The disaster in Egypt had just begun for Napoleon. He was unable to discuss military matters with Monge, who was busy with the Academy of Sciences, especially solving the problem of the increasing shortage of ammunition for the army. The French actually had to solve everything they needed in Egypt by themselves, which was something that Napoleon did not expect before the sea blockade. Unlike Monge, who was always optimistic, Napoleon, who was trapped in the abyss of helplessness, sometimes fell into extreme distress. The glorious palace of Erfe became a cage that imprisoned him.
However, from the outside, Napoleon was still full of confidence in the future. He reviewed the team in a warm manner and celebrated the festival to boost morale. One of Napoleon's important activities was to study Egypt's Muslim traditions and religious festivals, including the ancient celebrations at the beginning of the flood season of the Nile River, which could be traced back to the era of the Pharaoh. From Alexandria, there was still news of casualties and military losses. It was hard to say that Napoleon was in the mood to celebrate, but at 6 a.m. on August 18th, just four days after he returned to Cairo, Napoleon brought Louis Bonaparte, Eugen Boarne, and three generals, officers, and a dignitary of the division to Madgas with the Egyptian guards. The rising river was about to rush over the dike and flood into the irrigation canal. When Napoleon and his entourage were present, the French gunboats and the cannons in the castle fired salutes. Accompanied by traditional Egyptian music and Muslim prayers, the celebration began. The Egyptians dug up the dike and released the first flood peak of the year into the dry fields. Napoleon, who was fully dressed in the traditional black robe of the mullahs, threw coins into the crowd of thousands of people and presented robes to 38 Muslim officials.
Two days later, a ceremony to commemorate the Prophet was held in the Elfah Palace. At night, a torch parade was held in Cairo. The believers prayed all night and the event lasted for several days. The intolerable Major de Toyer said the celebrations had caused a diabolical uproar. On the day of August 24th, monkey, bear, and snake charlatans performed for Napoleon and the citizens of Cairo. Women and children sang non-stop. The cavalry and infantry of the French garrison lined up in the square under the accompaniment of the military band. Then, a feast was held in the palace. Thousands of citizens watched the fireworks developed by the engineers with the army. Unfortunately, due to the poor quality of the gunpowder, there were often sizzling and smelly bombs. It seemed that these activities had a certain appeal to the Egyptian people. Napoleon decided to further win the support of Egyptian farmers and Muslims and continue to make every effort to show his respect for their religious beliefs.
As early as the end of the celebration, on the 18th, Napoleon ordered Major General Perret to send Brigadier General Marmont to the lower reaches of the Nile River to ensure the communication and safety of the material transportation channels in Alexandria, Rosetta, and Cairo. Although the transportation along the canal was escorted by the armed French army, it was still constantly attacked by the Bedouin army from land and water, making it very dangerous. Moreover, the Arabs were destroying the dikes everywhere, making it difficult for the French engineers led by General Caffreri to cope. Marmont was a very capable and energetic young officer. Napoleon had once given him some advice (his loyalty to Napoleon was still the same). You will write me as much detail as you can.... Let me know all the details of the British and how our fleet performed at Abu Kir Gulf.
At the same time, Napoleon submitted a personal report to the Directorate-General on Nelson's defeat of the French fleet. The report hardly mentioned the disaster itself, but it said that the French had suffered 800 casualties in the battle (Alexander's official report already listed 1,700), and that he did not know the number of French casualties in the battle, but I estimated that the number was quite high (although 1,200 French corpses had been found). He praised Admiral Vernave for leading two warships and two three-masted frigates to escape, as well as the brave captains Thouars and Casabianca who died peacefully and bravely in the gunfire. However, by praising Gantum, he greatly belittled Bruise, claiming that the former had opposed Bruise's tactics. Nevertheless, the fact that Napoleon could not deny the result of the naval battle-his demand that the Directorate-General concentrate all the warships in Toulon, Malta, Ancona, and Corfu to form a new fleet and immediately rush to Egypt with supplies and fresh troops-spoke for itself.
In order to stabilize the morale of the front line, two days later, Napoleon wrote a letter to General Kléber, saying: My health is better than ever, and the country has begun to comply with our rules... Our situation is getting better every month (they have been in Egypt for less than two months), every day, thanks to the appropriate measures we have taken with the army and the fortifications we have built. He ended by saying,"I salute you and embrace you warmly."
This was the last time that Kléber, the governor of Alexandria, was warmly embraced by Napoleon. Then, a series of letters about thorny problems occurred between the two of them. The British won't let us leave or enter the port; Business was stagnant, and customs was completely useless. Kléber told Napoleon and pointed out the key problem: He was short of money. According to Napoleon's principles, the cost of an occupying army, such as the cost of conquering Alexander, should be paid by the conquered. Due to the tight lockdown, all sources of income were cut off. Now, the British intended to increase the difficulties of the French army in terms of supplies. They sent the French prisoners ashore to return to their troops. They needed barracks, clothes, and food. Moreover, the French Navy was currently under the command of Major General Guntum and refused to accept Kléber's orders. Kléber described them as rude, undisciplined, and arrogant-they were used to living disorderly lives, they were people who were used to doing evil, and he compared the French Navy to a rotting corpse. In addition, Kléber informed Napoleon that their military funds had been exhausted: We find ourselves in the most miserable of penniless situations. However, he still had to pay for the army and navy, as well as the construction of fortifications and the dredging of rivers. General, it would be very unfair if you thought that we were showing weakness by raising our problems and our situation. Kreiber said, as for myself…you can completely trust me, and I will fully support you in any situation and obey all your orders. Napoleon immediately lent him 500,000 Francs from a local merchant. Klaiber was extremely shocked. Due to Alexander's lack of food, medicine, money, and facilities, he had to transfer 1,000 wounded soldiers to General Menu in Rosetta. However, Menu refused because his financial situation was also very tight. For this, Kléber sighed,"Only luck and the talent of our people can save us from this mysterious land."
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