Portuguese America and Southern Africa the Redux

[Viriato]

Poland and Lithuania

By the close of the 18th century, the Jagiellon dynasty had ruled over the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland in personal union for almost half a millennium, and making making them the most powerful ruling house of Eastern Europe. Like the other royal families in Europe, they had managed to increase their personal power in the years leading up to the 18th century at the expense of the church and the nobility. Having been limited by diets (sejms), since the 15th century, the last sejm was summoned by King Paweł I in Hrodna in 1685. Administratively, Poland and Lithuania remained separate states, but in 1689 this too ended, with the union of the crowns being proclaimed by the king. The new state was divided into palatinates (województwa) headed by a palatine appointed by the king.

The transformation of Poland-Lithuania into an absolute monarchy did have some positive effects on the state however, allowing it to resist the growing power of its neighbours. In 1715, instead of relying on special levies, the first regular taxation was raised to support an army, allowing the king to maintain a standing army, further securing his grip on power. This army allowed the king to put down the last Cossack raids in the 1730s, the raids by the Haidamaks in the East had been particularly devastating to the Kingdom. These had plagued Poland-Lithuania throughout the 17th century, and had made the Eastern frontier a lawless area. In addition, other measures at centralising the state were taken. A royal mint was established, along with a royal treasury. This culminated with the the abolition of all internal tariffs and duties in 1758.

An important step in expanding royal power involved the suppression of the power possessed by the nobility. Poland-Lithuania remained unique among the European states in that it possessed a large noble class, consisting of an estimated 1 million subjects known as "szlachta". Of these, fewer than 200 were great magnates, owning great estates and possessing much of the agricultural lands of the kingdom. Beginning in the 17th century, due to the influence from France, heads of the great houses were granted new hereditary titles to be passed down by primogeniture. The most important families, such as the Radziwiłł, Zamoyski, Potocki, and Lubomirski now vied for royal favour, in an attempt to gain power and prestige in royal court. In return, they were allowed to keep their great landed estates, where the corvee required serfs to work on averge 3 to 4 days out of the week. The petty nobles, whom were often impoverished, entered into the military, and as a result a Cadet School was founded in Krakow in 1765.

Another unique characteristic of Poland-Lithuania was its ethnically and religiously heterogeneous character. The state church remained the Roman Catholic Church, though in 1529-1540, the kings broke with the church in Rome, and recognised only the Avignon Papacy. During this period, church lands were confiscated by the crown, and in exchange the church hierarchy were granted salaries by the crown. Protestants were also welcomed as refugees, particularly from the Habsburg domains, many being skilled craftsmen. In 1590, a union of churches brought the Orthodox churches into full communion with the Catholic church in Poland. However, the formal acquisition of Moldavia in 1740 brought large numbers of Orthodox subjects under Jageillon rule. Finally, there were a small number of Armenian Christians, many of whom had made their way to the towns and cities of Poland and Lithuania, often becoming small merchants, usually peddlers. In addition, small numbers of Muslims remained in Yedisan, however these were soon supplanted by colonists from Great Poland and other areas of Europe, particularly Germany and to a lesser extent Scotland.

Poland-Lithuania also had the single largest Jewish population in Europe, with nearly 1 million Jews living in the kingdom by the mid-18th century. The Jews’ status was that of free subjects, and they enjoyed freedom of movement, the right to bear arms and to participate in defending the towns in which they lived, along with the right to own real estate. They had the right to elect a Great Rabbi and largely govern themselves, but were subject to royal courts. As a result, Jews were able to become quite prominent in the royal economy of Poland, not only as bankers and merchants, but also as tax and toll collectors, as administrators, and even as lessees of royal salt mines, on which the crown had a monopoly. By the 18th century however, the position of the Jews in society began to suffer due to the pressure by the Jesuits at court. The rights of Jews were curbed as they were now forced to live in ghettoes, and banned from certain professions. Protestants too suffered during this period, as their repudiation of the Catholic Church (under direct royal control) was seen as a sign of disloyalty to the king. As a result, the position of Protestants, many of whom had been welcomed two centuries earlier began to suffer, with some making their way into the Russian lands recently conquered from the Ottomans as settlers.

