History of Egypt

Historical development of Egypt

Part of a series on the

History of Egypt
File:All Gizah Pyramids.jpg

Prehistoric Egypt

|  Prehistoric| pre–3150 BC

|

Predynastic| 6000–3150 BC

Ancient Egypt

|  Early Dynastic Period| 3150–2686 BC

|

Old Kingdom| 2686–2181 BC
1st Intermediate Period| 2181–2055 BC
Middle Kingdom| 2055–1650 BC
2nd Intermediate Period| 1650–1550 BC
New Kingdom| 1550–1069 BC
3rd Intermediate Period| 1069–664 BC
Late Period| 664–332 BC

Greco-Roman Egypt

|  Argead dynasty| 332–310 BC

|

Ptolemaic dynasties| 310–30 BC
Roman and Byzantine Egypt| 30 BC–641 AD
Sasanian Egypt| 619–629

Medieval Egypt

|  Rashidun caliphate| 641–661

|

Umayyad caliphate| 661–750
Abbasid dynasty| 750–935
Tulunid dynasty| 868–905
Ikhshidid dynasty| 935–969
Fatimid dynasty| 969–1171
Ayyubid dynasty| 1171–1250
Mamluk dynasty| 1250–1517

Early modern Egypt

|  Ottoman Egypt| 1517–1867

|

French occupation| 1798–1801
Muhammad Ali dynasty| 1805–1953
Khedivate of Egypt| 1867–1914

Late Modern Egypt

|  British occupation| 1882–1922

|

Sultanate of Egypt| 1914–1922
Kingdom of Egypt| 1922–1953
Republic| 1953–present

* v
* t
* e

Periods and dynasties of ancient Egypt

All years are BC

Early

|  Pre-dynastic period| |

|
|

First Dynasty|  I|  c. 3150–2890
Second Dynasty|  II|  2890–2686

Old Kingdom

|  Third Dynasty|  III|  2686–2613

|
|

Fourth Dynasty|  IV|  2613–2498
Fifth Dynasty|  V|  2498–2345
Sixth Dynasty|  VI|  2345–2181

First Intermediate

|  Seventh Dynasty|  VII|  spurious

|
|

Eighth Dynasty|  VIII|  2181–2160
Ninth Dynasty|  IX|  2160–2130
Tenth Dynasty|  X|  2130–2040
Early Eleventh Dynasty|  XI|  2134–2061

Middle Kingdom

|  Late Eleventh Dynasty|  XI|  2061–1991

|
|

Twelfth Dynasty|  XII|  1991–1803
Thirteenth Dynasty|  XIII|  1803–1649

Second Intermediate

|  Fourteenth Dynasty|  XIV|  1705–1690

|
|

Fifteenth Dynasty (Hyksos)|  XV|  1674–1535
Sixteenth Dynasty|  XVI|  1660–1600
Abydos Dynasty| |  1650–1600
Seventeenth Dynasty|  XVII|  1580–1549

New Kingdom

|  Eighteenth Dynasty|  XVIII|  1549–1292

|
|

Nineteenth Dynasty|  XIX|  1292–1189
Twentieth Dynasty|  XX|  1189–1077

Third Intermediate

|  Twenty-first Dynasty|  XXI|  1069–945

|
|

Twenty-second Dynasty|  XXII|  945–720
Twenty-third Dynasty|  XXIII|  837–728
Twenty-fourth Dynasty|  XXIV|  732–720
Twenty-fifth Dynasty (Nubian)|  XXV|  732–653

Late Period

|  Twenty-sixth Dynasty|  XXVI|  672–525

|
|

Twenty-seventh Dynasty
(1st Persian Period)

|  XXVII|  525–404
Twenty-eighth Dynasty|  XXVIII|  404–398
Twenty-ninth Dynasty|  XXIX|  398–380
Thirtieth Dynasty|  XXX|  380–343

Thirty-first Dynasty
(2nd Persian Period)

|  XXXI|  343–332

Hellenistic Egypt

|  Thirty-second Dynasty|  XXXII|  332–305

|
|

Thirty-third Dynasty|  XXXIII|  305–30

Roman Egypt

Thirty-fourth Dynasty
(Roman Pharaohs)

|  XXXIV|  30–313 AD

|
|

See also: List of pharaohs by period and dynasty
Periodization of ancient Egypt

* v
* t
* e

The history of Egypt has been long and wealthy, due to the flow of the Nile River with its fertile banks and delta, as well as the accomplishments of Egypt's native inhabitants and outside influence. Much of Egypt's ancient history was a mystery until Egyptian hieroglyphs were deciphered with the discovery and help of the Rosetta Stone. Among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Ancient Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first king of the First Dynasty, Narmer. Predominantly native Egyptian rule lasted until the conquest by the Achaemenid Empire in the sixth century BC.

In 332 BC, Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great conquered Egypt as he toppled the Achaemenids and established the short-lived Macedonian Empire, which gave rise to the Hellenistic Ptolemaic Kingdom, founded in 305 BC by one of Alexander's former generals, Ptolemy I Soter. The Ptolemies had to fight native rebellions and were involved in foreign and civil wars that led to the decline of the kingdom and its final annexation by Rome. The death of Cleopatra ended the nominal independence of Egypt, resulting in Egypt's becoming one of the provinces of the Roman Empire.

Roman rule in Egypt (including Byzantine) lasted from 30 BC to 641 AD, with a brief interlude of control by the Sasanian Empire between 619 and 629, known as Sasanian Egypt.[1] After the Muslim conquest of Egypt, parts of Egypt became provinces of successive Caliphates and other Muslim dynasties: Rashidun Caliphate (632-661), Umayyad Caliphate (661–750), Abbasid Caliphate (750–935), Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171), Ayyubid Sultanate (1171–1260), and the Mamluk Sultanate (1250–1517). In 1517, Ottoman sultan Selim I captured Cairo, absorbing Egypt into the Ottoman Empire.

Egypt remained entirely Ottoman until 1805, except during French occupation from 1798 to 1801.[2] Starting in 1867, Egypt became a nominally autonomous tributary state called the Khedivate of Egypt. However, Khedivate Egypt fell under British control in 1882 following the Anglo-Egyptian War. After the end of World War I and following the Egyptian revolution of 1919, the Kingdom of Egypt was established. While a de jure independent state, the United Kingdom retained control over foreign affairs, defense, and other matters. British occupation lasted until 1954, with the Anglo-Egyptian agreement of 1954.

The modern Republic of Egypt was founded in 1953, and with the complete withdrawal of British forces from the Suez Canal in 1956, President Gamal Abdel Nasser (president from 1956 to 1970) introduced many reforms and created the short-lived United Arab Republic (with Syria). His terms also saw the Six-Day War and the creation of the international Non-Aligned Movement. His successor, Anwar Sadat (president from 1970 to 1981) changed Egypt's trajectory, departing from many of the political, and economic tenets of Nasserism, re-instituting a multi-party system and launching the Infitah economic policy. He led Egypt in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 to regain Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, which Israel had occupied since the Six-Day War of 1967. This later led to the Egypt–Israel peace treaty.

Recent Egyptian history has been dominated by events following nearly thirty years of rule by the former president Hosni Mubarak. The Egyptian revolution of 2011 deposed Mubarak and resulted in the first democratically elected president in Egyptian history, Mohamed Morsi. Unrest after the 2011 revolution and related disputes led to the 2013 Egyptian coup d'état, Morsi's imprisonment and the election of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as president in 2014.

