Modern & President Nasser Map of Egypt History of Modern Egypt Up to WWII • Leading up to the 19th Century, Egypt had three imperial phases: 1) Ancient/early Dynastic (~3,000 to 300s B.C.E.); 2) Greco-Roman (300s B.C.E. to 600s A.D.); and 3) Islamic (600s to 1880s A.D.) • At the turn of the 20th Century, Egypt was being fought over by European countries, until it was declared a British protectorate in 1914 • In 1922, after many strikes and protests, arrests and deaths, Egypt was declared independent (although British troops stayed on until 1936) • Until 1952, several parties and contingents struggled for supremacy: • The , a nationalist party that wanted all British presence out of the country and the merging of Egypt and • King Fuad, originally placed in power by Britain in 1924 • The British, who wanted to maintain control of the • Egypt’s Communist party (established 1925) • The (established 1928) Egypt, Revolution, and Nasser • After continuing to cooperate with Britain (which used Egypt as a base during WWII), Egypt’s military revolted against British-backed King Farouk in 1952 • The “Free Officers” led this military revolution and provided the first three presidents of the Egyptian Republic: Mohmmad Naguib (1953-1956), Gamel Abdel Nasser (1956-1970), and Anwar el-Sadat (1971-1981, assassinated by Islamic extremists and replaced by V.P. ) • Nasser became Egypt’s first lasting and popular leader President Nasser • Nasser became one of the most popular figures in the and promoted his dual visions of “Pan-Arabism” and Arab socialism • Nasser (in)famously nationalized the (as well as banks and shipping companies) in 1956, much to the chagrin of Western powers that had long profited from the Canal • Around this time France, Britain, and attacked Egypt, but withdrew soon after • For his willingness to challenge Western colonialism and Israel, Nasser was hailed as a heroic leader in Egypt and throughout much of the Arab world, even if he was an autocrat • Nasser also had populist support for his agrarian reforms, which sought to reduce feudalism and empower the fellahin (farmers and laborers) • In support of Palestine, and opposed to Israel’s alliances with the U.S., Nasser walked a fine line between anti-colonialism and anti- Semitism 1967 Cartoon from a Lebanese Newspaper of Nasser Kicking a Jewish Caricature Over the Edge of a Cliff • Nasser and Egypt played a crucial role in the Six- Day War (1967), which was the ruler’s nadir • Egypt was then allied with and Jordan (two of Israel’s neighbors to the north and west, respectively), forming what they called the UAR () • Over land, water, and religious disputes, among many, the UAR, with some help from Lebanon and Iraq, attacked Israel and were soundly defeated through air and land • Nasser quietly finished out his tenure as president in the years following the Six-Day War and died while still in office in 1971