The Master's Wife by Jane Jackson Read Free Book Online Page A

knots. He would wait for as long as it took. He had adored his sons. But Caseley was the love of his life. So he would wait until she was ready, until she turned to him.

Chapter Five
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    D uring the next two weeks Caseley continued her language lessons. After dinner or tea, when Jago was with them and not at the helm, she listened while Robert Pawlyn described the political rivalries that were turning Egypt into a battleground.
    ‘Egypt is a member state of the Ottoman Empire headed by Sultan Abdul-Hamid. He is thirty-nine years old, shrewd, tyrannical and determined to defend his position. His mother, the Valide Sultan Sherketzya Kadin, deposed the former sultan, Abdulaziz, in favour of her son, Murad. After being ousted, Abdulaziz apparently committed suicide by slashing his wrists.’
    ‘Apparently?’ Jago asked before Caseley could.
    Pawlyn nodded. ‘Late last autumn, following an investigation that took nearly six years, several men were charged with his murder. But that’s by the by. After only three months Murad was removed.’
    ‘Why?’ Caseley and Jago asked simultaneously.
    ‘Because he was mad; truly insane. So Murad’s brother, Abdul-Hamid, took the throne, and has no intention of allowing foreign powers, especially Christians, to tell him how to rule what’s left of his empire. Meanwhile, Egypt’s head of state, Khedive Tewfiq, is demanding the Sultan’s support against the English.’
    ‘What kind of man is the Khedive?’ Jago asked.
    Pawlyn sighed. ‘He’s twenty-eight years old and, by all accounts, is a devoted family man. He has a baby son and only one wife, though the Quran allows four. Unfortunately, those are the only points in his favour. As a ruler he is vengeful, jealous, manipulative and weak. The previous two khedives, Said and Ismail, were educated in France. Both wanted to make Egypt more like Europe, but to pay for their ambitions they taxed the people into abject poverty. When that still didn’t raise enough money to pay for his grand schemes, Ismail borrowed money from Europe with exorbitant interest rates. His inability to make the repayments brought Egypt to the brink of bankruptcy. That left him no choice but to agree to the French and English taking over financial control. This was what finally turned the people against him and sowed the seeds of rebellion. He was forced to abdicate in August 1879 in favour of his son, Prince Tewfiq, the present Khedive.’
    ‘Why are the French involved?’ Caseley asked.
    ‘They built the Suez Canal and have a financial interest in it. But the English government bought a large number of cut-price shares in the Canal Company with money provided by banker Lionel de Rothschild. So, when Egypt faced bankruptcy, England was the main creditor. As a Muslim, Colonel Arabi is loyal to the Sultan because Egypt is part of the Ottoman Empire. But the colonel’s demand that Egypt should be run by Egyptians has set him against the Khedive.’
    ‘Why?’ Caseley asked.
    ‘Khedive Tewfiq wants to keep government in the hands of the Turco-Circassian ruling class. This is one of the reasons why ordinary Egyptians hate him.’
    ‘What has made Colonel Arabi so popular?’ Jago asked.
    ‘He truly is a man of the people. His mother was Egyptian. His father is reputedly descended from the youngest grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. Arabi himself came up through the ranks to become leader of the Nationalist party. He is honest and sincere. All of that is in his favour. Unfortunately...’
    Pawlyn hesitated. ‘Yes?’ Jago prompted.
    ‘Unlike the Khedive and his father, Colonel Arabi has no experience of Europe or its people. He doesn’t understand our way of thinking. Nor is he strong on military strategy. But his greatest weakness, and it pains me to say this, is that he lacks the necessary skill to deal successfully with Sir Auckland Colvin, the English financial controller.’
    ‘Why?’ Caseley asked. ‘What is so particular