## Contents

* 1 Predynastic Egypt (pre-3150 BC)
* 2 Dynastic Egypt (3150–332 BC)
* 2.1 Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom
* 2.2 First Intermediate Period, the Middle Kingdom and the Second Intermediate Period
* 2.3 New Kingdom, Third Intermediate Period and Late Period
* 2.4 Achaemenid rule
* 2.5 Second Achaemenid conquest
* 3 Greek rule
* 3.1 Ptolemaic Kingdom
* 4 Roman Egypt
* 4.1 Roman province of Egypt
* 4.2 Diocese of Egypt
* 4.3 Sassanid Conquest of Egypt
* 5 Early Islamic Egypt
* 6 Late Medieval Egypt
* 7 Ottoman Egypt
* 8 Muhammed Ali Dynasty
* 9 British Protectorate (1882–1952)
* 10 Republican Egypt (since 1953)
* 10.1 Nasser era
* 10.2 Sadat era
* 10.3 Terrorist insurgency
* 10.4 Civil unrest (2011–14)
* 10.4.1 Revolution
* 10.4.2 Morsi's presidency
* 10.4.3 After Morsi
* 10.5 El-Sisi Presidency
* 11 See also
* 12 References
* 13 Further reading

## Predynastic Egypt (pre-3150 BC)[edit | edit source]

Main articles: Prehistoric Egypt and Population history of Egypt

File:Predynastic collage (new version).jpg

Artifacts of Egypt from the Prehistoric period, from 4400 to 3100 BC. First row from top left: a Badarian ivory figurine, a Naqada II jar, a Bat figurine. Second row: a diorite vase, a flint knife, a cosmetic palette.

There is evidence of petroglyphs along the Nile terraces and in desert oases. In the 10th millennium BC, a culture of hunter-gatherers and fishermen was replaced by a grain-grinding culture. Climate changes and/or overgrazing around 6000 BC began to desiccate the pastoral lands of Egypt, forming the Sahara. Early tribal peoples migrated to the Nile River, where they developed a settled agricultural economy and more centralized society.[3]

By about 6000 BC, a Neolithic culture rooted in the Nile Valley.[4] During the Neolithic era, several predynastic cultures developed independently in Upper and Lower Egypt. The Badari culture and the successor Naqada series are generally regarded as precursors to dynastic Egypt. The earliest known Lower Egyptian site, Merimda, predates the Badarian by about seven hundred years. Contemporaneous Lower Egyptian communities coexisted with their southern counterparts for more than two thousand years, remaining culturally distinct, but maintaining frequent contact through trade. The earliest known evidence of Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions appeared during the predynastic period on Naqada III pottery vessels, dated to about 3200 BC.[5]

## Dynastic Egypt (3150–332 BC)[edit | edit source]

Main articles: Ancient Egypt and History of ancient Egypt

### Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom[edit | edit source]

Main articles: Early dynastic period of Egypt and Old Kingdom of Egypt

A unified kingdom was formed in 3150 BC by King Menes, leading to a series of dynasties that ruled Egypt for the next three millennia. Egyptian culture flourished during this long period and remained distinctively Egyptian in its religion, arts, language and customs.

File:Egypt.Giza.Sphinx.02.jpg

The Great Sphinx and the Pyramids of Giza, built during the Old Kingdom.

The first two ruling dynasties of a unified Egypt set the stage for the Old Kingdom period (c. 2700–2200 BC), which constructed many pyramids, most notably the Third Dynasty pyramid of Djoser and the Fourth Dynasty Giza Pyramids.

### First Intermediate Period, the Middle Kingdom and the Second Intermediate Period[edit | edit source]

Main articles: First Intermediate Period of Egypt, Middle Kingdom of Egypt, and Second Intermediate Period of Egypt

The First Intermediate Period ushered in a time of political upheaval for about 150 years.[6] Stronger Nile floods and stabilization of government, however, brought back renewed prosperity for the country in the Middle Kingdom c. 2040 BC, reaching a peak during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhat III. A second period of disunity heralded the arrival of the first foreign ruling dynasty in Egypt, that of the Semitic-speaking Hyksos. The Hyksos migrants[6][7] took over much of Lower Egypt around 1650 BC and founded a new capital at Avaris. They were driven out by an Upper Egyptian force led by Ahmose I, who founded the Eighteenth Dynasty and relocated the capital from Memphis to Thebes.

### New Kingdom, Third Intermediate Period and Late Period[edit | edit source]

Main articles: New Kingdom of Egypt, Third Intermediate Period of Egypt, and Late Period of ancient Egypt

The New Kingdom (c. 1550–1070 BC) began with the Eighteenth Dynasty, marking the rise of Egypt as an international power that expanded during its greatest extension to an empire from Syria to Upper Nubia. This period is noted for some of the most well known Pharaohs, including Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti, Tutankhamun and Ramesses II. The first historically attested expression of monotheism came during this period as Atenism, although some[who?] consider Atenism to be a form of monolatry rather than of monotheism. Frequent contacts with other nations brought new ideas to the New Kingdom. The country was later ruled and invaded by Libyans, Nubians and Assyrians, but native Egyptians eventually drove them out and regained control of their country.[8]

### Achaemenid rule[edit | edit source]

File:Xerxes I tomb Egyptian soldier circa 470 BCE.jpg

Egyptian soldier of the Achaemenid army, circa 470 BCE. Xerxes I tomb relief.

In the sixth century BC, the Achaemenid Empire conquered Egypt.[9] The entire Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt, from 525 BC to 402 BC, save for Petubastis III and possibly Psammetichus IV, was an entirely Persian-ruled period, with the Achaemenid kings being granted the title of pharaoh.[9] Amyrtaeus' successful rebellion ended the first Achaemenid rule and inaugurated Egypt's last significant phase of independence under native rulers. The Thirtieth Dynasty was the last native ruling dynasty during the Pharaonic epoch.[9] It fell to the Persians again in 343 BC after the last native Pharaoh, King Nectanebo II, was defeated in battle.[9]

### Second Achaemenid conquest[edit | edit source]

The Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt, also known as the Second Egyptian Satrapy, was effectively a short-living province of the Achaemenid Empire between 343 BC to 332 BC.[10] After an interval of independence, during which three indigenous dynasties reigned (the 28th, 29th and 30th dynasty), Artaxerxes III (358–338 BC) reconquered the Nile valley for a brief second period (343–332 BC), which is called the Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt, thus starting another period of pharaohs of Persian origin.[11]

A team led by Johannes Krause managed the first reliable sequencing of the genomes of 90 mummified individuals in 2017. Whilst not conclusive, because of the non-exhaustive time frame and restricted location that the mummies represent, their study nevertheless showed that these Ancient Egyptians "closely resembled ancient and modern Near Eastern populations, especially those in the Levant, and had almost no DNA from sub-Saharan Africa. What's more, the genetics of the mummies remained remarkably consistent even as different powers—including Nubians, Greeks, and Romans—conquered the empire".[12]

## Greek rule[edit | edit source]

### Ptolemaic Kingdom[edit | edit source]

Main article: Ptolemaic Kingdom

File:Denderah3 Cleopatra Cesarion.jpg

The Greek Ptolemaic queen Cleopatra and her son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion, at the Dendera Temple complex.

The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a powerful Hellenistic state extending from southern Syria in the east, to Cyrene to the west, and south to the frontier with Nubia. Alexandria became the capital city and a center of Greek culture and trade. To gain recognition by the native Egyptian populace, they named themselves as the successors to the Pharaohs. The later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life.[13][14]

The last ruler from the Ptolemaic dynasty was Cleopatra, who committed suicide following the burial of her lover Mark Antony, who had died in her arms (from a self-inflicted stab wound) after Augustus had captured Alexandria and her mercenary forces had fled.

The Ptolemies faced rebellions of native Egyptians, often caused by an unwanted regime, and were involved in foreign and civil wars that led to the decline of the kingdom and its annexation by Rome. Nevertheless, Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt well after the Muslim conquest. The native Egyptian/Coptic culture continued to exist as well (the Coptic language itself was Egypt's most widely spoken language until at least the 10th century).

