- Born:
- June 15, 1879, Samannūd, Egypt
- Died:
- Aug. 23, 1965, Alexandria (aged 86)
- Political Affiliation:
- Wafd
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha
-
Who was Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha (1879-1965) was a dominant Egyptian political figure and leader of the nationalist Wafd party until the revolution of 1952. A lawyer, he became a judge in the National Court in 1914. After World War I, he joined the Wafd party and later became its chairman. Naḥḥās served as prime minister of Egypt five times. During his third term in 1936, he negotiated the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, which ended the British occupation of Egypt. He also helped found the Arab League, resulting in the Alexandria Protocol in 1944.
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When did Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha serve as prime minister of Egypt?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha served as prime minister of Egypt on five occasions:
* March 1928–June 1928
* 1929–1930
* May 1936–December 1937
* February 1942–1944
* January 1950–1952Al-Naḥḥās, leader of the nationalist Wafd party, was a dominant figure in Egyptian politics until the revolution of 1952. His first term began in March 1928, but he was soon dismissed by King Fuʾād I. He returned to power in 1929 but resigned in 1930 due to disagreements with the king. Appointed again in May 1936, he negotiated the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, which officially ended the British occupation of Egypt. At the onset of World War II, Al-Naḥḥās cooperated with the British, leading to his fourth term in February 1942. His final term began in January 1950 and ended with his dismissal in 1952.
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Which political party did he belong to?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha, a dominant figure in Egyptian politics, belonged to the nationalist Wafd party. He assumed the leadership of the Wafd party after the death of Saʿd Zaghlūl in 1927. The Wafd party played an instrumental role in gaining Egypt's independence from Britain. As leader, al-Naḥḥās Pasha served as prime minister of Egypt for five terms. The Wafd party stood for national independence and constitutional government.
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What were some important changes or reforms during his time as prime minister?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha, a dominant figure in Egyptian politics, served as prime minister of Egypt on five occasions. During his terms, he brought about significant changes, including the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty (1936), which officially ended the British occupation of Egypt. He also led negotiations to end capitulations and mixed courts at Montreux, Switzerland.
During his rise to power in February 1942, important social changes such as initiatives to raise the minimum wage of farmworkers and more-lenient laws regarding labor unions were undertaken by Na\u1e25\u1e25\u0101s’s government. He also played a central role in the foundation of the Arab League, having called for the conference of Arab leaders that resulted in the Alexandria Protocol, signed on Oct. 7, 1944.
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How did Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha's leadership influence Egypt's relationship with Britain?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha significantly shaped Egypt's relationship with Britain through both cooperation and confrontation. In 1936, as prime minister, he negotiated the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, which formally ended British occupation but established a 20-year military alliance.
During World War II, British intervention forced King Farouk to appoint Naḥḥās, leading to Wafd's cooperation with Britain. However, this tarnished the Wafd's nationalist image. Later, as prime minister again in 1951, Naḥḥās abrogated the 1936 treaty, leading to anti-British demonstrations and guerrilla warfare. These actions reflected the complexities and shifts in Egyptian-British relations under his leadership.
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What is Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha remembered for in Egyptian history today?
Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha, leader of the nationalist Wafd party, significantly shaped Egyptian politics until the 1952 revolution. He served as prime minister of Egypt five times.
Al-Naḥḥās is remembered for negotiating the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936, which formally ended British occupation and established a 20-year military alliance between Egypt and Britain. He also helped found the Arab League, leading to the Alexandria Protocol in 1944. His government initiated social changes, including raising the minimum wage for farmworkers and enacting more lenient laws regarding labor unions.
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Muṣṭafā al-Naḥḥās Pasha (born June 15, 1879, Samannūd, Egypt—died Aug. 23, 1965, Alexandria) was a statesman who, as the leader of the nationalist Wafd party, was a dominant figure in Egyptian politics until the revolution of 1952.
A lawyer by profession, Naḥḥās was appointed a judge in the National Court at Ṭanṭā in 1914. Soon after World War I he joined the recently formed Wafd; he was exiled with Saʿd Zaghlūl in the early 1920s, and assumed the chairmanship upon Zaghlūl’s death in 1927. Thus, he embarked upon a career during which he was prime minister of Egypt on five occasions. His first term of office as prime minister began in March 1928. His dismissal in June was occasioned by King Fuʾād I’s antipathy to constitutional government and the displeasure of the British high commissioner over his introduction of legislation demanded by the extreme nationalist wing of the Wafd. Returned to power in 1929, Naḥḥās resigned in 1930 after differences with the king over limitation of the sovereign’s power. Appointed prime minister for the third time in May 1936, he headed the Egyptian delegation to London to negotiate the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty (August 1936), which officially ended the British occupation of Egypt and established a 20-year military alliance between the two countries. He also led negotiations at Montreux, Switz., to put an end to the capitulations and to the mixed courts.
After Fuʾād’s death in April 1936, the young king Farouk I immediately disagreed with Naḥḥās over limiting the king’s powers and, significantly, over international policies; he dismissed Naḥḥās in December 1937. At the onset of World War II, Naḥḥās was driven to cooperation with the British, a position that brought him to power once again in February 1942. The British ambassador, armed with an ultimatum and backed by a show of military force, confronted Farouk with the choice of either abdicating or appointing Naḥḥās prime minister. Farouk chose the latter; elections in March of that year gave the Wafd an overwhelming victory. Important social changes undertaken by Naḥḥās’s government included initiatives to raise the minimum wage of farmworkers and more-lenient laws regarding labour unions. Naḥḥās also played a central role in the foundation of the Arab League, having called for the conference of Arab leaders that resulted in the Alexandria Protocol, signed on Oct. 7, 1944. After the British had withdrawn their support of Naḥḥās, Farouk again dismissed him in 1944, one day after the signing of the Alexandria Protocol.
Naḥḥās’s final term of office began in January 1950, amid signs of collaboration with the king. Once in office, he unilaterally abrogated the 1936 treaty with Britain and declared Farouk king of Egypt and the Sudan. By this time, popular opposition was growing both to the corruption in and policies of the palace and the Wafd, resulting in agitation and disorder in Cairo, on the basis of which Farouk dismissed Naḥḥās in 1952. The following year Naḥḥās and his wife were arrested, tried on corruption charges, and subsequently placed under house arrest by the Free Officers, a nationalist military group who had since come to power in Egypt.