OFPIRINT FROM JARCE xv 3.3. AUGUSTIN, PUBLISHER LOCUST VALLEY) N.Y. 11560 Asyiit in the 1260’s (1844-53) TeRENCE WALZ, The early thirteenth-century poet, Ibn al-Sa‘ti, penned a few memorable lines about “Asyit, extolling the beauty of its rural setting, a mythological bird seen in the light of the full moon, the pearllike quality of the morning dew, a brook, gentle breezes and clouds that speckled the firma- ment, his muse playing nonsensically with the rhyming possibilities of the final fa in the spelling of the city’s name." By the end ‘of the nineteenth century, however, the poet’s idyllic vision had been replaced by a gaudier panorama of riverside palazzos and fast-running, smartly harnessed victorias, The evolution that made this possible began in the 1260's a.H., or the decade sitting on either side of the mid-nineteenth century mark, when klondike fever swept not only the docks and backstreets of Alexandria and the by-ways of the Miski and Bayn al-Qasrayn in Cairo but also the heart of Upper Egypt. Of interest here is the physical, social and economic setting of those vibrant times. Setting Asyiit had in all but name replaced Jirji as the capital of Upper Egypt by the latter half of the eighteenth century. The reorga- nization of provincial administration by Mubimmad ‘Ali simply recognized this fact, and, during Tbrahim pasha’s term as governor of Upper Egypt, beginning 1811, construction began on the building of a Government House in Asyfi, just out” side the city’s main gate. The population in 1822 is thought to have been about 17,000, and by 1846 it had grown to 20,000. According to the official census statistics of 1872, the population stood at 27,470, a figure which represents a 60 percent growth during the previous fifty years. In 1850 Asynj was the sixth largest city in Egypt, after Cairo, Alexandria, Damietta, Tanta and Mahalla al-Kubra, and almost twice as large as any other city in Upper Egypt. Though statistics are very unreliable during this period, the vast majority of the population was apparently ‘Muslim. WiJkinson believed the Coptic community numbered no more than 1000 in 1843, although the Coptic bishop of Asyat put forward a claim of 6000 during an interview in 1849. Whatever the actual figure, Copts were a distinet minority. Thirty years later, however, it was possible to describe Asyit, as is common now, as the “Coptic capital” of Egypt both in terms of the size of the Christian popula- tion and the influence and wealth of its members. Today almost 50 percent is believed to be Christian.” Indeed, the tall and graceful minarets of the city, seen from a distance, first attracted the foreigner’s eye.’ Asya lay about a mile and a half from the western bank of the Nile, linked to its port, the village of al- Hamra, by a pleasant winding road of sycamores that escaped the annual flood. ‘The road was, in fact, a jis, or causeway, which was rebuilt in 1851 as traffic along its surface significantly increased during the late 1840's." Beyond the city, to the 11314 west, lay the Libyan mountain range under which were nestled the town’s cemeteries and through which filed caravans from distant Sudan. ‘The caravan halting place was called al Ramla, and was situated just north of the cemeteries." A description of Asyit at this time is, briefly, as follows: the town was surrounded. by alow and apparently disintegrating wall, outside of which were a series of paninas (gardens) and Khashabtyyas (orchards or wooded areas), and perhaps two ponds Inside the walls, the city was divided into quarters, each with its own characteri the oldest being alAlwa, where Copts largely resided, the newest being Kawm ‘Abbas, which was developed in the early 1850's and in which were found the grand- est of the modern-style houses. ‘The mar- kets of the city were extensive, stocked with goods from Cairo, the Hijaz and the Sudan. ‘The two baths were considered the finest in Upper Egypt. Asyaf had fifteen mosques, four of which date to the period 1820-60, and perhaps “two or three” churches. Quranic lessons were given at perhaps seven of the mosques, but the government-sponsored school had been closed down in 1840 and would not be reapened until 1867. There was, however, a Coptic school! Outside the market quarter, al-Qaysarly- ya, the most important civic center was Government House, the Diwan al-n riya. Two governors resided in Asyit: the governor-general of all of Upper Egypt (rmudtr ‘umim gibtt) and the provincial govern- or (mudir Aji). As was ry, both posts were held by Turks. The Diwan enclosed a number of important offices: the tax collector, financial administrators, grain and animal supervisors, surveyors, en; neers, the customs bureau, health officer, provincial gadi, police chief and his subor nates. It also contained the post office, tele- graph services and a printshop. Merchants went to the Diwan to pay customs and JARCE XV (1978) register legal deeds or to testify in com- mercial disputes. Caravan merchants went to the Diwan to receive honorary caftans from the governor or his deputy.’ ‘The underlying native urban adminis tion is only hazily known. Asytt was divided into four administrative units, each pre- sided over by an ‘uma or shaykh al-balad. ‘The functions of town ‘undas are not alto- gether clear, however, especially in (owns like Asyot which were administrative capi tals. Presumably they were in charge of allotting lax assessments in the city and on its professional guilds and had authority over the selection of-laborers to work on projects requiring corvée labor. Under ‘Abbas, ‘wndas were charged with filling provincial military quotas~in Asyiit’s case, 100 from the town, 300 from the province. They also received official notice of the arrival at the Kharga Oasis of caravans from the Sudan. AU some time prior to 1880, the four city ‘umdaships were reduced to one, and, toward the end of the century, @ special ‘umdahip was created for the Coptic community. Other urban offices existing at mid century included the sartuydr, who was nominal head of the local merchant com- munity, the nagid al-ashryf, nominal head of the religious community, and the gadt al- ‘mudiryya, chief judicial officer. Further research is needed to determine the extent of professional organizations. For the mo- ment, itis known that at least three guilds existed, brokers for ordinary goods, bro- kers of jallaba (or Sudan) goods, and came~ Jeers involved in the transport of goods from Asyit to [amra. Considering the scale of industrial activity in Asyit, it seems more than likely that other artisan and retailing bodies were also incorporated.” Social Structure Overwhelmingly Muslim, society in Asyot outwardly resembled society in Cairo, anASYOT IN THE 1260's (1844-53) emphasis being placed on Turkish or noble Muslin descent, religious effort and com- mercial wealth. At the same time, Asyi society had an idiosyncratic Sa‘idi twi that it also accommodated Christians an attached much prestige to bedouin ancestry. Fayd Allah’s biographical recollections of great Asyiit families, which was assembled in the 1930's, nonetheless makes it clear that the great commercial movement in the mid-nineteenth century radically changed the distribution of social prestige. ‘The network of “great families” at the end of the nineteenth century significantly dif- fered from the network that exited at the beginning of the century. Admittedly a more definite portrait of social class will emerge when the Makkama records of Asyit are examined, but for the moment certain patterns are already apparent and can be discussed, ‘Traditional society seems to have revolv- cd about that group of notables who had earned the status of tag." The wiyith were those who could claim descent from the Prophet or a religious notable, a Turkish ancestor or a bedouin personality. The emerging rich, who often derived their wealth from trade, consolidated their p tion by intermarrying with the iyizh. Those who were both weltborn and rich were obviously of especially high standing. This class of people filled all the town’s tradi- tional administrative positions. They were the ‘umdas (such as the Numays family, the BiksAda, the al-Hilali and Khashaba), the nagibs al-ashraf (the al- Ashraf family) coe gadis (the Aba Qara‘a). Copts were excluded from these positions, which in any event were primarily associated with “Muslim practice. In his Takk Aya, Fayd Allah presents 32 family biographical sketches of which 19 are “Muslim, 13 are Copt. Among Muslim families, the longest sketches per- tain to the al-Ashraf, the Bikzada, the Aba Qara‘a, the Salim Kashif, al-Hilali, Khashaba 115 and al-Numays. While it is by no means true that all these families are of equal antiquity, they could all claim some cle ment of wah descent. The al-Ashraf claimed descent from al-Sayyid al-Sharif Abi’ Qasim al-Tabyawi, the ancestor of many sharifly families of Upper Egypt; the Aba Qara‘a, al-Hilali and al-Numays traced their descent from such great Arab tribes as the Hamara’, Band Hilal and Jamaliyya. ‘The Bikzida and Salim Kashif go back’ to seventeenth-century Turkish amirs who settled in Asya. Other families claim ‘Turkish descent or descent from well- known religious figures, the rule being, apparently, that the oldest and therefore the most respectable of the wyjth des- cended from ancestors who established themselves in Asyit before the reign of Muhammad ‘Al. Wealth and status during the first half of the nineteenth century was not expressed in land owned, the key determinant at the end of the century, even though zeujah fami- lics may have owned parcels of 50 fed- dans or so in Asyit province prior to this time. Rather, prestige seems to have been measured in terms of woods, gardens, urban real estate, great houses and num- bers of slaves." The great families cons- tructed wakdi and geysariyat, endowed mosques and popular shrines, and provided for fountains. Several families today will relate how their nineteenth-century ancest- ors learned ‘Turkish, which suggests they felt an inferiority vis-d-vis the ruling clite. Nonetheless, it was members of these families who were called upon to accom pany Khedive Tawfq through the city during his visit in 1879, even though they were probably less wealthy than the Coptic merchants whom the khedive agréed to meet in the neutral tertitory of their shops in the Qaysariyya."” With regard to the Muslim merchant community, our research to date has focused on the holders of the sartujjarship16 JARCE XV (1978) of Asydt, specifically on the al-Hilali and Khashaba families who remain the most powerful and socially prominent Muslim. families of the city. The al-Hilih were chiefs of the Asyat merchants from no later than 1838 until 1870; the Khashaba con- trolled the position from 1870 until the carly part of the present century, when the office was abolished or lapsed. There seems little doubt that the aFFhlali are the older, more established family, references to their land and trade transactions being found in eighteenth—and early nineteenth—century Cairo court records. By the time their nineteenth-century ancestor, Muhammad Faraghali al-Iilali, died in 1862, they had derived such wealth from trade that they had been able to construct a large number of waka'il and private houses as well as a major new covered market in al-Qaysariyya and to subsidize or supervise the construc- tion of two. mosques. Nothing could say more about their high soc wing in the middle part of the nineteenth century than the fact that two of the old al-H daughters had been married to descendents and in-laws of ‘Umar Makram, the native- born son who exercised much powerful political influence in Cairo at the turn of the ninetcenth century.” ‘The Khashaba family, on the other hand, though now claiming wyjth descent via the Prophet’s grandson and an eponymous merchant ancestor who is said to have setiled in Asyit in the fifteenth century, seems to have started out in the nineteenth century as Nile boat captains and as retailers. The two waqls of Muhammad ‘Alt Khashaba, the “founder” of the fatnily as now known, have been examined, and show that he only began purchasing town properties in 1846 and that he accummulat ed the greater number of his properties in the periods 1855-60 and 1867-71. The property on which their wakela was built was purchased by Muhammad ‘Ali only in 1847. Thus their rise was undoubtedly associated with the development of the trade with the Sudan, as detailed below, and culminated with his being selected srtujjar i 1870." As for Copts, knowledgeable informants istinguish between “old” families and -w" families. In doing so, they habitually le out the alJawhari and Shania families from the Wisi, Khayyat, Magar, Hanna, Daqish, alMugaddis Jirjis and others. There is a tendency among Asyiti Copts to trace their ancestry back to well- known Coptic personalities, such as Jirjis alJawhari, the “financial minister” during the period