A Few Considerations on the First Egyptian Crisis and its Consequences on the Foreign Policy of the Great Powers (1833-1839)
A Few Considerations on the First Egyptian Crisis and its Consequences on the Foreign Policy of the Great Powers (1833-1839)

Summary/Abstract: In this study we analyze not the actual facts of the first Egyptian crisis or the manner in which it was concluded but rather the impact that the Treaty signed at Unkiar Skelessi, on 8 July 1833, had on the foreign policy of the Great Powers. This Treaty placed Russia as a chief guarantor and protector of the Ottoman Empire, allowing it to intervene in any crisis in that empire and provided for the closure of the straits to the warships of the only Powers capable of rapid intervention in the Near East. The increasing Russian influence in the Balkans alerted Great Britain, France, and Austria, which adapted their foreign policy to the new realities, towards combating the threat of Russian expansionism. Between 1833 and 1839, the relations between Britain and Russia were very important in the evolution of the Eastern Question, their rivalry in the Near East extended to Muslim khanates of Central Asia, where they struggled for commercial, political, and strategic advantage, influencing the European policy.

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