## Roman Egypt[edit | edit source]

### Roman province of Egypt[edit | edit source]

Main article: Roman Egypt

Egypt quickly became the Empire's breadbasket supplying the greater portion of the Empire's grain in addition to flax, papyrus, glass and many other finished goods. The city of Alexandria became a key trading outpost for the Roman Empire (by some accounts, the most important for a time). Shipping from Egypt regularly reached India and Ethiopia among other international destinations.[15] It was also a leading (perhaps the leading) scientific and technological center of the Empire. Scholars such as Ptolemy, Hypatia, and Heron broke new ground in astronomy, mathematics, and other disciplines. Culturally, the city of Alexandria at times rivaled Rome in its importance.[16]

### Diocese of Egypt[edit | edit source]

Main article: Diocese of Egypt

File:Cairo, Old Cairo, Hanging Church, Egypt, Oct 2004.jpg

The Hanging Church of Cairo, first built in the 3rd or 4th century, is one of the most famous Coptic Orthodox churches in Egypt.

Christianity reached Egypt relatively early in the evangelist period of the first century (traditionally credited to Mark the Evangelist).[17] Alexandria, Egypt and Antioch, Syria quickly became the leading centers of Christianity.[18] Diocletian's reign marked the transition from the classical Roman to the Late antique/Byzantine era in Egypt, when a great number of Egyptian Christians were persecuted. The New Testament had by then been translated into Egyptian. After the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, a distinct Egyptian Coptic Church was firmly established.[19]

### Sassanid Conquest of Egypt[edit | edit source]

Sasanian Egypt (known in Middle Persian sources as Agiptus) refers to the brief rule of Egypt and parts of Libya by the Sasanian Empire, which lasted from 619 to 629,[20] until the Sasanian rebel Shahrbaraz made an alliance with the Byzantine emperor Heraclius and had control over Egypt returned to him.[20]

## Early Islamic Egypt[edit | edit source]

Main articles: History of Muslim Egypt, Tulunids, and Ikhshidid dynasty

File:Tulunids 893.svg

Extent of the Tulunid domains under Khumarawayh, in 893

The Byzantines were able to regain control of the country after a brief Persian invasion early in the 7th century, until 639–642, when Egypt was invaded and conquered by the Arab Islamic Empire. The final loss of Egypt was of incalculable significance to the Byzantine Empire, which had relied on Egypt for many agricultural and manufactured goods.

When they defeated the Byzantine armies in Egypt, the Arabs brought Sunni Islam to the country. Early in this period, Egyptians began to blend their new faith with their Christian traditions as well as other indigenous beliefs and practices, leading to various Sufi orders that have flourished to this day.[17] These earlier rites had survived the period of Coptic Christianity.[21]

## Late Medieval Egypt[edit | edit source]

Main articles: Fatimid Caliphate, Ayyubid dynasty, and Mamluk Sultanate

File:Al-Azhar (inside) 2006.jpg

The Al-Azhar Mosque, of medieval Fatimid Cairo.

Muslim rulers nominated by the Islamic Caliphate remained in control of Egypt for the next six centuries, with Cairo as the seat of the Caliphate under the Fatimids. With the end of the Kurdish Ayyubid dynasty, the Mamluks, a Turco-Circassian military caste, took control about AD 1250. By the late 13th century, Egypt linked the Red Sea, India, Malaya, and East Indies.[22] The Greek and Coptic languages and cultures went into a steep decline in favor of Arabic culture (though Coptic managed to last as a spoken language until the 17th century and remains a liturgical language today).

The Mamluks continued to govern the country until the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517, after which it became a province of the Ottoman Empire. The mid-14th-century Black Death killed about 40% of the population of Egypt.[23]

## Ottoman Egypt[edit | edit source]

Main article: History of Ottoman Egypt

File:Yavuz Sultan I. Selim Han.jpg

Selim I (1470–1520), conquered Egypt

After the 15th century, the Ottoman invasion pushed the Egyptian system into decline. The defensive militarization damaged its civil society and economic institutions.[22] The weakening of the economic system combined with the effects of the plague left Egypt vulnerable to foreign invasion. Portuguese traders took over their trade.[22] Egypt suffered six famines between 1687 and 1731.[24] The 1784 famine cost it roughly one-sixth of its population.[25]

The brief French invasion of Egypt led by Napoleon Bonaparte began in 1798. The campaign eventually led to the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, creating the field of Egyptology. Despite early victories and an initially successful expedition into Syria, Napoleon and his Armée d'Orient were eventually defeated and forced to withdraw, especially after suffering the defeat of the supporting French fleet at the Battle of the Nile.

## Muhammed Ali Dynasty[edit | edit source]

The expulsion of the French in 1801 by Ottoman, Mamluk, and British forces was followed by four years of anarchy in which Ottomans, Mamluks, and Albanians — who were nominally in the service of the Ottomans – wrestled for power. Out of this chaos, the commander of the Albanian regiment, Muhammad Ali (Kavalali Mehmed Ali Pasha) emerged as a dominant figure and in 1805 was acknowledged by the Sultan in Istanbul as his viceroy in Egypt; the title implied subordination to the Sultan but this was in fact a polite fiction: Ottoman power in Egypt was finished and Muhammad Ali, an ambitious and able leader, established a dynasty that was to rule Egypt until the revolution of 1952. After 1882 the dynasty became a British puppet.[26]

Muhammad Ali's primary focus was military: he annexed Northern Sudan (1820–1824), Syria (1833), and parts of Arabia and Anatolia; but in 1841 the European powers, fearful lest he topple the Ottoman Empire itself, forced him to return most of his conquests to the Ottomans, but he kept the Sudan and his title to Egypt was made hereditary. A more lasting result of his military ambition is that it required him to modernize the country. Eager to adopt the military (and therefore industrial) techniques of the great powers, he sent students to the West and invited training missions to Egypt. He built industries, a system of canals for irrigation and transport, and reformed the civil service.[27]

The introduction in 1820 of long-staple cotton, the Egyptian variety of which became notable, transformed its agriculture into a cash-crop monoculture before the end of the century. The social effects of this were enormous: land ownership became concentrated and many foreigners arrived, shifting production towards international markets.[27]

## British Protectorate (1882–1952)[edit | edit source]

Main articles: History of Egypt under the British and History of modern Egypt

File:Cairo-Demonstrations1919.jpg

Nationalists demonstrating in Cairo, 1919

British indirect rule lasted from 1882, when the British succeeded in defeating the Egyptian Army at Tel el-Kebir in September and took control of the country, to the 1952 Egyptian revolution which made Egypt a republic and when British advisers were expelled.

Muhammad Ali was succeeded briefly by his son Ibrahim (in September 1848), then by a grandson Abbas I (in November 1848), then by Said (in 1854), and Isma'il (in 1863). Abbas I was cautious. Said and Ismail were ambitious developers, but they spent beyond their means. The Suez Canal, built in partnership with the French, was completed in 1869. The cost of this and other projects had two effects: it led to enormous debt to European banks, and caused popular discontent because of the onerous taxation it required. In 1875, Ismail sold Egypt's 44% share in the canal to the British Government. Ismail also tried to conquer the Ethiopian Empire and was defeated twice at Gundet in 1875 and again at the Battle of Gura in 1876.

