8/2/2019 Suez Canal Crisis

1/2

To be born a leader is an expression that can suffer somedebate. Leaders are not born but they emerge from situation.They gain experience, they absorb knowledge, and they seeand listen to the world around them - both inside the

organization and beyond. A leader must have a vision thatshould be at par with the organisation. Effective leadersenvision what they want and how to get it. It is the leader whointegrates the organisational activities to yield organisationalgoals. A leader must also be courageous and should have theperseverance to accomplish a goal, regardless of theseemingly insurmountable obstacles. He should maintaincalmness under stress and should be farsighted. All thesecharacteristic of a leader can be analysed in case of Benjamin

Disraeli under Suez Canal Case.The Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt,connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The SuezCanal formed an important asset that the imperial Britishwanted to add to their basket because they had formedcolonies in eastern Africa, India, and parts of Australia. Thevoyage from Europe to Asia was reduced from six months to 6weeks. Also about seventy percent of the oil requirement was

fulfilled from transportation through Suez Canal. In 1875, theKhedive of Egypt had gone bankrupt and needed to sell sharesin the Suez Canal in order to gain money. Benjamin Disraeliunderstood the importance of Suez Canal and purchased176,602 shares in the Canal in order to stop the imperial lifelineto India and Australia falling into French hands. Disraelipersuaded Lionel de Rothschild to lend the British governmentthe 4m needed to purchase the shares. Since Parliament wasnot in session at the time, Disraeli took the instantaneous

decision on his own, thereby opening himself to much criticismfrom Parliamentary opponents, but winning approval from theQueen and the public. Benjamin Disraeli was a British PrimeMinister, parliamentarian, Conservative statesman and literaryfigure. Starting from comparatively humble origins, he served ingovernment for three decades, twice as Prime Minister of theUnited Kingdom. This incident highlighted some characteristics

8/2/2019 Suez Canal Crisis

2/2

that Disraeli displayed as a leader. There are at times thatleaders need to take decisions on their own for the bettermentof the organisation and be responsible for the decision that hehas taken. He must be fearless and courageous and should be

ready to face the consequences of the decision. In this casealso Disraeli was fearless and took the instant decision toacquire the shares of the Suez Canal. The parliament was notsitting at the time when the offer for the sale of shares canalcame to him. But he was sure that the acquisition of the shareswould definitely be of great advantage to the imperial British fortrade and colonial purpose and so he conveyed the message tothe queen. He was farsighted and hence instantly approachedLionel de Rothschild for the loan and not the Bank of England

because he did not want the acquisition to be delayed. It was aself-less decision on his part and was entirely for the benefit ofthe country. Had the process been delayed the scenario mighthave been much different and French might have acquired theshares. Even then he had to bear the brunt of the opponentsand the parliamentarians and was answerable to them. HenceDisraeli stood out as a great leader in this mess and added TheSuez Canal to the basket of the imperial British.