Thomas Keith (c. 1793 - 1815) was a Scottish

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

, captured in Egypt while fighting for the United Kingdom. As a prisoner of war, he converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

and joined the Ottoman military. He died in 1815 as governor of

Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...

while fighting the rising power of the Saudi dynasty. Born in Edinburgh, Keith enlisted in the

78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot The 78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a Highland Infantry Regiment of the Line, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with 72nd Regiment, Duke of Albany's Own Highlanders to form the Seaforth Highlanders in 1881. ...

on 4 August 1804. He went with the 2nd battalion of the regiment to join John Stuart in the British campaign to Sicily 1806. Soon after, Keith was sent as part of the

Alexandria expedition of 1807 The Alexandria expedition of 1807, also known as the Fraser expedition, ( ar, حملة فريزر) was a failed attempt by the British to capture the Egyptian city of Alexandria during the Anglo-Turkish War in order to secure a base of operation ...

. After being captured at

Al Hamed Al Hamed is a town in Egypt near Rosetta Rosetta or Rashid (; ar, رشيد ' ; french: Rosette ; cop, ϯⲣⲁϣⲓⲧ ''ti-Rashit'', Ancient Greek: Βολβιτίνη ''Bolbitinē'') is a port city of the Nile Delta, east of Alexandri ...

near

Rosetta Rosetta or Rashid (; ar, رشيد ' ; french: Rosette ; cop, ϯⲣⲁϣⲓⲧ ''ti-Rashit'', Ancient Greek: Βολβιτίνη ''Bolbitinē'') is a port city of the Nile Delta, east of Alexandria, in Egypt's Beheira governorate. The Ro ...

on 21 April 1807, Keith and a drummer in his regiment, William Thompson, were purchased by Ahmad Aga (nicknamed Ahmad Bonaparte). Grant, James. "Story of Thomas Keith." The Constable of France: And Other Military Historiettes. London: G. Routledge and Sons, 1866 During the time the two Scots resolved to convert to Islam and change their names: Keith becoming Ibrahim Aga and Thompson Osman. Keith had a quarrel with one of Ahmad's

Mamluks Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') i ...

, ironically a Sicilian. The Sicilian was killed in their duel and the Scot then sought the aid of the wife of

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 ...

wali A wali (''wali'' ar, وَلِيّ, '; plural , '), the Arabic word which has been variously translated "master", "authority", "custodian", "protector", is most commonly used by Muslims to indicate an Islamic saint, otherwise referred to by the ...

of Egypt. She sent Keith to the service of her son

Tusun Pasha Tusun Pasha ( ota, طوسون پاشا, ar, طوسون باشا, tr, Tosun Paşa, Ahmet Tosun Paşa; 1794–28 September 1816) was the younger son of Muhammad Ali Pasha, Wāli of Egypt between 1805 and 1849, by Amina Hanim. He was the father ...

. In 1811, Keith joined Tusun's expedition against the Wahhabis of

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...

. After a successful campaign, Keith was made acting governor of Medina in 1815 in Tusun's absence. He was killed in a Wahhabi ambush later that year.Grant, James. "The Scots in the Land of the Turban." The Scottish Soldiers of Fortune, Their Adventures and Achievements in the Armies of Europe. London: Routledge, 1890 Thomas Keith is the subject of the novel ''Blood and Sand'' (1987) by

Rosemary Sutcliff Rosemary Sutcliff (14 December 1920 – 23 July 1992) was an English novelist best known for children's books, especially historical fiction and retellings of myths and legends. Although she was primarily a children's author, some of her novel ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keith, Thomas Scottish soldiers 1815 deaths Military personnel from Edinburgh British Muslims Converts to Islam British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Ottoman people of the Wahhabi War 1790s births British Army soldiers British emigrants to the Ottoman Empire Ottoman military personnel killed in action