Within three years this led to the imposition of British and French controllers who sat in the Egyptian cabinet, and, "with the financial power of the bondholders behind them, were the real power in the Government."[28]

Local dissatisfaction with Ismail and with European intrusion led to the formation of the first nationalist groupings in 1879, with Ahmad Urabi a prominent figure. In 1882 he became head of a nationalist-dominated ministry committed to democratic reforms including parliamentary control of the budget. Fearing a reduction of their control, Britain and France intervened militarily, bombarding Alexandria and crushing the Egyptian army at the battle of Tel el-Kebir.[29] They reinstalled Ismail's son Tewfik as the figurehead of a de facto British protectorate.[30][31] In 1914, the Protectorate was made official, and the Ottoman Empire no longer had a role. The title for the head of state, which in 1867 had changed from pasha to khedive, was changed again to sultan. Abbas II was deposed as khedive and replaced by his uncle, Hussein Kamel, as sultan.[32]

In 1906, the Dinshaway Incident prompted many neutral Egyptians to join the nationalist movement. After the First World War, Saad Zaghlul and the Wafd Party led the Egyptian nationalist movement to a majority at the local Legislative Assembly. When the British exiled Zaghlul and his associates to Malta on 8 March 1919, the country arose in its first modern revolution. The revolt led the UK government to issue a unilateral declaration of Egypt's independence on 22 February 1922.[33]

The new government drafted and implemented a constitution in 1923 based on a parliamentary system. Saad Zaghlul was popularly elected as Prime Minister of Egypt in 1924. In 1936, the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty was concluded. Continued instability due to remaining British influence and increasing political involvement by the king led to the dissolution of the parliament in a military coup d'état known as the 1952 Revolution. The Free Officers Movement forced King Farouk to abdicate in support of his son Fuad.

British military presence in Egypt lasted until 1954.[34]

## Republican Egypt (since 1953)[edit | edit source]

Main articles: History of republican Egypt and History of modern Egypt

File:Begin, Carter and Sadat at Camp David 1978.jpg

Celebrating the signing of the Camp David Accords: Menachem Begin, Jimmy Carter, Anwar Al Sadat.

On 18 June 1953, the Egyptian Republic was declared, with General Muhammad Naguib as the first President of the Republic. Naguib was forced to resign in 1954 by Gamal Abdel Nasser - the real architect of the 1952 movement - and was later put under house arrest.

### Nasser era[edit | edit source]

Main article: History of Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser

Nasser assumed power as president in June 1956. British forces completed their withdrawal from the occupied Suez Canal Zone on 13 June 1956. He nationalized the Suez Canal on 26 July 1956, prompting the 1956 Suez Crisis.

In 1958, Egypt and Syria formed a sovereign union known as the United Arab Republic. The union was short-lived, ending in 1961 when Syria seceded, thus ending the union. During most of its existence, the United Arab Republic was also in a loose confederation with North Yemen (the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen) known as the United Arab States.

In the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel invaded and occupied Egypt's Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, which Egypt had occupied since the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Three years later (1970), President Nasser died and was succeeded by Anwar Sadat.

### Sadat era[edit | edit source]

Main article: History of Egypt under Anwar Sadat

Sadat switched Egypt's Cold War allegiance from the Soviet Union to the United States, expelling Soviet advisors in 1972. He launched the Infitah economic reform policy, while clamping down on religious and secular opposition.

In 1973, Egypt, along with Syria, launched the October War, a surprise attack against the Israeli forces occupying the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights. It was an attempt to regain part of the Sinai territory that Israel had captured six years earlier. Sadat hoped to seize some territory through military force, and then regain the rest of the peninsula by diplomacy. The conflict sparked an international crisis between the US and the USSR, both of whom intervened. The second UN-mandated ceasefire halted military action. While the war ended with a military stalemate, it presented Sadat with a political victory that later allowed him to regain the Sinai in return for peace with Israel.[35]

Sadat made a historic visit to Israel in 1977, which led to the 1979 peace treaty in exchange for Israeli withdrawal from Sinai. Sadat's initiative sparked enormous controversy in the Arab world and led to Egypt's expulsion from the Arab League, but it was supported by most Egyptians.[36] On 6 October 1981, Sadat and six diplomats were assassinated while observing a military parade commemorating the eighth anniversary of the October 1973 War. He was succeeded by Hosni Mubarak.

### Terrorist insurgency[edit | edit source]

Main article: Terrorism in Egypt

In 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, terrorist attacks in Egypt became numerous and severe, and began to target Copts and foreign tourists as well as government officials.[37] Some scholars and authors have credited Islamist writer Sayyid Qutb, who was executed in 1967, as the inspiration for the new wave of attacks.[38][39]

The 1990s saw an Islamist group, al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, engage in an extended campaign of violence, from the murders and attempted murders of prominent writers and intellectuals, to the repeated targeting of tourists and foreigners. Serious damage was done to the largest sector of Egypt's economy—tourism[40]—and in turn to the government, but it also devastated the livelihoods of many of the people on whom the group depended for support.[41]

Victims of the campaign against the Egyptian state from 1992 to 1997 exceeded 1,200[42] and included the head of the counter-terrorism police (Major General Raouf Khayrat), a speaker of parliament (Rifaat el-Mahgoub), dozens of European tourists and Egyptian bystanders, and over 100 Egyptian police.[43] At times, travel by foreigners in parts of Upper Egypt was severely restricted and dangerous.[44] On 17 November 1997, 62 people, mostly tourists, were killed near Luxor. The assailants trapped the people in the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut. During this period, Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya was given support by the governments of Iran and Sudan, as well as al-Qaeda.[45][failed verification] The Egyptian government received support during that time from the United States.[45]

### Civil unrest (2011–14)[edit | edit source]

Main article: Egyptian Crisis (2011–2014)

#### Revolution[edit | edit source]

Main article: Egyptian revolution of 2011

In 2003, the Kefaya ("Egyptian Movement for Change"), was launched to oppose the Mubarak regime and to establish democratic reforms and greater civil liberties.

File:Tahrir Square on February11.png

Celebrations in Tahrir Square after Omar Suleiman's statement announcing Hosni Mubarak's resignation

On 25 January 2011, widespread protests began against Mubarak's government. The objective of the protest was the removal of Mubarak from power. These took the form of an intensive campaign of civil resistance supported by a very large number of people and mainly consisting of continuous mass demonstrations. By 29 January, it was becoming clear that Mubarak's government had lost control when a curfew order was ignored, and the army took a semi-neutral stance on enforcing the curfew decree.

On 11 February 2011, Mubarak resigned and fled Cairo. Vice President Omar Suleiman announced that Mubarak had stepped down and that the Egyptian military would assume control of the nation's affairs in the short term.[46][47] Jubilant celebrations broke out in Tahrir Square at the news.[48] Mubarak may have left Cairo for Sharm el-Sheikh the previous night, before or shortly after the airing of a taped speech in which Mubarak vowed he would not step down or leave.[49]

On 13 February 2011, the high level military command of Egypt announced that both the constitution and the parliament of Egypt had been dissolved. The parliamentary election was to be held in September.[50]

A constitutional referendum was held on 19 March 2011. On 28 November 2011, Egypt held its first parliamentary election since the Mubarak regime fell. Turnout was high and there were no reports of violence, although members of some parties broke the ban on campaigning at polling places by handing out pamphlets and banners.[51] There were, however, complaints of irregularities.[52]

#### Morsi's presidency[edit | edit source]

Main article: Timeline of the Egyptian Crisis under Mohamed Morsi

The first round of a presidential election was held in Egypt on 23 and 24 May 2012. Mohamed Morsi won 25% of the vote and Ahmed Shafik, the last prime minister under deposed leader Hosni Mubarak, 24%. A second round was held on 16 and 17 June. On 24 June 2012, the election commission announced that Mohamed Morsi had won the election, making him the first democratically elected president of Egypt. According to official results, Morsi took 51.7 percent of the vote while Shafik received 48.3 percent.

