British, Dunia Muslim dan Perkembangan Bolshevik di Mesir Selepas Perang Dunia Pertama

British, Muslim World and The Developmentof Bolshevik in Egypt in the post of First World War

Abstract

This paper aims to highlight the relationship between the British authorities and the Muslim community in Egypt, based on the historical documents such as administrative files and reports published during, and in the post of the First World War. Information derived from the above mentioned documents has suggested that the British authorities have put their economic and military interests as the main principle in determining their relationship with the Muslim community. Therefore, the British government has implemented approaches and methods that would restrict the influence of their enemy among the Muslims in the British Empire. In the case of Egypt, the attempts to revive Pan-Islamism as well as the penetration of Bolshevik ideology were seen as a threat to the British power. Both Pan-Islam and Bolshevik were regarded as similar to communism. The British authorities had the Grand Mufti of Egypt to issue a fatwa declaring that Bolshevik ideology was incompatible with Islamic teaching. However, the plan backfired as the fatwa had triggered the Muslims’ interests on the Bolshevik ideology, leaving the British authorities to change their strategies. In sum, this paper attempts to illustrate the effect of the First World War on the relationship between the British and Muslim community in Egypt. It also demonstrates the British attitude towards the Muslims which was influenced by the issue of security of the British Empire.