The Striking Cabbies of Cairo and Other Stories: Crafts and Guilds in Egypt, 1863-1914

Contents

Contents ⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗⠖⠗ Figures xi Foreword by Donald Quataert xiii Acknowledgments xv Introduction 1 Popular History 2 Crafts, Protests, and Guilds in Egypt 4 Unevenness under Capitalism 6 Restructuring and Political Contention, 1805–1914 9 Structure and Scope 12 Documents, Newspapers, and Old Books 12 Chapter 1. Crafts and Guilds before 1863 15 Crafts and Guilds in the Ottoman Empire 16 European Power and Egyptian Dynasty Building 23 Crafts and Service Workers 25 Guilds 30 Conclusion 34 Chapter 2. Restructuring after the Cotton Boom 37 Unequal World Economic Integration 38 Imperialism 39 Self-Strengthening 40 Restructuring 44 Construction 46 Textiles and Garment Trades 55 Urban Transport 59 Conclusion 64 vii Chapter 3. Petitions and Protests under Isma’il 67 Co-opting the Guilds 68 Weapons of the Weak 71 New Avenues of Participation 73 The Box Makers of Cairo and Taxation 80 A Stonemason and Guild Dues 83 Contracting, Labor Relations, and Merchants 84 Seeking Mercy: The Cabdrivers of Cairo 87 Claiming Citizenship: The Carters of Bulaq 89 Bidding for Redistribution: The Porters of Alexandria 97 Conclusion 101 Chapter 4. Restructuring under Colonial Rule 105 The Colonial State and World Economic Integration 106 Crafts and Service Workers and Restructuring 109 Garment Making 111 Textiles 115 Construction 124 Urban Transport 132 Conclusion 142 Chapter 5. Strikes and Protests under Colonial Rule 145 Demobilization 146 Abandoning the Guilds 149 Informalism 154 Out of the Frying Pan, into the Fire 158 The Rise of Nationalism 160 The Advent of Mass Popular Protest 164 The Making of an Alliance 183 Conclusion 187 Conclusion 191 Restructuring 191 The Guilds 194 Collective Assertion 195 Unevenness under Capitalism 198 Popular History 199 viii Contents Appendix. A Boatman’s Petition 203 Notes 205 Bibliography 257 Index 275 Contents ix ...