Revolution Day
Encyclopedia
Revolution Day refers to the public holiday in Egypt on 23 July, the anniversary of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952. It is the biggest secular public holiday in Egypt.
Annual celebrations marking the Revolution begin on the preceding evening, as the evening of 22 July 1952 was when the Free Officers Movement
led by Muhammad Naguib
and Gamal Abdel Nasser
commenced the military coup d'état
that launched the Revolution, and ultimately led to the abdication of King Farouk
(the penultimate King of Egypt and Sudan
). The public holiday itself is characterised by large and elaborate celebrations, including televised concerts with heavily nationalistic themes, and military parades.
Annual celebrations marking the Revolution begin on the preceding evening, as the evening of 22 July 1952 was when the Free Officers Movement
Free Officers Movement
In Egypt, the clandestine revolutionary Free Officers Movement was composed of young junior army officers committed to unseating the Egyptian monarchy and its British advisors...
led by Muhammad Naguib
Muhammad Naguib
Muhammad Naguib was the first President of Egypt, serving from the declaration of the Republic on June 18, 1953 to November 14, 1954. Along with Gamal Abdel Nasser, he was the primary leader of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, which ended the rule of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in Egypt and Sudan...
and Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
commenced the military coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
that launched the Revolution, and ultimately led to the abdication of King Farouk
Farouk of Egypt
Farouk I of Egypt , was the tenth ruler from the Muhammad Ali Dynasty and the penultimate King of Egypt and Sudan, succeeding his father, Fuad I, in 1936....
(the penultimate King of Egypt and Sudan
King of Egypt
King of Egypt was the title used by the ruler of Egypt between 1922 and 1951. When the United Kingdom ended its protectorate over Egypt on 28 February 1922, Egypt's Sultan Fouad I issued a decree on 15 March 1922 whereby he adopted the title of King of Egypt...
). The public holiday itself is characterised by large and elaborate celebrations, including televised concerts with heavily nationalistic themes, and military parades.