Economically, Poland and Lithuania remained a backwater, possessing very little of an industrial economy. Education remained backwards and literacy was among the lowest in Europe, with even half of all of the rich nobles being illiterate as late as the first half of the 18th century. The Jesuits did establish new colleges, but even here the curriculum relied on the teaching antiquated subjects such as the study of the saints lives. As a result the economy remained trapped in its mediaeval state, relying on the production and export of grain, timber and flax for linen to neighbouring states. The formally rich mines in Silesia stagnated, though salt retained a position of importance. Increasingly, manufactured goods came into Poland-Lithuania, such as cloth, primarily from Germany, England, and France. In addition, wine from France and silks and glassware from Italy found their way to the wealthiest households of the Kingdom. After the conquest of Prussia by the Dukes of Brandenburg in the 17th century, Poland-Lithuania was cutoff from the Baltic as the the Hohenzollerns sought to collect import duties on the transit of grain to Baltic. As a result, Polish-Lithuanian exports were rerouted to Scandinavia, further hurting the economy. However, by the 18th century, terms of trade improved and new measures were implemented to stimulate grain exports, particularly in the East, as a result this led to the building of of ports on the Black Sea after the acquisition of Yedisan in 1736.

Militarily, the union of Poland and Lithuania created a formidable state, raising an army of over 100,000 in the wars against Turkey. Particularly fearsome were the hussars, who had saved the Holy Roman Empire from defeat at the hands of the Turks in the 17th century. In addition, by the 18th century, Cossacks were recruited to fight on behalf of the King of Poland. Additionally, the creation of a small navy in the second half of the 18th century began in the Black Sea, with the goal of challenging the Ottomans. The first ships of the line joined the fleet in the 1770s. This was important as Russia's power was increasing as was that of Germany. However, Poland still remained weak in some other areas and it increasingly began to ally itself with France in an attempt to secure a powerful ally. This culminated in the Treaty of Fontainebleau in 1756, a defensive alliance between Poland and France, cemented by the marriage of Princess Catherine Jagiellon to the Dauphin of France, and of the marriage of King John of Poland to Madame Royale, Princess Marie-Thérèse d'Orléans.

The Royal Household Guard of Poland, based at the Royal Castle in Krakow.

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

Yah for update!!!!!!!!

 

[Archangel]

Keep it up, Viriato!

 

[Viriato]

The Death of Cosimo

In November 1781, Grand Duke Cosimo of Flornce died, having been the effective ruler of Portugal and leaving his widow, Empress Francisca alone to govern the Spanish Empire. With his death, the couple's eldest son Prince Ferdinand, sailed to Florence to assume the governance of the Grand Duchy, where he would remain for the next dozen years. Empress Francisca who cared little for affairs of state, preferred to remain in her palace at Mafra and entrusted the governance of the realm to Dom Martim Afonso de Sousa, Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon (1752-1801).

The cardinal was a conservative man, descended from the Sousa family, one of Portugal's oldest noble houses, and allied with oldest noble houses through marriage. His main goal became to secure the position of the church and the nobility, paying little attention to the domestic economy. The state budget relied almost exclusively on bullion imported from Africa and America. He favoured the large merchants, opening up the country to a flood of imports from northern Europe, often hurting small craftsmen. Manufactured textiles, particularly wool and silks began from England and Flanders began to flood the Spanish Empire. A trade treaty with England in 1788, allowed English textiles in the country nearly duty free, and in return wine and rum along with cotton from the Spanish colonies were now traded freely. This favoured English manufacturing, with manufactured goods now being re-exported to Spain's colonies. From Spain and its colonies, the English received lower value agricultural products. Lisbon therefore reverted to its traditional role as a re-export market of colonial goods.

What little manufacturing continued to exist, consisted of crown subsidised factories, making porcelain, lace and silk, cordage, though these were small when compared to the factories emerging in Northern Europe. Ironworks in Northern Spain continued, but with reduced production, as German iron from Silesia became cheaper. The ceramics industry around Lisbon was perhaps one of the few industries remaining competitive, as azulejo tiles form the Royal Factory Sant'Anna in Lisbon produced thousands of azulejos, or decorative tiles, which now adorned the interior and exterior of buildings in not only Spain, but in the colonies as well.

The great landowners, consisting of mostly noble families were favoured by the policies of the cardinal. These included the latifundia of Naples and Sicily where olive oil production dominated the economy, to the detriment of the production of foodstuffs. There the consolidation of land in the hands of a few, created a large peasant underclass. In other areas, such as the Douro River Valley, vineyards producing Port Wine for export to England dominated. In Castile, peasant tenants were evicted from lands as they were cleared as pasture for merino wool, which was exported to England and re-exported to Spain in the form of woollen textiles. Small landowners and peasants were increasingly landless or poor, with emigration becoming the only source of income for many.

