Page 8 - MARRIOTT BUZZ NO. 3 - 2015

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New districts blossomed: Ismailia
(which the Khedive was not too shy
to name after himself), Tawfikia,
Abdeen, Midan al Opera, Gezirah
and Giza.
The Khedive furthered the
development of Gezirah by
commissioning a bridge, today
known as Kasr-el-Nil to cross the
Nile. Between 1869 and 1871 French
engineers strung a narrow iron
causeway across the river from just
south of Princess Nazli’s Palace to
the uninhabited island then known
as Boulac, much to the annoyance
of ferry and felucca owners!
A PASSION FOR PALACES
Like the Pharaohs who lived
thousands of years before him, the
Khedive was fond of palaces. The
most famous today, of course, is the
Gezirah Palace, centerpiece of the
Cairo Marriott Hotel and built for the
opening of the Suez Canal in 1869.
He built palaces for his wives
and concubines, Kasr al-Nil, Kasr
al-Dubara and Kasr al-Ismailia.
Meanwhile, a daughter-in-law
lived in Kasr al-Walda Pasha. Many
others include Bulaq Palace in
Giza; Mena House overlooking
the Pyramids; the former royal
residence of Abdeen Palace
and Helwan Palace. He also
commissioned Zaafarana Palace,
now in the grounds of Ain Shams
University; Al Quba presidential
palace, Ras El-Tin (‘Cape Fig’)
Palace in Alexandria and the Amir
Khan Palace in Istanbul.
ENDORSER OF
AGRICULTURE AND
INDUSTRY
Apart from his extravagant need
for palaces, Ismail also diverted
state funds to developing Egypt’s
agriculture and industry. He
created three or four government
manufacturing facilities for
railway workshops, a paper
factory in Bulaq employing 220
people, two weaving mills and 17
sugar factories. Brick production
was made more effective by
“MY COUNTRY IS NO
LONGER IN AFRICA;
WE ARE NOW PART OF
EUROPE.”
KHEDIVE ISMAIL
PASHA, 1879
H I S T O R Y
Agricultural land, significantly developed in the days of Khedive Ismail
Egyptian Railways, first established by Khedive Ismail