of Peace. None can fail to be interested
in the latest campaign in this Land of Armageddon.

To understand the causes and events that led up to the campaign in
Palestine of 1917-1918, we must first summarize, as shortly as possible,
the modern history of Egypt. That country had for many centuries formed
an integral part of the Turkish Empire. But she had been rapidly
slipping from the grasp of the Turk. Early in the nineteenth century
Mohamed Ali had effectually thrown off the Turkish yoke. True, the
Turkish suzerainty remained; but that authority was little more than
nominal and was represented by an annual money tribute paid to the Porte
by the Khedive out of the revenues of Egypt.

Both France and England had large financial interests in Egypt,
especially after the construction of the Suez Canal, which was opened
for traffic in 1869.

The Suez Canal, in fact, became of vital importance to Great Britain. By
a stroke of policy the British Government acquired the shares of the
almost bankrupt Khedive, Ismail Pasha, and thus had a holding in the
company worth several million pounds. But far more important to Britain
was the position of the Canal as the great artery of the British Empire,
the most vulnerable point on the short sea route to India. Thus Britain
became directly concerned in the affairs of Egypt, in its internal
administration to secure peace within, and in its military defence to
secure the country in general, and the Canal zone in particular, from
invasion by a foreign enemy.

But the affairs of Egypt were in a most unsatisfactory condition. The
army was wholly unreliable, and extravagance in high places had brought
the exchequer to the verge of bankruptcy. In 1882 matters reached a
crisis. A revolution broke out, headed by Arabi Pasha, and the situation
looked desperate. Joint naval and military action by Britain and France
was proposed, but the French ships sailed away and left Britain with a
free hand. The British fleet bombarded the Forts at Alexandria and a
military force, based on the Suez Canal, was landed at Ismailia. This
force completely defeated the army of Arabi Pasha at Tel-el-Kebir, put
down the rebellion, and restored the government of the then Khedive,
Tewfik Pasha. But the Khedivial government had been unable to cope with
the rebellion single-handed; it had only been restored to power by
British arms; it could not hope to retain that power unless continuously
backed by the power of Bri