Who invented the Suez Canal. Suez Canal - history of construction in pictures
The Suez Canal is a navigable lockless canal in Egypt connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. The canal zone is considered a conditional border between two continents, Africa and Eurasia. On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened to navigation. The history of the largest man-made canal in the world in photographs.
The moment the heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser of the third generation "Peter the Great" passes the Suez Canal
Thomas Kerr Lynch, "A Visit to the Suez Canal"
Construction of the Suez Canal began in 1858, when the French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps, close to the Viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Said Pasha, received a concession for the construction from him. For the construction, the Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez (Common Suez Canal Company) was established, in which a majority stake belonged to France and a minority stake to Egypt.
The channel, which greatly shortened the route from Europe to Asia, became popular from the very first days and turned out to be very successful commercially. Its discovery increased European interest in the Middle East
The first attempts to develop a canal were made even before our era, but construction was abandoned every now and then. In the 8th century
Caliph Mansur ordered the destruction of the canal in order to concentrate trade routes in the territory of the caliphate.
Construction of the Suez Canal took more than ten years. The workers, Egyptians from the poor, had to work forcedly under the scorching sun, in the desert, without enough fresh water. It took a lot of time to build just the freshwater canal from the Nile, which was supposed to supply workers with water. The canal was built by 60 thousand Egyptians per month, many of them died due to unbearable working conditions and epidemics.
Great Britain opposed the construction of the Suez Canal - it controlled the sea route to India through the Cape of Good Hope and was afraid of competition.
However, soon the money allocated for the construction of Suez ran out. Ismail Pasha, who succeeded Said Pasha, sold his share to Great Britain, and Egypt lost control of the canal, losing future profits. The "General Suez Canal Company" became Anglo-French.
In 1869 it was opened for shipping. The joyful event in Egypt was celebrated for a week. The Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi was supposed to write the opera “Aida” especially for the opening, but did not have time to finish it.
In 1956, the canal was partially destroyed during the Suez Crisis, which began after the Egyptian authorities decided to nationalize Suez. Britain, France and Israel fought together in the war against Egypt. Shipping was stopped for almost a year until the UN intervened in the conflict.
The conflict between Egypt and Israel escalated earlier after the latter appropriated Palestinian territories intended for Arab settlements. The UN Security Council demanded that Egypt open the canal for shipping, but it refused.
As a result of the joint military actions of the three countries, almost the entire Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip came under Israeli control. Israeli Prime Minister Ben-Gurion even hinted at the annexation of Sinai.
Under international pressure, Great Britain and France withdrew their troops from Egypt in December 1956, and Israel left Egyptian territories in March 1957.
The next Arab-Israeli conflict began in 1973 with an attack by Egyptian and Syrian troops on Israel. The military invasion began during the most important Jewish holiday, Yom Kippur. Due to the surprise of the attack, at first the advantage was on the side of the attackers, but soon the advantage was on the side of Israel, and then a UN ceasefire resolution followed.
The Suez Canal was only opened for use in 1975, after it was cleared by US forces.
According to the 1888 Convention of Constantinople, the canal must be “always free and open to all commercial and military vessels without distinction of flag,” regardless of whether in time of war or peace. The Egyptian government, in a declaration dated April 24, 1957, stated that it would “comply with the terms and spirit of the Convention of Constantinople of 1888” and that “the rights and obligations arising therefrom remain unchanged,” but Egypt refused the ships several times different countries in the passage along the canal.
The famous Statue of Liberty was originally planned to be installed in Port Said, a city at the end of the Suez Canal, and called the Light of Asia, but Egyptian authorities decided that transporting it from France would be too expensive.
On August 28, 2009, a Panamanian oil tanker sank in the Red Sea near the entrance to the Suez Canal, breaking in half. The ship was on its way to repair work and was empty. Only 60 tons of fuel ended up in the sea; none of the sailors were injured.
The Suez Canal is one of the main sources of income for the Egyptian budget. The country makes money from transit duties.
The length of the Suez Canal is about 190 km, its width at its deepest point is 200 m. It will take a ship about 14 hours to completely pass through the canal. About 50 ships pass through it every day. Approximately 10% of all global seaborne trade travels through the Suez Canal, the world's largest man-made canal.
