Kingdom of Egypt

This article is about the 20th century state. For ancient kingdoms of Egypt, see Ancient Egypt. For the current nation, see Egypt.

Kingdom of Egypt المملكة المصرية (Arabic) Al-Mamlaka Al-Miṣreyya
1922–1953
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: "Eslami ya Misr" Royal anthem "Salam Affandina"
Green: Kingdom of Egypt Lighter green: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan condominium Lightest green: Ceded from the Sudan to Italian North Africa in 1919.
Capital	Cairo
Common languages	Arabic (official) Egyptian Arabic
Government	Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
King
• 1922–1936	Fuad I
• 1936–1952	Farouk I
• 1952–1953	Fuad II a
British High Commissioner
• 1922–1925	The 1st Viscount Allenby
• 1925–1929	The 1st Baron Lloyd
• 1929–1933	Sir Percy Loraine
• 1933–1936	Sir Miles Lampson
Prime Minister
• 1922 (first)	Abdel Khaliq Sarwat Pasha
• 1952–1953 (last)	Muhammad Naguibb
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	Chamber of Deputies
Historical era	Interwar era / World War II / Cold War / Palestine War
• Independence recognized by the United Kingdom	28 February 1922
• Sultan Fuad I becomes King Fuad I	15 March 1922
• Constitution adopted	19 April 1923
• Anglo-Egyptian Treaty	27 August 1936
• Admitted to the United Nations	24 October 1945
• Palestine War	1948–49 (May–March)
• Revolution	23 July 1952
• Republic proclaimed	18 June 1953
Area
1937 census	3,418,400 km2 (1,319,900 sq mi)
Population
• 1927 census	14,218,000
• 1937 census	15,933,000
• 1947 census	19,090,447
Currency	Egyptian pound
ISO 3166 code	EG
Preceded by Succeeded by Sultanate of Egypt Republic of Egypt (1953–58) British Military Administration (Libya)
Under regency. Became first President of Egypt.
Area and density include inhabited areas only. The total area of Egypt, including deserts, is 994,000 km2.

The Kingdom of Egypt (Template:Lang-ar Al-Mamlaka Al-Miṣreyya, "the Egyptian Kingdom") was the de jure independent Egyptian state established under the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in 1922 following the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence by the United Kingdom. Until the Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936, the Kingdom was only nominally independent, since the British retained control of foreign relations, communications, the military and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Between 1936 and 1952, the British continued to maintain military presence and political advisers, at a reduced level.

The legal status of Egypt had been highly convoluted, due to its de facto breakaway from the Ottoman Empire in 1805, its occupation by Britain in 1882, and its transformation into a sultanate and British protectorate in 1914. In line with the change in status from sultanate to kingdom, the Sultan of Egypt, Fuad I, saw his title changed to King.

The kingdom's sovereignty was subject to severe limitations imposed by the British, who retained enormous control over Egyptian affairs, and whose military continued to occupy the country. Throughout the kingdom's existence, the Sudan was formally united with Egypt. However, actual Egyptian authority in the Sudan was largely nominal due to Britain's role as the dominant power in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan.

During the reign of King Fuad, the monarchy struggled with the Wafd Party, a broadly based nationalist political organization strongly opposed to British domination, and with the British themselves, who were determined to maintain control over the Suez Canal. Other political forces emerging in this period included the Communist Party (1925), and the Muslim Brotherhood (1928), which eventually became a potent political and religious force.

King Fuad died in 1936 and Farouk inherited the throne at the age of sixteen. Alarmed by the Kingdom of Italy's recent invasion of Abyssinia, he signed the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, requiring Britain to withdraw all troops from Egypt, except in the Suez Canal Zone (agreed to be evacuated by 1949).

The kingdom was plagued by corruption, and its citizens saw it as a puppet of the British. This, coupled with the defeat in the 1948–1949 Palestine War, led to the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 by the Free Officers Movement. Farouk abdicated in favour of his infant son Fuad II. In 1953 the monarchy was formally abolished and the Republic of Egypt was established. The legal status of Sudan was only resolved in 1954, when Egypt and Britain agreed that it should be granted independence in 1956.

