Milner Mission
MILNER MISSION
Official British Foreign Office commission sent to Egypt to ascertain Egypt's political aspirations "within the framework of the Protectorate" during the 1919 revolution.
Formation of the commission, headed by Colonial Secretary Alfred Milner, was announced eight months before its arrival in Egypt, weakening its effectiveness. The Wafd organized a nationwide boycott of the Milner Mission to show that the Egyptian people would oppose any extension of Britain's rule. Muslim ulama (religious scholars), Coptic priests, students, and women aided the boycott. The Mission was able to meet only King Fu'ad, the ministers, and a few notables. Milner's final report admitted that most Egyptians wanted independence and greatly influenced later British thinking on Egypt. Milner resigned his post in 1921, when the British Cabinet rejected his proposal for giving modified independence to Egypt.
see also wafd.
Bibliography
Marlowe, John. Anglo-Egyptian Relations, 1800–1956, 2d edition. London: F. Cass, 1965.
Mcintyre, John D., Jr. The Boycott of the Milner Mission: A Study in Egyptian Nationalism. New York: P. Lang, 1985.
arthur goldschmidt