Battle of Tel el-Kebir
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| Battle of Tel el-Kebir | |||||||
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| Part of Anglo-Egyptian War | |||||||
 Photograph of HMS Alexandra |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Great Britain | Egypt | ||||||
| Commanders | |||||||
| Garnet Wolseley | Ahmed Urabi, Mahmoud Fehmy | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 18,500 troops 70 guns |
15,000 troops 60 guns |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 537 killed 342 wounded 68 missing |
1,396 killed 681 wounded |
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The Battle of Tel el-Kebir or el-Tal el-Kebir was between the Egyptian army led by Ahmed Urabi and the British military. After discontented Egyptian officers under Urabi rebelled in 1882, Great Britain reacted to protect its financial and expansionist interests in the country, and in particular the Suez Canal.
Contents |
[edit] Prologue
[edit] Bombardment and invasion of Alexandria
On May 20, a combined Anglo-French fleet arrived at Alexandria. At the same time, Egyptian troops were reinforcing the coastal defences of the city in anticipation of an attack. These events heightened tension in Alexandria, and eventually triggered a riot in the city between Egyptians and foreigners, in which more than a hundred were killed. The British commanders thought, wrongly, that Urabi and his supporters caused this riot.
As a result, an ultimatum was sent to Urabi's officers in Alexandria to dismantle their coast defence batteries. The Egyptian government refused. Meanwhile, tension increased between Britain and France, and the French refused to support this ultimatum and decided against armed intervention.
When the ultimatum was ignored, Admiral Seymour gave the order for the British fleet to bombard the Egyptian gun emplacements in Alexandria. On July 11 at 7:00 am, the first shell was fired at Fort Adda by the HMS Alexandria and by 7:10, the entire fleet was engaged. The coastal defences returned fire soon after, sinking at least two ships[citation needed] and damaging others. On July 13, a large British naval force landed in the city. Despite heavy resistance from the garrison for several hours, the overwhelming British forces eventually forced the Egyptian troops to withdraw from the city.
[edit] Pre-battle attacks
Lieutenant General Garnet Wolseley was placed in charge of a large force with the aim of destroying Urabi's regime and restoring the nominal authority of the Khedive Tawfiq. The total force was 24000 British troops, which concentrated in Malta and Cyprus, and a force of 7000 Indian troops which staged through Aden.
Wolseley first tried to reach Cairo directly from Alexandria. Urabi deployed his troops at Kafr-el-Dawwar between Cairo and Alexandria and prepared very substantial defences. There, attacks by British troops were repelled for five weeks.
[edit] Securing the canal
Wolseley now decided to approach Cairo from a different route. He resolved to attack from the Suez canal. Urabi knew that Wolseley's only other approch to Cairo was from the canal, and he wanted to block the canal. Ferdinand de Lesseps, upon knowing of Urabi's intentions, assured him the British would never risk damaging the canal, and would avoid involving it in operations at all costs. Urabi listened to his advice and did not block the canal, leaving it open for an invasion by British forces. As a result, Wolseley's forces were able to quickly secure the canal. Two armies, one from Britain and the other from India landed in the canal. Over 40 warships were involved in the operation. By September 6, the canal was securely in British hands.
[edit] Egyptian attack at Kassassin
Urabi attempted to recapture the canal when he attacked the British forces near Kassassin on September 10. The British troops were caught by surprise, as they did not expect an attack. Fighting was intense, and there were heavy losses on the British side. Fortunately for Wolseley, fresh reinforcements arrived, including the 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's) and the Highland Brigade , and these forced the Egyptian troops, who were tired and weary of the fighting to retreat.
[edit] The battle
Urabi redeployed to defend Cairo against Wolseley. His main force dug in at Tel el-Kebir, north of the railway and the Sweetwater Canal, both of which linked Cairo to Ismailia on the canal. The defences were hastily prepared as there was little time to arrange them. Urabi's forces possessed 60 pieces of artillery and breech loading rifles.
Wolseley began his advance from Ismailia on September 12, with two infantry divisions and a cavalry brigade. Rather than make an outflanking movement around Urabi's entrenchments, which would involve a long march through waterless desert, or undertake formal bombardment and assault, he planned to approach the position by night and attack frontally at dawn, hoping to achieve surprise.
The approach march was made easier because the desert east of Kassassin was almost flat and unobstructed, making it look like a gigantic parade ground. Even though there were repeated halts to maintain dressing and alignment, the British troops reached the Egyptian position at the time Wolseley intended.
At 5.45 a.m. Wolseley's troops were barely three hundred yards from the entrenchments and dawn was just breaking, when Egyptian sentries saw them and fired. The first shots were followed by several volleys from the entrenchments. British troops, led by the Highland Brigade on the left flank and the Guards Brigade on the right flank, charged with the bayonet.
The resulting battle was over in an hour. Most of the Egyptian soldiers were tired from having stood to all night. Because of the haste with which Urabi's forces had prepared their defences, there were no obstacles in front of them to disrupt the attackers. Several groups stood and fought, mainly the sudanese troops in the front of the Highland Brigade, but those not overwhelmed in the first rush were forced to retreat. British cavalry pursued towards Cairo, which was undefended.
[edit] Aftermath
Urabi had retreated in the battle, and with no organised forces left to him, he and his National Party's officials surrendered to the cavalry. He was sentenced to death, but was later exiled to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Wolseley and his senior officers arrived in Cairo by train the next day. Khedive Tawfiq was formally reinstated twelve days later. The guarantees and concessions made by Tawfiq marked the start of the British military occupation of Egypt, which was to last until 1956.
[edit] Sources
- The Scramble for Africa, Edward Pakenham, Abacus, 1992, ISBN 0-349-10449-2
- Tel el Kebir 1882, Donald Featherstone, Osprey Publishing, ISBN 1-85532-333-8
