Egypt's Belle Epoque: Cairo and the Age of the Hedonists (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781845112400)

Egypt's belle poque was a period of incredible extravagance during which the Khedive Ismail's Cairo became the mirror image, both architecturally and socially, of decadent Paris. The glamour and hedonism of the era reached its peak during the magnificent celebrations for the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Kings and emperors, artists, writers and Europe's most sophisticated flocked to the dazzling new Cairo of sumptuous palaces and Parisian gardens, where Verdi's Aida premiered at the new opera house and glittering parties were held on the banks of the Nile. But the splendour was short-lived. Only a year after the Suez Canal opened, the Second Empire in France collapsed and the Khedive's excesses plunged Egypt into crippling debt. Ismail was eventually forced to abdicate, leaving Cairo to the British who occupied Egypt in all but name. This is a riveting account of an extraordinary moment in the history of both France and Egypt.

Author: Trevor Mostyn
ISBN-10: 1845112407
ISBN-13: 9781845112400
Publisher: Continnuum-3PL
Language: English
Published: 09/01/2006
Pages: 232
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.59lbs
Size: 7.86h x 5.06w x 0.66d