Sultanate and Kingdom

Further information: Sultanate of Egypt

In 1914, Khedive Abbas II sided with the Ottoman Empire and the Central Powers in the First World War, and was promptly deposed by the British in favour of his uncle Hussein Kamel. Ottoman sovereignty over Egypt, which had been hardly more than a legal fiction since 1805, now was officially terminated. Hussein Kamel was declared Sultan of Egypt, and the country became a British Protectorate.

Aftermath of World War I

A group known as the Wafd (meaning "Delegation") attended the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 to demand Egypt's independence. Included in the group was political leader, Saad Zaghlul, who would later become Prime Minister. When the group was arrested and deported to the island of Malta, a huge uprising occurred in Egypt.

From March to April 1919, there were mass demonstrations that turned into uprisings. This is known in Egypt as the First Revolution. British repression of the anti-occupation riots led to the death of some 800 people. In November 1919, the Milner Commission was sent to Egypt by the British to attempt to resolve the situation. In 1920, Lord Milner submitted his report to Lord Curzon, the British Foreign Secretary, recommending that the protectorate should be replaced by a treaty of alliance.

As a result, Curzon agreed to receive an Egyptian mission headed by Zaghlul and Adli Pasha to discuss the proposals. The mission arrived in London in June 1920 and the agreement was concluded in August 1920. In February 1921, the British Parliament approved the agreement and Egypt was asked to send another mission to London with full powers to conclude a definitive treaty. Adli Pasha led this mission, which arrived in June 1921. However, the Dominion delegates at the 1921 Imperial Conference had stressed the importance of maintaining control over the Suez Canal Zone and Curzon could not persuade his Cabinet colleagues to agree to any terms that Adli Pasha was prepared to accept. The mission returned to Egypt in disgust.

In December 1921, the British authorities in Cairo imposed martial law and once again deported Zaghlul. Demonstrations again led to violence. In deference to the growing nationalism and at the suggestion of the High Commissioner, Lord Allenby, the UK recognized Egyptian independence in 1922, abolishing the protectorate, and converting the Sultanate of Egypt into the Kingdom of Egypt. Sarwat Pasha became prime minister. British influence, however, continued to dominate Egypt's political life and fostered fiscal, administrative, and governmental reforms. Britain retained control of the Canal Zone, Sudan, and Egypt's external protection' the police, army, the railways and communications' the protection of foreign interests, minorities and the Sudan pending a final agreement. Representing the Wafd Party, Zaghlul was elected Prime Minister in 1924. He demanded that Britain recognize the Egyptian sovereignty in Sudan and the unity of the Nile Valley. On November 19, 1924, the British Governor-General of Sudan, Sir Lee Stack, was assassinated in Cairo and pro-Egyptian riots broke out in Sudan. The British demanded that Egypt pay an apology fee and withdraw troops from Sudan. Zaghlul agreed to the first but not the second and resigned.

Recognition

King Farouk I, 1936-1952.

With nationalist sentiment rising, Britain formally recognized Egyptian independence in 1922, and Hussein Kamel's successor, Sultan Fuad I, substituted the title of King for Sultan. However, British occupation and interference in Egyptian affairs persisted. Of particular concern to Egypt was Britain's continual efforts to divest Egypt of all control in Sudan. To both the King and the nationalist movement, this was intolerable, and the Egyptian Government made a point of stressing that Fuad and his son King Farouk I were "King of Egypt and Sudan".

