No ruler of Egypt, except Gamal Abdul…

No ruler of Egypt, except Gamal Abdul Nasser, has provoked such controversy in the West as Ismail.

At this time, the anti-Ismail view is held mainly by British administrators like Evelyn Baring (Lord Cromer) and Lord Alfred Milner, who depicts him as squeezing the peasants for money by oppressive taxation and the whip, and ''ruining Egypt" by his lavish spending and despotic ways.

Journalists and the American consuls in Egypt such as Edwin de Leon hold a more balanced view, arguing that Ismail has inherited an unfavorable Suez Canal agreement and a significant public and private debt from his uncle, Sa'id.

They note that although Ismail spends lavishly, much of the money he borrows from European bankers is used for building or repairing the country 's infrastructure.

They also point out that European bankers and financiers loan money to Egypt at usurious interest rates and, when it seems Egypt will be unable to repay the loans, urge their governments to intervene to protect their interests.