Suez 1956: The Inside Story of the First Oil War

by Barry Turner

The 1956 joint strike on Egypt by Britain, France, and Israel resulted in international political turmoil. For each of the contenders there was much more at stake than just the future of the Suez Canal, and the events surrounding the invasion were full of high drama and intrigue, with elements of political farce. Eyewitness accounts and primary documents, many of which have never been published before, help show that—for all its brevity—the Suez Crisis had a deeper impact on world affairs than many other more famous conflicts.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Middle East, Egypt, War

400 pages, Paperback

First published August 10, 2006

About the author

Barry Turner has been a full-time writer for 30 years. He has worked as a journalist and broadcaster in the field of politics, biography, travel and education, and is the author of over 20 books. He is a regular contributor to The Times as a book reviewer and serializer, and is the editor of the annuals The Writer's Handbook and The Screenwriter's Handbook.

Reviews

[Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

كتاب كبير 560 صفحة منهم 60 للمراحع و الصور.. دراسة عن قناة السويس من قبل حفرها و حتي الآثار المترتبة علي العدوان الثلاثي كما يسميه العرب أو حرب السويس كما يسميها الغرب..
أهم ما ترتب علي العدوان الثلاثي اختفاء فرنسا و بريطانيا خلف الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية التي أصبحت اللاعب رقم 1 في العالم.. بزوغ شمس إسرائيل كقوة فاعلة في المنطقة قادرة علي القيام بحروب منفردة.. بعد حرب 1956 أمريكا تخلت عن الدور الحيادي بين العرب و اسرائيل، و انحازت لإسرائيل لاجرامعا انها الفاعل الرئيسي في المنطقة
الدروس المستفادة أن القادة العرب لا يتعلمون من الماضي... خطة هجوم 1956 هي نفس خطة هجوم 1967 من حيث للهجوم البرى و ضرب الطيران.. مع نفس الفشل العربي في التوقع و الرد و حتي الانسحاب..
حرب السويس أنهت المستقبل السياسي لايدن.. رسمت صورة لناصر كزعيم القومية العربية..
المجهود المبذول من الكاتب و الأسلوب السردى له و المراجع التي اعتمد عليها تستحق 5 نجوم
الترجمة جيدة جدا و تستحق 4 نجوم و ان كان يعيبها الالتحاق لتركيبة الجملة الإنجليزية و هي التي تختلف في الشكل عن الجملة العربية مما أضاف احيانا صعوبة في تلقي المعلومة
التقييم الكلي 5 نجوم

[D. Ennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book. Felt it was well written. However, for a book covering a conflict that involved 4 countries it is very Anglo-centric. Could have been a lot more interesting if the Israeli, French and Egyptian story was told with as much detail and insight as the English side was.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book as my knowledge of this particular conflict was negligible. The author describes the history leading up to the conflict and in particular the secret liaison between France and Israel which was at the time a considerable contribution to the eventual political catastrophe that the crisis became. Well written and lucid though not told in the traditional historical format. The book does move along at a rapid pace with a lot of content and without any sense of padding out the pages. But once the story of the conflict is finished the book stumbles and the author seems to struggle to give any sort of historical or political consensus on the lasting impact of the crisis and its impact on British and European hegemony post WW2.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is quite a fine account of the 1956 Suez Crisis and the war that resulted. Turner's book tells about the background--going all the way back to Napoleon--and how this affected the Middle East. The emphasis is on the British role, with lesser coverage of the French and Israeli contributions to this crisis. Good reading to find out more on this important event in the Cold War and in Middle Eastern affairs.

[Richard Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wanted to read this book at a time of the Brexit crisis as the Suez Crisis was the last major crisis to hit Britain. There are parallels, and I've linked the two in a long blog:

https://richardswsmith.wordpress.com/...

There are also parallels with the 2004 invasion of Iraq, and I've quoted Turner on that subject in a short blog

https://richardswsmith.wordpress.com/...

[Souhila · Rating 4 out of 5]

🔸️الكتاب رائع...السرد مفصل جدا وتناول أحداث مهمة ولكن بعض الموضوعات التي تم عرضها بالتفصيل مثل حرب فيتنام وفرنسا ونضال الجزائر ضد فرنسا كان يمكن الإيجاز فيها اكتر بم ان الكتاب يتناول "أزمة السويس".

🔸️مجهود كبير في الكتابة ولكن بريطانيا طبعا ليها النصيب الأكبر من الكتاب بم إن الكاتب انجليزي الأصل.

🔸️عجبني جدا الهوامش في نهاية الكتاب والتعريف بالشخصيات الواردة في الأحداث مع أطلس الصور ..مجهود يُشكر عليه الكاتب.

[Delson Roche · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dry and much like an academic kind of book. Some chapter's were interesting but mostly it was a very boring read- sorry.

[Sky Rockt]

It's good bookk

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

While there are no shortage of candidates for the moment when the Western empires came to an end, one of the most popular is that of the failed attempt by Britain and France to reclaim the Suez Canal in the autumn of 1956. For all of the military gains made by their forces and their Israeli allies, Operation Musketeer (as the plan was called) ended with the humiliating withdrawal of European forces and a political triumph for the ruler of Egypt, Gamal Nasser. Though subsequently regarded as a military success but a political failure, Barry Turner is having none of it. As he argues in his flawed but informative book, the effort was "a military failure and a political disaster," one the effects of which were felt for decades to come.

Turner traces its origins to the early investigations by the French at the start of the 19th century to explore the possibility of building a canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas. His narrative loses its focus early here, as he offers a much broader of the West's involvement with the entire Middle East during the 19th and 20th centuries than is really necessary. Once he gets into the details of the immediate events leading up to the decision to invade, however, his narrative improves, as he details the chain of decisions in Britain, Egypt, France, Israel, and elsewhere that led the British prime minister, Anthony Eden, to seek a military response to Nasser's decision to nationalize the Suez Canal in 1956. The preparation for the invasion is portrayed as a comedy of errors, as National Servicemen found themselves suddenly thrust into an operation for which they were completely unprepared, with outdated and poorly-maintained Second World War-era equipment that was often inferior to the Soviet-supplied weapons of their Egyptian foes. The invasion itself was conducted with what proved in retrospect an overabundance of caution, as the Egyptians found themselves unprepared for the conflict and facing a war on two fronts. Yet it was the Egyptians who emerged as the victors, as international pressure brought an end to the last hurrah of an old style of Western imperialism.

All of this is described in an accessible and informative manner, one that strives, usually with success, to convey the major personalities behind the conflict. Turner's use of quotes is a great strength in this respect, as he deploys the memoirs and interviews of the major participants to give color to his narrative, Yet Turner's book suffers from a some flaws of construction. Foremost is in the subtitle, as his claims of Suez as the "first oil war" are strained and backed by little evidence, imbalancing some of his other assessments in the process. His narrative is also heavily Anglo-centric in its focus, which further distorts his analysis of the roles played by various participants and decisions. As a result, while an enjoyable introduction of the Suez crisis, Turner's book falls short of being the dramatic and insightful study that this account deserves.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book recounts the last hurrah of the British and French Empires during their invasion of the Suez region. He does a great job of going into the context from which the policies of the French, British, Egyptian and US sprung. It makes an interesting read to watch grown men and political leaders make consistently bad choices for both good and bad reasons. It's an easy read and a great piece of military and political history.