Since 1981, there has been a road tunnel under Suez. In 2005, the cities of Port Said and Ismailia were connected by a bridge, which was named after the current President Hosni Mubarak. After the overthrow of the head of state, it no longer bears that name.
Suez Canal
Suez Canal- a lockless shipping canal in Egypt connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. The canal zone is considered a conditional border between two continents, Africa and Eurasia. The shortest waterway between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea of the Atlantic Ocean (an alternative route is 8 thousand km longer). The Suez Canal was opened to shipping November 17, 1869. Main ports: Port Said And Suez.
Suez Canal on the map and view from space
Located to the west of the Sinai Peninsula, the Suez Canal has length 160 kilometers, width along the water surface up to 350 m, along the bottom - 45-60 m, depth 20 m. It is located in Egypt between Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea and Suez on the Red Sea. On the east side of the canal opposite Port Said is Port Fuad, where the Suez Canal Authority is located. On the eastern side of the canal opposite Suez is Port Tawfik. On the canal in the area of Lake Timsah there is a large industrial center - a city Ismailia.
The canal allows water transport to pass in both directions between Europe and Asia without going around Africa. Before the opening of the canal, transportation was carried out by unloading ships and overland transport between the Mediterranean and Red Seas.
The canal consists of two parts - north and south of the Great Bitter Lake, connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea.
The current on the channel in the winter months comes from the bitter lakes to the north, and in the summer back from the Mediterranean Sea. South of the lakes, the current varies with the tides.
The canal consists of two parts - north and south of the Great Bitter Lake, connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea
According to the Suez Canal Administration, revenues from its operation in 2010 amounted to $4.5 billion. The United States, making it the second largest source of revenue for Egypt's budget after tourism, which brought in $13 billion. In 2011, revenues already amounted to $5.22 billion, with 17,799 ships passing through the canal, which is 1.1 percent less than the previous year.
Story
Perhaps as early as the Twelfth Dynasty, Pharaoh Senusret III (1888-1878 BC) built a canal from west to east, dug through the Wadi Tumilat, connecting the Nile with the Red Sea, for unhindered trade with Punt. Later, the construction and restoration of the canal was carried out by the powerful Egyptian pharaohs Ramses II and Necho II. Herodotus (II. 158) writes that Necho II (610-595 BC) began to build a canal from the Nile to the Red Sea, but did not finish it.
The canal was completed around 500 BC by King Darius the First, the Persian conqueror of Egypt. In memory of this event, Darius erected granite steles on the banks of the Nile, including one near Carbet, 130 kilometers from Pie.
In the 3rd century BC. e. The canal was made navigable by Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285-247). It began slightly higher up the Nile than the previous canal, in the area of Facussa. It is possible, however, that under Ptolemy it was cleared, deepened and extended to the sea old channel, which supplied the lands of Wadi Tumilat with fresh water. The fairway was wide enough - two triremes could easily separate in it.
Emperor Trajan (98-117) deepened the canal and increased its navigability. The canal was known as the Trajan River, it provided navigation, but was then abandoned again.
In 776, by order of Caliph Mansur, it was finally filled up so as not to divert trade routes from the center of the Caliphate.
In 1569, by order of the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed Sokollu, a plan was developed to restore the canal, but it was not implemented.
Channel restoration
More than a thousand years passed before the next attempt to dig a canal. In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte, while in Egypt, considered the possibility of building a canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. He entrusted the preliminary research to a special commission headed by engineer Leper. The commission erroneously concluded that the water level of the Red Sea is 9.9 m higher than the water level in the Mediterranean Sea, which would not allow the construction of a canal without locks. According to Leper's project, it was supposed to go from the Red Sea to the Nile partly along the old route, cross the Nile near Cairo and end in the Mediterranean Sea near Alexandria. Leper considered it impossible to reach a particularly significant depth; its channel would be unsuitable for deep-draft vessels. The Leper Commission estimated the cost of digging at 30-40 million francs. The project failed not because of technical or financial difficulties, but because of political events; it was completed only at the end of 1800, when Napoleon was already in Europe and finally abandoned the hope of conquering Egypt. Accepting Leper's report on December 6, 1800, he said: “This is a great thing, but I am not able to carry it out at the present time; perhaps the Turkish government will someday take it up, thereby creating glory for itself and strengthening the existence of the Turkish Empire.”
