ABSTRACT
Muhammad Ali's capture of Alexandria in September 1807 was a turning point in the early history of his reign. Prior to the fall of Alexandria, Muhammad Ali did not have a firm hold on power. Alexandria's expanded commercial and strategic functions required improvements in the security and speed of communications between the Mediterranean coast and the interior. To the military and commercial considerations motivating Muhammad AH to devote so much attention to Alexandria, must be added personal and dynastic interests. The economic renewal depended in turn on a new political structure. It is perfectly conceivable that, without Muhammad Ali's appearance, Egypt might have continued in its fragmented condition under a weak neo-Mamluk regime, or the Ottomans might have regained control as they did in Iraq. The town of Alexandria constituted a vital component in the economic system. Customs receipts continued to be a significant, if distinctly secondary, source of income.
