The status of Egypt had become highly convoluted ever since its virtual breakaway from the
Ottoman Empire in 1805 under
Muhammad Ali Pasha. From then on, Egypt was
de jure a self-governing
vassal state of the Ottoman Empire, but
de facto independent, with its own hereditary monarchy, military, currency, legal system, and empire in
Sudan. From 1882 onwards, Egypt was
occupied by the United Kingdom, but not annexed, leading to a unique situation of a country that was legally a vassal of the Ottoman Empire whilst having almost all the attributes of statehood, but in reality being governed by the United Kingdom in what was known as a "
veiled protectorate". In the
unilateral declaration, the United Kingdom granted to itself "reserved" powers in four areas central to the governance of Egypt: foreign relations, communications, the military, and
Sudan, which was legally a
condominium of both Egypt and the United Kingdom. These reserved powers, to which the Egyptian government did not consent, meant that nationalist grievances against the United Kingdom continued and would contribute to the causes of the
Egyptian Revolution of 1952 three decades later. According to historian
Caroline Elkins, the Egyptian independence declaration did not entail sovereignty for Egypt, but rather a "semiautonomous" status. In 1914, the
legal fiction of Ottoman sovereignty was ended, and the Sultanate of Egypt (which the Ottomans had
destroyed in 1517) was re-established, but Egypt was not legally a sovereign state. Though the United Kingdom did not annex Egypt, it made the restored sultanate a
protectorate (a state not part of the British Empire but nonetheless within the
sphere of influence of the United Kingdom), thereby formalising the political and military role that it had exercised in Egypt since 1882. The continued control of Egypt's foreign affairs by the United Kingdom, as well as British repression of Egyptians who pushed for a more complete independence, sparked the
Egyptian Revolution of 1919. Subsequently, the British government entered into negotiations intended to abate Egyptian grievances whilst maintaining its own military presence and political influence in the country. Although it met the Egyptian nationalists' immediate demands for an end to the protectorate, the declaration was globally unsatisfactory, since the Egyptian independence that the United Kingdom recognised was greatly restricted by the "reserved points" clause, as later recognized in the
Egyptian Constitution of 1923. This led to sustained pressure on the United Kingdom from Egyptian nationalists to renegotiate the relationship between the two countries. The
Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936 resolved some of these issues, but others, particularly regarding Sudan, and the presence of British military personnel in the
Suez Canal Zone, remained. The declaration was preceded by a period of inconclusive negotiations between the governments of Egypt and the United Kingdom. Areas of disagreement included Egypt's position on the issues of the protectorate, and of its future role in Sudan. Egyptian Prime Minister
Adli Yakan Pasha, and moderate Egyptian nationalists managed to obtain the agreement of British High Commissioner
Edmund Allenby to secure the more general issue of Egyptian sovereignty with a view to the United Kingdom ultimately recognising Egypt as an independent state. The Coalition Government of British Prime Minister
David Lloyd George wanted to maintain the protectorate over Egypt. Allenby threatened to resign, and this action brought the issue to public discussion, and led to a quick official response: two weeks later the declaration was issued. ==Text==