In the forties of the 19th century, 1841, British officers who carried out surveys on the isthmus proved the fallacy of Leper's calculations regarding the water level in the two seas - calculations that Laplace and the mathematician Fourier had previously protested against, based on theoretical considerations. Around the same time, a French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps , without carrying out new independent research, but relying only on the research of his predecessors, he came up with the idea of constructing a canal completely differently - so that it would be an “artificial Bosphorus” directly between the two seas, sufficient for the passage of the deepest ships.
Ferdinand de Lesseps
In 1855, Ferdinand de Lesseps received concessions from Said Pasha, the Viceroy of Egypt, whom de Lesseps had met as a French diplomat in the 1830s. Said Pasha approved the creation of a company for the purpose of constructing a sea canal open to ships of all countries. In the same 1855, Lesseps achieved the approval of the firman from the Turkish Sultan, but only in 1859 was he able to found a company in Paris. In the same year, construction of the canal began, led by the General Suez Canal Company created by Lesseps. The Egyptian government received 44% of all shares, France - 53% and 3% were acquired by other countries. Under the terms of the concession, shareholders were entitled to 74% of profits, Egypt - 15%, and the company's founders - 10%. Its fixed capital was 200 million francs.
The British government, fearing that the Suez Canal would lead to the liberation of Egypt from the rule of the Ottoman Empire and to the weakening or loss of England's dominance over India, put all sorts of obstacles in the way of the enterprise, but had to yield to the energy of Lesseps, especially since his enterprise was patronized by Napoleon III and Said Pasha, and then (from 1863) by his heir, Ismail Pasha.
19th century drawing depicting the auxiliary railway during the construction of the canal. Source: Appleton's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, 1869.
The technical difficulties were enormous. I had to work under the scorching sun, in a sandy desert completely devoid of fresh water. At first, the company had to use up to 1,600 camels just to deliver water to workers; but by 1863 she had completed a small freshwater canal from the Nile, which ran approximately in the same direction as the ancient canals (the remains of which were used in some places), and was intended not for navigation, but solely for the delivery of fresh water - first to workers, then and the settlements that were to arise along the canal. This freshwater canal runs from Zakazik on the Nile east to Ismailia, and from there southeast, along the sea canal, to Suez; channel width 17 m on the surface, 8 m on the bottom; its depth on average is only 2.2 m, in some places even much less. Its discovery made the work easier, but still the mortality rate among workers was high. Workers were provided by the Egyptian government, but European workers also had to be used (in total, from 20 to 40 thousand people worked on construction).
The 200 million francs determined by Lesseps's original project soon ran out, especially due to the enormous expenses on bribery at the courts of Said and Ismail, on widespread advertising in Europe, on the costs of representing Lesseps himself and other company tycoons. It was necessary to make a new bond issue of 166,666,500 francs, then others, so that the total cost of the canal by 1872 reached 475 million (by 1892 - 576 million). In the six-year period in which Lesseps promised to complete the work, it was not possible to build the canal. The excavation work was carried out using forced labor from the poor in Egypt (in the first stages) and took 11 years.
The northern section through the swamp and Lake Manzala was completed first, then the flat section to Lake Timsah. From here the excavation went to two huge depressions - the long-dried Bitter Lakes, the bottom of which was 9 meters below sea level. After filling the lakes, the builders moved to the end southern section.
The total length of the canal was about 173 km, including the length of the canal itself across the Isthmus of Suez 161 km, the sea canal along the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea - 9.2 km and the Gulf of Suez - about 3 km. The width of the channel along the water surface is 120-150 m, along the bottom - 45-60 m. The depth along the fairway was initially 12-13 m, then it was deepened to 20 m.
Grand opening of the Suez Canal
The canal officially opened to navigation on November 17, 1869. The opening of the Suez Canal was attended by the Empress of France Eugenie (wife of Napoleon III), the Emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz Joseph I with the Minister-President of the Hungarian government Andrássy, the Dutch prince and princess, and the Prussian prince. Never before has Egypt known such celebrations and received so many distinguished European guests. The celebration lasted seven days and nights and cost Khedive Ismail 28 million gold francs. And only one point of the celebration program was not fulfilled: the famous Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi did not have time to finish the opera “Aida” commissioned for this occasion, the premiere of which was supposed to enrich the opening ceremony of the channel. Instead of the premiere, a large gala ball was held in Port Said.
