Farouk I

Farouk I was the tenth ruler of Egypt from the Muhammad Ali dynasty and the penultimate King of Egypt and the Sudan, succeeding his father, Fuad I, in 1936 and reigning until his overthrow in a military coup in 1952. His full title was “His Majesty Farouk I, by the grace of God, King of Egypt and the Sudan”. As king, Farouk was known for his extravagant playboy lifestyle. While initially popular, his reputation eroded due to the corruption and incompetence of his government. He was overthrown in the 1952 coup d’état and forced to abdicate in favour of his infant son, Ahmed Fuad, who succeeded him as Fuad II. Farouk died in exile in Italy in 1965. His sister, Princess Fawzia bint Fuad, was the first wife and consort of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Farouk was born as His Sultanic Highness Farouk bin Fuad, Hereditary Prince of Egypt and Sudan, on 11 February 1920 at Abdeen Palace, Cairo, the eldest child of Sultan Fuad I and his second wife, Nazli Sabri. He had Albanian, Circassian, Turkish, French and Greek ancestry. Farouk’s first languages were Egyptian Arabic, Turkish and French, and he always thought of himself as an Egyptian rather than as an Arab, having no interest in Arab nationalism except as a way of increasing Egypt’s power in the Middle East. Farouk was educated in Egypt and England before ascending the throne in 1936. As king he continued his father’s rivalry with the popular-based Wafd party, with which he clashed over many issues, including administrative functions, appointments, and even the form used for his coronation. During World War II, Farouk tried to maintain neutrality, despite the presence of British troops in Egypt, but in 1942 the British forced him to name as prime minister the Wafd leader Mustafa el-Nahhas Pasha. In October 1944 Nahhas negotiated the Alexandria Protocol, a step toward the creation the following year of the Arab League, a regional organization of Arab states. Farouk wanted to place himself at the head of this movement, and he dismissed Nahhas, who had lost the support of the British. Egyptian nationalism suffered from a shattering defeat at the hands of the newly created state of Israel (1948) and from the failure to terminate British military occupation of Egypt. The military defeat especially enraged many Egyptian army officers, who saw Farouk’s corruption and incompetence as being largely the cause of it. His activities became intolerable in 1952, and the Free Officers, led by Gamal Abdel Nasser, overthrew his regime in July and forced him to abdicate. He was succeeded by his infant son, Fuad II, but less than a year later Egypt became a republic. Farouk spent the rest of his life in exile, mostly in Italy, where he died of a heart attack in 1965. He was buried in the Al-Rifa’i Mosque in Cairo, next to his father and grandfather. He was known for his enormous collection of coins, stamps, watches, and other items, some of which were auctioned after his death. He was also notorious for his appetite, which contributed to his obesity and health problems.