Life and works of Marius Michel in nineteenth-century Ottoman Empire

Abstract

This thesis deals with the life and career of Marius Michel, who led the lighthouse construction movements in the late Ottoman period. The need for infrastructure to support global mobility such as ports, warehouses, railways, and lighthouses arose due to the steam technologies, industrial revolution and the increase in maritime transport and travel, witnessed by the nineteenth century. Marius Michel managed the lighthouse construction activities, first as the Director of the Ottoman Lighthouses Administration, and then through the Michel et Collas company, which had the privilege of building and managing the lighthouses he founded. In addition to this, since 1879, he received the title of Pasha and was referred to as Michel Pasha, in addition to the medals he received for his outstanding services. In 1890, he signed the Eminönü and Galata dock construction concession agreement as the founder of the Dersaadet Rıhtım, Dock and Warehouse Company. Between 1892-1900, the construction of these two piers was carried out under the direction of Michel Pasha. Bernard Collas, the other partner of Michel et Collas company, obtained the Jaffa Jerusalem railway construction concession through Société du Chemin de Fer Ottoman de Jaffa à Jérusalem et Prolongements / Ottoman Jaffa to Jerusalem Railway and Extensions Company, the railway was put into service in 1892. To conclude, this thesis examines the infrastructure construction process to serve this increase in the nineteenth century, when global connections and maritime transport increased, through Marius Michel's Life and Works.