Egypt’s debts became the doorway through which Western financiers and then its politicians assumed control. Western authority over Egypt was established in 1878 when two European commissioners were appointed to the cabinet – the British commissioner became the finance minister, while the French official became the public works minister. When Khedive Ismail attempted to dismiss these two a year later, the Western powers arranged his own removal by the Ottoman sultan and the appointment of his more accommodative son, Tawfiq. This reflected the shift in the balance of power in favour of the West
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