Muhammad Ali of Egypt

Born

March 4, 1769

Died

August 2, 1849 (aged 80)

Known as

military leader, politician, statesperson, governor, viceroy, businessperson

Muhammad Ali was the Ottoman viceroy and governor of Albanian origin, who became the de facto ruler of Egypt from 1805 to 1848, widely considered the founder of modern Egypt. At the height of his rule in 1840, he controlled Egypt, Sudan, Hejaz, the Levant, Cyprus, Crete and parts of Greece and transformed Cairo from a mere Ottoman provincial capital to the center of an expansive empire.

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