Women have played a prominent role in Egyptian revolutionary movements over the last century. The three major revolutionary movements have mirrored the three broad, overlapping political trends that have shaped Egyptian politics in the twentieth century: nationalist, leftist, and Islamist.

The participation of women in the 1919 Revolution has been enshrined in Egyptian nationalist historiography as the beginning of Egyptian women's public participation in the nation. The events of 1919 were touched off in March by the deportation of Saʿd Zaghlūl, leader of th…