of the French Occupation and the early years of Muhammad ‘Ali's reign— or even to eponymous pharaonie ancestors, The evidence is shaky to say the least— even the claim of the al-jawhari family to descent from Jirjis alJawhari has been questioned—but if there does exist some standard for assessing social distinctions between “old” and “new”, it would seem based on commercial longevity. Copts in Asyit are fond of saying about themselves, “There are three tightfisted (baktil) people in the world: the Christian from Asyat; the Muslim from Damietta; and the Jew from North Africa.” They are righily proud of a prowess in commercial matters, as well they might be considering trade was one of the few universally honor: able occupations open to them in previous centuries and considering their great suc- cess in it during the nineteenth century. At the same time, many now like to point out the virtues of the “selfmade man”, a concept probably introduced by American missionaries in Upper Egypt, precisely because so many prominent Coptic families are of recent wealth. In this connection, the ‘Wisa, Khayyat, Magar and Hanna families— the wundekinder of Asyii at the end of the nineteenth century—may be mentioned. ‘They liked to relate how they began their carcers selling Alairda, as did Wish Bugtur, or as simple clerks, as did Magar DimyanASYOTIN THE 1260°s (1844-53) and Aqladiyts Dagish. This is in general contrast to traditions of Muslim families ii Asyiit, possibly because many of them could fall back on traditionally honored ancestral strains." The watershed period in Coptic social ranking was, in fact, the 1850's, and those Copts who are now considered “old, estab- lished” families are those who were already well established in trade before the period began. It is the older families who imitated their Muslim brethren by endowing the few churches of Asyi, such as the Shanada family gifts to the restoration of the Church of the Martyr Abadir. It was, moreover, the older Shanuda family, not richer Wisi and Khayyat, who became ‘umda al-agbdt, head of ihe Coptic community, when the post was created at the end of the nine- teenth century. The development of Asyi as a major commercial arena may well have had little important impact on local society had members of the Coptic merchant community not dramatically up-ended tradi tional roles by becoming enormously wealthy and subsequently moving their wealth into land. Economic Foundations ‘The economy of the Asyiit region rested on the solid foundations of agriculture, industry, regional and foreign trade. Addi tional local income derived from the posi- tion of Asyat city as the administrative capital of Upper Egypt, the government being an important employer of local labor, particularly secretarial services. Moreover, a military camp was situated at Bani ‘Adi, some 15 kilometers away. ‘The growing popularity during the 1850’s of a winter season on the Nile brought a steady flow of foreign tourists to the city, since boat hire contracts almost always stipulated a stop of 24 hours in Asyit for provisioning. Few failed to visit the pharaonic caves in the western mountain behind Asyfit, there 117 by requiring the need for donkeys, donkey- boys and guides, or to pass through the city bazaars. ‘The plain surrounding Asyit was planted with a variety of grains and cereals, the most important in terms of annual yields being beans, barley, corn and wheat. Many seeds, fruits and other crops were also cultivated, including the apple-tasting nabk fruit which was unique to the province and opium, whose high percentage of chemi- cally-pure morphine made it superior to Asian varieties. According to figures col lected by the British consul in 1844, Asyit ranked as the most extensively cultivated province in the whole of Egypt, furnishing the highest land revenues to the govern ment and supporting the largest rural popu lation in the country." The trade in grains and cereals, which had important markets abroad, continued at mid-century to be controlled by the government. Taxes in Upper Egypt were until 1880 paid in kind rather than cash, unlike in other provinces, and government nazirs were posted to provincial population centers in order to collect crops and send them to warehouses in Asyi. From there they were shipped to Cairo and Alexandeia and auctioned off to a noisy crowd of European exporters. The government also had at its disposal large supplies of grains and cereals produced by great estates ‘owned by members of the pasha’s famil Provincial governors were apparently allowed to sell part of the government stores to local merchants, though the possibility that they illegally entered into local trade arrangements cannot be dis- missed. In some instances, as in the case of Salim pasha al-Silibdar, governor-general from 1844 to 1849, they themselves owned large estates. Unsurprisingly, it was to the provincial governors that commissioned agents of European firms, who appeared in Upper Egypt from the mid-1840's onwards, applied for those crops that had118 JARCE XV (1978) markets abroad.” It is also evident that local merchant houses, such as the Bayt al-Hilalli and the Bayt al-Jawhari, kept on the best possible terms with the provincial Turkish establishment, acting on occasion as private bankers to the governorgeneral and feeding him and his subordinates with information about grain prices in Cairo and Lower Egypt. For example, account books in the possession of the al-Hilali family show that they covered the expenses incurred by Lab bey (later pasha), gover- norgeneral in 1849, when his daughter was married, in Asyit, to a son of Muliam- mad ‘Ah. The expenses included the hand some. of 2,000 piasters paid to a dancer, Mas‘ida al-Ghaziyya." Restrictions against European firms trad- ing directly with fellahin were lifted by ‘Abbas pasha in early 1854. The final demise of the monopoly system, which had been dying in slow stages for thirteen years, may be tied to the increased demand for Egyptian grains which the outbreak of war in the Crimea created. ‘The soaring price of agricultural commodities in the following several years engendered a new prosperity for Egyptian farmers and for those export trading houses that triumphed in the free-trade days of Muhammad Said pasha.” Thus, Asyit merchants found them- selves in a particularly opportune commer cial position, While the agricultural situation of Asyiit is well known, the surprisingly well-devel oped state of its