The increasing landlessness coupled with a rapid expansion of the population in the second half of the 18th century, led to large scale emigration from Spain and Italy during this period. The crown continued to regulate emigration, preferring to send families to North Africa, hoping to Christianise the region definitively. Between 1760 and 1800, some 600,000 Spanish subjects were moved to North Africa, some of these involuntarily. However, many more continued to make their way to America and Nova Lusitania. A small number returned very wealthy, particularly those who became merchants, often encouraging others to do the same. Many more however, sent remittance from the New World, often allowing families in the small villages of Northern Spain in particular to gain much needed income.

Economically speaking, the fortunes of Spain were declining as gold production in Nova Lusitania peaked in 1792, then beginning a precipitous decline for the next century. As a result, by 1800 the gold in circulation had declined by 50% of what it had been in 1780. This coupled with declining prices for sugar and cotton, led to a fall in maritime traffic in Lisbon. Despite this, the expenditures of the crown continued to climb. A large standing army of occupation in Egypt was costly, in addition to the over expansion of the navy. As a result, the crown increasingly borrowed from Italian and Flemish banks to finance itself, expanding the deficit, so that by 1800 nearly one-third of the state budget went to servicing debts. This was not helped by the expanding bureaucracy, largely made of nobles, often appointed for their rank, rather than by merit. Prudently, the Cardinal pursued a policy of political neutrality in wars with Europe. Seeking royal alliances with France, England, and Germany, the House of Medici now avoided foreign entanglements. However, this would not be enough to stop the decline of the Spanish Empire.

 

[EMT]

How disappointing, Cosimo's work is going to waste

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

And just when I thought Portugal was going to go good.

 

[fluttersky]

Prince Ferdinand sailed to Florence to assume the governance of the Grand Duchy, where he would remain for the next dozen years.

"Dozen years"?

That seems to imply that, after twelve years of mismanagement by Dom Martin de Sousa, Prince Ferdinand will become Emperor and get everything on the right track again

We can hope.

A large standing army of occupation in Egypt was costly

implies Egypt is still mostly Muslim and liable to rebel? Interesting.

Well, the population of "Berberia and Egypt" circa 1750 is 4 million. 300,000 Christians were in Spanish North Africa in 1711; there were maybe around 300,000 Coptic Christians in Egypt at the time of the Spanish conquest; and per the latest update 600,000 Spaniards have settled in North Africa between 1760 and 1800.
In addition, there will be some converts from Islam to Christianity.

This is very much a guess but I'd predict that North Africa in ~1800 contains something like 2 million Christians and 3 million Muslims.

Given the cost of keeping the Egyptian Muslims under control, I wouldn't be surprised if, at some point, Spain orders them to choose between conversion to Chrisianity and exile. :/

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

When will Spain consider building the Suez Canal?

 

[Viriato]

THE DECLINE OF THE SPANISH EMPIRE

Throughout the 18th century, new competitors from Europe began to trade in the Indian Ocean, with the Dutch from Antwerp being the latest to establish an East India Company to trade with the Orient in 1764. By the close of the century the German East India Company had been able to cut out the Spanish middlemen from much of the lucrative trade in spices, tea, porcelains and textiles to Germany. This coupled with French cultivation of spices and other tropical crops in Madagascar and the Mascarenes would cause the value of sugar, vanilla, coffee, cloves and cotton to decline during the late 18th century. As a result of its decreasing dependence on Lisbon, the Estado da Índia morphed into an almost autonomous state within the empire. Though the Viceroys were still appointed by Lisbon, they were often forced to bow to the pressures of important military commanders, particularly in the Bengal, who ran their military districts as personal fiefdoms. Goa increasingly sought to control trade within the Indian Ocean and obtain revenues from exporting goods such as opium and calicoes to the East Indies and Africa. To further increase revenue, Goa also placed more efforts on territorial conquest, hoping to extract wealth by annexing or at least controlling vassals on the Indian subcontinent. However, these actions would lead to series of ongoing wars in India, not only with local rulers, but also with other European powers, and would leave little revenue from the Indies to flow into Lisbon's coffers.

