Following two months of arranging, Bonaparte concluded that France's maritime power was not yet solid enough to go up against the British Royal Navy. He settled on a military endeavor to seize Egypt and in this way undermine Britain's entrance to its exchange advantages in India.[41] Bonaparte wished to build up a French nearness in the Middle East, connecting with Tipu Sultan, a Muslim foe of the British in India.[69] Napoleon guaranteed the Directory that "when he had vanquished Egypt, he will set up relations with the Indian rulers and, together with them, assault the English in their possessions".[70] The Directory concurred with the end goal to anchor an exchange course to India.[71]

In May 1798, Bonaparte was chosen an individual from the French Academy of Sciences. His Egyptian endeavor incorporated a gathering of 167 researchers, with mathematicians, naturalists, scientific experts, and geodesists among them. Their disclosures incorporated the Rosetta Stone, and their work was distributed in the Description de l'égypte in 1809.[72]

In transit to Egypt, Bonaparte achieved Malta on 9 June 1798, at that point controlled by the Knights Hospitaller. Fabulous Master Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim surrendered after token obstruction, and Bonaparte caught an imperative maritime base with the loss of just three men.[73]

General Bonaparte and his campaign escaped interest by the Royal Navy and arrived at Alexandria on 1 July.[41] He battled the Battle of Shubra Khit against the Mamluks, Egypt's decision military standing. This helped the French practice their cautious strategy for the Battle of the Pyramids, battled on 21 July, around 24 km (15 mi) from the pyramids. General Bonaparte's powers of 25,000 generally equalled those of the Mamluks' Egyptian rangers. Twenty-nine French[74] and roughly 2,000 Egyptians were executed. The triumph supported the assurance of the French army.[75]

On 1 August 1798, the British armada under Sir Horatio Nelson caught or wrecked everything except two French vessels in the Battle of the Nile, crushing Bonaparte's objective to reinforce the French position in the Mediterranean.[76] His armed force had prevailing in a brief increment of French power in Egypt, however it confronted rehashed uprisings.[77] In mid 1799, he moved an armed force into the Ottoman region of Damascus (Syria and Galilee). Bonaparte drove these 13,000 French officers in the success of the beach front towns of Arish, Gaza, Jaffa, and Haifa.[78] The assault on Jaffa was especially fierce. Bonaparte found that huge numbers of the safeguards were previous detainees of war, apparently on parole, so he requested the army and 1,400 detainees to be executed by pike or suffocating to spare bullets.[76] Men, ladies, and youngsters were looted and killed for three days.[79]

Bonaparte started with a multitude of 13,000 men; 1,500 were accounted for missing, 1,200 kicked the bucket in battle, and thousands died from illness—for the most part bubonic torment. He neglected to lessen the fortification of Acre, so he walked his armed force back to Egypt in May. To accelerate the withdraw, Bonaparte requested torment stricken men to be harmed with opium; the number who kicked the bucket stays debated, extending from a low of 30 to a high of 580. He additionally brought out 1,000 injured men.[80] Back in Egypt on 25 July, Bonaparte vanquished an Ottoman land and/or water capable intrusion at Abukir.