On 8 July 2012, Egypt's new president Mohamed Morsi announced he was overriding the military edict that dissolved the country's elected parliament and called lawmakers back into session.[53]

On 10 July 2012, the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt negated the decision by Morsi to call the nation's parliament back into session.[54] On 2 August 2012, Egypt's Prime Minister Hisham Qandil announced his 35-member cabinet, including 28 newcomers, of whom four came from the influential Muslim Brotherhood while six and the former interim military ruler Mohamed Hussein Tantawi as the Defence Minister came from the previous Government.[55]

On 22 November 2012, Morsi issued a declaration immunizing his decrees from challenge and seeking to protect the work of the constituent assembly drafting the new constitution.[56] The declaration also requires a retrial of those accused in the Mubarak-era killings of protesters, who had been acquitted, and extends the mandate of the constituent assembly by two months. Additionally, the declaration authorizes Morsi to take any measures necessary to protect the revolution. Liberal and secular groups previously walked out of the constitutional constituent assembly because they believed that it would impose strict Islamic practices, while Muslim Brotherhood backers threw their support behind Morsi.[57]

The move was criticized by Mohamed ElBaradei, the leader of Egypt's Constitution Party, who stated "Morsi today usurped all state powers & appointed himself Egypt's new pharaoh" on his Twitter feed.[58] The move led to massive protests and violent action throughout Egypt.[59] On 5 December 2012, Tens of thousands of supporters and opponents of Egypt's president clashed, hurling rocks and Molotov cocktails and brawling in Cairo's streets, in what was described as the largest violent battle between Islamists and their foes since the country's revolution.[60] Six senior advisors and three other officials resigned from the government and the country's leading Islamic institution called on Morsi to stem his powers. Protesters also clamored from coastal cities to desert towns.[61]

Morsi offered a "national dialogue" with opposition leaders but refused to cancel a 15 December vote on a draft constitution written by an Islamist-dominated assembly that has ignited two weeks of political unrest.[61]

A constitutional referendum was held in two rounds on 15 and 22 December 2012, with 64% support, and 33% against. It was signed into law by a presidential decree issued by Morsi on 26 December 2012. On 3 July 2013, the constitution was suspended by order of the Egyptian army.

On 30 June 2013, on the first anniversary of the election of Morsi, millions of protesters across Egypt took to the streets and demanded the immediate resignation of the president. On 1 July, the Egyptian Armed Forces issued a 48-hour ultimatum that gave the country's political parties until 3 July to meet the demands of the Egyptian people. The presidency rejected the Egyptian Army's 48-hour ultimatum, vowing that the president would pursue his own plans for national reconciliation to resolve the political crisis. On 3 July, General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, head of the Egyptian Armed Forces, announced that he had removed Morsi from power, suspended the constitution and would be calling new presidential and Shura Council elections and named Supreme Constitutional Court's leader, Adly Mansour as acting president. Mansour was sworn in on 4 July 2013.

#### After Morsi[edit | edit source]

Main article: Post-coup unrest in Egypt (2013–2014)

During the months after the coup d'état, a new constitution was prepared, which took effect on 18 January 2014. After that, presidential and parliamentary elections have to be held in June 2014. On 24 March 2014, 529 Morsi's supporters were sentenced to death, while the trial of Morsi himself was still ongoing.[62] Having delivered a final judgement, 492 sentences were commuted to life imprisonment with 37 death sentences being upheld. On 28 April, another mass trial took place with 683 Morsi supporters sentenced to death for killing 1 police officer.[63] In 2015, Egypt participated in the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen.[64]

### El-Sisi Presidency[edit | edit source]

Main article: Abdel Fattah el-Sisi

File:Container Ship 'Ever Given' stuck in the Suez Canal, Egypt - March 24th, 2021 cropped.jpg

Satellite image of Ever Given blocking the canal in March 2021

In the elections of June 2014 El-Sisi won with a percentage of 96.1%.[65] Under President el-Sisi, Egypt has implemented a rigorous policy of controlling the border to the Gaza Strip, including the dismantling of tunnels between the Gaza strip and Sinai.

During the 2020–2021 Tigray War, Egypt was also involved. On 19 December 2020, an EEPA report stated, based on testimonials of three Egyptian officials and one European diplomat, that the UAE used its base in Assab (Eritrea) to launch drones strikes against Tigray. The investigative platform Bellingcat confirmed the presence of Chinese-produced drones at the UAE's military base in Assab, Eritrea. Egyptian officials were concerned about strengthening ties between the UAE and Israel. They fear that both countries will collaborate in the construction of an alternative to the Suez Canal, starting from Haifa in Israel.[66] On 19 December 2020, Egypt was reportedly encouraging Sudan to support the TPLF in Tigray. It wants to strengthen a joint position in relation to negotiations on the GERD Dam, which impacts both countries downstream.[66]

## See also[edit | edit source]

* History of Cairo
* History of Alexandria
* List of Egyptian inventions and discoveries
* Population history of Egypt
* Timeline of Alexandria
* Timeline of Cairo

