History of Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser

The history of Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser covers the period of Egyptian history from the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, of which Gamal Abdel Nasser was one of the two principal leaders, spanning Nasser's presidency of Egypt from 1956, to his death in 1970. Nasser's tenure as Egypt's leader heralded a new period of modernization, and socialist reform in Egypt, and a staunch advocacy of pan-Arab nationalism (including a short-lived union with Syria), and Developing World solidarity. His prestige in Egypt and throughout the Arab World soared in the wake of his nationalisation of the Suez Canal in 1956, and Egypt's political victory in the subsequent Tripartite Aggression, but was damaged badly by Israel's successful invasion and occupation of Egyptian and Arab territory in the Six-Day War of 1967.

The era is regarded as a time where ordinary citizens enjoyed unprecedented access to housing, education, jobs, health services, and nourishment as well as other forms of social welfare while aristocratic influence waned. The national economy grew significantly through agrarian reform, major modernization projects such as the Helwan steel works and the Aswan Dam, and nationalization schemes such as that of the Suez Canal. However, the substantial economic growth that marked the early 1960s took a downturn for the remainder of the decade, only recovering in 1970. During Nasser's time in office, Egypt experienced a golden age of culture, particularly in theater, film, poetry, television, radio, literature, fine arts, comedy, and music. Egypt under Nasser dominated the Arab world in these fields, producing singers such as Abdel Halim Hafez,Umm Kulthum, and Mohammed Abdel Wahab, literary figures such as Naguib Mahfouz and Tawfiq el-Hakim, actors like Faten Hamama and Rushdi Abaza, and the release of over 100 films yearly compared to the production of just more than a dozen annually during Hosni Mubarak's presidency (1981–2011).

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