July 23: Revolution Day in Egypt
Prayer Idea
Pray for the people and government of Egypt.
Map by Peter Hermes Furian / Shutterstock.com
History Note
Kings ruled Ancient Egypt. The term pharaoh originally referred to the “great house” or palace of the king and later came to be a term for the ruler himself. The pharaoh was both a civil and religious leader.
The Persian Empire controlled ancient Egypt for a time, followed by the Greeks starting with Alexander the Great, then the Romans, and then the Byzantine Empire. Egypt became part of the Islamic caliphates in the 7th century.
Egypt became a battleground in the conflict between England and France in 1798. The French led the effort to build the Suez Canal in the 1860s, but the British took control of the canal in the 1870s and effectively took control of Egypt in 1882.
The British allowed the Egyptians to set up a constitutional monarchy in 1922 under King Fuʾād I. His son, Farouk I, became king after Fuʾād’s death in 1936. Egypt became a member of the League of Nations in 1937.
After the turmoil of World War II, a group of military officers led by Gamal Abdel Nasser led a coup that overthrew the monarchy on July 23, 1952. This date is observed in Egypt as Revolution Day.
This 2019 photo shows a teahouse in Aswan, Egypt, with a portrait of Gamal Nasser on the wall. Nasser became the second president of the Republic of Egypt in 1954 after forcing his fellow revolutionary Mohamed Naguib to resign from that position.
Learn More
This video provides an overview of the 1952 Egyptian Revolution.
Find more resources at Homeschool History.
