Some people have visited the Suez Canal several times but still know nothing about this canal. If you are planning to visit the canal, make sure you learn about 5 fun facts of the Suez Canal. In Arabic, the canal’s name is Qanatu as-Suways. This is an artificial waterway you will find in Egypt.
This waterway connects the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez’s Isthmus. The canal also divides two continents: Asia and Africa. This is the trade route between Asia and Europe. Ready to know many more unique facts about this canal? Scroll down and you’ll get the entire details.
5 Fun Facts of Suez Canal
The length of this canal is 120.1 miles or 193.3 kilometers. The construction of this artificial waterway started on September 25, 1859, and it finished about a year after the construction began, on November 17, 1869. The starting point of this waterway is at Port Said and its endpoint is at Port Tewfik, Suez.
The company that built this incredible waterway is a French company named Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez or the Suez Canal Company. This canal allows ships and boats to travel from Europe to reach Asia so that they don’t have to go around Africa. Here are some more facts:
1. The Statue of Liberty is to celebrate the canal
Once the construction of this canal was completed, Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, a French sculptor decided to create a statue in order to celebrate the canal’s success. The plan was to place the statue at the canal’s entrance in the Mediterranean Sea and serve as the lighthouse for all passing ships.
But this project never reached its goal. However, Bartholdi unveiled the awesome masterpiece as the Liberty Enlightening the World in New York in 1886. Now you know the detailed history of the Suez Canal and its connection to the Statue of Liberty.
2. The canal’s developer attempted to build another one
About twelve years after finishing the Suez Canal, Ferdinand de Lesseps recommended building another canal that would run over the Isthmus in Central America. Since the construction of the Suez Canal finished successfully, it was easier for Lesseps to gain support from governments and investors.
From 1881, Lesseps’ other projects faced a lot of calamities and issues. The company led by Lesseps finally crashed in 1889. The canal project found its end for years to come.
3. The project was opposed by the British government
The Egyptian government gave its support to Lesseps. Then Lesseps tried to garner additional support from French Emperor Napoleon III. But this made the British government refuse the project and didn’t want to take any part.
The British government sees the canal construction as a deliberate scheme that is going to weaken the dominance of the British over global shipping. However, after the waterway’s construction was completed, the British government bought all entire of Egypt’s shares.
4. After a war, the waterway was shut down
Ten years after the nationalization of the Suez Canal, Israel underwent a war against Egypt. Egypt then shut down the canal and used the waterway as a frontline in order to continue the battles for about eight years. The canal was reopened by Anwar El-Sadat, the Egyptian President in 1975.
5. The workers were working really hard
All involved workers needed to remove 30,000 cubic meters of sand in order to unclog the canal. In March 2021, workers labored tirelessly to free the Ever Given. When those diligent workers remove the sand on the shore, dredgers and tugboats rotate the big ship to help free it.
The determination and undying spirit of those workers helped the canal so that it can operate until today. Without their hard work, the Suez Canal today will still be blocked.
Napoleon Bonaparte Wanted to Build Suez Canal
Those 5 fun facts of the Suez Canal above aren’t the only facts about this incredible Suez Canal located in Egypt. Another fact you may want to know is that Napoleon Bonaparte wanted to build the canal. After conquering the country in 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte sent his surveyors team.
He wanted the team to investigate the possibility of cutting the Suez’s Isthmus and then build a canal that would connect the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The surveyors incorrectly concluded that the Mediterranean Sea was 30 feet lower than the Red Sea.
They believed that building a canal would cause catastrophic flooding. The faulty calculations scared Napoleon and he didn’t start the project. In 1847, researchers confirmed that the altitude between both seas had no serious difference.
Suez Canal Experienced Huge Overhaul
In 2015, Suez Canal experienced an overhaul. For years, the Suez Canal was hampered by the shallow depth and narrow width. The canal wasn’t able to accommodate traffic from newer tanker ships. The Egyptian Authority for Suez Canal announced a plan to create a new lane and deepen the canal.
The plan was announced in August 2014. The authority was interested in creating a 22 mile lane that will branch off the major channel. In 2015, the expansion opened and the ships could get a channel parallel that led to deepened major waterways. However, the improvements were still not enough.
Another improvement was conducted in 2021 because a 1,300 foot container ship was wedged and also stuck in the Suez Canal when it traveled from China. This improvement involves hundreds of workers.
Too Many Awesome Facts About Suez Canal
If you still want to know many other unique and interesting facts about the Suez Canal, there is no better way than visiting Egypt and learning about it directly from its country. You need to book your flight now and explore Egypt and its amazing nature and culture by visiting the cities and deserts in Egypt.
Those 5 fun facts of the Suez Canal are just the opening. Find many other facts by contacting us here. We’ll help you find the best trip to Egypt and explore the best sites and places to learn about the Suez Canal and view the entire beauty of this country. Visit our site at exodustravel.net to explore more details about the tour.