Tahrir Square, also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square
in Downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for
political demonstrations in Cairo, most notably those that led to the 2011
Egyptian revolution which led to the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak.
History The square was originally called
"Ismailia Square", after the 19th-century ruler Khedive Ismail, who
commissioned the new downtown district's 'Paris on the Nile' design. After the
Egyptian Revolution of 1919, the square became widely known as Tahrir Square,
but the square was not officially renamed until the Egyptian Revolution of
1952, which changed Egypt from a constitutional monarchy into an
autocratic republic. The square was a focal point for the Egyptian Revolution
of 2011 Features
At the centre of Tahrir Square is a large and busy traffic circle. On the
north-east side is a plaza with a statue of nationalist hero Omar Makram,
celebrated for his resistance against Napoleon I's invasion of Egypt, and
beyond is the Omar Makram Mosque. The square is the northern terminus of
the historic Qasr al-Ayni Street, the western terminus of Talaat Harb Street,
and via Qasr al-Nil Street crossing its southern portion it has direct access to
the Qasr al-Nil Bridge crossing the nearby Nile River.
The area around Tahrir Square includes the Egyptian Museum, the House of
Folklore, the National Democratic Party-NDP headquarters building, the
Mogamma government building, the Headquarters of the Arab League
building, the Nile Hotel, Kasr El Dobara Evangelical Church and the original
downtown campus of the American University in Cairo.
The Cairo Metro serves Tahrir Square with the Sadat Station, which is the
downtown junction of the system's two lines, linking to Giza, Maadi, Helwan,
and other districts and suburbs of Greater Cairo. Its underground access
viaducts provide the safest routes for pedestrians crossing the broad roads of
the heavily trafficked square. Public use and demonstrations
Tahrir Square has been the traditional site for numerous major protests and
demonstrations over the years, including the 1977 Egyptian Bread Riots, and the
March 2003 protest against the War in Iraq.
= 2011 Egyptian Revolution = Tahrir Square was the focal point of the
2011 Egyptian Revolution against former president Hosni Mubarak. Over 50,000
protesters first occupied the square on 25 January, during which the area's
wireless services were reported to be impaired. In the following days, Tahrir
Square continued to be the primary destination for protests in Cairo. On 29
January, Egyptian fighter aircraft flew low over the people gathered in the
square. On 30 January, the seventh day of the protests, PIK BBC and other
correspondents reported that the number of demonstrators had grown to at least
100,000, and on 31 January, Al Jazeera correspondents reported that the
demonstrations had grown to at least 250,000 people. On 1 February, Al
Jazeera reported that more than one million protesters peacefully gathered
in the square and adjacent streets. However, such media reports that so many
people congregated in Cairo’s largest public square are believed to be
exaggerated for political purposes and, according to Stratfor's analysis, the
real number of gathered protesters never exceeded 300,000 people.
The square became established as a focal point and a symbol for the ongoing
Egyptian democracy demonstrations. On 2 February, violence erupted between the
pro-Mubarak and pro-democracy demonstrators there, followed by the 3
February 'Friday of Departure' demonstration, one of the named "day of"
events centered in the square. Within a week, due to international media
coverage, the image and name of Tahrir Square became known worldwide.
A Facebook page called "Tahrir Square" ميدان التحرير was maintained by a
rotating staff of twenty during the uprising, particularly to offset the
lack of and/or distorted coverage of events and responses in the state-run
media outlets. The 18-day revolt centered in the square
provided the Egyptian Armed Forces an opportunity to remove Mubarak from power
on Friday, 11 February 2011, when the president officially stepped down from
office. The announcement that Mubarak had passed all authority to the Council
of the Armed Forces was made by longtime intelligence chief and new vice
president Omar Suleiman. Tahrir Square erupted in a night-long celebration
after the twilight announcement, with shouts such as "Lift your head up high,
you're Egyptian", "Everyone who loves Egypt, come and rebuild Egypt", and
others. The next day, Egyptian Cairen women and men came to clean up the
square, "they came and cleaned up after their revolution," relaying
'projectiles' in the cobblestone paving and removing eighteen days' worth of
trash and graffiti. = Post-revolution =
Tahrir Square, with 'democracy anniversary' celebrations and visits
from foreign dignitaries, continued to be a symbol of the 2011 Egyptian
Revolution. British Prime Minister David Cameron, Catherine Ashton, the High
Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union,
Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States, John Kerry, Chairman
of the American Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Kevin Rudd Foreign
Minister of Australia, and American actor Sean Penn visited Tahrir Square
after the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. One of the ships in the planned Freedom
Flotilla II, intended to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza, was named
Tahrir after the square. Among its passengers was Haaretz reporter Amira
Hass. Ultimately, the sailing did not take place.
The burnt-out headquarters of the NDP can still be observed from the square.
June 2013 protests and coup d'état On 29 June 2013, millions of Egyptians
converged on Tahrir Square to demonstrate against the Egyptian
President Mohamed Morsi, demanding his resignation from office. The
demonstrators used the slogan "the people want the ouster of the regime,"
used in the protests that led to the 2011 revolution.
By the 30th, their number had increased and demonstrations were reported to be
in progress in 18 locations across Cairo. On 3 July 2013, General Abdul
Fatah al-Sisi announced the removal of President Mohamed Morsi and suspended
the Egyptian constitution after ongoing public protests in what is described as
a coup d'état by Morsi supporters and the international community, and by its
supporters and the media as a revolution.
See also Downtown Cairo
The Square, a documentary film about the square and its role in Egyptian politics
Graffiti References
External links BBC: Tahrir Square in wide angle images
slideshow iPhone Tahrir Square App
BlackBerry Tahrir Square App "Tahrir Documents". University of
California, Los Angeles. Collected from demonstrations in Cairo’s Tahrir Square
2011-present