Background
Abbas II was born in Alexandria, Egypt on 14 July 1874.
Abbas II was born in Alexandria, Egypt on 14 July 1874.
When a boy he visited England, and he had an English tutor for some time in Cairo. He then went to school in Lausanne, and from there passed on to the Theresianum in Vienna. In addition to Turkish, his mother tongue, he ac-quired fluency in Arabic, and a good conversational knowledge of English, French and German. He was still at college in Vienna when the sudden death of his father raised him to the Khedivate. In addition to Turkish, his mother tongue, he ac-quired fluency in Arabic, and a good conversational knowledge of English, French and German.
Abbās became khedive following the sudden death of his father, Tawfīq Pasha, in 1892, while Abbās was enrolled at the Theresianum in Vienna.
At the beginning of his reign, Abbās attempted to rule independently of Lord Cromer, the British agent and consul general in Egypt (1883–1907). Encouraged by popular discontent with the increasing British influence over Egypt and by the enthusiastic support of the nationalists, Abbās appointed a prime minister who was well-known for his opposition to the British. When in 1894 he criticized the military efficiency of the British troops, Lord Cromer took steps to curb the khedive’s independence of action.
After 1894, although Abbās no longer headed the nationalist movement, he provided financial assistance to the pan-Islamic and anti-British daily newspaper Al-Muʿayyad (“The Supporter”).
When in 1906 the nationalists demanded constitutional government for Egypt, however, Abbās, now reconciled with the British, rejected their demands. The following year he agreed to the formation of the National Party, headed by Muṣṭafā Kāmil, to counter the Ummah Party of the moderate nationalists, which was supported by the British. With the appointment of Lord Kitchener as consul general (1912–14), the leaders of the National Party were exiled or imprisoned, and Abbās’s authority was curtailed.
At the beginning of World War I, Abbās issued an appeal to the Egyptians and the Sudanese to support the Central Powers and to fight the British. On Dec. 18, 1914, Britain declared Egypt its protectorate and deposed Abbās the following day. His uncle Ḥusayn Kāmil (reigned 1914–17) replaced him and assumed the title of sultan. In 1922, when Egypt was declared independent, Abbās lost all rights to the throne. He passed the rest of his life in exile, mainly in Switzerland.
He died at Geneva on 19 December 1944, aged 70.
His first marriage in Cairo on 19 February 1895 was to Ikbal Hanem, and they had six children - two sons and four daughters.
His second marriage in Çubuklu, Turkey on 1 March 1910 was to Hungarian noblewoman Marianna Török de Szendrö, who took the name Zübeyde Cavidan Hanım. They divorced in 1913 without issue.