local industry is less appreciated. ‘The primary local industries were textile manufactures, pottery wares, dyeing and leather crafts, each of which had steady Egyptian and foreign markets. More ocally-centered industries included candle- making, brickmaking, oilpressing and milling, ‘Asyufmade textiles included linen and cotton cloths and woolens, the manufacture of which dates to medieval times. It seems to have been a cottage industry, but in the 1820's the government established a cotton factory in the city which by 1814 was employing 800 men and boys. The factory seems to have been shut down in 1849, when the government ended subsidies to many provincial plants, for it docs not appear in Mubarak’s list of Asyit industries in the 1870's. Linens and cottons were woven into milayas, tobes, napkins, ker- chiefs and towels. ‘Though Asydti woolens had been prized in medieval times, being described as “soft as silk”, the chief article woven in the nineteenth century seems to have been the lidda, a coarse felt like hat No reference to either kalims or Asyiti shawls could be found prior to the early twentieth century, so it would appear that the manufacture of these (extiles was a late nineteenth-century development.” ‘The dyeing industry was closely allied to textile manufactures, and it was quite possibly the largest industrial activity in the town. It, too, served both domestic and foreign trades. Dyers tinted thousands of European and Egyptian-made cloths for the Sudan export trade. In 1855, for instance, 5,000 pieces of Manchester broad cloth were brought by merchants from Dar Fir from Cairo to Asyit to be dyed. Blue was the favorite color, but dyers also worked with red and black dyes derived from local berries or Sudan imported roots. An indigo factory was constructed in the nineteenth century to supply local needs. ‘The al-Hilali and alJawhari account books onetheless include’ notations of “Madras” \digo purchased in Cairo and sold to local bluers, so it would appear that the factory- made product proved of poor quality. The dyeing industry was dominated by Copts, and though the industry scarcely exists today, the names of skilled dyers from an earlier period are still remembered.” Pottery was the best known industry of Asyit, next to textiles. Foremost was the manufacture of pipe bowls which were exported by their thousands to Cairo and Europe. “London tobacco shops are seldomASYDTIN THE 1260's (1844-53) without specimens,” a traveller noted during, his visit to Asyit in 1859. Pottery wares, which were likened to Samian or Arretine ware of the late Roman period, included water jars, basins, cups, vases and platters; they were glazed black or red. Certain local potters became famous. Mubarak tells, a delightful story about @ potter named alNagis who, like other famous potters, signed his name on the bottom of each completed pot. Since, when people turned them over to find the name of the artist, they believed that his pots were “defee” tive”, as his name implies, al-Nagis was persuaded to sign his pieces “al-Kamil” to suggest the perfect state of his craft and ots.” Pxrrong. leaner] govday local’ erefsmen turned out red and gray slippers, which had a wide market in the Sudan, and expensive red leather saddles, some of which were embroidered in gold. In 1853, they receiv- ed an order for 1,042 saddles from clients in Dar Far, an order so large that help had to be brought from Cairo. Horse blankets of imported Dutch velvet embroidered with gold arabesques were also made. Leather craftsmen also turned out leather flasks (zamazin), but waterskins, which Mubarak attributes to them, were probably imported from Dar Fir.” ‘The impact of tourism on local industry had predictable results. Particularly fine examples of local work disappeared from shops in the Qaysariyya, and in order to appeal to foreign tastes, potters started manufacturing candlesticks, tumblers and other European-style objets. The cumula- tive effect on local art traditions was disastrous. On the positive side, tourists seem to have encouraged the development of a local ivory carving industry, a craft which seems not to have existed prior to the 1850's, The developer was Ahmad Jum* Kuhayla of Asyit who founded a family of ivory carvers who in turn trained almost all the celebrated ivory-carvers in the Nile 19 Valley between Alexandria and Khartoum. By the end of the 1870's, foreign consular agents in Asyiit were handing out fly-whisks with ivory ornamental handles as souvenirs to passing tourists, and the Qaysariyya be- came noted for inlaid ivory chess, checker and backgammon boards, ivory cups and ostrich feather fans with ivory handles. ‘The Sudan Trade Despite the developed state of agri culture and industry, the fortunes of Asya in the mid-nineteenth century were clearly built on trade, and specifically on foreign trade with the sultanate of Dar Far. For several decades, roughly from 1845, when internal Egyptian trade began to open up, to roughly 1875, when the Egyptian con quest of Dar For brought the caravan trade from that kingdom to an end, Asyit found itself strategically located between two anxious markets: @ heavy demand for Sudanese goods in Europe, and an equally heavy demand for European goods in Dar Fur. Before the Sudan trade boomed, great merchant houses in Asyot engaged in a profitable trade with Cairo, based princip- ally on the exchange of agricultural and mineral staples, such as flax, hides, natron and opium, for imported textiles, manufac- tured products and other goods. At the moment, we are best acquainted with the trade of the Bayt al-Hilali and the Bayt alJawhari, whose account books and com- mercial papers detail these exchanges. There were other important houses in Asyat during the 1840's: the Bayt Salim, whose biography is given by Fayd Allah, and the Bayt Shanada, who according to family fable coughed up 25,000 piasters to pay the jizya tax levied on the Asyiit Coptic community during the governorship of Salim pasha ab-Silihdar. (Muhammad ‘Ali pasha was supposedly astonished that any Copt could be so rich.)