Fuad II of Egypt

Fuad II (, full name: Ahmed Fuad bin Farouk bin Ahmed Fuad bin Ismail bin Ibrahim bin Muhammad Ali; born 16 January 1952), or alternatively Ahmed Fuad II , is a member of the Egyptian Muhammad Ali dynasty. As an infant, he formally reigned as the last King of Egypt and the Sudan from July 1952 to June 1953, when he was deposed.

Birth and reign

The son of King Farouk and his second wife Queen Narriman, Crown Prince Ahmed Fuad was born on 16 January 1952 in Abdeen Palace. He was delivered at 8:30a.m. and named after his grandfather Fuad I. Fuad had three half-sisters from Farouk's previous marriage with Queen Farida: princesses Farial, Fawzia and Fadia. As women could not inherit the Egyptian throne, Farouk's first cousin, Prince Mohammed Ali Tewfik, was heir presumptive until Fuad's birth. Immediately following his birth, Fuad was granted the title of Prince of the Sa'id. He was styled accordingly as Ahmed Fuad, Prince of the Sa'id.

On 23 July 1952, the Free Officers led by Mohamed Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser started the Egyptian revolution to dispose the Muhammad Ali non-Egyptian dynasty. On 26 July, Farouk was ordered to abdicate in favour of the crown prince and leave Egypt. Farouk abdicated and went into exile in Italy. His family, including Fuad, joined him in exile. The country was now ruled by Nasser, Naguib and the other Free Officers. Fuad's constitutional powers were assumed by the Cabinet until 2 August 1952, when a regency body, but not a council, was established. Prince Muhammad Abdel Moneim was appointed regent and led the body. Fuad and his half-sisters were sent to live in Switzerland while Farouk remained in Italy, settling in Rome. Queen Narriman returned to Egypt in 1953 after wanting a divorce, and Farouk insisted that Fuad remain abroad. After Farouk's death, Fuad was guaranteed protection by Prince Rainier III of Monaco and his wife Princess Grace. Fuad would later become friends with Rainier in his early adulthood, when he visited Monte Carlo every summer. He completed his secondary education, obtaining a French baccalaureate, before studying at the University of Geneva. Fuad's Egyptian citizenship was restored in 1974. He has occasionally visited Egypt ever since, She then converted to Sunni Islam, and the two had a religious wedding in Monaco on 5 October 1977. Egyptian monarchists addressed her as Queen Fadila of Egypt,

In 2023, The Economist reported that some Egyptians were clamoring for his return as Egypt's ruler, as frustration with Sisi's rule deepened.