Some of the first travelers in the 19th century
Economic and strategic importance of the canal
The canal had an immediate and invaluable impact on world trade. Six months earlier, the First Transcontinental Line had been put into operation. railway, and the whole world could now be circumnavigated in record time. The channel played important role in the expansion and further colonization of Africa. External debts forced Ismail Pasha, who replaced Said Pasha, to sell his share in the canal to Great Britain in 1875. The General Suez Canal Company essentially became an Anglo-French enterprise, and Egypt was excluded from both the management of the canal and the profits. England became the actual owner of the canal. This position was further strengthened after it occupied Egypt in 1882.
In 1888, an International Convention was signed in Istanbul with the aim of creating a specific system designed to guarantee free navigation through the canal to all states.
Aluminum pontoons of the Turkish army on the Suez Canal in 1915
During the First and Second World Wars, shipping on the canal was actually regulated by Great Britain.
On July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the channel. This led to the invasion of British, French and Israeli troops and the start of the week-long Suez War in 1956. The canal was partially destroyed, some ships were sunk, and as a result, shipping was closed until April 24, 1957, until the canal was cleared with the help of the UN. UN peacekeeping forces were brought in to maintain the status of the Sinai Peninsula and the Suez Canal as neutral territories.
Suez War 1956
After the Six-Day War of 1967, the canal was closed again. During the next Arab-Israeli War in 1973, the Egyptian army successfully crossed the canal; Subsequently, the Israeli army carried out a “response force.” After the end of the war, the canal was cleared by the US Navy (USSR Navy ships participated in trawling the approaches to the Canal in the Gulf of Suez) and opened for use on June 5, 1975.
The canal does not have locks due to the lack of sea level differences and elevations. The canal allows the passage of loaded ships with a displacement of up to 240,000 tons, a height of up to 68 meters and a width of up to 77.5 meters (under certain conditions). Some supertankers cannot pass through the canal, others can unload some of their weight onto ships, belonging to the channel, and load it back at the other end of the channel. The canal has one fairway and several areas for ships to diverge. The depth of the channel is 20.1 m. In the future, it is planned to provide passage for supertankers with a draft of up to 22 meters.
According to 2009 data, about 10% of the world's maritime traffic passes through the canal. The passage through the canal takes about 14 hours. On average, 48 ships pass through the canal per day.
Second Canal (New Suez Canal)
Construction of a 72-kilometer parallel canal began in August 2014 to allow two-way traffic for ships. Trial operation of the second stage of the canal began on July 25, 2015. The country's army actively participated in the construction. The population of Egypt participated in the financing.
On August 6, 2015, the opening ceremony of the new Suez Canal took place. The ceremony was attended, in particular, by Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi, who arrived at the event site on board the Al-Mahrousa yacht. This yacht gained fame as the first ship to pass through the old Suez Canal in 1869.
Opening ceremony of the new Suez Canal
The vessel is currently part of the Egyptian Navy, being the country's oldest active naval vessel, and is sometimes used as a presidential yacht. The ship goes to sea about three times a year, but usually only for one day. The yacht was built in 1865.
"New Suez" runs parallel to the old shipping route, built 145 years ago and is the shortest water route between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. New channel, like the previous one, will be state property.
Scheme of the new Suez Canal route
The Suez backup took only one year to build (although it was estimated that it should have been built in three years). The project cost Egypt $8.5 billion. The New Suez Canal project consisted of widening, deepening the current tract and creating a parallel tract. The new channel should increase the channel's capacity.
The goal of the project is to ensure two-way traffic of vessels. In the future, from south to north they will follow the old channel, and from north to south along the new channel. Thus, the average waiting time for ships while passing through the canal should decrease by four times, while its throughput will increase from 49 to 97 ships per day. The Suez Canal accounts for 7% of global maritime traffic.
Since 1981, a road tunnel has been operating near the city of Suez, passing under the bottom of the Suez Canal, connecting Sinai and continental Africa. In addition to the technical excellence that made it possible to create such a complex engineering project, this tunnel attracts with its monumentality, is of great strategic importance and is rightfully considered a landmark of Egypt.