* The account books120 JARCE XV (1978) indicate that the principal suppliers of textiles in Cairo were Greek, Italian and French firms—merchants. named Cassa- vetes, Mastorakis, Styleyanou, Costandi, Angelo, as well as others whose Arabicized names defy transliteration—and one or two Egyptian or Syrian firms, the most vortant being the Ikhwén Ubayd and the Abii Yissul Nasr AMG. Neither of these latter firms is yet identifiable, and yet it is, prmation that wealthy “native” ns existed at all in Cairo at this time.” The chicf articles brought from them were varieties of light muslin and heavier cotton stuffs known locally under the trade-names of magstra, bafia, kiniz, shash, walaya, malt, silavea, hamayiin, shit or Khim Most were probably manufactured in Man- chester, some in imitation of Indian stuffs, though it cannot be ruled out that they included direct imports from India. Car goes of textiles were shipped by their iro agents down to Asyut and were evaluated at between 20,000 and 240,000 piasters each, the richer cargoes apparently going to the Bayt al-Jawhari.” These goods were destined for both domestic and foreign consumption. The Bayt al-Jawh: and the Bayt al Hilal kept agents in Cairo for the purposes of expediting their busi- ness. ‘The alHilali agent was known as mukhtar tajjar al-Asayfa and sometimes as wail tuijar al-Asayta. He appears to have conducted affairs on behalf of a conglom- erate of merchants in Asyiit." ‘The Dar Fir trade of the 1840's and 1850's consisted of the usual Sudan staples: ivory, feathers, natron, camels, slaves, tamarind, gum, shishm and fouera root.” They were brought by caravans numbering be- tween 3,000 and 8,000 camels. Slaves numbered between 1,000 and 1,500, ac- cording to # report by the French consul in Cairo in 1852. An important part of the goods was owned by the sultan of Dar Fir and entrusted to his appointed agent and caravan leader, the Khabar. The al-Jawhari and «l-Hilali account books show they were dealing in all caravan commodities ‘as the government. permitted, including slaves, who were shipped by lots with agents to Cairo and markets in Upper Egypt. Though there was a slave market in Asyuf, Dar Fir merchants tended to hold them back until they reached Cairo, where the market was both steadier and more profitable.” In Asyil, transactions with caravan merchants were largely carried out by barter, after customs had been paid, but in the late 1840°s, the Par merchants began demand- ing payment in cash in order to have better control over the quality of goods purchased. This trade development caused serious difficulties, as will be seen.” The boom in Sudan goods in the mid 1840's was predicated on an intensified European demand for ivory, gum and, to a lesser extent, ostrich feathers. The boom might well have by-passed Asyit altogether if trade conditions in the Egyptian Sudan had been vaguely reasonable. Of all its monopolies, the government held on long- est o those affecting the products of the Egyptian Sudan, succumbing to European pressure only in 1850. Even then the condi- tions hardly improved. A report on the trade in the Sudan by a French official in 1851 noted the high cost and unreliability of transport, the length of time it took goods to be shipped overland from Khar- tou to Cairo (a letter took 50 days),” the insecurity of the roads due to occasional brigandage and the excruciating extortions that petty bureaucrats levied against Eure: pean traders at every stage of the journey.” All but the hardiest and most unscrupulous Europeans were kept out. In the light of such difficulties, the position of Asyat, with its accessibility and facilities, became all too aliractive, even though the market in Sudan goods was smaller than Khartoum’s. ‘The Dar Far response to European demand and improved trade conditions in Egypt was quick. Having all but closed herASYOV IN THE 1260°s (1844-53) frontiers to foreign trade with the Egyptian Sudan,” the dard al-arba'n remained the principal route for her commerce in north east Africa. Caravans which had only sporadically come to Asyit in the 1830's now began appearing every year. Exports of ivory, the country’s best-carning export item, jumped from 192 ewt. in 1845 to 577 ewt. in 1846, (0 1,027 cwt. in 1848 and 1,018 cwt. in 1850, maintaining thereafter an annual export of 1,000 kantars (or 1,190 ewt. Ivory alone was worth 1.4 million piasters in 1848 and 3.8 million in 1857. Feather exports that year were sold for 1.4 million and camels for 680,000 piust- ers. Within the context of the Sudan goods market at Asyit, the catalyzing agent proved to be the Greek trading houses in Alexandria which had come to dominate the Egyptian export trade (o Europe. For Asyiit the pivotal year was 1845 ot 1846, when the directors of these houses realized that the government monopolies as yet applied to exports from the Ezyptian Sudan did not extend to Sudanese goods brought to Egypt by caravans outside the frontiers of that region, The trade of Dar Fir, there fore, had’ become exempt from gover ment regulation. The prime motivator among the large Greek export-import houses seems to have been the firm of Alexander and Dimitrios Cassavetes, one of the five best capitalized firms in Alexandria, with offices in Cairo, London and Manchester. Heretofore they had concentrated on exporting Egyptian grains to Europe and on importing textiles, and in 1846 they had commissioned a Greek trader in Upper Egypt to pick up for them commercial quantities of beans, barley, flax and wool. Ivory and gum brought from Dar Fir escaped them that year, so in 1847 they commissioned their agent to buy up these items from the caravan that would arrive in Asyiit at the end of the year.” Trading into Upper Egypt presented, 121 nonetheless, problems for the Cassavetes Brigands appeared on the river from time to time, making river transportation peri- lous and the transport of currency especi- ally so. Indeed, river transport itself’ was often scarce. They had little faith in the postal service as a means of keeping in touch with their agents and were convinced that their letters were being opened and their instructions widely broadcasted. They were also. completely unfamiliar with market traditions in Asya regarding broke- rage, weighing, storage and the hire of local transport, and had no reliable allies there to count on.” In normal circumstances, trading firms could overcome the hazards of shipping currency between distant markets by tak- ing drafts on firms that had branches in both markets. The firm providing the credit nole received a commission for doing so. In Arabic, these notes were called Aaealat, and the al-Jawhari and al-Hilii account books show that the use of them was standard practice in the 1840's. (It is also clear they were continually shipping cur- rency between Cairo and Asyit, which suggests they had less to-fear from river brigands than did foreign merchants.) It was, therefore, to the Christian al-Jawhari that the Cassavetes turned in order to accommodate their cash needs in Asyit, The alJawhari gave them two notes during. 