The Timeline of the Plans and Projects to Link the Eastern Mediterranean Region to the Red Sea by Water

San José State University

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The Timeline of the Plans and Projects
to Link the Eastern Mediterranean
Region to the Red Sea by Water:
The Egyptian Canals Which
Preceded the Suez Canal

1845-1837 BCE: The Egyptian pharaoh Senwosret III considered building a canal linking the Nile River Valley to the Red Sea, but decided not to do so out of fear that the Red Sea might flood Egypt with salt water through the canal.
c. 650 BCE: The Egyptian pharaoh Neccho II started building such a canal, but gave up to focus his resources on a war in the Levant. Herodotus said that 120,000 people died in the canal-building effort.
c. 500 BCE: The Persian emperor Darius the Great who conquered Egypt had a canal built linking a tributary branch of the Nile River to the Red Sea. It was about 25 meters width. Herodotus rode on a barge on the canal and reported that it was a four day journey from its start in Egypt to the Red Sea.

c.250 BCE: The Macedonian pharaoh of Egypt, Ptolemy II Philadelphus had a new canal excavated. One of the uses the canal was put to was to transport African elephants to Egypt for the pharaoh's army which had to face enemies possessing war elephants from India.
The Ptolemaic canal followed the same route as Darius' canal. The Ptolemies alleged that Darius' canal was never built, but a stone statue of Darius was found in Iran which was made from Egyptian stone. That statue could only have been transported out of Egypt by water.
c. 100 CE: The Roman emperor Trajan extended the canal upstream on the Nile to where a fortress existed. The location where this canal connected with the Nile developed into a settlement that eventually became the city of Cairo.

c. 300 CE: The Roman emperor Diocletian established more fortifications around the entrance to the canal, further promoting the economy of the region that became Cairo.
c. 640 CE: The caliph Umar orders the construction of a 170 kilometer canal connecting Egypt to the Red Sea to bring food to the Hijaz region of western Arabia. This largely involved clearing the route of the Roman canal.
c. 755 CE: The canal was closed by the Caliph al-Mansur to shut off food for Madinah (Medina) to suppress a rebellion against him.
1859 CE: Construction started on a 164 kilometer canal linking Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea with the city of Suez on the Red Sea. It was opened for operation in 1869.
Initially the canal was 8 meters deep but this was increased to 24 meters. The width is 205 meters. Access canals in the north and south have added about 30 kilometers to the canal length.

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