## References[edit | edit source]

1. ^ Sänger, Patrick. "The Administration of Sasanian Egypt: New Masters and Byzantine Continuity." Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 51.4 (2011): 653-665.
2. ^ "French Invasion of Egypt, 1798-1801". www.HistoryOfWar.org. History of War. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
3. ^ Midant-Reynes, Béatrix. The Prehistory of Egypt: From the First Egyptians to the First Kings. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.
4. ^ "The Nile Valley 6000–4000 BC Neolithic". The British Museum. 2005. Archived from the original on 14 February 2009. Retrieved 21 August 2008.
5. ^ Bard, Kathryn A. Ian Shaw, ed. The Oxford Illustrated History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. p. 69.
6. ^ a b "Rulers of Ancient Egypt's Enigmatic Hyksos Dynasty Were Immigrants, Not Invaders". Sci-News.com. 16 July 2020.
7. ^ Stantis, Chris; Kharobi, Arwa; Maaranen, Nina; Nowell, Geoff M.; Bietak, Manfred; Prell, Silvia; Schutkowski, Holger (2020). "Who were the Hyksos? Challenging traditional narratives using strontium isotope (87Sr/86Sr) analysis of human remains from ancient Egypt". PLOS ONE. 15 (7): e0235414. Bibcode:2020PLoSO..1535414S. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0235414. PMC 7363063. PMID 32667937.
8. ^ "The Kushite Conquest of Egypt". Ancientsudan.org. Archived from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2010.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
9. ^ a b c d "EGYPT i. Persians in Egypt in the Achaemenid period". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
10. ^ "Thirty First Dynasty of Egypt". CrystaLink. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
11. ^ "Late Period of Ancient Egypt". CrystaLink. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
12. ^ Wade, L. (2017). "Egyptian mummy DNA, at last". Science. 356 (6341): 894. doi:10.1126/science.356.6341.894. PMID 28572344.
13. ^ Bowman, Alan K (1996). Egypt after the Pharaohs 332 BC – AD 642 (2nd ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 25–26. ISBN 978-0-520-20531-4.
14. ^ Stanwick, Paul Edmond (2003). Portraits of the Ptolemies: Greek kings as Egyptian pharaohs. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-77772-9.
15. ^ Riggs, Christina, ed. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Roman Egypt. Oxford University Press. p. 107\. ISBN 978-0-19-957145-1.
16. ^ Olson, Roger E. (2014). The Story of Christian Theology: Twenty Centuries of Tradition & Reform. InterVarsity Press. p. 201\. ISBN 9780830877362.
17. ^ a b "Egypt". Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs. Archived from the original on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011. See drop-down essay on "Islamic Conquest and the Ottoman Empire"
18. ^ Nash, John F. (2008). Christianity: the One, the Many: What Christianity Might Have Been. Vol. 1\. p. 91\. ISBN 9781462825714.
19. ^ Kamil, Jill (1997). Coptic Egypt: History and Guide. Cairo: American University in Cairo. p. 39\. ISBN 9789774242427.
20. ^ a b "EGYPT iv. Relations in the Sasanian period". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
21. ^ El-Daly, Okasha. Egyptology: The Missing Millennium. London: UCL Press
22. ^ a b c Abu-Lughod, Janet L. (1991) [1989]. "The Mideast Heartland". Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250–1350. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 243–244. ISBN 978-0-19-506774-3.
23. ^ Egypt – Major Cities, U.S. Library of Congress
24. ^ Donald Quataert (2005). The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922. Cambridge University Press. p. 115. ISBN 978-0-521-83910-5.
25. ^ "Icelandic Volcano Caused Historic Famine In Egypt, Study Shows". ScienceDaily. 22 November 2006
26. ^ M. Abir, "Modernisation, Reaction and Muhammad Ali's 'Empire'" Middle Eastern Studies 13#3 (1977), pp. 295–313 online
27. ^ a b Nejla M. Abu Izzeddin, Nasser of the Arabs, published c. 1973, p 2.
28. ^ Nejla M. Abu Izzeddin, Nasser of the Arabs, p 2.
29. ^ Anglo French motivation: Derek Hopwood, Egypt: Politics and Society 1945–1981 (London, 1982, George Allen & Unwin), p. 11
30. ^ De facto protectorate: Joan Wucher King, Historical Dictionary of Egypt (Scarecrow, 1984), p. 17
31. ^ R.C. Mowat, "From Liberalism to Imperialism: The Case of Egypt 1875-1887." Historical Journal 16#1 (1973): 109-24. online.
32. ^ James Jankowski, Egypt, A Short History, p. 111
33. ^ Jankowski, op cit., p. 112
34. ^ "Egypt". CIA- The World Factbook. Retrieved 2 February 2011. "Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty with the overthrow of the British-backed monarchy in 1952."
35. ^ USMC Major Michael C. Jordan (1997). "The 1973 Arab-Israeli War: Arab Policies, Strategies, and Campaigns". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 20 April 2009.
36. ^ Vatikiotis, p. 443. sfnp error: no target: CITEREFVatikiotis (help)
37. ^ Murphy, Caryle Passion for Islam: Shaping the Modern Middle East: the Egyptian Experience, Scribner, 2002, p.4
38. ^ Murphy, Caryle Passion for Islam: Shaping the Modern Middle East: the Egyptian Experience, Scribner, 2002, p.57
39. ^ Kepel, Gilles, Muslim Extremism in Egypt by Gilles Kepel, English translation published by University of California Press, 1986, p. 74
40. ^ "Solidly ahead of oil, Suez Canal revenues, and remittances, tourism is Egypt's main hard currency earner at $6.5 billion per year." (in 2005) ... concerns over tourism's future Archived 24 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 27 September 2007.
41. ^ Gilles Kepel, Jihad, 2002
42. ^ Lawrence Wright, The Looming Tower (2006), p.258
43. ^ "Timeline of modern Egypt". Gemsofislamism.tripod.com. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
44. ^ As described by William Dalrymple in his book From the Holy Mountain (1996, ISBN 0 00 654774 5) pp. 434–54, where he describes his trip to the area of Asyut in 1994.
45. ^ a b Uppsala Conflict Data Program, Conflict Encyclopedia, "The al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya insurgency," viewed 2013-05-03, http://www.ucdp.uu.se/gpdatabase/gpcountry.php?id=50&regionSelect=10-Middle_East# Archived 11 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine
46. ^ Kirkpatrick, David D. (11 February 2010). "Mubarak Steps Down, Ceding Power to Military". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 January 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
47. ^ "Egypt crisis: President Hosni Mubarak resigns as leader". BBC. 11 February 2010. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
48. ^ Mubarak Resigns As Egypt's President, Armed Forces To Take Control Huffington Post/AP, 11 February 2011
49. ^ "Mubarak Flees Cairo for Sharm el-Sheikh". CBS News. 11 February 2011. Archived from the original on 29 June 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
50. ^ "Egyptian Parliament dissolved, constitution suspended". BBC. 13 February 2011. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
51. ^ Egypt's Historic Day Proceeds Peacefully, Turnout High For Elections. NPR. 28 November 2011. Last Retrieved 29 November 2011.
52. ^ Daniel Pipes and Cynthia Farahat (24 January 2012). "Don't Ignore Electoral Fraud in Egypt". Daniel Pipes Middle East Forum.
53. ^ Fahmy, Mohamed (9 July 2012). "Egypt's president calls back dissolved parliament". CNN. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
54. ^ Watson, Ivan (10 July 2012). "Court overrules Egypt's president on parliament". CNN. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
55. ^ "Egypt unveils new cabinet, Tantawi keeps defence post". 3 August 2012.
56. ^ "Egypt's President Mursi assumes sweeping powers". BBC News. 22 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
57. ^ "Rallies for, against Egypt president's new powers". Associated Press. 23 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
58. ^ Birnbaum, Michael (22 November 2012). "Egypt's President Morsi takes sweeping new powers". The Washington Post. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
59. ^ Spencer, Richard (23 November 2012). "Violence breaks out across Egypt as protesters decry Mohammed Morsi's constitutional 'coup'". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
60. ^ "Egypt Sees Largest Clash Since Revolution". Wall Street Journal. 6 December 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
61. ^ a b Fleishman, Jeffrey (6 December 2012). "Morsi refuses to cancel Egypt's vote on constitution". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
62. ^ Czech News Agency (24 March 2014). "Soud s islamisty v Egyptě: Na popraviště půjde více než 500 Mursího stoupenců". IHNED.cz. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
63. ^ "Egypt sentences 683 to death in latest mass trial of dissidents". The Washington Post. 28 April 2015.
64. ^ "Egypt and Saudi Arabia discuss maneuvers as Yemen battles rage". Reuters. 14 April 2015.
65. ^ "El-Sisi wins Egypt's presidential race with 96.91%". English.Ahram.org. Ahram Online. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
66. ^ a b Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 31 - 20 December Europe External Programme with Africa

## Further reading[edit | edit source]

* Botman, Selma. Egypt from Independence to Revolution, 1919-1952 (Syracuse UP, 1991).
* Daly, M.W. The Cambridge History of Egypt Volume 2 Modern Egypt, from 1517 to the end of the twentieth century (1998) pp 217–84 on 1879–1923. online
* Goldschmidt, Jr., Arthur, ed. Biographical Dictionary of Modern Egypt (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1999).
* Goldschmidt, Jr., Arthur. ed. Historical Dictionary of Egypt (Scarecrow Press, 1994).
* Petry, Carl F. ed. The Cambridge History of Egypt, Vol. 1: Islamic Egypt, 640-1517  (1999) online
* Shaw, Ian. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2003)
* Tignor, Robert L. Modernization and British colonial rule in Egypt, 1882-1914 (Princeton UP, 2015).
* Tucker, Judith E. Women in nineteenth-century Egypt (Cambridge UP, 1985).
* Vatikiotis, P.J. (1991). The History of Modern Egypt: From Muhammad Ali to Mubarak (4 ed.). London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 978-0-297-82034-5.

