Republic of Egypt (1953–1958)

Coordinates: 30°3′N 31°13′E / 30.050°N 31.217°E / 30.050; 31.217
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Republic of Egypt
جمهورية مصر (
Arabic
)
Jumhuriat Misr
1953–1958
Flag of Egypt
Co-official flags
(1953–1958)
Coat of arms (1953–1958) of Egypt
Coat of arms
(1953–1958)
Anthem: 
semi-presidential republic under a Nasserist military dictatorship[1]
President 
• 1953–1954
Mohamed Naguib
• 1954–1958
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Historical era
Egyptian Revolution of 1952
23 July 1952
29 October 1956 – 7 November 1956
22 February 1958
Area
• Total
1,010,408 km2 (390,121 sq mi)
Population
• 1953
22,028,134
• 1955
23,223,124
• 1958
25,209,459
Currency
Egyptian Pound
ISO 3166 codeEG
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Kingdom of Egypt
1958
United Arab Republic
1956
Republic of Sudan
Today part of
Until 1956)
South Sudan

(Until 1956)

The Republic of Egypt was a state created in 1953 under the rule of

Egyptian revolution of 1952 in which the Kingdom of Egypt's Muhammad Ali dynasty came to an end. It was superseded in 1958 with the creation of the United Arab Republic
.

The territory of the state compromised modern day Egypt as well as the Gaza Strip, governed by the All-Palestine Protectorate. The territory also included modern day Sudan and South Sudan until 1956 when the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Condominium was abolished, granting the Republic of The Sudan independence.

The Revolution

Main article:
Egyptian revolution of 1952

The Free Officers

The Arab Republic of Egypt was created following the

Egyptian revolution of 1952 led by the Free Officers, a group of Army Officers who wanted to overthrow King Farouk and abolish the Muhammad Ali dynasty in Egypt which was led by Mohamed Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser.[2]

The Free Officers's goals were to Abolish the

Sudan from the British, who governed it as Anglo-Egyptian Sudan.[3] The revolutionary government adopted a staunchly nationalist, anti-imperialist agenda, which came to be expressed chiefly through Arab nationalism, and international non-alignment
.

The revolution was faced with immediate threats from Western imperial powers, particularly the United Kingdom, which had occupied

Egypt, especially as it left the Suez Canal in uncontested Egyptian control for the first time since 1875, erasing what was seen as a mark of national humiliation. This strengthened the appeal of the revolution in other Arab and African countries.[5]

The Coup

While the

Youssef Seddik met with them before he led his battalion to take control the Military General Headquarters to arrest the royalist army chief of staff, Hussein Sirri Amer and all the other commanders who were present in the building. At 6:00 am the Free Officers Air force units began patrolling Cairo's skies.[7]

By the 25th of July, the army had occupied Alexandria, where the King was in residence at the Montaza Palace. Terrified, Farouk abandoned Montaza and fled to Ras Al-Teen Palace on the waterfront. Naguib ordered the captain of Farouk's yacht, al-Mahrusa, not to sail without orders from the army.[citation needed]

Debate broke out among the

Egyptian Governance.[9]

History

Naguib presidency (1953–1954)

Main articles:
Egyptian revolution of 1952
Republic, serving in that capacity for a little under one and a half years until he was placed under house arrest by Gamal Abdel Nasser after a brief power struggle.[10]

Naguib and Nasser
Naguib and Nasser

Nasser presidency (1954–1958)

Naguib was forced to resign in 1954 by Gamal Abdel Nasser – a Pan-Arabist and the main architect of the 1952 movement – and was later put under house arrest. After Naguib's resignation, the position of President was vacant until the election of Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1956.

Main article: Gamal Abdel Nasser
fellah in a land distribution ceremony in Minya
, 1954

After the three-year transition period ended with

Baghdad Pact.[11] In addition, Nasser's adherence to neutralism regarding the Cold War, recognition of Communist China, and arms deal with the Eastern bloc alienated the United States. On 19 July 1956, the US and UK abruptly withdrew their offer to finance construction of the Aswan Dam,[11] citing concerns that Egypt's economy would be overwhelmed by the project.[12]

In October 1954,

Republic of The Sudan
; the agreement came into force on 1 January 1956.

