French occupation of Cairo was marked by the entry of Napoleon in Cairo in the year 1798. After the French invasion, the capital city had undergone several cultural and societal changes, which is till date evident in the modern city. Modern Cairo bears the touch of French middle class.
The French invasion of Cairo had connection with Napoleon's war against Britain. Napoleon had abandoned the idea of invading England, instead he thought by occupying Egypt he could cause substantial damage to the British trade. The trade route through Egypt was the fastest and the best trade route. He also thought that he could amass enough wealth and assets to bargain for any future peace settlement.
Napoleon with three hundred ships and with a brigade of forty thousand soldiers set out from Toulon to invade Egypt. The British caught up with the French soldiers and defeated the French fighting fleet, however Napoleon's sheep L'Orient missed the fighting and he entered Cairo through an alternative route on July 1798. Napoleon faced stiff resistance from the peasants and the town people. He occupied the brand
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new Mohammed Bey Elfi palace , and the defense mechanism of Cairo broke down completely.
Napoleon gradually built up a strong French military base in Cairo. He deftly manipulated the Sheikhs of Cairo and sought their cooperation. As a sign of submission, Napoleon ordered the citizens of Cairo to wear a certain badge and a hat. The people of Cairo exhibited hostile demonstrations and put up barricades in different parts of the city. He set up cannons in the citadel area and blindly fired in the area of Azhar and around it. The French soldiers went on a rampage in Cairo by demolishing mosques, small palaces and houses.
The French occupation of Cairo was not an unmixed blessing. The positive consequence of the French occupation was setting up of the Institut de l'Egypte. This was an educational and an intellectual center, which taught industry, science, mathematics, health, art and literature. This prestigious institute was set up in two houses in Nasriya, a part of Cairo. Cairo invasion by the French left an indelible mark in the culture and society of the people in Cairo.
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