Khedive

Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty

Khedive is a ruler. The word means the same as viceroy. It is an official who runs a country, colony, province, or city, as the representative of the monarch of the territory.

Khedive was the title of Egyptian rulers from 1867 to 1914. It was given to the Turkish ruler of Egypt by the Ottoman Sultan, and removed by the British Empire when the Ottomans joined Germany in World War I.

The title was first used by Muhammad Ali Pasha, an Albanian officer who seized power in Egypt as Wali (Governor). He ruled under the nominal overlordship of the Turks. His family was not recognized by the Sultan until the reign of his grandson Ismail Pasha. The last Khedive of Egypt was Abbas II. The dynasty of Muhammad Ali continued to rule Egypt, though under British 'guidance'. This ended with the Egyptian revolution of 1952. The last member of the family who ruled was King Farouk I.