In 1998, a power transmission line was built over the canal in Suez. The line supports, standing on both banks, have a height of 221 meters and are located 152 meters from each other. On October 9, 2001, a new bridge named after Hosni Mubarak on the highway connecting the cities of Port Said and Ismailia. The opening ceremony of the bridge was attended by then Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Before the viaduct opened Milhaud this structure was the world's tallest cable-stayed bridge. The height of the bridge is 70 meters. Construction lasted 4 years, one Japanese and two Egyptian construction companies took part in it.
Mubarak Bridge
In 2001, traffic on the railway bridge was opened El Ferdan 20 km north of the city of Ismailia. It is the longest swing bridge in the world; its two swing sections have a total length of 340 meters. The previous bridge was destroyed in 1967 during the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The most important artificial canal in, stretching from to. Located to the west of the Sinai Peninsula, it marks the border between two continents. The length of the canal with approach sections reaches 170 km. This shipping canal is included in the version of our website.
The Suez Canal originates in Port Said and stretches to the bay of the same name in the Red Sea. Water transport can pass through it in both directions. Before the opening of this waterway, the transport of goods between Africa and Eurasia was carried out only by land. The canal was opened for navigation in the second half of the 19th century.
According to historical facts, a canal was built here during the 12th Dynasty of Egyptian pharaohs in order to connect the Nile with the Red Sea. The canal was completed by many subsequent rulers and even by the Persian king Darius I, who conquered Egypt. During the reign of Caliph Mansur, the canal was completely filled up. They started thinking about its restoration in the 16th century AD. during the Ottoman Empire.
The re-opening of the canal had an invaluable impact on world trade. During the First and Second World Wars, the Suez Canal was repeatedly invaded and partially destroyed. Currently, it is one of the main components of the Egyptian budget. Tariffs for transporting goods through the canal increase every year.
Photo attraction: Suez Canal
Suez Canal- a navigable lockless sea canal in the northeast of Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. The Suez Canal is the shortest waterway between the ports of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans (8-15 thousand km less than the route around Africa).
The Suez Canal Zone is considered a conditional border between two continents: Asia and Africa. The main ports of entry are Port Said from the Mediterranean Sea and Suez from the Red Sea. The Suez Canal runs along the Isthmus of Suez in its lowest and narrowest part, crossing a series of lakes and the Menzala Lagoon.
The idea of digging a canal across the Isthmus of Suez arose in ancient times. Ancient historians report that the Theban pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom era tried to build a canal connecting the right branch of the Nile with the Red Sea.
The first reliable historical evidence of the connection of the Mediterranean and Red Seas by a canal dates back to the reign of Pharaoh Necho II (late 7th - early 6th century BC).
The expansion and improvement of the canal was carried out by order of the Persian king Darius I, who conquered Egypt, and subsequently by Ptolemy Philadelphus (first half of the 3rd century BC). At the end of the era of the pharaohs in Egypt, the canal fell into a state of decline.
However, after the Arab conquest of Egypt, the canal was restored again in 642, but was filled in in 776 to channel trade through the main areas of the caliphate.
Plans for the restoration of the canal, developed later (in 1569 by order of the vizier of the Ottoman Empire Mehmed Sokollu and by the French during Bonaparte's Egyptian expedition in 1798-1801), were not implemented.
The idea of building the Suez Canal arose again in the second half of the 19th century. The world during this period was experiencing the era of colonial division. North Africa, the part of the continent closest to Europe, attracted the attention of the leading colonial powers - France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain. Egypt was the subject of rivalry between Britain and France.
The nationalization of the canal served as a pretext for the Anglo-Franco-Israeli aggression against Egypt at the end of October 1956. The Suez Canal suffered significant damage, traffic along it was interrupted and resumed only on April 24, 1957, after the completion of the canal cleaning work.
As a result of the Arab-Israeli "Six Day War" of 1967, navigation through the Suez Canal was again interrupted, as the canal zone actually turned into a front line separating Egyptian and Israeli troops, and during the October 1973 war, into an area of active military operations.
The annual damage caused by inaction to the Suez Canal was estimated at 4-5 billion dollars.
In 1974, after the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Suez Canal zone, Egypt began clearing, restoring and reconstructing the canal. On June 5, 1975, the Suez Canal was reopened to navigation.
