In its 150 years of operations, the Suez Canal has been through wars and high-stakes power struggles as it imposed itself as a vital international waterway.
On the anniversary of its lavish opening ceremony on November 17, 1869, here is a look back at key dates in its history.
As far back as the 19th century BC, a canal existed between the Red Sea and a section of the Nile River which links to the Mediterranean.
Dug out during the reign of Pharaoh Sesostris III, it could only be navigated during the wet season and required regular dredging. It was eventually abandoned in the eighth century AD.
From the 16th century, various plans were explored to build a navigable waterway between the Mediterranean and Red Sea, essentially providing a shortcut between Europe and Asia.
In a breakthrough in 1854, French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps persuaded the new Egyptian ruler, Said Pasha, to grant him a concession to construct a canal from the Red Sea's Gulf of Suez to the Mediterranean.
De Lesseps founded the Suez Canal Company in 1855 and the work was financed through the sale of shares, half of which were bought by the Egyptian ruler.
Digging began in 1859, at first by labourers using picks and shovels, and later with steam- and coal-powered machinery. It involved about 60,000 workers.
The canal was opened on November 17, 1869 in a grandiose ceremony at Port Said attended by European dignitaries including Napoleon III's wife, Empress Eugenie de Montijo.
In November 1875 an indebted Said Pasha sold his shares to the British government, with French shareholders retaining the rest.
Amid tussles for control, major powers signed in 1888 the Constantinople Convention that gave the waterway international status and open to all ships in times of war and peace. Egypt was not a signatory.
The provision was not always respected, including during the two World Wars.
On July 26, 1956 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser took the world by surprise by nationalising the canal to help finance construction of the Aswan Dam on the Nile.
It sparked the Suez Crisis in which Britain, France and Israel - who feared the vital waterway could be cut off - colluded to attack Egypt.
Israel invaded the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula in October; two days later French and British air raids destroyed part of Egypt's air force.
Nasser retaliated in November by sinking all 40 ships in the canal, which was closed until early 1957.
As the tensions soared, Britain and then France ceded, and fighting abruptly ended after 10 days.
The canal was reopened on March 29, 1957 under Egyptian control.
Egypt closed it again in June 1967 during the Six-Day War when Israeli troops invaded Egypt's Sinai Peninsula and reached the east bank of the canal.
It remained closed during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when Egyptian forces crossed the canal in a bid to retake the Sinai. The Israeli army repelled the attack with a counter-crossing.
The war ended with a UN-backed ceasefire.
Talks resulted in a military disengagement deal in January 1974 that saw Israeli forces pull back from the canal, which returned to Egyptian control.
After 15 months of demining work, it reopened to international shipping on June 5, 1975.
music from
------------------------------
Road Trip by Pyrosion / pyrosion Creative Commons - Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported - CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: bit.ly/2OuJU08 Music promoted by Audio Library • Road Trip - Pyrosion (... ------------------------------
****Queries solved******************
-How to do a Suez canal transit
-what is the importance of Suez canal
-Merchant navy officers and crew detailed explanation
-How much money required to pass Suez canal
-why Suez canal was blocked
-who owns Suez canal
-who made Suez canal
-what are the dimensions of Suez canal
-How to visit suez canal
-What are the jobs of a chief officer
-How do we enter into en enclosed space
-Why merchant navy life is difficult
-Who make more money in merchant navy
-How to join merchant navy
-what are the benefits of joining merchant navy
-what are the disadvantages of merchant navy
**What is discussed in my channel**
Ship related videos in Malayalam
Ship engine videos in Malayalam
Ship accidents videos in Malayalam
Ship accident in Suez canal in Malayalam
Ship storm accident in Malayalam
Abandon ship in Malayalam
Ship emergency videos in Malayalam
Ship Fire videos in Malayalam
Malayalam Kappithan Stories
Travel stories by Mallu kappithan
Merchant navy life
Merchant navy issues
Merchant navy entry procedures
Merchant navy jobs and procedures
Merchant navy scams and job issues
Daily life of merchant navy
advantages of merchant navy
disadvantages of merchant Navy
#suezcanal
#bigship
#canaltransit
#kappithan
#malayalamshipvideos
#merchantnavy
#shipvideos
#cargoship
#cargoatsea
#Containers
#mallusailor
#chaseyourdreams
#shipvidoes
#kappithan
************************************
10 сен 2024
