The status of Egypt had become highly convoluted ever since its virtual breakaway from the Ottoman Empire in 1805 under Muhammad Ali Pasha.
[1] According to historian Caroline Elkins, the Egyptian independence declaration did not entail sovereignty for Egypt, but rather a "semiautonomous" status.
The Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936 resolved some of these issues, but others, particularly regarding Sudan, and the presence of British military personnel in the Suez Canal Zone, remained.
Subsequently, the United Kingdom government entered into negotiations intended to abate Egyptian grievances whilst maintaining its own military presence and political influence in the country.
The Coalition Government of British Prime Minister David Lloyd George wanted to maintain the protectorate over Egypt.