In 1981, the first stage of the canal reconstruction project was completed, which made it possible to carry through it tankers with a deadweight of up to 150 thousand tons (on completion of the second stage - up to 250 thousand tons) and cargo ships with a deadweight of up to 370 thousand tons.
In 2005, a new reconstruction of the Suez Canal began. The reconstruction plan includes deepening the channel, which will allow more than 90% of the existing international merchant fleet to pass through the canal. Since 2010, supertankers with a displacement of up to 360 thousand tons will be able to navigate the canal. Today, the length of the canal itself is 162.25 km, with sea approaches from Port Said to Port Taufiq - 190.25 km. Width at a depth of 11 meters is 200-210 m. Depth along the fairway is 22.5 m.
A modern symbol of the United States, the Statue of Liberty was originally planned to be installed in Port Said under the name “The Light Of Asia,” but the then government of the country decided that transporting the structure from France and installing it was too expensive for the state.
Currently, about 10% of all global maritime transport occurs through the Suez Canal. On average, 48 ships pass through the Suez Canal per day, and the average transit time through the canal is about 14 hours.
According to existing rules, ships from all countries that are not at war with Egypt can pass through Suez. Operating rules prohibit the appearance of only ships with nuclear power plants.
Today, the Suez Canal is the main budget-generating project in Egypt. According to some experts, the canal provides the country with more funds than oil production, and much more than the rapidly developing tourism infrastructure allows today.
The operation of the canal is one of the main sources of foreign exchange earnings for the Egyptian treasury. According to some experts, the canal provides the country with more funds than oil production, and much more than the rapidly developing tourism infrastructure.
The monthly volume of fees for passage through the canal is $372 million.
In the 2007-2008 financial year, the Suez Canal brought Egypt more than $5 billion, which was a record figure in the history of the canal.
In the 2008-2009 fiscal year, shipping traffic on the Suez Canal fell by 8.2%, and Egypt's revenue from operating the canal fell by 7.2%. Experts explain this by the consequences of the global financial crisis, as well as by the actions of pirates off the coast of Somalia.
Suez Canal, قناة السويس (Arabic, pronounced “qana al-Suwais”), Suez canal(English) is the shortest waterway between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea region of the Atlantic Ocean. The canal is located in Egypt and connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas between Port Said (Būr Sa"īd) on the Mediterranean Sea and Suez (al-Suways) on the Red Sea.
The canal's geographical position is in the center of international maritime communications connecting the oil-producing region of the Near and Middle East with Western Europe, ensuring its connections with Asia, Australia and East Africa
The Suez Canal Zone is considered a conditional border between two continents, Africa and Eurasia. The Suez Canal allows water transport to pass in both directions between Europe and Asia without going around Africa, thereby reducing the distance by 8-15 thousand km. Before the opening of the canal, transportation was carried out by unloading ships and overland transport between the Mediterranean and Red Seas.
In the photo
The total length of the Suez Canal, including the approach sections, is 174 km. Part of the route runs along the fairway in lakes Timsakh, Bolshoye and Maly Gorky, along the bottom of which sea canals are laid. Including these lakes, the length of the route is 192 km, including the following sections: 78 km from Port Said to Ismailia and 84 km from Ismailia to Port Tawfiq (Suez). The smallest channel width is 300 meters (the width of the fairway between the buoys is 180 meters). The maximum permitted draft of vessels is 53 feet, the channel depth is 20 meters. A 2005 reconstruction to deepen the canal allowed supertankers with a displacement of up to 360,000 tons to pass through it.
Currently, about 10% of all global maritime traffic passes through the Suez Canal. On average, up to 50 ships pass through the canal per day. The speed of vessels, depending on tonnage and category, is limited to 11-16 km/h, the average time to travel through the canal is 14 hours.
In the photo The largest container ship in the world at the moment"Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller" of Maersk Line freely uses the Suez Canal in its maritime movements
The history of the Suez Canal dates back to ancient times. It is known that the creation of a canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas took place already during the reign of Pharaoh Necho II (late 7th - early 6th centuries BC). Subsequent rulers of Egypt also supported the preservation and improvement of the canal, which continued until the end of the Pharaonic era, after which the canal was abandoned and fell into disrepair. In 642 it was restored, but in 776 it ceased to function again and was finally filled up by order of Caliph Mansur, who did not want to allow trade routes to be diverted from the center of the Caliphate.