Nasser assumed power as president in June 1956. British forces completed their withdrawal from the occupied Suez Canal Zone on 13 June 1956. He nationalised the Suez Canal on 26 July 1956; his hostile approach towards Israel and economic nationalism prompted the beginning of the Second Arab-Israeli War (Suez Crisis), in which Israel (with support from France and the United Kingdom) occupied the Sinai Peninsula and the Canal. The war came to an end because of US and USSR diplomatic intervention,[13] and the status quo was restored. On 26 July 1956,

company's profits, and upheld that the Egyptians had a right to sovereignty over the waterway, especially since "120,000 Egyptians had died building it".[14] The motion was technically in breach of the international agreement he had signed with the UK on 19 October 1954,[15] although he ensured that all existing stockholders would be paid off.[16]

A man wearing a suit inserting a piece of paper into a box. He is being photographed by cameramen
Nasser submitting his vote for the referendum of the proposed constitution, 23 June 1956
Movietone Newsreels reporting Nasser's nationalization of the Suez Canal and both domestic and Western reactions

The nationalization announcement was greeted very emotionally by the audience and, throughout the

Commonwealth. There had been no discussion of the canal at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference in London in late June and early July. Egypt's action, however, threatened British economic and military interests in the region. Prime Minister Eden was under immense domestic pressure from Conservative MPs who drew direct comparisons between the events of 1956 and those of the Munich Agreement in 1938. Since the U.S. government did not support the British protests, the British government decided in favour of military intervention against Egypt to avoid the complete collapse of British prestige in the region.[citation needed
]

Eden was hosting a dinner for

Faisal II of Iraq and his Prime Minister, Nuri al-Said, when he learned the canal had been nationalised. They both unequivocally advised Eden to "hit Nasser hard, hit him soon, and hit him by yourself" – a stance shared by the vast majority of the British people in subsequent weeks. "There is a lot of humbug about Suez," Guy Millard, one of Eden's private secretaries, later recorded. "People forget that the policy at the time was extremely popular." Opposition leader Hugh Gaitskell was also at the dinner. He immediately agreed that military action might be inevitable, but warned Eden would have to keep the Americans closely informed. After a session of the House of Commons expressed anger against the Egyptian action on 27 July, Eden justifiably believed that Parliament would support him; Gaitskell spoke for his party when he called the nationalisation a "high-handed and totally unjustifiable step". When Eden made a ministerial broadcast on the nationalisation, Labour declined its right to reply.[19]

Nasser assumed power as president in June 1956. British forces completed their withdrawal from the occupied Suez Canal Zone on 13 June 1956. He nationalised the Suez Canal on 26 July 1956; his hostile approach towards Israel and economic nationalism prompted the beginning of the Second Arab-Israeli War (Suez Crisis), in which Israel (with support from France and the United Kingdom) occupied the Sinai Peninsula and the Canal. The war came to an end because of US and USSR diplomatic intervention[13] and the status quo was restored.[20]

Suez Crisis (1956)

Main article: Suez Crisis

On 29 October, Israel invaded the Egyptian Sinai. Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to cease fire, which was ignored. On 5 November, Britain and France landed paratroopers along the Suez Canal. While the Egyptian forces were defeated, they had blocked the Canal to all shipping. It later became clear that Israel, France and Britain had conspired to plan out the invasion. The three allies had attained a number of their military objectives, but the Canal was useless. Heavy political pressure from the United States and the USSR led to a withdrawal. U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower had strongly warned Britain not to invade; he threatened serious damage to the British financial system by selling the US government's Pound sterling bonds. Historians conclude the Crisis "signified the end of Great Britain's role as one of the world's major powers".[13][21]

On 29 October, Israel invaded the Egyptian Sinai. Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to cease fire, which was ignored. The aims were to regain Western control of the Suez Canal and to remove Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser, who had just nationalised the canal.[22] On 5 November, Britain and France landed paratroopers along the Suez Canal. While the Egyptian forces were defeated, they had blocked the Canal to all shipping.[23][24]

Israeli M4A4 Shermans were also used in the Sinai campaign.
Israeli M4A4 Shermans were also used in the Sinai campaign.