In America, the over-reliance on the use of African slaves in agriculture and mining led to a series of violent slave revolts, particularly in the West Indies where African slaves outnumbered Europeans, sometimes at a ratio of 20:1. These revolts, were brutally suppressed, often at a great economic cost. Despite the revolts, the numbers of slaves being imported continued to increase, with numbers reaching 200,000 per annum during the 1780s. However, it was not only the Africans whom were revolting, but increasingly marginalised Indians, particularly in the mines of Peru, with long-lasting revolts in the highlands, leading to the another costly war against the indigenous peoples. In other areas, particularly as settlement expanded across North America with Europeans moving westward, Indians were being expelled from lands and rounded up into slavery. The reliance of America's economy on slaves was so evident that a Lisbon writer from the period wrote in 1786 that "In America, a white man would rather live in poverty than work".

In West Africa, the Spanish increasingly built new trading factories, stretching from Arguim to Biafra in an attempt to satisfy America's appetite for slave labour, as the human commerce was one of the most profitable enterprises in the Empire. There Spanish traders acquired large numbers of Africans from local rulers in return for other goods, particularly cotton cloth from India along with tobacco and rum. Nova Lusitania, which was also hungry for slave labour, primarily as the decline in gold output coupled with an expanding European population led settlers in search of new lands further north. Agriculture regained importance, and the focus on the cultivation of sugar, cotton, cacao, maize and tobacco, created a need to import larger numbers of slaves from the north to now depopulated areas. This also would lead to ongoing violence, particularly north of the Rovuma in East Africa, where refugees from the south would create considerable resistance for the Spanish settlers.

At home, the attempts to modernise the Spanish economy were inadequate, with most Spain along with the holdings in Italy stagnating in relation to Northern Europe. As peasants found themselves with little economic prospects, the only option seemed to be emigration to the empire. Meanwhile, others began joining the army or navy, often being sent to fight against the revolting Moors in North Africa. Though Egypt had become the recently acquired jewel in the empire, but much of the Muslim population had fled southwards, establishing a hostile state in Nubia, driving many of the Christians from that region to Ethiopia. As a result a large army of occupation had to be permanently stationed to protect Egypt, along with Berberia which itself was subject to raids from the Sahara, led by the Moroccans.

The elite of the empire, embodied a lifestyle which intellectuals saw as the ultimate symbol of Spain's decadence. Living in opulent palaces, and estates, the upper nobility benefited the most from the riches of the overseas empire. Many nobles began undertaking grand tours of Italy and increasingly of Egypt as well, giving rise to an early version of luxury tourism. They marveled at Roman ruins and the Pyramids of the Nile, meanwhile oblivious to the problems of the empire. Unwilling to pay taxes, they allowed the burden to fall upon the poor. To alleviate their poverty, the poor in Spain, and in the colonies soon enlisted in increasing numbers in the armed forces, however having such a massive standing army became a bureaucratic nightmare and increasingly difficult to finance. Attempts at reform too only increased the number of state monopolies and as a result, the state bureaucracy.

 

[bookmark95]

Nice update Viritao.


Is chattel slavery going to last longer than OTL? Is there going to be a political revolution in Spanish America?

 

[Viriato]

Gold Rush in California

During the first half of the 18th century, the Spanish presence in Pacific Coast of North America consisted of nothing more than a few forts, with scattered Dominican missions to convert the Indians. West of the of the Grande Deserto (Great Plains), European settlements remained sparse and the territory remained the final frontier as it was dominated by nomadic Indian tribes. This had begun to change as settlement began increasing northward along the Pacific Coast. Basques in particular began to establish large ranches in the territory, and by 1790, perhaps some 30,000 Basques lived West of the Rio Grande (Mississippi River). Additionally, settlement from the heartlands of Nova Hespanha began to increase, albeit in very small numbers, with many being degredados.

Fearing Russian expansion in America, the Spanish Crown had begun sending settlers from the Azores, so as to establish a permanent presence along the Pacific Coast, with the first contingent arriving in 1776. By 1790, the Azoreans and their descendants numbered some 14,000, with the majority hailing mostly from the islands of Terceira and Faial. They settled along the coast, but some had also established settlements inland, particularly in the fertile Vale de São Joaquim. Numbering perhaps fewer than thousand, the Azorean settlers there had begun to build small canals to irrigate the lands in the valley, establishing farms to grow grains, fruits and vegetables. The area would remain an isolated backwater until 1798, however, when in the spring of that year, a farmer named Joaquim Cordeiro discovered gold near the Rio Cumayo (American River). The isolation meant that news only reached the reached the Captain at São Francisco, Dom Francisco de Vasconcellos e Souza. Within months, the settlers began abandoning their farms to head towards the Serra Nevada in search of gold. A year later, a contingent of soldiers arrived from Santa Cruz to establish crown control over the mining, as the crown was to collect one-fifth of the gold mined in the region.

