Nasser: Hero of the Arab Nation

by Joel Gordon

Overview

To cite an old Egyptian cliché, Nasser (1918-1970) was the ‘first Egyptian to rule Egypt since Cleopatra.’ Deposing the corrupt king Farouk, abolishing the monarchy and negotiating the withdrawal of the British, Nasser was truly beloved by millions. Even after catastrophic military disaster in the ‘Six-Day War’ of 1967, having resigned in humiliation, such was his standing that people filled the streets to clamour for his reinstatement. In this captivating profile, Joel Gordon examines the legacy of the famous autocrat, being careful to include his limitations as well as his many strengths.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781851684113
Publisher:	Oneworld Publications
Publication date:	10/01/2006
Series:	Makers of the Muslim World
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Joel Gordon is Associate Professor of Modern Middle East History and Popular Culture at the University of Arkansas. He is author of Nasser's Blessed Movement: Egypt's Free Officers and the July Revolution, currently in its second edition.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Note on transliteration

INTRODUCTION: BELOVED OF MILLIONS

1 WE’RE THE PEOPLE: 1918–1956

Modest beginnings

False hopes

Nights around the campfire

Free Officers

New era



2 THE GREATER NATION: 1956–1961

Gaza and Suez

Remaking Egypt

The Arab circle

Union

July 1958 – three crises



3 THE SOCIALIST GARDEN: 1961–1967

Arab socialism

Cultural revolutions

Democracy?

Hot and cold wars

Toward ruin



4 RUINS: 1967–1970

Staying on

Brothers divided

Shifting sands

Attrition

Race against death



CONCLUSION: A PICTURE

You live!

Successors

Legacies



Bibliographic essay

Index