World War II and after

Main article: Military history of Egypt during World War II

Britain used Egypt as a base for Allied operations throughout the region, especially the battles in North Africa against Italy and Germany. Its highest priorities were control of the Eastern Mediterranean, and especially keeping the Suez Canal open for merchant ships and for military connections with India and Australia. The government of Egypt, and the Egyptian population, played a minor role in the Second World War. When the war began in September 1939, Egypt declared martial law and broke off diplomatic relations with Germany. It did not declare war on Germany, but the Prime Minister associated Egypt with the British war effort. It broke diplomatic relations with Italy in 1940, but never declared war, even when the Italian army invaded Egypt. King Farouk took practically a neutral position, which accorded with elite opinion among the Egyptians. The Egyptian army did no fighting. It was apathetic about the war, with the leading officers looking on the British as occupiers and sometimes holding some private sympathy with the Axis. In June 1940 the King dismissed Prime Minister Aly Maher, who got on poorly with British. A new coalition Government was formed with the Independent Hassan Pasha Sabri as Prime Minister.

Following a ministerial crisis in February 1942, the ambassador Sir Miles Lampson, pressed Farouk to have a Wafd or Wafd-coalition government replace Hussein Sirri Pasha's government. On the night of 4 February 1942, British troops and tanks surrounded Abdeen Palace in Cairo and Lampson presented Farouk with an ultimatum. Farouk capitulated, and Nahhas formed a government shortly thereafter. However, the humiliation meted out to Farouk, and the actions of the Wafd in cooperating with the British and taking power, lost support for both the British and the Wafd among both civilians and, more importantly, the Egyptian military.

British troops were withdrawn to the Suez Canal area in 1947, but nationalist, anti-British feelings continued to grow after the War. On July 22 – July 23, 1952, the Free Officers Movement, led by Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser overthrew King Farouk, whom the military blamed for Egypt's poor performance in the 1948 war with Israel, thereby launching the Egyptian Revolution of 1952.

Popular expectations for immediate reforms led to the workers' riots in Kafr Dawar on 12 August 1952, which resulted in two death sentences. Following a brief experiment with civilian rule, the Free Officers abrogated the 1953 constitution and declared Egypt a republic on 18 June 1953. Nasser evolved into a charismatic leader, not only of Egypt but of the Arab World, promoting and implementing "Arab socialism".

Dissolution

The reign of Farouk was characterized by ever increasing nationalist discontent over the British occupation, royal corruption and incompetence, and the disastrous 1948 Arab-Israeli War. All these factors served to terminally undermine Farouk's position and paved the way for the Revolution of 1952. Farouk was forced to abdicate in favor of his infant son Ahmed-Fuad who became King Fuad II, while administration of the country passed to the Free Officers Movement under Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser. The infant king's reign—now a pure legal fiction—lasted less than a year and on 18 June 1953, the revolutionaries formally abolished the monarchy and declared Egypt a republic, ending a century and a half of the Muhammad Ali dynasty.

See also

• Egyptian Revolution of 1952
• History of modern Egypt

Further reading

• Daly, M.W. The Cambridge History Of Egypt Volume 2 Modern Egypt, from 1517 to the end of the twentieth century (1998) online
  • Botman, Selma. "The liberal age, 1923–1952." in M.W. Daly, ed. The Cambridge History of Egypt, Vol. 2: Modern Egypt, from 1517 to the End of the Twentieth Century (2008), pp 285–308.
• Goldschmidt Jr., Arthur. Biographical Dictionary of Modern Egypt (1999).
• Karakoç, Ulaş. "Industrial growth in interwar Egypt: first estimate, new insights" European Review of Economic History (2018) 22#1 53–72, online
• Marlowe, John. A History of Modern Egypt and Anglo-Egyptian Relations, 1800-1953 (1954).
• Morewood, Steve. The British Defence of Egypt, 1935-40: Conflict and Crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean (2008).
• Rothwell, S. K. "Military Ally or Liability? The Egyptian Army 1936–1942." Army Quarterly & Defence Review 128#2 (1998): 180-7.
• Royal Institute of International Affairs. Great Britain and Egypt, 1914-1951 (2nd ed. 1952) online at Questia; also online free
• Thornhill, Michael T. "Informal Empire, Independent Egypt and the Accession of King Farouk." Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History 38#2 (2010): 279-302.
• Tignore, Robert L. Egypt: A Short History (2011) online