Al-Jabarti’s Chronicle of the French Occupation, Essay Example

Introduction

The invasion of Napoleon was instrumental in the historic landscape globally. This is considering the actuality that the activities of Napoleon influenced the various regions in the globe including Africa. This is evident in the chronicles of Al-Jabarti whereby the invasion of Napoleon into Egypt the subject. The account gives essential information of this historical era since it was the first contact experienced by Africa concerning the imperial goals of the western power. The author was instrumental in this perspective with his approach of combining a reflection on the daily observations of the Cairo population and the local population’s mood with a historical narration. This approach was instrumental in documenting the historical events, which characterized Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt. Despite existing accounts of Napoleons invasion of Egypt, Al-Jabarti gives a local perspective of this historical event.

In order to comprehend the author’s perspective, it is crucial to explore his background. Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti was a Muslim scholar of Somali-Egyptian descent who resided in Cairo. After training as a sheikh at the al-Azhar university, he used his skills to create a chronicle of the events, which could be observable in Cairo. Among his most renowned works is the chronicle on the French invasion, which was a result of his experiences and observations. His contributions in historical documentation of the region resulted in his position as among the key scholars in the 18th century.

The context of the chronicles is unique in this historical text. This is due to the actuality that most of the historical documentation of the west interactions with the rest of the world had an inclination towards the western perspective. The approach of al-Jabarti in this scenario involved a local feel of the event. This resulted in a definitive account of the French invasion and the embrace of modernity by the African region. Therefore, the accounts of al-Jabarti are most suitable to depict the historical situation through an Arabic and or Egyptian perspective. This makes the chronicle a principle information source for early modern history of Egypt.

The chronicles perspective depicts that the Egyptian population as the intended audience. This is evident in the sentiments of the author who portrays the French according to the local perceptions. The portrayal of the French is negative according to the moods of the Egyptian population concerning Napoleon’s imperialistic ambitions and the consequent invasion into the region.

The accounts offer an alternative perspective of the western documentation of the invasion. This is mainly due to the approach of the author who was inclined towards the local perspective. This was different from the western literature since the perspective mostly biased to the western cause. In this scenario, the author’s approach counters the western documentation since it provides the sentiments and perceptions of the people concerning the invasion. The invasion of Egypt was symbolic for the western society. This is due to the position of the country in the African continent and its influence in the Muslim world. Therefore, there was a divergent approach in the explanations for the significance of this occupation when considering the African and the western perspective. The African perspective saw the invasion negatively since it interfered with their freedom and culture. This is clear in the texts of al-Jabarti whereby the chronicles suggest that the population was against the presence of the French forces in the region. The western perspective, on the other hand, shares limited information on the perspective of the locals. Therefore, the author’s perspective challenges the explanations of western inclinations.

The chronicles are clear about the perceptions of al-Jabarti concerning the French. The perceptions about the French included the following. The French appeared easy to defeat. This meant that they did not worry the locals since they appeared weak. The Egyptians also considered the French as uncivilized since they appeared in contempt of their religion. This is because napoleon proclaims that the locals need to raise the French flag and praise them at the expense of their sovereignty and religion. These perceptions are evident in the accounts of the author concerning the event.

Internal division among the Egyptian population is evident in the texts of the al-Jabarti. After the realization of the French’s strength, divisions among the locals became apparent a situation, which resulted in chaos among the Egyptians.

The proclamation of Napoleon during the invasion was also subject to exploration by al-Jabarti. The author interpreted the calls for the Egyptians to accept French dominion as an attempt to replace their religion. The author is clear that they only praised God and not the French. The occupation by the French also had an effect on the Egyptian people. The occupation resulted in losing their freedom resulting in chaos. It also influenced their perception of the French from the previous belief that they had been weaklings. The accounts of al-Jabarti are noteworthy since they give a local perspective of the historical occurrence, which counters the western accounts.

The chronicles by al-Jabarti are a unique account, which depicts the perspective of the locals on the French invasion of Egypt. This counters the western accounts since it projects the local moods about the event. Therefore, the chronicles are instrumental in providing historical information with considerations of the local perspective.