George Merzbach

George Merzbach

Bey
George Merzbach; Bey
	Merzbach in December 1898
Born	George Sigismond Charles Stanislas Merzbach; 25 September 1874; City of Brussels, Brussels, Belgium
Died	17 February 1928 (aged 53); Cairo, Egypt
Resting place	Aisle 39, Grave No. 15, Latin Cemetery (Terra Santa Cemetery), Al Sayyidah Zaynab, Old Cairo, Cairo, Egypt
Alma mater	Université libre de Bruxelles
Occupation	Lawyer
Known for	Founder and first president of Zamalek SC
Spouses	; Marie Paléologue (m. 1916; died 1916) ; Céline-Marie Piha (m. 1922)
Signature

George Sigismond Charles Stanislas Merzbach Bey (25 September 1874 – 17 February 1928) was a

sports pioneer. He was the head of one of the Mixed Courts of Egypt. In 1911, he founded and became the first president of Egyptian sports club Zamalek SC under the original name of Qasr El Nile Club.^[1]

Early life

Merzbach was born in the Belgian City of Brussels on 25 September 1874. His father is Henryk Merzbach (1837–1903) and his mother is Pauline le Hardy de Beaulieu (1851–1948), they married on 27 August 1870. Merzbach has three siblings, one older sister, Helene (1871–1937), one younger brother, Charles (1875–1943), and one younger sister, Claire (1880–1956). Merzbach graduated from the Université libre de Bruxelles with a degree in law before traveling to Egypt to intern as a lawyer with a lawyer friend of his father, Mr. Henry, who was happy with Merzbach's performance during his training. Merzbach returned to Belgium to visit his family before deciding to settle in Cairo and practice his legal profession there. He continued to return to Belgium every summer to visit his family.

Career

Law

Merzbach was a senior lawyer in Egypt, and one of the guests invited by Sultan

British occupants. Merzbach is the founder of the Faculty of Law at Cairo University, which was founded in 1925. And, he was a Professor of Law at Cairo University. Merzbach won the confidence of his fellow lawyers and was elected as the Head of Foreign Lawyers in Egypt in front of the Mixed Courts of Egypt

.

Zamalek SC

Merzbach founded

British occupants in Egypt, as they made the main club in Cairo, Gezira Sporting Club

, exclusive for the British Army. The main idea of Zamalek SC was that it would be a club for all people. He then later moved it to the place of the High Court and changed its name to El Mokhtalat Club. Zamalek started out and continued under the presidency of Merzbach until 1915, he then left the presidency to fellow Belgian Nicolas Arfagi Bianchi, who played as a left-winger in the club's football team. Merzbach then did not involve himself in the field of sports again.

Honours

Merzbach was given many honorific

British occupation of Egypt, a stance that Merzbach shared with him. Merzbach was among the passengers on the first plane piloted by foreigners in Egypt which took place in Heliopolis in 1914. In 1922, the great archaeologist Howard Carter took Merzbach and his wife, Céline-Marie Piha, to Luxor during the discovery of the prominent and magnificent Tomb of Tutankhamun

.

Personal life

Merzbach spoke

First World War which was perpetrated by the German aircrews of the Luftstreitkräfte. Merzbach married his second wife, Céline-Marie Piha (born 9 July 1885 in Alexandria), on 4 February 1922, she was the daughter of Elie and Elvire Nahman, she died on 9 October 1972 in London

, 44 years after Merzbach's death. Merzbach never had any children.

Death

Merzbach died on 27 February 1928, at the age of 53, in Cairo, Egypt. Merzbach's funeral was attended by the Head of the Supreme Judicial Council and the Minister of Justice. He was buried in the Latin Cemetery (Terra Santa Cemetery) in Al Sayyidah Zaynab, Old Cairo, Cairo, Egypt. His burial place is present in Aisle 39, Grave No. 15.

References

^ "Top 10 oldest football clubs in Africa and their achievements". abcnewsgh.com. 23 August 2019.

[1] "Top 10 oldest football clubs in Africa and their achievements". abcnewsgh.com. 23 August 2019.

[1]