1848, for example, worth 300,000 piasters.” The fact that the Cassavetes had to resort to the Bayt alJawhari is doubly ironic, because not only were they darkly suspi- cious of Sa'idi motives, trustworthiness and business techniques—those stinking Sae- edis”, the Cassavetes’ Cairo agent had once written" —but also because they were their principal competitors for Sudan goods in the Asyat marketplace.” The Cassavetes decided that their best strategy was to take as much of the trade as possible, eliminating the possibility of sizeable quantities turning up in Cairo at122 JARCE XV (1978) a later date at far higher prices. In 1847 this concerned the ivory cargo expected from Dar Fur. Their operation in Asytt, which unfolded during the early months of 1848, was a complete fiasco, largely because their commissioned agent there, ‘one Dimitrios Filippidi, either refused to carry out or else blundered his way through the elaborately devious instruc tions he had been given, He succeeded nonetheless in getting hold of most of the ivory, but at the cost of £E 18 per kantar instead of £E 15. In any event, the C: vetes overall monopoly strategy became an accepted business practice in the 1850s, and as soon as it became known in Cairo that caravans from Dar Fir were approach: ing Asyi, foreign trading houses sent agents scurrying up to the river to begin negotiations.” The evidence now indicates that far from ousting the merchant houses of Asyiit, the caravan trade fell increasingly into their hands, and particularly into the hands of the Coptic houses. Though the Bayt Shania began styling itself “agents of the sultan of Dar Far,” the claim seems to have been exaggerated, because it is clear from the al-Jawhari papers that not only did the aljawharis have constant business with long-distance merchants from Dar Fir, continually extending them credit, but also that they were receiving financial backing from important Egyptian and Syrian merchants in Cairo. Nonetheless within the framework of the Sudan trade, the Muslim merchants of Asytt were some- what shunted aside." Conclusion ‘To return to the question of Asyat society, the impact of the Sucan trade ean be measured in terms of the numbers of great families that trace their ancestry back to a founding figure who lived during this period and who dealt in the tjdratal-qaeafi ‘Among Copts may be found the Shaniida, al-Jawhari and Magar, but also the Khayyat, Wisi, Ziqg, al“Abbasi, Tyas Ballip and Mugaddis Jirjis; among Muslims, the ab Hilali, Khashaba and Dussugt: in short, about half the prominent families of Asybt in the pre-1952 revolutionary period. ‘At the same time, the redistribution of wealth may never have become permanent, in 50 far as any social phenomenon in Egypt is permanent, if certain of the Coptic merchants had net seized upon an alliance with foreign interests to consolidate their position. The reasons they did so remains unclear, though they must have reflected in some way such considerations as finan~ cial advantage, social fear or frustration, political strategy, fear of military conscrip- tion. At the moment, i( appears that the henefits were first recognized by the Bayt al-Jawhari, for, in 1853, Khayr Dis al Jawhari, the brother of the head of the family firm and its agent in Cairo, replaced another brother as scribe at the French consulate. The position gave him status as a French protégé. In 1855, his nephew, ‘Abd al-Massih Shanada al-Jawhari, now head of the firm, became French consular agent in Asyit, a position that had just been created. His duties were to assist French tourists and expedite French trade interests in Upper Egypt, and, although the post was not remunerative, the appointinent gave him “all immunities, rights and privileges accompanying French protection.” The official document, which the alJawhart family has preserved, states that the French requested local civilian authorities to allow ‘Abd al Masih) to “trade without provoca- tion or to suffer any impediment which might be raised, and to accord him assis tance and protection in case of need.” He remained consular agent until his death in 1866 and was succeeded by his one-time scribe, agent and partner, Magar Dimyan, founding figure of the wealthy Magar family. Foreign protection bestowed immenseSame PRECAST TR ASYUTIN THE 1260's (1844-53) 123, advantages. It immunized protégés from local jurisdiction and provided them polit ical clout in Cairo. Christians were in the best position to curry favor among western embassies. By 1861, Wasif Jirjis Khayyst, founder of the Khayyat family, was appoint” ed American consular agent; in 1866, Magar Dimyan was installed as French agent; by 1868, Wisi Buqtur, founder of the Wisi family, was Spanish consular agent, and by 1889, consular agents for Germany, Great Britain and Russia had been appointed. Only one was Muslim.” The rewards of consular agency were ed in the period 1860-1880 and cannot be discussed here. Suffice it to say that it was at this time that Copts began moving into landownership on a grand scale, and the help they received from honorary for eign status can scarcely be underestimated Trade had provided the initial capital gains; the general relaxation of landownership rules and foreign protection pointed them in new commercial directions. New York City ‘Quoted in Mubammad Amin Fike, Jugeafyya Migr Cairo, 1878), 133; E. M. Sactain, Jal al Din al Suyte (Cambridge, 1975), 1, 14-18, *On population, Gabriel Baer, “Beginnings of Ushaniration™ in his Studie om the Social History of Moders Egypt (Chicago, 1969), table 2, 134-5; JG. Wilkinson, Modem Feypt and Thebes (London, 1834), I, 83; JA. Spencer, Egypt and ihe Holy Land, 4th ed. (New York, 1858), 162; D. Mackenzie Wallace, Haypt and te Fgypion Question (London, 1883), new inprint (New York, 1967), 42-4 Famed for lofty minarets”: William Heamont, To Sinai ad Syene and Back én 1860 and 1861 (Londom, 1871), 298; see alzo Francis L. Hawks, The Monuments af Bays or Egypt, A Winse for the Hibe with Nats on a Tryage Up the Sie by on Antercen (New York, 1850), part 2, 49:/ V.C. Smith, Pilgrimage lo Baypt Embrac nga Diary of Fploratins onthe Nils ee (hoston, 1852), 132; William C. Prime, Boat Lye in Egypt and Nubia (New York, 1858), 