Illuminated petition addressed to Rustum Efendi, commander of Jeddah, requesting permission for James Edward Alexander (1803-1885) to travel overland through Egypt.

ALEXANDER, James Edward (1803-1885).

Edité par 12 Rajab 25th February 1826., 1241

Arabic manuscript (43.5 x 24 cm), on gold-sprinkled paper decorated with rows of diamond lozenges in gold leaf, one line salutation at head (written diagonally), Rustum Efendi identified as 'hakim bandar Jiddah' (commander of the port of Jeddah) in salutation at head of letter and on envelope, inscription in English to envelope and additional label (attached via red wax seal and cord to green silk document bag) reading 'Haji Rustum Affundee, Judge, Magistrate & Commander of the Forces at Judda'. Provenance: From the library of Sir James Edward Alexander. This document represents the attempt of a young British army officer to return from India to England through the Egyptian heartlands of renegade Ottoman governor Muhammad Ali Pasha and his territories on the Arabian side of the Red Sea, recently acquired during the Ottoman-Wahhabi War. The year 1826 was one of revolution in the Ottoman Empire. In a dramatic turn of events over two days in June, Sultan Mahmud II outmanoeuvred and liquidated the powerful janissary corps, who had become an intolerable burden on the functioning of the state and a barrier to the modernisation of the Ottoman army. The Ottomans were at that point managing to contain the Greek rebellion which had begun in 1821, thanks to the mobilisation in 1825 of Muhammad Ali Pasha's new European-style conscript army. It was Muhammad Ali Pasha's success that emboldened Mahmud II to move against the janissaries, but also convinced the European powers of the necessity of uniting against Ottoman and Egyptian forces. James Edward Alexander had joined the army of the East India Company in 1820, and served in the First Anglo-Burma War. After the end of hostilities in 1825 he intended to return to England via Egypt, and had these documents drawn up in preparation, but was stymied by the infrequency of available ships, as he recalled in his first book: 'It had been my original intention to proceed homeward through Egypt; but finding, on my arrival at Bombay, that no vessel would sail for the Red Sea probably for six months, I was obliged to abandon this project, and had now no alternative … but to travel overland through Persia and Russia. It was proposed to me to attach myself to the mission of Colonel Macdonald, who had just sailed for Persia (Travels from India to England, 1827, p. 73). The letter, written in Arabic and following the conventions of Islamic petitions, seeks permission for Alexander to travel overland (bi-tariq al-barr) through Egypt and thence to England. Alexander is referred to in the third person by the scribe, who draws attention both to Alexander's non-Muslim status as one of the Afranj (Franks, i.e. Europeans), but also to his high rank in India. The letter mentions that Alexander comes from the taraf (literally 'side', but possibly 'staff') of 'Burr' or 'Barr', 'gentleman of Calcutta, a Company general' (sahib Kalkuta, sar'askar Kumbani), which is possibly a reference to Lieutenant-General Edward Burr (1749-1828) of the Madras establishment. It further mentions that Alexander shall be 'under your gaze, shadow and protection, and no one shall say that with him shall be any followers (or a flock), soldiers or Bedu' (yakun nazarukum 'alayhi fa-huwa tahta zillikum wa himayatikum … ahad la yaqul lahu shay min al-ri'aya wa-min al-'asakir wa'l-badu). Had Alexander succeeded in travelling through Egypt rather than Persia, these letters would have presumably been handed to their recipients and their survival rendered unlikely. It is tempting to speculate on the future of Alexander's career had he obtained an audience with Muhammad Ali Pasha, whose transformation of the Ottoman army in Egypt into a modern fighting force relied on a cadre of European advisors. N° de réf. du vendeur 65959

Détails bibliographiques

Titre : Illuminated petition addressed to Rustum ...
Éditeur : 12 Rajab 25th February 1826.
Date d'édition : 1241