Farouk of Egypt
Farouk I (/fəˈruːk/; Egyptian Arabic: فاروق الأول Fārūq al-Awwal; 11 February 1920 – 18 March 1965) was the tenth ruler of Egypt from the Muhammad Ali dynasty and the penultimate King of Egypt and the Sudan, succeeding his father, Fuad I, in 1936 and reigning until his overthrow in a military coup in 1952.
Farouk I
فاروق الأول
28 April 1936 – 26 July 1952
29 July 1937[2]
18 June 1953 – 18 March 1965
11 February 1920
Abdeen Palace, Cairo, Sultanate of Egypt
18 March 1965 (aged 45)
San Camillo
Hospital, Rome, Italy
His full title was "His Majesty Farouk I, by the grace of God, King of Egypt and the Sudan". As king, Farouk was known for his extravagant playboy lifestyle. While initially popular, his reputation eroded due to the corruption and incompetence of his government. He was overthrown in the 1952 coup d'état and forced to abdicate in favour of his infant son, Ahmed Fuad, who succeeded him as Fuad II. Farouk died in exile in Italy in 1965.
His sister, Princess Fawzia bint Fuad, was the first wife and consort of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.[3]
Hobbies[edit]
Coin collection[edit]
King Farouk amassed one of the most famous coin collections in history which included an extremely rare American gold minted 1933 double eagle coin[280] and (non-concurrently), two 1913 Liberty Head nickels.[281]
The 1954 auction of the exiled King Farouk's coin collection was the biggest auction of the 20th century, The Egyptian government sold the collection, and London's Baldwin and Co. was commissioned to describe the coins.
Style and personality[edit]
The ostentatious king's name is used to describe imitation Louis XV-style furniture known as "Louis-Farouk".[282] The imperial French style furniture became fashionable among Egypt's upper classes during Farouk's reign so Egyptian artisans began to mass-produce it. The style uses ornate carving, is heavily gilded, and is covered in elaborate cloth.[283] The style, or imitations thereof, remains widespread in Egypt. The originals such as Aubusson and Gobelin came directly from France and are not copied in Egypt.
Farouk's eccentricities were exaggerated by later accounts. One apocryphal story tells how Farouk suffered from nightmares in which he was chased by a lion. He sought the advice of pro-Axis rector Mustafa al-Maraghi, who told him, "You will not rest until you have shot a lion." Thereupon, Farouk shot two, at the Cairo zoo.[284]
Styles of
Farouk I of Egypt
Your Majesty
: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Hashemites' Dynasty
Kingdom of Iraq
In 1952, Farouk's former mistress, Barbara Skelton, published a novel entitled A Young Girl's Touch about a proper and prim young English woman named Melinda who has an affair with a grotesquely obese Middle Eastern monarch named King Yoyo who enjoys spanking her.[293] Skelton later admitted A Young Girl's Touch was a roman à clef with Melinda being herself and King Yoyo was King Farouk.[130] Gore Vidal's 1953 pulp novel Thieves Fall Out is set against his overthrow. In 1954, the film Abdulla the Great was partially shot in Egypt in the Abdeen Palace and the Koubbeh Palace, and concerns the story of a fat and fabulously rich Middle Eastern king who lusts after a British model.[294] The film was released in 1955. The film's producer, Gregory Ratoff, stated during the filming: "If you ask me officially if it is about Farouk, I must tell you no! No!" before going on to say the film was about a "playboy monarch, a gambler, a money-crazed king with an enthusiasm for life and women ... if the world see Farouk in the character of the star, then we can do nothing about it".[233] Farouk's Italian lawyer, Carlo d'Emilio, reportedly threatened on behalf of Farouk to sue for libel if the character of "Abdulla the Great" was too much like Farouk.[233]
Agatha Christie's short story The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding involves the theft of a jewel from a fictional Eastern prince who is somewhat irresponsible and fond of a luxurious lifestyle. His name and origin are not given in the original story, but in the 1991 television adaptation in the series Agatha Christie's Poirot (where the story appears under its American title, The Theft of the Royal Ruby), the story is altered and the prince identified as Farouk (played by Tariq Alibai). This adaptation sees Farouk recovering a jewel to maintain his standing in his home country, eventually succeed his father Fuad I of Egypt to the throne, and curb the influence of the nationalist Wafd Party.
English science-fiction and fantasy author John Whitbourn published The Book of Farouk, a fictional "autobiography" by Farouk, depicting him as a towering global statesman bestriding 20th-century history, and an incomparable erotic artiste besides. Nothing is True...: The First Book of Farouk was published in 2018, followed in 2019 by its concluding companion, And Everything is Permissible - The Second Book of Farouk, covering the deposed king's sybaritic European exile, 1952–1965. The latter's title completes the former's citing of valedictory words attributed to Hassan-i Sabbah, 12th-century founder of the Order of Assassins.[295]