Research Catalog

Title

The agricultural policy of Muhammad ʻAlī in Egypt / by Helen Anne B. Rivlin.

Author

Rivlin, Helen Anne B.

Publication

Cambridge, Massachusetts : Harvard University Press, [1961]

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xvii, 393 pages : maps, tables; 24 cm.

Summary

Agriculture was the basis of the Egyptian economy when Muḥammad 'Alī, "Founder of modern Egypt," was appointed governor of Egypt by the Ottoman sultan in 1805. Dr. Rivlin's purpose is to discover if Muḥammad 'Alī had a well-conceived agricultural policy of lasting significance for the development of Egyptian institutions. The conclusion reached after careful analysis of the problem from every facet is that far from having an agricultural policy per se, Muḥammad 'Alī merely utilized the agricultural wealth of Egypt for the purposes of personal aggrandizement and the attainment of a position of great power and independence for himself and his descendants within the Ottoman empire. The measures taken by Muḥammad 'Alī affecting land tenure replaced one class of landholders by another to the detriment of the peasant class and the religious institution. Although the Pasha can be credited with changing the Egyptian economy from a subsistence to a cash crop economy by the investment of capital in the development of agriculture, the financial benefits gained thereby accrued primarily to the Pasha himself. Instead of using these profits for economic purposes, Muḥammad 'Alī embarked upon a program of military adventurism that eventually undermined the economic life of the country and brought only limited political gains to Egypt. Muḥammad 'Alī's domestic policies established the social and economic pattern which prevailed until the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 and are largely responsible for many of Egypt's present problems. Dr. Rivlin's study is of major importance to students of the contemporary Egyptian scene, and should serve as an object lesson for present planners in underdeveloped countries. -- from dust jacket.

Series Statement

Harvard Middle Eastern studies, 4

Uniform Title

Harvard Middle Eastern studies ; 4.

Subject

• Muḥammad ʻAlī Bāshā, Governor of Egypt, 1769-1849
• Muḥammad ʿAlī Bāšā 1769-1849
• Méhémet-Ali, (1769-1849)
• Mehmet Ali
• Geschichte 1805-1849
• Agriculture > Economic aspects > Egypt
• Agriculture and state > Egypt
• Land tenure > Egypt
• Agriculture and state
• Agriculture > Economic aspects
• Land tenure
• Landwirtschaft
• Reform
• Agrarisch beleid
• Politique agricole > Égypte
• AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS AND POLICY
• Egypt
• Ägypten
• Égypte > Agriculture > Aspect économique

Genre/Form

History.

Bibliography (note)

• Bibliography: p. 291-313.

Contents

Introduction -- Landholding in Egypt before the French Occupation -- Changes in Egyptian land tenure: 1798-1815 -- Muḥammad 'Alī and landholding reform after 1815 -- Administration of Egypt under Muḥammad 'Alī -- The failure of the Egyptian administrative system: Civil service and government regulation of the agricultural population -- The failure of the Egyptian administrative system: Finances -- Agricultural practices under Muḥammad 'Alī -- Trade and agriculture -- Industry and agriculture -- Military service and agriculture -- Irrigation -- Conclusion.

LCCN

61005251

OCLC

• ocm00236644
• 236644
• SCSB-106550

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library