Empire,³ and basing my analysis on Arabic-language newspapers and documents from the Ottoman Archives, I argue that the Egyptian ruling elite, while harboring close ties with Egypt, also continued to self-identify as Ottomans in various historical contexts until the First World War. I claim that if we take a step back and stop seeing the Egyptian ruling elite as proto-nationalist figures, and locate them instead within the larger imperial framework, a different picture emerges, in which the Egyptian ruling elites are imbued with a sense of “Ottoman patriotism.” Lastly, highlighting the role that the female members of the Egyptian ruling family played in donation campaigns, I demonstrate how, especially in times of crisis, philanthropical activities enabled women to publicly express their sense of patriotism and contribute to community-building efforts.

During the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 and the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, donation collection campaigns were organized all over Egypt in order to support the Ottoman army and, especially in the case of the Balkan Wars, Ottoman refugees. Even though different segments of Egyptian society took part in these campaigns, the Egyptian ruling elite played a major leading role in organizing and contributing to these efforts, demonstrating their solidarity with the Ottoman Empire. In March 1897, for instance, the Egyptian newspaper al-Mu’ayyad reported the establishment of donation collection committees for the Ottoman army in Alexandria and Cairo, emphasizing the fact that this movement had the blessing of the Khedive Abbas Hilmi Pasha. The newspaper interpreted these donation collection efforts as proof of the idea that “national spirit” and “patriotic zeal” had gained ascendancy in Egypt, as people from all over the country were contributing to the collection of aid for “their state” (dawlatihim) and “their community” (millatihim).⁴ Moreover, Egyptian newspapers reported that in addition to Khedive Abbas Hilmi Pasha, other members of the Egyptian ruling family, such as Prince Hüseyin Kamil Pasha and Ibrahim Hilmi Pasha, made significant donations to help the Ottoman army during its war with Greece in 1897.

Similar to the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897, the Egyptian ruling elite played a major role in organizing aid collection efforts during the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913...