Jean Eïd (1819–1878) : from Levantine dragoman to godfather of a Belgian-Egyptian dynasty : para-diplomatic personnel and the history of Belgium’s diplomatic entanglements with Egypt

As a young, but ambitious state that aspired to acquire a respected position in the nineteenth-century European concert, one of the institutions Belgium relied on was its diplomatic corps. Whereas the capitals of Europe quickly became the new home of career diplomats, Belgium gradually developed a consular apparatus that was staffed by locally recruited agents in more faraway areas. In the Eastern Mediterranean, the position of dragoman, who served as translator to the diplomatic representatives, was especially relevant in a setting where language barriers hindered the expansion of Belgium’s d... Mehr ...