El Mahmoudia ( ar, المحمودية, ) is an Egyptian city on the connection point between the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...
and
Mahmoudiyah canal
Mahmoudia Canal ( ''Agathos Daimon'' or ''Megas potamos'') is a sub-canal from the Nile River which starts at the Nile-port of Mahmoudia and goes through Alexandria to the Mediterranean Sea. It was built to supply Alexandria with food and fres ...
. It's a city with a history despite its modernity. It was one of the most important trade ports on the
Nile River
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...
. Trading ships traveling from
Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt ( ar, صعيد مصر ', shortened to , , locally: ; ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the lands on both sides of the Nile that extend upriver from Lower Egypt in the north to Nubia in the south.
In ancient ...
and
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, ...
to
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
passed through its
lock
Lock(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
*Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance
*Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lock ...
and up the
Mahmoudiyah Canal
Mahmoudia Canal ( ''Agathos Daimon'' or ''Megas potamos'') is a sub-canal from the Nile River which starts at the Nile-port of Mahmoudia and goes through Alexandria to the Mediterranean Sea. It was built to supply Alexandria with food and fres ...
. Also trading ships from
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
carried imported merchandises to
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
passing by it.
Special location
The city's special location made it a major trade center in the region. As ships stopped in its natural mooring in the Nile the city had a major activity in markets.
History
Mahmoudiyah was built over Al-Atf () village, which was called Balhib (, ) in
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
,
and it was a police station belonging to the Rashid Center. It is distinguished by its great mosque that was built during the reign of Muhammad Ali. And it was named after Mahmoudiyah after the name of Sultan Mahmoud Khan in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
. Egypt was a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, at which time
Muhammad Ali Pasha
Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha, also known as Muhammad Ali of Egypt and the Sudan ( sq, Mehmet Ali Pasha, ar, محمد علي باشا, ; ota, محمد علی پاشا المسعود بن آغا; ; 4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849), was ...
was the governor in Egypt.
Its name is associated with the name of a nearby canal, and the city is characterized by a hydraulic system of locks, whose waters patch the boats from the Nile and lower them from the canal to the level of the Nile. The city was surrounded by water, especially in the south. It was branching from the Mahmudiyah Canal, the Rashidiyya Canal, which used to supply Rashid and Idku with water for drinking and irrigation.
Modern
The city of Mahmoudiya was occupied by garrisons, like other strategic cities during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The British garrison consisted of
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
,
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
,
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
soldiers. The city was a strategic site and target for the Germans in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Because the city is located at the mouth of the Mahmoudiyah Canal, which was a waterway to transport goods and the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
weaponry from
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
to
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
to enter boats to the Nile.
In December 1916, the people were celebrating the wedding of a native couple, and they were marching in a procession, carrying lamps and torches, and they were shouting. The garrison's leader thought it was a rebellion so he ordered the garrison to attack the residents. Fighting between the locals and the garrison took place, which prompted the garrison commander to ask the town’s leaders to negotiate with them. The mayor of the city, Darwish al-Wailili, headed a delegation and met with the garrison commander and asked him to apologize to the people for this attack.
In the 1919 revolution, the people of Mahmudiya smashed the Delta Railroad tracks and set the main station on fire.
On July 11, 1942 and during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Mahmoudiyah received thousands of displaced people who were spared the horrors of bombing and bombs from
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Kafr el-Dawar Kafr may refer to:
* A Levantine Arabic term for village
* Kafir, an Arabic term for an infidel
* Kafr, Iran, a village
See also
*
* Kafir (disambiguation)
* Al-Kafr
Al-Kafr ( ar, الكفر, also spelled ''al-Kefr'') is a village in as-Suway ...
, Khorshid, and al-Baida. It was providing them with shelter and food, even though in World War II, the Al-Atf power station was used to generate electricity for Lower Egypt and the Ahmouda Canal canal, which connects drinking water to Alexandria, Abu Homs, and
Kafr al-Dawwar Kafr may refer to:
* A Levantine Arabic term for village
* Kafir, an Arabic term for an infidel
* Kafr, Iran, a village
See also
*
* Kafir (disambiguation)
* Al-Kafr
Al-Kafr ( ar, الكفر, also spelled ''al-Kefr'') is a village in as-Suway ...
, were strategic targets of
Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...
's planes.
Geography
River and sea-going craft along this coast were sometimes exposed to rough water. As a result boats were often crowded along the canal opening by the intensity of the commercial traffic on the coast by the island of Ful Al-Madina. The city therefore promoted commercial and navigational agencies to govern water traffic especially during the First and Second World Wars.
Mahmoudiyah Center was famous for the cultivation of rice and cotton transported through the Mahmoudiyah Canal to be exported to Europe. This city was one of the major commercial cities in Lower Egypt for its unique geographical location. The Nile to its north was as wide as a natural harbor, and to its east is the mouth of the Mahmoudiyah Canal. In addition, there is a pump station to raise the Nile water to the canal that supplies several cities in the West Delta, including Alexandria.
Climate
Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as
hot desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one ...
(BWh), but due to its closeness to the
northern coast of Egypt
The Northern Coast of Egypt ( ar, الساحل الشمالي, "'", North Coast, commonly shortened to "'", "The Coast" or "The Egyptian Coast") extends for about along the Mediterranean Sea, it covers entirely the northern territory of Egypt. ...
, its temperatures are moderated by the
prevailing winds
In meteorology, prevailing wind in a region of the Earth's surface is a surface wind that blows predominantly from a particular direction. The dominant winds are the trends in direction of wind with the highest speed over a particular point on ...
of the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
.
Notable people
*
Hassan al-Banna
Sheikh Hassan Ahmed Abdel Rahman Muhammed al-Banna ( ar, حسن أحمد عبد الرحمن محمد البنا; 14 October 1906 – 12 February 1949), known as Hassan al-Banna ( ar, حسن البنا), was an Egyptian schoolteacher and imam, b ...
See also
*
Mahmoudiyah canal
Mahmoudia Canal ( ''Agathos Daimon'' or ''Megas potamos'') is a sub-canal from the Nile River which starts at the Nile-port of Mahmoudia and goes through Alexandria to the Mediterranean Sea. It was built to supply Alexandria with food and fres ...
References
{{Authority control
Populated places in Beheira Governorate
Populated places on the Nile
Port cities and towns in Egypt