Like in previous discoveries in other regions of the empire, news of the discovery of gold reached Spain, and led to a rush of immigrants wanting to join in the new found wealth. Though the initial gold miners arrived from the larger Spanish settlements on the Pacific Coast to the South, others made their way overland as well. From further away came Europeans and men Eastern America. Many made the arduous journey via the Panama Isthmus, risking malaria, yellow fever and cholera. Others came by sea around the Southern tip of America, through the Estreito de Magalhães (Magellan Strait). The increase in traffic through this route led to the establishment of a penal colony at Cabo d'Areia (Punta Arenas) in 1798. Within five years of the discovery of gold, São Francisco grew into a port of 40,000 inhabitants, and Sacramento to 20,000. California itself began attracting settlers from Spain, Italy and even Australia, and by 1810, the population had grown to 300,000. Though the European population of the territory grew, the population of Indians was reduced from 300,000 to fewer than 60,000 by 1815 as the indigenous inhabitants were increasingly driven off their land in the search for gold. The gold did have a positive effect on Spain's finances as some 370 tonnes of gold were mined during the first decade of the gold rush, allowing the Spanish Treasury to enjoy a short-lived surfeit, something which had not occurred in decades. Additionally, the gold rush led to a stronger Spanish military and naval presence in the North Pacific, and as a result a string of new forts were built along the coast, including Santa Cruz da Quadra, established by João Francisco d'Adega e Quadra, Captain General of Peru on Ilha Quadra (Vancouver Island) in 1796.

Dom Francisco de Vasconcellos e Souza, Captain of São Francisco and after 1802, first Captain-General of California

 

[CarlAlbertForPresident]

Very interesting as always.

El Deserto Grande or El Gran Deserto sound more grammatical than Grande Deserto, although Desierto would be Spanish - is the Spanish in this timeline supposed to be closer to Portugues? You may have explained before, but I forget

 

[Viriato]

Very interesting as always.

El Deserto Grande or El Gran Deserto sound more grammatical than Grande Deserto, although Desierto would be Spanish - is the Spanish in this timeline supposed to be closer to Portugues? You may have explained before, but I forget

In this timeline Portugal is the head of the Kingdom of Spain, and Portuguese remains the lingua franca of the overseas empire rather than Castilian. Castilian remains the administrative language of Castile and Leon.

 

[Viriato]

Born on 21 May of 1767 (making her a Gemini), Paola di Medici was the eldest daughter of Cosimo III of Tuscany's nephew, Prince Lorenzo of Tuscany, Duke of Guastalla (1743-1788) and Anne Marie d'Orléans (1747-1768). After the death of her mother, the young princess she was raised by her maternal-grandmother, Luisa of Saxony (1721-1788), dowager Duchess of Orléans. The Dowager Duchess came to Florence to prepare her for marriage, providing her with a mother figure which she lacked. For a young princess, she was given a very unconventional upbringing, and though she was schooled in Italian, French, and Spanish, she was given a large amount of freedom in relaxed atmosphere of the Villa Cora, located a short distance from the Pitti Palace. He grandmother, was not strict and spoiled her vivacious granddaughters with upbringing largely free from protocol and formality. Paola grew into a beautiful young woman, attracting the attention of the most prominent men of Florence.

In 1781, Paola's older cousin, Prince Ferdinand, Prince Imperial of Spain, along with this wife, Elisabeth of Saxe-Hilburghausen came to live in Florence. Upon the death of Paola's grandmother, the couple assumed responsibility for finding a suitable match for the young princess. Though they had hoped to find her a Spanish Duke, the 17 year old Paola fell in love with Infante Luiz, Prince of Viseu (b1757), her first cousin once removed, and the ambitious young princess sought to marry him. The Infante Luiz was ten years older and much more serious in personality and was soon taken in by the charms of Paola. With the approval of the Empress, the two were married in Lisbon in 1785. Taking up residence in the Palácio de Porto Côvo in Lisbon and at Queluz Palace in the summer, the young princess soon became the leader of Lisbon society, throwing elegant balls which attracted the leading artists and intellectuals of Europe. The Infanta became one of the most fashionable women in Europe, and soon overshadowed her sister-in-law the empress. The young couple was very much in love and unlike many aristocrats enjoyed a happy marriage, giving birth to their first child, Afonso in 1787, followed by a daughter, Francisca in 1788 and two more sons, Miguel in 1791 Estêvão in 1792.

