INTERNATIONAL SUBMARINE TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION FROM THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN TO THE INDIAN OCEAN DURING THE 19TH CENTURY: ACCORDING TO THE BRITISH ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTS

Abstract

ABSTRACT The telegraph is a good example of the concretization of scientific and technical developments, which have been increasing since the beginning of the 19th century, and their transformation into technological devices. Thanks to the invention of the telegraph, communication over long distances became possible for short periods. Telegraph lines, which previously ran across the continents via copper cables laid on poles erected on the ground, provided the opportunity for communication on lands and under seas, with the addition of underwater telegraph lines to these lines in a short time, in parallel with technological transitions. However, the development and regular maintenance of the lines were vital to the global communication network. By the 1850s, a strong communication network consisting of telegraph lines and hundreds of telegraph stations had been established in many European countries such as England, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, and Germany, with telegraph lines of over 4000 km. This infrastructure, which was used effectively in both world wars, starting from the Crimean War, also formed the basis of military communication. Industrialized countries such as Great Britain have dramatically increased their influence in the world by using these technological developments, thus gaining a great military, political, and economic advantage by directing the logistical support provided by communication to the real political field. The brilliant ideas developed on telegraphy during this time would be very important for today's digital communication infrastructure. In this context, in our study, using British and Ottoman archive documents, we tried to reveal, in parallel with the technological development of telegraphy, scientific studies carried out to lay telegraph lines under seas, established submarine telegraph companies, and their activities, the process of laying submarine telegraph lines in the areas from the Eastern Mediterranean basin to the Indian Ocean and Australia during the 19th century and finally how this communication network infrastructure contributed to the construction of the contemporary today's world. Key Words: Submarine Telegraph Systems, Submarine Telegraph Companies, International Communication, Eastern Mediterranean, Late Ottoman Period