The 2011 Revolution Ends Mubarak's Presidency
Eighteen days of protest in Tahrir Square force Egypt's longest-serving modern leader from power
Quick facts
- Protests began
- 25 January 2011
- Central location
- Tahrir Square, Cairo
- Mubarak resigned
- 11 February 2011
- Power transferred to
- Supreme Council of the Armed Forces
What happened
On 25 January 2011, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets of Cairo, Alexandria, Suez, and other major cities in coordinated protests against poverty, corruption, and nearly three decades of rule under President Hosni Mubarak, inspired by a similar uprising already underway in Tunisia. Cairo's Tahrir Square became the focal point of the demonstrations, drawing crowds that at times numbered in the hundreds of thousands and becoming, in the words of one academic account, a symbol of resistance for the whole nation. After eighteen days of sustained protest and occupation of public squares, Mubarak stepped down on 11 February 2011, ceding power to the military's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.
Why it matters
The revolution ended the presidency of a man who had ruled Egypt for nearly thirty years, part of a wider wave of uprisings across the Arab world that toppled or challenged long-entrenched rulers in Tunisia, Libya, Yemen, and Syria. Mubarak's fall opened a turbulent period of military rule, a brief Muslim Brotherhood government, and a further change of leadership in 2013, none of which fully resolved the underlying economic and political grievances that had driven millions into the streets.
How we know
The course of the protests and Mubarak's resignation are documented by History, and independently confirmed in detail by a University of Warwick academic archive of the revolution built from contemporary reporting and testimony.
Sources
- History (A&E Television Networks). Egypt's Mubarak steps down · Reputable sourcehistory.com · The domain "history.com" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- University of Warwick. Overview of the 25 January 2011 Egyptian Revolution and its Aftermath · Reputable sourceegyptrevolution2011.ac.uk · The domain "egyptrevolution2011.ac.uk" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
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