War by Revolution. Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East in the Era of World War I

22 WARBYREVOLUTION

HilminottopushtheBritishtoofar.TheministryfearedBritish
reprisals,includingtheestablishmentofaprotectorateoverEgypt,
thatcouldjeopardizeGermanpoliticalandeconomicactivities
there."
YetneitherBemstorffnortheforeignministryattemptedtohalt
theanti-Britishactivitiesofsubordinateofficialsin theconsulate-
general.TheseincludedthenotoriousOppenheim,knowntothe
Britishas"theKaiser's spy,"andCurtPrufer,anambitiousyoung
dragoman(interpreter)andspecialistin Arabcultureandlanguage.I?
Usingthepretextofexcavatingancientruinsandarchaeologicalsites
inthedesertanddisguisedin Arabgarb,thetwoGermansvisited
BedouintribesinEgyptandSyria,presentingtheshaykhswithgifts
anddenouncingtheBritish."TheircontactswiththeBedouinsalso
resultedfromOppenheim'slong-heldviewthatGermanyshould
encouragepan-Islamismas ameansofsubvertingtheMuslimsub-
jectsoftheReich'spotentialEuropeanenemies.
Inthisregard,Oppenheimarguedrepeatedlytotheforeignminis-
trythatEgyptianswouldriseagainstBritishruleiftroopsoftheleader
ofIslam,theOttomansultan-caliph,appearedattheSuezCanal,or
ifa warbeganinEuropethatinvolvedBritain.Inthemarginofone
suchreportto theministry,WilhelmII,whoreadOppenheim'smemo-
randa,notedhappily,"Good,correct!"19Pan-Islamismwasontherise
inEgyptandelsewhereintheMuslimworld,Oppenheimasserted,
includingamongtheAfghans,whowishedtofightforIslamagainst
theBritishinneighboringIndia."
DuringhisrepeatedvisitstoConstantinopleOppenheimalsomet
HusaynibnAli,whomtheTurkshadappointedattheendof 1908
thenewsharifofMecca. IntheirdiscussionstheGerman,onthe
pretextofhisinterestinarchaeology,questionedHusaynaboutpo-
liticalrelationsintheHijaz.HusaynimpressedOppenheim,wholater
describedtheArab as "a cleverman.?"BothBritainandFranceac-
cusedOppenheimofdabblinginpan-Islamicpropaganda;Paris even
blamedhimforincitingrebellionin 1908 amongtheFrenchForeign
LegionandArabpopulationinAlgiers."
Oppenheimespeciallycultivatedties totheEgyptiannationalists
andthekhedive,AbbasHilmi,buthehadlittlesuccessinencourag-
ingthemtoformananti-Britishalliance."FollowingCromer'sresig-