History Research

Special Issue

British Imperialism in the Middle East in the 19th Century through Its Relations with the Ottoman Empire

  • Submission Deadline: Mar. 02, 2022
  • Status: Submission Closed
  • Lead Guest Editor: Begum Yildizeli
About This Special Issue
The 19th century was the golden age of the British Empire and marked a period of colonial expansion. For the Ottoman Empire however, this period was the longest century which she was derisively called the sick man of Europe for her dwindling territories and economic decline. She eventually faced challenges in defending herself against foreign invasion. The motivation behind British interests in the Middle East was economic, military, political, humanitarian and religious reasons that promoted the superiority of Britain. It is equally clear that one of the significant aspects of British policy towards the Porte was the status of Christian subjects under the Turkish rule in addition to economic and political underpinnings. Along with Westernization, series of reforms promulgated in response to these threats but they failed to achieve the purposes intended. All these reasons increased the British influence on the Ottoman affairs and the British Empire wanted to dominate the Mediterranean and Indian open seas, the Red Sea and the Oman inland sea, as far as North Africa and the Pacific Ocean coasts.
The French occupation, by Napoleon, of Egypt in 1798 and Syria in 1799, left an imprint on British diplomatic strategy towards the Middle East and Mediterranean. Existing British interests and the French threat to establish colonies in North Africa, led Britain to aid the Ottoman navy. Britain would later, however, adopt the doctrine of the ‘Concert of Europe’; a policy created during the Vienna Congress of 1815 for the long-lasting solution to the Eastern Question. Since Britain had developed an intimate relationship the Ottoman Empire since 1830s which was based on mutual trust and friendship for the maintenance of Turkish territorial integrity. Nonetheless, beginning with the British rule of Aden Wharf in order to protect Suez route into the Red Sea, creating the Suez Canal for British contacts with India and the occupation of Egypt in 1882 portrayed British strategy in the region. This special issue of History Research proposes to publish studies analyzing and tracing the rise of British prominence in the Middle East and the initial impetus toward deeper British involvement in the Middle East in the 20th century. It will also call for papers examining the language of Imperialism in British party politics, the dynamics of Anglo-Ottoman relations and nationalist uprisings in the Ottoman Empire.

Keywords:

  1. British Imperialism
  2. 19th Century
  3. The Ottoman Empire
  4. Middle East
  5. Westernization
  6. Suez Canal
Lead Guest Editor
  • Begum Yildizeli

    Department of International Relations, University of Bilecik Seyh Edebali, Bilecik, Turkey