Location of the Suez Canal on the geographical map of the world
More than a thousand years later, in 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte, while in Egypt, became interested in the possibility of building a canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. At the same time, a commission headed by engineer Leper began to work closely on the creation of the project construction work, which subsequently, however, failed to be realized. The project was completed at the end of 1800, when Napoleon was already in Europe, having lost hope of conquering Egypt and therefore abandoned the idea of building a canal.
The total number of hired workers during the entire construction period is more than 1.5 million people
The idea of creating a canal did not disappear at this point, since at that time Egypt remained the subject of interest of the leading colonial countries, primarily France and Great Britain, due to its close territorial location to Europe relative to the rest of the continent. In 1846, the international society “Société d’etudes du canal de Suez” was formed, which was also engaged in research on the possible construction of a canal between the Mediterranean and Red Seas. Finally, in 1854, the French diplomat and entrepreneur Ferdinand Marie Lesseps received a concession from the Egyptian ruler to build the Suez Canal on preferential terms. The General Suez Canal Company, which he created, led the construction, and the main shareholders of the company were Egypt (44%) and France (53%).
In the photo Suez Canal in the last century
Construction of the canal began in April 1859. The main work was carried out by the Egyptians, who were forcibly recruited at a rate of 60 thousand people per month, as well as by Europeans. The number of people simultaneously employed in construction reached 30 thousand people. Due to harsh working conditions, as well as the geographical and climatic characteristics of the region, the mortality rate among workers was high. The work lasted more than 10 years, which is almost twice as long as originally planned; the total cost of the Suez Canal ultimately amounted to 576 million francs.
The canal was opened for navigation on November 17, 1869. Significant costs for the construction of the Suez Canal complicated the economic situation in Egypt. Taking advantage of this, in 1875 the British government acquired a controlling stake in the canal. Egypt was removed from governance as well as profits. England became the actual owner of the canal, which became even worse after the British occupation of Egypt in 1882.
The July Revolution of 1952 led to the expulsion of the English royal dynasty from the country. In 1953, Egypt was declared a republic, and on July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal. This was the reason for the Anglo-Franco-Israeli aggression against Egypt at the end of October 1956, as a result of which significant damage was caused to the Suez Canal and the movement of maritime transport was interrupted. Shipping was again suspended during periods of hostilities in 1967 and 1973. In 1975, the canal was reopened to navigation and the process of its restoration also began, including the large-scale reconstruction of the Suez Canal, which began in 2005.
Today, the Suez Canal is one of the main budget-generating projects in Egypt. Transit fees levied by Egypt make up a significant share of government revenue, along with oil production and tourism. For example, in May 2013, the Suez Canal's revenue amounted to 438.1 million US dollars.
According to the International Convention of 1888, the right of passage through the Suez Canal can be used by ships of all countries that are not at war with Egypt. However, due to the conflict in Syria, in August 2013 the Suez Canal was closed to warships passing for the purpose of military operations against Syria, as stated by the Egyptian Minister of Defense, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. He also added that Egypt will not allow the Suez Canal to become a corridor for attacking any Arab state.
Currently, a road tunnel runs under the Suez Canal, connecting Sinai and continental Africa. In 1998, a power transmission line was built over the canal. It is also worth mentioning the Hosni Mubarak automobile bridge crossing the Suez Canal, built in 2001. The 70 m high bridge is part of the highway between the cities of Port Said and Ismailia, and essentially connects Africa with Asia. Another interesting project, opened in the same 2001, is the El Ferdan railway bridge, the longest swing bridge in the world, connecting the eastern bank of the Suez Canal with the Sinai Peninsula.
The Suez Canal has been and remains one of the busiest and most important shipping routes in the world. It connects Western Europe with the Near and Middle East, as well as with East Africa, Asia and Australia. Up to 50 ships pass through the canal every day, and due to high density For maritime transport, two-way traffic is provided at four points of the canal. On August 9, 2013, 68 ships with a total load of 4.8 million tons crossed the Suez Canal, setting a new record for the amount of cargo shipped through it in one day.