“Remembering” Egypt’s Ottoman Past: Ottoman Consciousness in Egypt, 1841-1914 Dissertation Presented in the Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By Doğa Öztürk, M.A. Graduate Program in History The Ohio State University 2020 Dissertation Committee Prof. Carter V. Findley, Advisor Prof. Jane Hathaway Prof. Scott Levi Copyrighted by Doğa Öztürk 2020 Abstract Scholarship on modern Egyptian history supports a narrative that depicts Egypt emerging as an independent political entity in the mid-19th century and steadily marching towards becoming a sovereign nation-state in the first decades of the 20th century. The Ottoman cultural context, within which Egypt operated at this time, is usually nowhere to be found in this story. This dissertation remedies this gap in the literature and “remembers” Egypt’s Ottoman past between 1841, when Mehmed Ali Pasha was granted the hereditary governorship of Egypt, and 1914, when Egypt’s remaining political ties to the Ottoman Empire were severed by the British Empire. Primarily based on a variety of sources produced in Arabic and Ottoman Turkish, it argues that even though the political ties between Istanbul and Cairo were weakening and a more distinct Egyptian identity was on the rise at this time, the Ottoman cultural consciousness continued to provide an important framework for the ruling and intellectual elite of Egypt, as well as the wider segments of the Egyptian public, until World War I. Taking a thematic approach to the subject, the dissertation demonstrates how the Ottoman imperial court culture provided a blueprint for the ruling elite in Egypt. Moreover, it asserts that Arabic-speaking intellectuals of Egypt, both male and female, continued to self-identify as “Ottomans” in their reactions to some of the momentous events that the Ottoman Empire was facing at the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Additionally, it demonstrates how these Arabic-speaking intellectuals utilized the idea of Ottoman consciousness in their efforts to resist European imperialism, which became particularly urgent after Britain occupied Egypt in 1882. Finally, my dissertation asserts that wider segments of the public in Egypt continued to demonstrate a sense of Ottoman consciousness in their reactions to the aforementioned events that the Ottoman Empire was going through at the time. ii Dedication To my parents, “Ders çalışırken” bana her zaman destek oldukları için iii Acknowledgments One of the first sections that I usually read when I open a book is the “Acknowledgements.” I always take a strange pleasure in going over whom the writer thanked and whether there is anyone I know among the names that are listed. Right now, I am very glad that I reached a point where I have to write one myself. I must say that countless individuals played a role in helping me get where I am today and I apologize from the start if I cannot include every single one of them here. I will begin with my advisor, Prof. Carter V. Findley. Through his example and mentorship, Prof. Findley taught me how to be a true scholar. He always pushed me to produce the best work that I could put forth and showed me the importance of being diligent and rigorous in my writing. From the first moment that he agreed to take me on as a doctoral student, Prof. Findley continued to believe in me and made me realize that I had what it takes to do many things that I thought I was not capable of doing. He was always ready to assist me and provided support whenever I needed him. It goes without saying that this dissertation would not have been possible without his guidance. Prof. Jane Hathaway was the one who introduced me to the academic literature on Ottoman Egypt. The comments that she made on an early proposal for this project continued to provide me with guiding principles throughout the whole writing process. Her seminars taught me how to think about Islamic history as well as how to critically engage with primary sources. The conversations I had with her, whether in her office, at a Thanksgiving dinner, or through e- mail, gave me with the emotional support that enabled me to keep on going, especially at times when I was not really sure I could. It was also a pleasure to be her grader at numerous points in iv my career as a graduate assistant, where I learned a lot from her on how to be an effective teacher. Prof. Scott Levi was the one who taught me to think critically about the idea of “empire.” His emphasis on the necessary balance that had to exist between theory and empirical data was also something that I took from him and tried to integrate in my work as a scholar. In his role as the chair of the department, he was also very helpful in assisting me to navigate the bureaucratic processes of the school. The archival research on which this dissertation is based would not have been possible without the financial assistance that I received from a number of sources. The Adıvar Fellowship, provided by the Ohio State University Department of History, enabled me to visit numerous archives and manuscript libraries in Istanbul and London in the academic year of 2015-2016. Further research in London in the summers of 2017 and 2018, was made possible by the Graduate Student Research Grant from the Mershon Center for International Security Studies as well as the Sydney N. Fisher Memorial Award in Ottoman and Turkish Studies from the Ohio State University Department of History. I also want to extend my gratitude to the staff at the Prime Ministry Ottoman Archives in Istanbul and the British Library and the National British Archives in London, who provided me with valuable assistance in conducting my research. In addition to my committee members, a number of individuals contributed to a great extent to my intellectual and professional development as a scholar. Prof. Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu, whose Turks in Egypt and their Cultural Legacy provided the first impetus for this dissertation, was kind enough to meet me multiple times in Istanbul and discuss my project. He also read an earlier draft of the chapter on Kadriye Hüseyin and made very useful comments, for which I want to extend my gratitude. In my two sessions at Middlebury Arabic Summer School, in the v summers of 2013 and 2014, I was fortunate enough to work with Ustadha Hanan, Shahira Yacout, Immam Awad, and Yasser Mokhtar, who taught me the intricacies of Arabic grammar and provided me with the necessary skillset that enabled me to tackle complex texts in Arabic. At the Ottoman and Turkish Summer School in Cunda, Selim Kuru introduced me to the complex world of Ottoman paleography and was kind enough to discuss my project, which was at its very early stages at the time. Finally, Simon Waldman, my advisor at King’s College London, was the first person who pushed me towards doing archival research and who also taught me to “go the extra mile” and find my own voice in my work. Friends and colleagues from many parts of the world supported me throughout my career as a graduate student. During his time at Ohio State University, Saba Nasseri was a true friend, someone whom I consider myself lucky to have met. The conversations that we had, spanning a diverse set of topics, some academic and some not so academic, made my life in Columbus much more bearable. Yeliz Çavus was one of the best archival research buddies that I could ask for. She also provided me with the encouragement that I needed more times than I care to admit as well as letting me crash at her place when I needed somewhere to stay in Columbus in November 2019. Isacar Bolaños made it much easier for me to navigate the whole writing process and answered my incessant questions with the patience of a saint. Gülşah Torunoğlu shared her experiences with me regarding her research, introduced me to the archives in Istanbul, and gave me ideas on how to approach my own topic. Patrick Scharfe was my first housemate when I started the program at the Ohio State and I truly enjoyed his companionship and the late night talks that we had about pretty much everything. Johanna Sellman provided me with invaluable assistance in her role as the Middle East Librarian at the Ohio State University. The lunch and dinner breaks that I took with Jake Steinhart before I headed back to the library were always a vi pleasure. The same is also true for the talks that I had with Emre Demirocak. I am grateful to Catalina and Garrett Hunt for welcoming me to their home and keeping an eye on my stuff while I was away from Columbus. Friends from other parts of the United States, Ryan Rudat, James Sheehan, Brianna White-Gaynor, and Chisda Magid, and Oscar Aguirre-Mandujano also helped me one way or another during my graduate studies. Lastly, Alienor Chalot, in addition to assisting me with French translations, also always encouraged me to keep on going. At this point, I do not think I can find the adequate words to thank Onur Güven, Ulaş Öztürk, and Idil Yanmaz, whose apartment I more or less “invaded” for long stretches of time during my many (for them, probably too many) research and writing trips to London. I am grateful for their friendship and for the fact that they chose not to kick me out. It was always wonderful to hang out with Chris Bates and Ghazaleh Djafari-Marbini, two of my best friends from my Master’s program, whenever I was in town.