Operation Kadesh received its name from ancient

Sharm el-Sheikh and, by capturing the town, Israel would have access to the Red Sea for the first time since 1953, which would allow it to restore the trade benefits of secure passage to the Indian Ocean.[25]

The

Abu Uwayulah
were important hubs for soldiers, equipment, and centres of command and control of the Egyptian Army in the Sinai.

Capturing them would deal a deathblow to the Egyptian's strategic operation in the entire Peninsula. The capture of these four objectives were hoped to be the means by which the entire Egyptian Army would rout and fall back into Egypt proper, which British and French forces would then be able to push up against an Israeli advance, and crush in a decisive encounter. On 24 October, Dayan ordered a partial mobilisation. When this led to a state of confusion, Dayan ordered full mobilisation, and chose to take the risk that he might alert the Egyptians. As part of an effort to maintain surprise, Dayan ordered Israeli troops that were to go to the Sinai to be ostentatiously concentrated near the border with Jordan first, which was intended to fool the Egyptians into thinking that it was Jordan that the main Israeli blow was to fall on.

On 28 October, Operation Tarnegol was effected, during which an Israeli Gloster Meteor NF.13 intercepted and destroyed an Egyptian Ilyushin Il-14 carrying Egyptian officers en route from Syria to Egypt, killing 16 Egyptian officers and journalists and two crewmen. The Ilyushin was believed to be carrying Field Marshal Abdel Hakim Amer and the Egyptian General Staff; however this was not the case.

The conflict began on 29 October 1956. At about 3:00 pm, Israeli Air Force Mustangs launched a series of attacks on Egyptian positions all over the Sinai. Because Israeli intelligence expected Jordan to enter the war on Egypt's side, Israeli soldiers were stationed along the Israeli-Jordanian frontier. The Israel Border Police militarised the Israel-Jordan border, including the Green Line with the West Bank, during the first few hours of the war. Israeli-Arab villages along the Jordanian border were placed under curfew. This resulted in the killings of 48 civilians in the Arab village of Kafr Qasim in an event known as the Kafr Qasim massacre. The border policemen involved in the killings were later tried and imprisoned, with an Israeli court finding that the order to shoot civilians was "blatantly illegal". This event had major effects on Israeli law relating to the ethics in war and more subtle effects on the legal status of Arab citizens of Israel, who at the time were regarded as a fifth column.[26]

It later became clear that Israel, France and Britain had conspired to plan out the invasion. The three allies had attained a number of their military objectives, but the Canal was useless. Heavy political pressure from the United States and the USSR led to a withdrawal. U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower had strongly warned Britain not to invade; he threatened serious damage to the British financial system by selling the US government's Pound sterling bonds. Historians conclude the Crisis "signified the end of Great Britain's role as one of the world's major powers".[13][27]

The formation of the United Arab Republic (1958)

Main article: Gamal Abdel Nasser
Nasser's announcement of the United Arab Republic, 23 February 1958

As political instability grew in Syria, delegations from the country were sent to Nasser demanding immediate unification with Egypt.[28] Nasser initially turned down the request, citing the two countries' incompatible political and economic systems, lack of contiguity, the Syrian military's record of intervention in politics, and the deep factionalism among Syria's political forces.[28] However, in January 1958, a second Syrian delegation managed to convince Nasser of an impending communist takeover and a consequent slide to civil strife.[29] Nasser subsequently opted for union, albeit on the condition that it would be a total political merger with him as its president, to which the delegates and Syrian president Shukri al-Quwatli agreed.[30] On 1 February, the United Arab Republic (UAR) was proclaimed and, according to Dawisha, the Arab world reacted in "stunned amazement, which quickly turned into uncontrolled euphoria."[31] Nasser ordered a crackdown against Syrian communists, dismissing many of them from their governmental posts.[32][33]

Newsreel clip about Nasser and Quwatli's establishment of United Arab Republic

On a surprise visit to

Yemen—the United Arab States—in place of total integration.[35] While Nasser was in Syria, King Saud planned to have him assassinated on his return flight to Cairo.[36] On 4 March, Nasser addressed the masses in Damascus and waved before them the Saudi check given to Syrian security chief and, unbeknownst to the Saudis, ardent Nasser supporter Abdel Hamid Sarraj to shoot down Nasser's plane.[37] As a consequence of Saud's plot, he was forced by senior members of the Saudi royal family to informally cede most of his powers to his brother, King Faisal, a major Nasser opponent who advocated pan-Islamic unity over pan-Arabism.[38]