14 “George Melly, Khartoum, and the Blue and White ite (London, 1852), 1, 243. ? Hens Deherain, “Le commerce de Siout avec le Darfour avant le soulévement Mabdise” in his Eee sar UAfague (Paris, 1901), 68; Bayard Taylor, A Journey o Central Apica, or Life and Landscopes fom Egypt (New York, 1854), 83 “On walls Bayle St. John, Vilage Life in Eeyht Sketches fom the Said (London, 1852), 1, 99, Henry M, Fielding, Brom Feyptt Japan, 13th ed. (New York, 1877), 24; William Fusnins, Woraga, or, The Charms of the Nile (New York, 1850}, 104; on gardens a “wood ‘Alt Mubia, al-Klial a-taupigina (Cairo, 1888), XII, 105; Jollois and. Devallcrs, “Syout”, Desrption de VEgypte, Antiguis, I (Paris, 1818), St John, Il 89; Egypt, Ministry of Finance, Depa ment of the Survey, “1891 Map of Asyut"; on quarters, ‘Urhmin Fayd Allah, Tanith Madinat Aryit (syat, 1940), 52, 91-3; Mhibarak, IL, 104; Wilkinson, I, 84; on markets, St. John, Tl, 92; FW. Faiholl, Up the Nile and Home Again (London, 1662), 175; Mubarak, XII, 103; Ehot Warburton, The Crescent and the Crus (New York, 1845), 128~ ‘Amelia D. Edwards, A Thowand Miles Up the Nile {London, 1890), 101; bathhouses, Hawks, part 2, 4 St. John, 1, 92; G. A. Hoskins, A Winter in Upper land Lover Egypt London, 1863), L412; Taylor, 517; Fayd Allth, 09-70, 89: on mosques, Mubarak, XI, 104; Faye All, 92, 182; the date ofthe ‘Abd al ‘At morgue comes from the like of the mosque, seen in 1976; on churches, Spencer, 162 ("wo or Uee"), on schools, Mubarak, XI, 103-04; JD Heyworth Dunne, dn ncaduction the History of Pua tie Modera Egypt (London, 1989), 20, 21, 86, 185, 249, 292, 339,67, 371, 410 * Mubtrak, XIl, 104; Fri, 235-4; Charles Cuny, “Notice sur le Dar Four et sur les caravanes qui se rendent en Egypt et viceversa," Bull Soc Ging. Pris, fe serie, VIN (1854), 98, Charles Cuny, “Observa tions genérales sur le memoure sur le Soudan de aEscayrac de Lautore,” offprint (Paris, 1858), 26-75 oon medical services, Furniss, 110; Hippolyte Roy, Lave heroqueetromantiqu de Detar Chares Cy (Paris, 1930), 51-55; custome receipts stamped Diota reudiroyat ‘mam git and dated 1842 arc found in the abjJawhart Papers (hereafter JP), Bundle 1, Bi. The author i deeply indebted to Dr. Anmiya alfawhart of AsyOt for giving him access to these important papers Mubarak, XIl, 105, 112; Gabriel Baer, “The Village Shaykh” in his’ Std on the Social Listy of Modem Ezy, 38-42, on conscription, Melly, HI, 244-5, 147; Faisholt, 1, 170, St. Joho, Ul, 59-62; 4 Coptic funda is not mentioned by Mubarak, though Habib bey Shandda is described as such in {he biography of the Shanida family found in Rama Tadrus, al-Aglay fi yam al‘eshra (Caiso, 1911), 1, 7214 “On the sartyjar, see footnote below én the stHilsh family; interview with alti Abad Khashabs in Avyut, 1971, (Great Britain, Public Record Office), FO 141/138, Borg to Malet, 8 May 18KD, om the magib al ahraf, Fay Allah, 173-22 and 445 an early nineteenth century reference in found in the records of the religious con 3 in Cairo (hereafter MSA), hosted in the Maslabat abShahr al ‘Agi, Mahkoa al-Bab alvAii here alier WA), vol. $25, p. 92, no. 179 (1217/1802). om guilds and corporations, Amin Simi, Taycin of Mtl (Cairo, 1916-35), MM, past 1, 190. (1273/1856) FO 84179, no 128, enclosure A (dated 28 February 1HH19) and enclosure B, document 3 “The term sgjh (pi, with) is taken from Fayd Allah, 54, and is based on his biographical sketches, 172-200, "See Fayd Allah, biography ofthe ab-HiIS, Sahm and Khashaba families According to Dr. ‘Abbas cl Helaly of the University of Alexandria, (o whem the author wishes to express is gratitude. for 0ning him numerous interviews. and access to Ghe al-Hilah fnily papers, Mubasnmad_ Farghals altish owned 400 Teddans before his death i 1862. " Fayd All, 54 ©The al-Hilali family papers (hereafter HP), Aajatapila dated 1900, registered in the Mabkama AsyUls Fayd Allah, 181-3; TP, receipt dated 12547 1858, describing Muhammad Potaghalial-Viih 38 sana, documents from MSA: HA, vol. 279, P17, mo. 24 (1175/1762), Mabkama aMAskarlyya (hereafter Askar), vol no, 57 (1180/1760; Mubarak, X11, 104. "Fayd Allah, 179-80; (Ministry of Awqaf, Cairo), Sipil&t al-abliyya, Qadim series, vol. 23, nes. 1067 and 1062, pp. 134-14, dated 14 and 16 February 1881; JP, Account Book 1 (herenfter ABI), 4, entries dated 22 Safar 1260/1844, mentioning shipments of goods received in Asyat and Caite rom boat captains named Khashaba, “Interviews with former senator Jamil Fands, Cairo, 19735 Ds. Armiy& alJawhari, 1971 and 1976; Yasuf Habib Shaniida, 1971; Esther Fahim Wis, 1971; Fayd Allah, 172-200; Rama Tadrus, IIT, 69-81 (who doubted the al Jawhari family origin}, “Helen Anne B. Rivlin, The Agricultural Policy of Mubammad ‘Alt of Exypt (Cambridge, Mass., 1961), appendix 1, 253-64; Frangois Levernay, Guide phntrale d'Peypte(Alexania, 1868), 17 "On trading conditions, Ahmed Abdel-Rahman Mustafa, "The Breakdown of the Monopoly Systein in Egypt ufter 1840” in P.M. Holt, ed., Political and ‘Socal Change in Modern Egypt (London, 1968), 291-07; Wallace, 315-16; Melly, Il, 289; on land owned by Salim pasha, Gabriel Baer, A Jistory of Landowner JARGE XV (1978) ‘hip in Moder Beyps, 1000-1950 (London, 196%), 15; applications made to. him and other. provincial goveinors Tor grains, FO 84179, no. 128, docu rents and 15 (both dated 1817} “HP, aecount book, 14 Shabin 1265/1849, pM; on ‘Abd abLatif pasha (abo known os Latif isha), a popular figure among European tourist, Melly, H, 84, 261; Sim, II, 1, 12, 89, 123, L4ah 153, 155 (relative lo later appointments he held in Upper Exypt) "Wallace, 215-16. Jean Maspero and Gaston Wiet, Matoiaus four serra la gngrapie de 'Eeypt (Cai, 1918-10), 16, RUB. Serjeant, “Material for History of Islimic Textiles Up to the Mongol Conquest?” Ars lami, XIN-XIV (1948), 109, Edward W. Lane, Deserp tion of Fgypt, Notes and Views in Fgypt and Nuva dtoring the Years 1895-26-97-28, 8 vole, Batch Museum ADD 8080-88, Il, 11% Mubarak, XIN, 29; an the cotlon factory, G. B. Brocchi, Gira dele oreravens- (Bassan, Vit | 43) V, 7; James Webster, Trae through the Crimea, Takey and Fes, Pafored daring the Yous 1823-29) (Lamon, 1850), 11,131; Warburton, 128 *' Mubarak, XIl, 104; Delaporte, “Commerce dx Dariour avec TEgypte par. les carmvans gui, luaversan fe grand desert, srivent & Stout, capitate de la Haute Egypte,” in (Archives dy Minttere dles “Affaires Ettangeres, Pais). uereafter, AE), Correspondence commerciale, Te Caire, vel. 29, dated 5. August 