Treaty of Balta Liman

The 1838 Treaty of Balta Liman, or the Anglo-Ottoman Treaty, is a formal trade agreement signed between the Sublime Porte of the Ottoman Empire and Great Britain. The trade policies imposed upon the Ottoman Empire, after the Treaty of Balta Liman, were some of the most liberal, open market settlements that had ever been enacted during the time. The terms of the treaty stated that the Ottoman Empire will abolish all monopolies, allow British merchants and their collaborators to have full access to all Ottoman markets and will be taxed equally to local merchants.^[1] These agreements did not constitute an equal free trade arrangement, as Britain still employed protectionist policies on their agricultural markets.

Leading up to the Treaty of Balta Liman, in the fall of 1831 the Governor of Egypt, Muhammad Ali of Egypt, retaliated against the Ottoman Empire. Mehmet Ali had not been given the territory that Ottoman Sultan, Mahmud II, had promised him, after he showed military expertise in defeating Greek rebels in 1824.^[2] In response Ali Pasha's son, Ibrahim Pasha, led the Egyptian army to storm Lebanon and Syria, quickly defeating Ottoman forces. Mahmud II appealed to Britain and France for help, though neither would intervene. Reluctantly the Empire turned to Russia for help, which in turn stopped Ali Pasha's advancements. After a round of negotiations Egypt was able to retain most of the conquered land, though neither party was truly satisfied with the outcome. Tensions between Egypt and the Ottoman Empire, along with fears of Russian intervention, gave London an incentive to negotiate with Constantinople, to gain the upper-hand in trade agreements. Britain took advantage of the unrest and offered its hand in helping the Ottoman Empire defeat Mehmet Ali Pasha, in exchange for complete access to Ottoman trade markets.