Nineteenth century background

Rarely have military aircraft markings sparked major international controversy but that is precisely what happened in 1956.  Sharp-eyed observers noted that Israeli aircraft carried the same distinctive white or yellow/black stripes worn by French and British aircraft during the attack on Egypt, thus proving collusion.  Although denied at the time it was subsequently acknowledged changing not only Britain’s role in world affairs but her relationship with her allies.  But first some background.
   Politics in the Middle East is complex to say the least and often capable of rational analysis after the event.  In what follows the author has tried honestly to provide an objective view of events leading up to the Suez Campaign in a way which is neither patronising nor trite.  Many books have been written on the subject and only sufficient detail is given to set the military action in its context.
   France occupied Egypt in 1798 but in 1801 an Anglo-Ottoman force expelled the French after which the Ottoman Muhammad Ali took control, eventually threatening Turkey via Syria.  Russia, Britain and France intervened to protect Istanbul.  Later Britain contained Egypt to protect her interests in the Middle East and from 1849 after the death of Muhammad Ali Egypt came increasingly under European influence, especially after construction of the Anglo-French Suez Canal, opened in 1869 and cutting dramatically the time to move goods and troops to British interests in the Far East.  Finally, the British occupied Egypt in 1882 and from that time there were various nationalist movements intent on removing them.
 
The world wars
 
   In 1914 Turkey entered the first war on the side of Germany and Britain declared Egypt a protectorate.  After the war the former Ottoman empire (Occupied Enemy Territory) was divided between Britain and France as a series of protectorates.  Britain assumed control of Iraq, Palestine, Jordan and of course Egypt while France controlled Lebanon and Syria.  The inter-war period was hugely complex in terms of relationships between the Arabs and their European ‘protectors’ and between the French and British.  The second world war resulted in a freeze on any relaxation towards independence.
   After the war’s end Britain was exhausted and near bankrupt.  Notwithstanding, she still had an empire on which the sun never set and had interests across the world.  Immediately on the war’s end the British remained actively involved fighting in Greece, the Netherlands East Indies and Palestine with threats in Malaya.  The French were also pre-occupied in their colonies in Indo-China.  In Palestine the British were forced to withdraw in the face of serious Jewish military action and a United Nations resolution effectively creating the state of Israel.  Britain retained her bases in Egypt, including a large number of airfields, primarily because of the important strategic position on the Suez Canal.  (The airfields were by contemporary standards modern and included Abu Sueir, Deversoir, Fayid, Ismailia, Kabrit, Kasfareet and Shallufa, with a flying-boat base at Fanara.)  Britain also continued to support King Farouk, an indifferent monarch who was deposed in 1952 in a relatively bloodless coup by the military.
   A number of Arab states had declared war on the newly established state of Israel in 1948, but poor leadership resulted in Israel surviving, despite difficulty with equipment supplies, especially those of aircraft.  However, Egypt and Syria also had problems with equipment in the early 1950s and although British companies had a number of contracts, there were frequent embargoes and slow deliveries.  Britain had the opportunity of establishing a sound relationship with the new Egyptian regime of Colonel Abdul Gamal Nasser after 1952, but perhaps through arrogance or pre-occupation elsewhere, the opportunity was overlooked.  (Through the period the British were actively involved in Aden, Kenya, Korea and Somalia.)  It does appear that Nasser was keen to establish sound relations with the West and to reach an accommodation with Israel, but his inclinations were frustrated.
   On 15 October 1951 the Egyptian Government had abrogated the treaty of 1936 providing for British forces to be based in the Canal zone.  As fighting broke out around British bases, 16 Independent Parachute Brigade was flown from Cyprus to Egypt in Valetta transports of 70, 78 and 204 Sqns at Fayid and 114 and 216 Sqns at Kabrit.  Fighting continued and by January 1952, when riots broke out at Cairo Airport, some 40 British servicemen had been killed.  The situation improved, but there were further riots in 1953, and in 1954 agreement was reached for the British withdrawal.
 
Canal nationalisation
 
   Britain finally withdrew from Egypt in 1955 after years of riots and demonstrations, but military stocks were retained in the event of a serious threat to the Canal; the last British troops left on 26 March 1956.  Nasser continued to look to the West for arms but with unreliable supplies he turned to the Soviet Union via Czechoslovakia.  As a result the World Bank withdrew financial support for the economically essential Aswan High Dam.  Critically, on 26 July 1956, Nasser announced nationalisation of the Suez Canal.  The Canal provided an economic route from Europe to the Gulf and the Far East in terms of time and money; in the mid-1950s shipping was still the prime mover of men and materiel.  On the day that the Canal was nationalised the British Prime Minister, Anthony Eden, asked the Chiefs of Staff to plan for a military intervention; the first meeting at which the issue was considered was on the 27th.  Not only had the United Kingdom to contemplate the loss of revenues, for Nasser might limit the Canal’s use; in any event the Egyptians were considered - wrongly, of course - technically incapable of operating and managing it.
   The French Prime Minister, Guy Mollet, suggested to Eden a joint venture, and planning for an invasion of Egypt followed, the operation to be headed by General Sir Charles Keightley.  On 2 August it was announced that Canberra bomber squadrons would be flown to Malta, UK reservists were called up and at Toulon the French invasion force began forming.  Three days later troops of the 16th Parachute Brigade left Portsmouth for Cyprus on board the carrier HMS Theseus, and a four days later two infantry battalions were despatched to Malta.  No sooner had the Paras reached Cyprus, however, than they were flown back to the UK for training, urgently needed by both the paratroopers and the transport pilots.
   The original plan, requiring some 80,000 troops, was for an assault on Alexandria, followed by a drive to Cairo.  Known initially by the code-name ‘Hamilcar’ and later ‘Musketeer’ a new, more realistic plan, ‘Musketeer Revise’ was offered in mid-August.  This latter plan called for a seaborne and airborne assault on Port Said by the combined Anglo-French force, with a drive down the Canal to Ismailia.  The assault would have to be preceded by the neutralisation of the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) and interdiction missions to isolate the war zone.  During August 894 British civilians were evacuated from Egypt, many by Solent flying boats of Aquila Airways.

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