1852, on indigo factory, Mubarak, XU, 104; Melly, I, 137; purchases of ale madrst are recorded in HP, 7, dated End of Raj 1265 June, 1849). Tn the early part of the twenticth Eentury, dyeing cemained the largest industry in Asyut: Norman Ablet, “Notes on the Industicy of Assn.” L'Bgypte contemporain (1910), 928. Names of famous local dyers wore reealled by Mr. Husayn Kubayl, in an interview in 1971. They vweve ‘Aun “Aww and ‘Am “Asham. *"Mubirak, XII, 104, Lane, “Description”, 1 116; Prime, 168," Edward, 100-01, Faihott, 1 1a * Cuny, “Notice”, 106; Ablett, 928; Edwards, 101, M.. M. Carey, Four Mndis in a Dakabich or Narrative of @ Water? Onise on the Nile (New York. 1863}, 20, Hoskins, 140. ™ Fikrs, 134; Charles Dudley Warnes, Aty Winer on the Nix Boston, 1876), 16%; E. Farman, Along the Nie: dn Account of the Vito Fee of Gon Ube Grant (New Yotk, 1908), 93 (vst in. 1878) According, t0 Mr. Husayn Rubayla, Abused Jum* was horn ea, 1825; the influence of the Kubayla Fanily of carvers on future generations wos borne ‘lexandsia and Khartoum, 1971-2ASYOT IN THE 1260's (1844-53) For this story, which is often repeated by Shanuda descendents, see Rami Tadrus, Il, 725 Faraj Sulaymin Fw'ad, Kanz al thamtn ayand abmasryyin (Cairo, 1917), 247, * Abu Yasuf Nasr Allah may be related to the “Abd al-Malik Nasr Allah mentioned by Webster during his visit to Asyti in 1826 as “one of the merchants who trade in articles from Abyssinia ...” (Il, 131}; as for the Ikhwan ‘Ubayd, a connection may lave existed with one “Raflé Abed”, listed among important merchants in Cairo by the French consul: (AE), Correspondence commerciale, Alex: andire, vol. 29, Delaporte au Ministre, dated 10 March 1851 "For instance, JP, ABI, 25, shipment of cloth worth 214,226 piasters (1259/1848). Only one of the aFHilsli family account books has heen ‘examined, and this view may well need revision, “Title given to ‘Ab Waliba in several court deeds registered in Cairo during the 1850's. Iti probable, however, that Muslim and Coptic merchants main tained separate mukktars in Cairo. The alJawhari agent was a brother, Khayr Dis al Jawhart. The most complete account of the Sudan trade in the early 1850's is Delaporte’s report, ‘Commerce du Darfour ....” drawn up on informa. tion given him by Coptic merchants. He uses the term feutra which is not yet identifiable, "The tem is employed in all Egyptian and European sources. According to R. S. O'Fahey, the historian of Dar Far, the correct title for the sultun’s agent ts Ahadim as-sujan; khabir was appar ently used by any merchant of wealth who traded ‘with Egypt (personal communication from Dr OFahey). See Felix Mengin, Liswire de UBuypte sous le gouvernement de Mohammed -Aly (Paris, V8), Ml, 423 However, in 1855, the sale of slaves was prohibited by the government, and the market in slaves in Asylt, though illegal, may have improved since the government could not control commerce in Upper Egypt as well as it did in Cairo, *Cuny, “Notice”, 104; see algo the author's Trade betoven Egypt and Bilad at-Sudan, 1700-1820 (Cairo, 1978), 59-61 °F. Bouola, LExypie e la gévgraphte (Cairo, 1889), annex C, 106. * Batissier, “Conimerce avee le Soudan,” enclo- ed in (AF) Correspondence commerciale, Alex andiie, vol 34, Le Moyne au Ministre 22 November 1851 * The route to the Egyptian Sudan, via al“Ubayd, the capital of Kordofan provinee, was apparently never sbandoned. * The British import statistics, which are perti: ‘neat because British markets absorbed almost all 129 Egyptian ivory exports, are found in (PRO) CUST. 5/34-73; feather import figures come from (AE} Correspondence commerciale, Le Caire, vol Delaporte au Walewski, 19 September 1857. On the Cassavetes, A. G. Politi, L'Hellonione et [Egypte moderne (Paris, 1930), Ml, 195, 198-99, Hercules Tachanokardis, Old und New Alesondria (in Greck) (Alexandria, 1927), 25; A. George Constantinides, The Peliotas in Egypt (in Greek) (Alexandria, 1936), 9-14; for five top firms,(AE) Correspondence commerciale, Le Caire, vol. 29, Le Moyne au Ministre 10 April 1851, an their long. negotiations over Dir Fir goods 1847 48, FO. 84179, no. 128, litigation Filippidi vx. Cassavetes, held in British consulate, Cairo. Cassavetes was a British protexé. *FO 8411/9, no. 129, Document 8, letter E5 documeat 3, letter C; on scarce river’ transport, Mustafa, 296; on periodic brigaudage, Yusuf Heke. yan, Papers, British Museum ADD 37448-97454, V, 35 ers, JP, ABI, entries 25 Ramadan 1259/1843, 4 Shawwal 1259, 15 Shawwsl, 21 DbivI-Qa'da, 22 Safar 1260/1844, ete; HP, AB, entry 13 Dhi-Oa'da 1265/1849. The amounts vary between 300 and 5000 piasters. ‘The sums are, of course, consider ably smaller than those the Cassavetes would have shipped. “FO 841/9, 10. 128, account submitted to British consul relative to the purchase of ivory in Asyit. The alJawhani account book for the year 1843 shows (wo Jawdla in Cassavetes’ name, each ‘worth 15,000 plasters: JP, ABI, 16 and 23. “FO B41/9, no. 128, document 8, letter Gy postscript added by E. A. Diamandidi in a letter to, Filippidh in Asya. The Cassavetes had heard that the Ikhwin “Ubayd wore instructing their correspondents. in Asylt, both the Bayt Shanda and Bayt al Jawhari, to “take most of the ivory”: sid, Document 8, letter M. ‘The ‘Ubayd similarly informed the al Jawhari of Cassavetes moves. See JP, letter to Shaniida and Khayr Dis al-Jawhari, 28 Shawwal 1266/1850, Cuny, “Notice”, 108-05; Reowe de Orit, nouvelle serie, IK (1855), 265-66; Levernay, Guide, 206. “Further research may show that during the reign of Khedive Ismail and the influence of Isma'l pasha Sadiq “al-Mufattish”, who camo from Asya, Muslim merchant interests were favored. Muliammad ‘AN Khashaba, for example, was said to have been a great friend of Isma'll pasha Sadiq (Fayd Allah, 178-80). “JP, letter signed by Sabatier, 24 February 1855; for Khayr Dis’ appoinument, JP, letter signed by126 Delaporte, 23 April 1853. According to French archival sources, the position of consular agent in Asjit was created in 1854: (AE), Correspondence commerciale, Alexandrie, vol 72, Roustan au Ministre, 6 January 1873, * (bid. JARCE XV (1978) “Levernay, Guide, 206; G. Polfandi, Indiateur Gooption adminstraif ot commercial (Alexandria, 1889), the earliest mention of Wasi Khaya} as American consular agent is found in (United States National Archives, Washington), Dispatches of U.S. Consuls in Alexandria, 185.73, microfilm, T 45, voll T 3, Thayer to Seward, Alexandria, 26 August 1861