The Palácio de Porto Côvo, home of Infante Dom Luíz and Paola in Lisbon.

Jealous of her sister-in-law's popularity, Empress Elisabeth convinced her husband to have the couple sent to Naples, where Luiz would serve as his Viceroy, and preside over the Consiglio d'Italia, thus making him responsible for overseeing the governance of Spain's Italian territories. In 1795, the arrived Naples, taking up residence in the Royal Palace of Portici. However, their arrival was followed by tragedy, as Prince Miguel died of typhus. Young Miguel had been the favourite child, and his death came as a great blow to the couple. The once loving couple soon became distant as Infante Luiz buried himself in work and sought increasingly distant from his wife. He spent much of his time touring the Spanish-ruled lands of Italy. Infanta Paola often did not see her husband for weeks, and as a result began having an affair with a twenty-four year old officer in the Viceregal household, Donato di Spinelli. Upon finding the two in bed, Luíz exiled her from Naples, offering her a lavish settlement of 3 million cruzados on the condition that she leave without her children, as he considered her an unfit mother.

Portrait of Paola di Medici c1796

Unbeknown to Infante Luiz, Paola was pregnant with his child. Embittered, Paola went to Switzerland, where she would give birth to a young girl, named Anna in November 1796, and leaving her in the care of her cousin, Thérèse, the widowed Duchess of Montpensier. She would keep the child a secret from Luiz for years, and refused to acknowledge his paternity over Anna. After having the child, she spent time in Venice, engaging in the scandalous social atmosphere of the Serene Republic, with various lovers making herself the talk of Europe. In February 1797, she returned to her native Florence, establishing her residence at the Villa Cora. Making herself the queen of Tuscan society, she would attract people from all over Europe to her social functions. It would at one of these where she would meet a young Corsican colonel, Napoleone di Buonaparte, changing the course of European history.

Villa Cora, just outside of Florence.

 

[Viriato]

By 1790, Egypt had been under the rule of the Spanish Empire for nearly half a century, but the occupation had been anything but pacific. The Spanish had hoped that they would now control the trade routes between the Mediterranean and Indian Oceans, but this was to prove to be a much more difficult task than originally anticipated. One major accomplishment however, had been the rebuilding of Alexandria. It had been transformed from a backwater of 4,000 to a major port of 60,000 inhabitants, attracting immigrants from Italy and Greece, and it replaced Cairo the seat of the Spanish Viceroy in 1784. Throughout he rest of the country, the benefits were less widespread. Under Spanish rule, taxes were levied from the merchants and artisans, mostly by Syrian Tax Collectors. Mamluk properties were confiscated, as were those of anyone who rebelled, often being distributed to absentee European landlords. A new land registry was formed, as taxes were levied on rural and urban properties. The new policies caused frequent rebellions, and large scale migration out of Egypt, particularly to Ottoman ruled lands in Anatolia, while others migrated to Nubia, and later Nejd raiding not only Egypt, but Ethiopia as well.


Economically, the collapse of the Eyalet had led to an abolition of the former trade monopolies, destroying many of the local merchants. In their place, new Greek and Armenian merchants, tied to the Spanish trading companies took their place. The local economy was further affected by famines and epidemics. In 1784, a major famine swept Egypt, and this was followed the next year by an epidemic, killing one-fifth of the population. Due to the brutal occupation, coupled with famines and successive epidemics, and migration the population declined from 5 million at the beginning of the century, to barely 1.5 million. Of these, one-third were Christians with 300,000 of them being Copts, many of whom, due to their knowledge of Egyptian Arabic were used by the new administration to watch over the Muslim population. Around 150,000 were Catholics, a mix of Italians, Levantines and Spanish, with the rest being Greek and with a small number of Armenians. The majority of the population however remained Muslim, and had been reduced to a status of second-class citizens, banned from the army and forced to live in separate quarters and wear distinctive clothing. In a reversal of status, they were now only allowed to ride mules, rather than horses. Before Spanish rule, only Muslims could ride horses, and this was just one of the many humiliations heaped upon a vanquished people. However, some would seek revenge, and would be aided by events taking place across the Red Sea in Arabia.

