[6] Termed the "father of modern Egypt," he is viewed in Egyptian historiography as the dynasty's most important ruler, due to his massive agricultural, administrative, and military reforms.

Contrary to what the short length of his reign might suggest, Ibrahim Pasha was far from being a historically negligible figure, although most of his significant achievements were made before his accession to the throne.

His successor, Abbas Helmi I, a traditionalist described by Lord Cromer as "an Oriental despot of the worst type,"[7] reverted many of his predecessors' reform-minded measures, and is considered the most controversial ruler of his family.

However, his costly policy of Europeanisation left the country bankrupt; as a consequence, European creditors greatly expanded their influence over Egypt and Sudan's internal affairs.

After his forced abdication following the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, his infant son Fuad II continued to reign as a nominal king-in-exile until the monarchy was formally abolished on 18 June 1953.

[14] Finding themselves as mere figureheads during the period of British control, Egypt and Sudan's monarchs saw their powers increased following the recognition of independence, and the subsequent adoption of the 1923 Constitution, the most liberal in the country's history.

[17] According to historian Philip Mansel, "the Egyptian monarchy appeared so splendid, powerful and popular that King Farouk's ignominious end seems inexplicable.

Disgruntled members of the military formed the Free Officers Movement, which led a coup d'état on 23 July 1952, thereby marking the beginning of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952.

Nonetheless, it has undergone re-evaluation in recent years; nostalgia for the former monarchy has been growing among some in Egypt, largely fuelled by the airing in 2007 of a hugely successful serial about the life of King Farouk I.

Despite their legally subservient status, Egypt's wālis enjoyed far more political power than their descendants, who were to rule the country as nominally independent sultans and kings decades later.

Moreover, although the Muhammad Ali Dynasty became a hereditary monarchy in 1840, each new ruler had to receive a firman (Arabic word for decree) from the Ottoman Sultan appointing him as Wāli in order to be formally invested with his office.

On 8 June 1867, Ottoman Sultan Abdülaziz formally recognized Isma'il Pasha by the title Khedive, which ranked higher than that of Vizier but lower than that of Caliph.

In October 1951, Prime Minister Mustafa el-Nahhas introduced, and Parliament approved, decrees unilaterally abrogating the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 and proclaiming Farouk I King of Egypt and the Sudan.