SUEZ CANAL: The Project That Intrigued Pharaohs, Kings, Generals, and Even Caused Several Wars

The Suez Canal is a 163 km long artificial waterway that connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, and also separates the African continent from Asia. It provides the shortest sea route between Europe and countries of South East Asia, cutting travel time by more than 7,000 km!

Before the construction of this canal, ships travelling from Europe to South East Asia had to make the long and dangerous trip around the Cape of Good Hope – the southernmost tip of Africa.

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Located in Egypt, it extends from the Mediterranean port city of Said to the Red Sea Port of Tewfik in the city of Suez, and was opened on November 17, 1869. But before this grand opening that saw Napoleon III and his wife Eugenie in attendance, a lot of drama would unfold. 

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Idea For the Suez Canal Is Born

It is believed that efforts to build a canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas actually started with Pharaoh Senusret (1897-1839 BC) who abandoned it because the sea was higher than the land, and later by Pharaoh Necho (c. 600 BC) who never completed the project. Following in their footsteps were Darius I of Persia and General Ptolemy (one of the 4 Generals of Alexander The Great) whose dominions at one time included Egypt.

The first modern attempt would later come in 1798 when Napoleon Bonaparte conducted studies for the canal’s plan. But his scouts incorrectly concluded that the Red Sea was higher than the Mediterranean and that any attempt to create a canal would result in catastrophic flooding, terminating its construction. But in 1854, Ferdinand de Lesseps, a French civil engineer and ambassador to Cairo, convinced the Ottoman governor of Egypt, Said Pasha to support the building of a canal.

Design and Construction Begins

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The Suez Canal Company was then formed in 1856, and tasked with the design of the Suez Canal. Construction began in April 1859, with the company granted the right to operate the canal for 99 years after completion of the work, after which the Egyptian government would take over control. 

In 1875, Great Britain became the largest shareholder in the Suez Canal Company when it bought the shares of the Ottoman government in the canal, and would have exclusive rights to the canal even after Egypt got her independence from Britain in 1922. But following World War II, Egypt reclaimed control of the canal by declaring it a national asset in a bid to charge tolls for the construction of the Aswan dam.

The Wars That Changed Everything

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In what became known as the Suez Crisis, the combined forces of Britain, France and Israel launched an attack on Egypt in October 1956 after Egypt denied use of the canal to Israel and all the ships trading with Israel. They succeeded in advancing close to the canal, but later withdrew following condemnation from the United States and the Soviet Union, thus leaving the Suez Canal to Egyptian control who later reopened it to commercial shipping in March 1957.

Following the face-off between Egypt and Israel in June 1967 during the Six-Day War which resulted in the entrapment of 15 ships in the canal for eight full years, a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel was signed in 1979 to allow all ships (including Israeli ships) again have access to the waterway.

Quick Facts

1. In 1962, Egypt made its final payments for the canal to its original owners (the Universal Suez Ship Canal Company), taking full control of the Suez Canal. 
2. The canal is owned and maintained by the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) of Egypt, and under the Convention of Constantinople, it may be used in time of war as in time of peace, by every vessel of commerce or of war, without distinction of flag.
3. Most of the Suez Canal is not wide enough for two ships to pass side by side. Hence, there is one shipping lane and several passing bays where ships can wait for others to pass.
4. The Suez Canal has no locks because the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea’s Gulf of Suez have approximately the same water level, and it takes around 11 to 16 hours to pass through the canal. Also, ships must travel at a low speed to prevent erosion of the canal’s banks by the ships’ waves.
5. The Suez Canal is one of the world’s most important waterways as it supports 8% of the world’s shipping traffic, with an average of 50 ships passing through the canal daily, carrying more than 300 million tons of goods a year.
6. On August 6 2015, construction was completed on the expansion and widening of the canal to double its capacity from 49 to 97 ships a day.

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