In a small Oasis town of Nejd, a Muslim preacher and scholar named Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahhab was born around 1700, he would create a movement aiming to purify Islam, restoring the da'wa or true monotheistic worship. This revivalist movement rejected practises which had become so prevalent in certain sects of Islam, such as praying to saints, making pilgrimages to tombs and special mosques. In 1744, a local ruler, Muhammad ibn Saud made a pact with Wahhab, whereby he would protect and propagate the doctrines of the Wahhabi mission, while ibn Abdul Wahhab would support Saud, giving him glory and power. As a result, the movement grew, and declared jihad against neighbouring tribes, whose practices, he believed to be the work of idolaters. According to his teachings, they were not Muslims, and as a result, fair game for plunder and even murder. Wahhab claimed those who participated in such practises were not just misguided or committing a sin, but were not Islamic. The attraction to the fundamentalist Islamic movement grew, and from Saud's base in Diriyah, Wahhabism spread across Arabia. They would attack the Ottomans, Shia and Bedouins and others as non-believers. The death of Muhammad bin Saud in 1765, led his son and successor, Abdul-Aziz bin Muhammad taking power. Even more zealous than his father, Abdul-Aziz would pursue his campaign of conquest with more fervour. Non-believers were given the option to "convert or die", leading to his small emirate controlling a huge part of Arabia by 1790. Wahhabism had filled the power vacuum left by the Ottomans, and their conquests continued, taking control of Al-Hasa, and threatening Mesopotamia, when they reached the mashes of the Euphrates in 1780. Until then, the Spanish had shown little concern about the Saudis, however, the attacks on Mesopotamia threatened Spain's position as the leading European trading power in the Mesopotamia and Persia.

Fearing the fall of Basra, the centuries old Spanish factory and convent were evacuated to Coveite (Kuwait) in 1793, however, the Pasha of Basra was able to defeat the Saud in 1795. Perhaps more significant was the capture of Medina in 1792, and the following year of Mecca by Saud. The Ottoman attempts to stem the tide of Wahhabism were hampered by the weak control over Arabia, weakened further by the Anglo-Spanish conquest of Egypt and Syria. The Spanish government initially responded by increasing their fortifications on Persian Gulf and sending aid to the Pasha of Baghdad and Basra, even establishing a permanent mission in Baghdad, making Mesopotamia in effect a military protectorate of the Spanish empire. They were however unable to stop the Saudi attack on Karbala in 1801 where thousands of Shia were killed. Additionally, in the Red Sea, Saudi control over Mecca and Medina had spread Wahhabism to Nubia among the Muslim refugees from Egypt. It was also enhanced by those fleeing from English-ruled Syria. The criticism of the Ottoman Caliphate and the call for Jihad appealed to those who wished revenge on the "Franks" (Christians) and the Ottomans.

Beginning in 1793, the Saudi began sending armies to Nubia, taking over Sennar and Darfur, and threatened Ethiopia. With control over Jeddah, attacks on the Egyptian Red Sea ports, most often hit and run plundering became commonplace. As a result, an increasingly large Spanish army was required to defend the territory. In 1796, the Wahhabist forces invaded Egypt from Nubia, reaching Qena and laying waste to much of Southern Egypt. With the situation increasingly dire, the Spanish government responded by sending a 34,000 man army to Egypt in February 1797, among them was Colonel Napoleone di Buonaparte.

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

Oh dear this can only end in a bloodbath.

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

I was wondering how come Portugal didn't colonize Madagascar before France could have a chance?

 

[dirtyjapaneseman]

sorry for necro but i was wondering, is this still being updated? i hope so, i like it so far.

 

[Viriato]

Born in 1769 to a family of minor nobility on the island of Corsica, Napoleone di Buonaparte came from a large family, that was not rich, but possessed enough affluence to have the children sent to school in Spain. For many of the petty nobility sending younger sons to service in the military and navy, or to a religious order was the only way in which they could acquire wealth and prestige. Napoleone's parents, felt there was little future for their sons on Corsica and by sending them to be educated in Spain they would have a greater opportunities. Napoleone's father, Carlo Buonaparte, served as Attorney General of the Kingdom of Corsica in 1776, and was later posted as a representative of Corsica to the Emperor in Lisbon. Awed by the grandeur of the city, it would be during this time that Carlo sought to have his sons educated in Spain, rather than Italy. The ongoing wars of pacification in North Africa were particularly beneficial int he promotion of men through feats of military valour. With much of army of Egypt originating from the Spanish holdings in Italy, the war had become a means to acquire wealth and title for mercenaries. In Lisbon, Carlo obtained a scholarship for his sons to study in Spain's military academies. At the age of 10, Napoleone was sent to the Aula Militar d'Elvas, a military academy for young boys where he did well in his studies. At the age of 15 he was promoted to the premiere military academy, the Academia Militar da Corte in Lisbon. He spoke with an Italian accent, and was considered a loner as he was not as wealthy as his classmates, many of whom were sons of some of the most prestigious families in Spain.