A day after announcing the attempt on his life, Nasser established a new provisional constitution proclaiming a 600-member National Assembly (400 from Egypt and 200 from Syria) and the dissolution of all political parties.[38] Nasser gave each of the provinces two vice-presidents: Boghdadi and Amer in Egypt, and Sabri al-Asali and Akram al-Hawrani in Syria.[38] Nasser then left for Moscow to meet with Nikita Khrushchev. At the meeting, Khrushchev pressed Nasser to lift the ban on the Communist Party, but Nasser refused, stating it was an internal matter which was not a subject of discussion with outside powers. Khrushchev was reportedly taken aback and denied he had meant to interfere in the UAR's affairs. The matter was settled as both leaders sought to prevent a rift between their two countries.[39]

In 1958,

Egypt and Syria formed a sovereign union known as the United Arab Republic, ending the Republic of Egypt.[40]

References

  1. ISSN 0081-0606
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  2. ^ Mansour, Thaer (2022-07-22). "Egypt's 1952 revolution: Seven decades of military rule". newarab. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  3. ^ Lahav, Pnina. "The Suez Crisis of 1956 and its Aftermath: A Comparative Study of Constitutions, Use of Force, Diplomacy and International Relations". Boston University Law Review.
  4. ISBN 978-0-7914-6687-2
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  5. ^ "Egypt - Revolution, Republic, Nile | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  6. ^ Alexander, 2005, p. 41.
  7. ^ Alexander, p. 42.
  8. ^ Hilton Proctor Goss and Charles Marion Thomas. American Foreign Policy in Growth and Action, 3rd ed. Documentary Research Division, Research Studies Institute, Air University, 1959. p. 273.
  9. ^ theguardian, The Egyptian Republic (20 June 1953). "The Egyptian Republic". The Guardian.
  10. ^ britannica, britannica.com. "The revolution and the Republic".
  11. ^ a b Dekmejian 1971, p. 45
  12. ^ James 2008, p. 149
  13. ^
    ISBN 978-0-8108-6297-5
    .
  14. ^ a b Goldschmidt 2008, p. 162
  15. ^ a b c Jankowski 2001, p. 68
  16. ^ a b "1956: Egypt Seizes Suez Canal". BBC News. 26 July 1956. Retrieved 4 March 2007.
  17. ^ a b Aburish 2004, p. 108
  18. ^ Hamad 2008, p. 96
  19. ^ majalla, This day in history: The birth of the Egyptian Republic. "This day in history: The birth of the Egyptian Republic".
  20. ^ موقع الجمهورية المصرية, عام. "Gamal Abdel Nasser".
  21. S2CID 162845802
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  22. ISBN 978-1-4381-1908-3
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  23. ^ "Suez Crisis | National Army Museum". www.nam.ac.uk. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  24. ^ "What Was The Suez Crisis?". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  25. ^ "Suez Crisis | Definition, Summary, Location, History, Dates, Significance, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2023-11-14. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  26. ^ "What Was The Suez Crisis?". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  27. S2CID 162845802
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  28. ^ a b Dawisha 2009, pp. 193
  29. ^ Dawisha 2009, p. 198
  30. ^ Dawisha 2009, pp. 199–200
  31. ^ Dawisha 2009, p. 200
  32. ^ Aburish 2004, pp. 150–151
  33. ^ Podeh 1999, pp. 44–45
  34. ^ Dawisha 2009, pp. 202–203
  35. ^ Aburish 2004, p. 158
  36. ^ Dawisha 2009, p. 190
  37. ^ Aburish 2004, pp. 160–161
  38. ^ a b c Aburish 2004, pp. 161–162
  39. ^ Aburish 2004, p. 163
  40. ^ "Egypt, Syria Union Aim at Arab Unity". The San Francisco Examiner. Associated Press. February 2, 1958. Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2022.

Sources

External links


30°3′N 31°13′E / 30.050°N 31.217°E / 30.050; 31.217

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