One of Napoleon’s strengths is his ability to choose, as he was extremely good at deciding the right time to attack or retreat, choosing the strategic objective, and assigning the right leaders to specific positions.
Deciding to launch an expedition to Lawentine, Napoleon appointed one of the best leaders, called “Duga”, known for his moderate use of power and flexible policies in controlling the affairs of the country.
During Napoleon’s absence in Egypt, the situation in the country was not entirely stable. There have been some developments that required a prompt and effective response from the leadership.
We can collect these events in the following points:
Rebellion of the prince of pilgrimage
The prince of pilgrimage was a very important position in medieval Egypt. He was appointed by the king of Egypt and in charge of the caravans that traveled to Saudi Arabia every year. During the campaign in Lawentine, rumors spread about Napoleon’s death, so the prince declared a rebellion against French rule in Egypt, after which he was defeated by French troops on the eastern coast of the Delta.
Revolt near Behera
At the time of the French expedition, there were many foreign communities from Syria in Egypt
and Morocco, and there were many very tenacious in the Western Delta area
and undisciplined groups of bedouins and barbarians who played a very important role
in launching an attack against the French, recognizing that this was a great opportunity for Egypt due to the absence of Napoleon, but due to their lack of modern methods of warfare, the French easily defeated them and killed most of them.
When Napoleon returned from Lawentine, he was sure by his intuition and experience that after the defeat at Lawentine there would be a new confrontation with the British and Ottoman armies, and that the British would not leave him alone in Egypt, and that the Ottoman Sultan would not abandon his colony in Egypt
in such an easy way.
Napoleon’s ideas were very real and could be realized. However, the lack of a French fleet and incomplete control over Egypt meant that both the Ottomans and the British wanted to completely liquidate Napoleon’s expedition and end his efforts in Africa. To this end, through the Bedouins, they made contact with the Mamluks who lived on both sides of the Nile valley, connected Siwa with Fayoum and upper Egypt, preparing for another battle with Napoleon.
Shortly after Napoleon’s arrival in Cairo, after his failed campaign at Lawentine, he received news of the arrival of british troops in Alexandria.
Napelon quickly contacted the commanders of his troops in the Delta, Cairo and upper Egypt and in less than 4 days was ready for action in Alexandria.
In this article, my main goal is to describe the path of the French expedition in Egypt without interfering into details of the battles. The most important thing for me is cause and result.
In my estimation, the key reason for the French victory in this battle was Napoleon’s boldness and quick readiness to fight. The Ottomans and the British wasted too much time preparing for it. One of the best comments about the outcome of this clash is that “we fought the French in the Ottoman way and the French fought us in the British way.”
Among the most interesting and fascinating stories related to the Battle of Alexandria is the story that when Napoleon was pursuing the British army under the command of Sir Sidney Smith, a young soldier sailed out to hunt the British army and nearly died, but was saved at the last moment. This soldier was “Mohamed Ali” who six years later became the king of Egypt and became a great enemy of the British army!!!!!!!!!
After the French victory over the British, Napoleon Bonaparte sent a messenger to Sir Sidney Smith to discuss the possibility of a prisoner exchange.
Smith received them positively and accepted Napoleon’s proposal, but in the meantime he understood the motives for this action. Napoleon wanted to know everything about France and its conflicts in Europe, so Smith sent him newspapers containing information about the crisis situation in France.
Moreover, Napoleon’s brother sent him a message through a Greek merchant, asking him
to return to France as soon as possible to play a better role there.