Mehmed Ali’s army was a personal, dynastic force rather than a national one.

Evidence

It would be erroneous therefore to argue that when the Pasha decided to officially ask for independence from the Ottoman Empire in May 1838 he was acting on behalf of the Egyptian population and expressing their sentiments, sentiments that made them see themselves as different and distinct from other subjects of the Ottoman Sultan. What prompted the Pasha to make this bold move, rather, was his desire to secure his efforts in Egypt to his family and his sons after him. As John Campbell, the British Consul-General in 1838, said “he cannot… ever permit all [the] establishments [that he founded in Egypt over thirty years] to revert to the Porte and be lost at his death, and that he should have the pang of feeling that all his labours should merely have been for the Porte which would allow them to go to ruin, whilst his own family and children would be exposed to want and perhaps even to be put to death.” These were the reasons he put to the British government for his asking for independence from the Ottoman Empire. There is nothing here or elsewhere in the contemporary documents to show that he had any illusions about the nature of his struggle with the Sultan. That struggle was a dynastic one and it was conceived of as such by him and his contemporaries. — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 1551 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Albanian troops resisted discipline because they regarded Mehmed Ali as first among equals; A soldier who killed his own rebel father earned promotion from Mehmed Ali; Family connections swayed Mehmed Ali’s military personnel decisions (+13 more)

Related

• Mehmed Ali’s wars against the Sultan were dynastic, not national (similarity 0.93)
• Mehmed Ali’s quest for independence was a dynastic struggle, not nationalist. (similarity 0.91)
• Mehmed Ali’s rule over Egypt resembled feudal lordship between Sultan and subjects. (similarity 0.90)
• Mehmed Ali’s army founded Egyptian nationalism through control practices, not enlightenment. (similarity 0.88)
• Mehmed Ali and his officials thought of themselves as Ottomans, not Egyptians. (similarity 0.88)
• Ibrahim Pasha saw his campaigns as fought for his father’s dynasty, not Egypt. (similarity 0.87)
• Mehmed Ali sought a personal empire, not Egyptian independence. (similarity 0.87)
• Egypt’s army in Mehmed Ali’s era was not a national force. (similarity 0.87)
• Mehmed Ali governed Egypt as a personal fief under a feudal overlord relationship (similarity 0.86)
• Mehmed Ali’s 1838 bid for independence served his family, not the Egyptian nation (similarity 0.86)
• Nepotism was essential, not aberrant, in Mehmed Ali’s army (similarity 0.86)
• Officers in Mehmed Ali’s army behaved as mercenaries loyal to pay, not national identity (similarity 0.85)
• Mehmed Ali created a provincial power center rivaling Istanbul itself (similarity 0.85)
• Mehmed Ali’s wars were dynastic struggles within the Ottoman Empire, not nationalist campaigns (similarity 0.85)
• Mehmed Ali’s wars aimed at dynastic ambition, not Egyptian national liberation. (similarity 0.85)

Broader Connections

• Mehmed Ali’s wars against the Sultan were dynastic, not national #corroborates (0.90)
• Mehmed Ali’s quest for independence was a dynastic struggle, not nationalist. #corroborates (0.90)
• Mehmed Ali sought a personal empire, not Egyptian independence. #corroborates (0.85) — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 1551
• Mehmed Ali’s wars may be internal Ottoman power struggles rather than nationalist bids #corroborates (0.85) — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 199
• Mehmed Ali governed Egypt as a personal fief under a feudal overlord relationship #corroborates (0.75) — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 1550
• Mehmed Ali’s army founded Egyptian nationalism through control practices, not enlightenment. #complicates (0.70)
• Mehmed Ali and his officials thought of themselves as Ottomans, not Egyptians. #corroborates (0.70)
• Officers in Mehmed Ali’s army behaved as mercenaries loyal to pay, not national identity #corroborates (0.65)
• Mehmed Ali engineered a senior officer corps deliberately loyal to himself #corroborates (0.60)