Suez Crisis much-watched debates about the Suez war on "Free Speech" mirrored the divided public response to the war. The British government pressured the BBC to support the war, and seriously considered taking over the network. Eden's major mistake had been not to strike in July 1956 when there was widespread anger at Nasser's nationalisation of the Suez Canal Company, as by the fall of 1956 public anger had subsided, with many people in Britain having come to accept the "fait accompli", and saw no reason for war. This was especially the case as Eden's claims that the Egyptians would hopelessly mismanage
Suez Crisis the country as well as the canal proper, and its finances and operations. The 1888 Convention of Constantinople declared the canal a neutral zone under British protection. In ratifying it, the Ottoman Empire agreed to permit international shipping to pass freely through the canal, in time of war and peace. The Convention came into force in 1904, the same year as the "Entente cordiale" between Britain and France. Despite this convention, the strategic importance of the Suez Canal and its control were proven during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, after Japan and Britain entered into a separate bilateral agreement. Following