* v
* t
* e

File:Flag of Egypt.svg Egypt topics

History

| Chronology|

* Prehistoric
* Ancient
* topics
* Achaemenid
* 27th Dynasty
* 31st Dynasty
* Ptolemaic
* Battle of Actium
* Lighthouse of Alexandria
* Roman
* Diocese of Egypt
* Library of Alexandria
* Christian
* Sassanid
* Muslim
* Muslim conquest
* Islamization
* Fustat
* Tulunid dynasty
* Ikhshidid dynasty
* Fatimid Caliphate
* Crusader invasions
* Ayyubid dynasty
* Mamluk Sultanate
* Mamluk
* Ottoman
* Egypt Eyalet
* Muhammad Ali dynasty
* Nahda
* Khedivate
* Ethiopian–Egyptian War
* ʻUrabi revolt
* Modern
* French occupation
* Revolt of Cairo
* British occupation
* 1919 revolution
* World War II
* Sultanate
* Kingdom
* 1948 Arab–Israeli War
* Republic
* Nasser era
* 1952 coup d'état
* Land reform
* Suez Crisis
* United Arab Republic
* Six-Day War
* Sadat era
* Yom Kippur War
* Egyptian–Libyan War
* Assassination of Anwar Sadat
* Mubarak era
* 2010s Crisis
* 2013 Rabaa massacre

|

By topic|

* Anarchism
* Capital
* Cigarette industry
* Constitution
* Copts
* Genetic
* Healthcare
* Jews
* Muslim Brotherhood
* 1928–1938
* 1939–1954
* 1954–present
* Parliament
* Population
* Postal
* Saladin
* Timekeeping devices

By city|

* Alexandria
* Cairo
* Port Said

Geography

* Biota
* Borders
* Cities
* Climate
* Deserts
* Earthquakes
* Environmental issues
* Fossils
* Geology
* Halfaya Pass
* Islands
* Lakes
* Mountains
* Mount Sinai
* Nile Delta
* Northern coast
* Oases
* Qattara Depression
* Red Sea Riviera
* Rivers
* Nile
* Sinai Peninsula
* Suez Canal
* Towns and villages
* Wadis
* Wildlife

Politics

* Administrative divisions
* Governorates
* Postal codes
* Civil Code
* Conflicts
* Conscription
* Constitution
* Elections
* Foreign relations
* Missions
* Islamic extremism
* Judiciary
* Law enforcement
* Massacres
* Military
* Supreme Council
* Nationality law
* Parliament
* Passport
* Political parties
* President
* list
* Prime Minister
* list
* Proposed new capital
* Refugees of the Syrian civil war
* Terrorism
* Terrorism and tourism
* Twin towns and sister cities

Economy

* Agriculture
* Banking
* National Bank
* Companies
* Economic regions
* Egyptian stock exchange
* Egyptian pound
* Energy
* Entrepreneurship policies
* Fishing
* Impact on the environment
* Lighthouses
* Military industry
* Mining
* Mines
* Nuclear program
* Power stations
* Aswan Dam
* Role of the Egyptian Armed Forces
* Tallest buildings
* Telecommunications
* Internet
* Tourism
* Cultural tourism
* Transport
* Airlines
* Airports
* Railway stations
* Water supply and sanitation
* Water resources management

Society

| General|

* Abortion
* Animal welfare
* Billionaires
* Cannabis
* Capital punishment
* Censuses
* Corruption
* Crime
* Human trafficking
* Mass sexual assault
* Rape
* Demographics
* Diaspora
* Education
* Academic grading
* Law schools
* Medical schools
* Schools
* Universities
* Families
* Abaza family
* Feminism
* Gender inequality
* Health
* Healthcare
* Hospitals
* Homelessness
* Human rights
* Freedom of religion
* LGBT rights
* International rankings
* Languages
* Egyptian Arabic
* Saʽidi Arabic
* Sign Language
* Liberalism
* Literature
* Prostitution
* Religion
* Baháʼí
* Blasphemy law
* Christianity
* Catholic dioceses
* Coptic Churches
* Hinduism
* Identification card controversy
* Irreligion
* Islam
* Ahmadiyya
* Mosques
* Niqāb
* Judaism
* Synagogues
* Scientology
* Smoking
* Units of measurement
* Vehicle registration plates
* Women

|

Culture|

* Art
* Botanical gardens
* Castles
* Cinema
* Coat of arms
* Cuisine
* Beer
* Wine
* Films
* Flag
* list
* regions
* Football
* Football clubs
* Football stadiums
* Egyptians
* Mass media
* Magazines
* Newspapers
* Radio
* TV
* Museums
* Music
* National anthem
* Olympics
* Public holidays
* World Heritage Sites

* Category
* Portal
* Project
* Commons page Commons

* v
* t
* e

British Empire

Legend
Current territory
Former territory
* Now a Commonwealth realm
Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations

Culture:Anglosphere

Europe

* 1542–1800 Ireland (integrated into the UK)
* 1708–1757, 1763–1782 and 1798–1802 Minorca
* Since 1713 Gibraltar
* 1800–1813 Malta (Protectorate)
* 1813–1964 Malta (Colony)
* 1807–1890 Heligoland
* 1809–1864 Ionian Islands
* 1878–1960 Cyprus
* 1921–1931 Irish Free State
* Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus)

* v
* t
* e

Africa

| 17th and 18th centuries| 19th century| 20th century

|
|

* Since 1658 Saint Helena23
* 1792–1961 Sierra Leone
* 1795–1803 Cape Colony

* Since 1815 Ascension Island23
* Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha23
* 1806–1910 Cape of Good Hope
* 1807–1808 Madeira
* 1810–1968 Mauritius
* 1816–1965 The Gambia
* 1856–1910 Natal
* 1862–1906 Lagos
* 1868–1966 Basutoland6
* 1874–1957 Gold Coast7
* 1882–1922 Egypt

* 1884–1900 Niger Coast
* 1884–1966 Bechuanaland8
* 1884–1960 Somaliland
* 1887–1897 Zululand
* 1890–1962 Uganda
* 1890–1963 Zanzibar9
* 1891–1964 Nyasaland10
* 1891–1907 Central Africa
* 1893–1968 Swaziland11
* 1895–1920 East Africa
* 1899–1956 Sudan

* 1900–1914 Northern Nigeria
* 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria
* 1900–1910 Orange River
* 1900–1910 Transvaal
* 1903–1976 Seychelles
* 1910–1931 South Africa
* 1914–1960 Nigeria
* 1915–1931 South-West Africa12
* 1919–1961 Cameroons13
* 1920–1963 Kenya
* 1922–1961 Tanganyika13
* 1923–1965 and 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia14
* 1924–1964 Northern Rhodesia15

* 6\. Now Lesotho.
* 7\. Now Ghana.
* 8\. Now Botswana.
* 9\. Now part of Tanzania.
* 10\. Now Malawi.
* 11\. Now named Eswatini.
* 12\. Now Namibia.
* 13. League of Nations mandate. British Cameroons is now part of Cameroon, while Tanganyika is part of Tanzania.
* 14. Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003.
* 15\. Now Zambia.