In 1786, Buonaparte was commissioned as second-lieutenant in the 1st Artillery Regiment. Ambitious and intelligent, he was able to achieve the rank of Captain by 1788. With the ongoing wars in Egypt, Buonaparte was sent to inspect the coastal fortification in North Africa in 1792, and would see his first combat action in Egypt two years later, achieving the rank of Colonel by 1796. Despite these successes however, there often was a limit to promotions as the top ranks were reserved for the upper nobility. This led Napoleone to resent the social system, particularly the corruption and nepotism which he saw in Corsica. He saw the aristocratic leadership of Spain as causing the ongoing decay of the Spanish Empire. This contrasted with his studies of the glories of the Roman Empire, and particularly the central role in which it placed Italy. Idealistic and ambitious, he dreamt of separating Italy from the Spanish Crown. He was not alone as many began seeing the Spanish Crown as milking Italy's wealth and offering little in return. His publications on the history of Italy made him well known in the social circles of intellectuals, and he was welcomed into the salotti of Florence, where well known hostesses entertained writers and artists. Among the most prominent was Princess Paola. Eschewed from formal society, she surrounded herself with artists and people whom she considered interesting, rather than other aristocrats. On a leave of absence to Florence in 1797, the gauche young Colonel's personality led him to become acquainted with Princess Paola at one of her infamous soirees in Florence. There he became intoxicated and in his memoirs wrote that from that moment on, he was love with the princess. She thought of as a short and odd looking man, but she found him amusing. With the ongoing disturbances in North Africa, he departed for Egypt a few days later and sent her letters from his military campaigns.

With the worsening military situation in Southern Egypt, Napoleone was among the army of various regiments sent to fight in Nubia. However, by the time the troops reached Cairo, the Wahhabi Army had made spectacular advances and were close to Cairo. The young Colonel was given the task was to shore up the fortifications around the city as the Wahhabi laid siege to Cairo, during the spring of 1797. During the battles in the outskirts much of the Spanish Army had been captured or killed, including its commander, the Marquez of Bonanza whom was mortally wounded at the Battle of the Pyramids in May 1797. As a result, morale sank and the Spanish forces were in disarray, retreating towards the sea. The city of Cairo was in a state of panic, with the disease and famine killing many within the city walls. Colonel Buonaparte was surrounded by incompetent officers and sought permission from the leading General, the Count of Barantes, to organise the defences. He imposed strict discipline on the city's populace and through his skill as a skilled orator was able to raise morale of the Spanish forces. Meanwhile, he planned an attack on the Wahhabi that would route them from the city. To prepare for his offensive, he had the city walls reinforced and mustered as much artillery fire as he could to attack the Wahhabi forces. On 7 May 1797, the Wahhabi breached the city walls and were not only repulsed, but faced an onslaught of artillery, piercing their army in two. Buonaparte had armed many of the city's civilians, and drilling them constantly to make them a formidable fighting force. Combined with the conventional army, he used artillery and the remaining cavalry to swiftly attack the Wahhabi forces. Once the battle had been won, he organised an force to chase the Wahhabi, inflicting a severe defeat on 14 May 1797 near the old Babylon Fortress. For his heroism, Napoleone would be awarded the Order of the Tower and the Sword, along with the Order of Saint James, and would be promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. Throughout 1797 and 1798, Napoleone would gain prestige as a tactical genius, using his knowledge of artillery to pursue the Wahhabi Forces out of Egypt and Nubia, though the remnants of this menace would not be defeated in Africa until 1803, when they were defeated in Arabia.

 

[TickTock The Witch's Dead]

You made the short Napoleon joke for the sake of it didn't you?

Anyways what's Egypt like under Spanish rule? Are the Spanish supporting the Coptic Christians at the expense of the Muslims?