The eras of Abbas Pasha and Said Pasha in mid 19th century Egypt are usually perceived as somewhat of a dark age … stuck there between the powerful ambitious rule of their predecessor Mohammed Ali, and the glamourous modern state that Ismail Pasha, their successor, tried to project after he came to power.
Yet, Maha Ghalwash, our guest in today’s episode of Middle East Talks, argues that we should re-think the way we view this period. Her book “State, Peasants and Land in the mid-19th century Egypt” sheds a surprisingly positive light on the dealings of the state with al falaheen – the peasants who formed the overwhelming majority of the Egyptian populace at the time.

Guest: Maha Ghalwash, Associate Professor of Middle East History and Politics at the British University in Egypt
Interviewer: Khaled Ezzelarab, Associate Professor of Practice, Journalism and Mass Communication Department, and Director of the Middle East Studies Program, American University in Cairo
Researcher: Marta Asencio
Book: Ghalwash, Maha Ahmad. State, Peasants, and Land in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Egypt. New York;Cairo;: The American University in Cairo Press, 2023. doi:10.2307/j.ctv2rsfcp8.
Intro Music: Festival of Eid Joy by Adiiswanto, licensed via Pixabay Music
This podcast was produced with the help of Nourhan Amer, Nouran Elian, and Judi Yassin
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Disclaimer: Views expressed in this podcast series are those of participants and do not reflect the opinions of The American University in Cairo. Copyright is held by the appropriate AUC school, office or department unless otherwise stated. Requests for permission to quote or use any content should be addressed to the appropriate AUC school, office or department directly.