* v
* t
* e

Asia

| 17th and 18th centuries| 19th century| 20th century

|
|

* 1685–1824 Bencoolen
* 1702–1705 Pulo Condore
* 1757–1947 Bengal
* 1762–1764 Manila and Cavite
* 1781–1784 and 1795–1819 Padang
* 1786–1946 Penang
* 1795–1948 Ceylon16
* 1796–1965 Maldives

* 1811–1816 Java
* 1812–1824 Banka and Billiton
* 1819–1826 Malaya
* 1824–1948 Burma
* 1826–1946 Straits Settlements
* 1839–1967 Aden Colony
* 1839–1842 Afghanistan
* 1841–1997 Hong Kong
* 1841–1946 Sarawak17
* 1848–1946 Labuan
* 1858–1947 India18
* 1874–1963 Borneo

* 1879–1919 Afghanistan (protectorate)
* 1882–1963 North Borneo17
* 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States
* 1888–1984 Brunei
* 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman
* 1892–1971 Trucial States
* 1895–1946 Federated Malay States
* 1898–1930 Weihai
* 1878–1960 Cyprus

* 1907–1949 Bhutan (protectorate)
* 1918–1961 Kuwait
* 1920–1932 Mesopotamia19
* 1921–1946 Transjordan8
* 1923–1948 Palestine19
* 1945–1946 South Vietnam
* 1946–1963 North Borneo
* 1946–1963 Sarawak
* 1946–1963 Singapore
* 1946–1948 Malayan Union
* 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya17
* Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and Seychelles)

* 16\. Now Sri Lanka.
* 17\. Now part of Malaysia.
* 18\. Now India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
* 19. League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty

* v
* t
* e

North America

| 17th century and before| 18th century| 19th and 20th centuries

|
|

* 1579 New Albion
* 16th c.–1880 British Arctic Territories
* 1583–1907 Newfoundland
* 1605–1979 *Saint Lucia
* 1607–1776 Virginia
* Since 1619 Bermuda
* 1620–1691 Plymouth
* 1623–1883 Saint Kitts
* 1624–1966 *Barbados
* 1625–1650 Saint Croix
* 1627–1979 *Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
* 1628–1883 Nevis
* 1629–1691 Massachusetts-Bay
* 1632–1776 Maryland
* since 1632 Montserrat
* 1632–1860 Antigua
* 1635–1644 Saybrook
* 1636–1776 Connecticut
* 1636–1776 Rhode Island
* 1637–1662 New Haven

* 1643–1860 Bay Islands
* Since 1650 Anguilla
* 1655–1860 Mosquito Coast
* 1655–1962 *Jamaica
* 1663–1712 Carolina
* 1664–1776 New-York
* 1665–1674 and 1702–1776 New-Jersey
* Since 1666 Virgin Islands
* Since 1670 Cayman Islands
* 1670–1973 *Bahamas
* 1670–1870 Rupert's Land
* 1671–1816 Leeward Islands
* 1674–1702 East Jersey
* 1674–1702 West Jersey
* 1680–1776 New Hampshire
* 1681–1776 Pennsylvania
* 1686–1689 New England
* 1691–1776 Massachusetts-Bay

* 1701–1776 Delaware
* 1712–1776 North-Carolina
* 1712–1776 South-Carolina
* 1713–1867 Nova-Scotia
* 1733–1776 Georgia
* 1754–1820 Cape Breton Island
* 1762–1974 *Grenada
* 1763–1978 Dominica
* 1763–1873 Prince Edward Island
* 1763–1791 Quebec
* 1763–1783 East Florida
* 1763–1783 West Florida
* 1784–1867 New Brunswick
* 1791–1841 Lower Canada
* 1791–1841 Upper Canada
* Since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands

* 1818–1846 Columbia District/Oregon Country1
* 1833–1960 Windward Islands
* 1833–1960 Leeward Islands
* 1841–1867 Canada
* 1843 Paulet affair
* 1849–1866 Vancouver Island
* 1853–1863 Queen Charlotte Islands
* 1858–1866 British Columbia
* 1859–1870 North-Western Territory
* 1860–1981 *Antigua and Barbuda
* 1862–1863 Stickeen
* 1866–1871 British Columbia
* 1867–1931 *Dominion of Canada2
* 1871–1981 *Belize
* 1882–1983 *Saint Kitts and Nevis
* 1889–1962 Trinidad and Tobago
* 1907–1949 Newfoundland3
* 1958–1962 West Indies Federation
* 1967–1983 West Indies Associated States

* 1. Occupied jointly with the United States.
* 2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. See Name of Canada.
* 3. Gave up self-rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949.

* v
* t
* e

Oceania

| 18th and 19th centuries| 20th century

|

* 1788–1901 New South Wales
* 1803–1901 Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania
* 1807–1863 Auckland Islands20
* 1824–1980 New Hebrides21
* 1824–1901 Queensland
* 1829–1901 Swan River/Western Australia
* 1836–1901 South Australia
* since 1838 Pitcairn Islands

* 1841–1907 New Zealand
* 1846-1847 North Australia
* 1851–1901 Victoria
* 1874–1970 Fiji
* 1877–1976 Western Pacific Territories
* 1884–1902 Papua
* 1888–1901 Rarotonga/Cook Islands20
* 1889–1948 Union Islands20
* 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands22
* 1893–1978 *Solomon Islands

* 1900–1970 Tonga
* 1900–1974 Niue20
* 1901–1942 *Australia
* 1907–1947 *New Zealand
* 1914–1962 Samoa
* 1919–1942 and 1945–1968 Nauru

* 20. Now part of the *Realm of New Zealand.
* 21\. Now Vanuatu.
* 22. Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu.

South America

* 1631–1641 Providence Island
* 1651–1667 Willoughbyland
* 1670–1688 Saint Andrew and Providence Islands4
* 1831–1966 Guiana
* Since 1833 Falkland Islands5
* Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands5

* 4. Now a department of Colombia.
* 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982.

Antarctica and the South Atlantic

* Since 1658 Saint Helena23
* Since 1815 Ascension Island23
* Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha23
* Since 1833 Falkland Islands
* 1841–1933 Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia)
* 1841–1947 Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand)
* Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory24
* Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands24

* 23. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena.
* 24. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands).

* Historical flags of the British Empire

* Category
* Commons page Commons
* Portal

* v
* t
* e

History of Africa

Sovereign states|

* Algeria
* Angola
* Benin
* Botswana
* Burkina Faso
* Burundi
* Cameroon
* Cape Verde
* Central African Republic
* Chad
* Comoros
* Democratic Republic of the Congo
* Republic of the Congo
* Djibouti
* Egypt
* Equatorial Guinea
* Eritrea
* Eswatini
* Ethiopia
* Gabon
* The Gambia
* Ghana
* Guinea
* Guinea-Bissau
* Ivory Coast
* Kenya
* Lesotho
* Liberia
* Libya
* Madagascar
* Malawi
* Mali
* Mauritania
* Mauritius
* Morocco
* Mozambique
* Namibia
* Niger
* Nigeria
* Rwanda
* São Tomé and Príncipe
* Senegal
* Seychelles
* Sierra Leone
* Somalia
* South Africa
* South Sudan
* Sudan
* Tanzania
* Togo
* Tunisia
* Uganda
* Zambia
* Zimbabwe

States with limited
recognition

* Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
* Somaliland

Dependencies and
other territories

* Canary Islands / Ceuta / Melilla (Spain)
* Madeira (Portugal)
* Mayotte / Réunion (France)
* Saint Helena / Ascension Island / Tristan da Cunha (United Kingdom)
* Western Sahara

* v
* t
* e

History of Asia

Sovereign states|

* Afghanistan
* Armenia
* Azerbaijan
* Bahrain
* Bangladesh
* Bhutan
* Brunei
* Cambodia
* China
* Cyprus
* East Timor (Timor-Leste)
* Egypt
* Georgia
* India
* Indonesia
* Iran
* Iraq
* Israel
* Japan
* Jordan
* Kazakhstan
* North Korea
* South Korea
* Kuwait
* Kyrgyzstan
* Laos
* Lebanon
* Malaysia
* Maldives
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal
* Oman
* Pakistan
* Philippines
* Qatar
* Russia
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore
* Sri Lanka
* Syria
* Tajikistan
* Thailand
* Turkey
* Turkmenistan
* United Arab Emirates
* Uzbekistan
* Vietnam
* Yemen

States with
limited recognition|

* Abkhazia
* Artsakh
* Northern Cyprus
* Palestine
* South Ossetia
* Taiwan

Dependencies and
other territories|

* British Indian Ocean Territory
* Christmas Island
* Cocos (Keeling) Islands
* Hong Kong
* Macau

* Category
* Asia portal

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[c.]: circa