Egyptians' nationalistic feeling suffered during World War I, when London declared Egypt a protectorate of the British empire. With the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, Egyptian nationalists lost the nominal alternative of allegiance to the sultan; although it took longer to abolish the caliphate, the Islamic empire that had united them with other Muslims around the world was terribly weakened and a bulwark against European imperialism was lost.

Eve M. Troutt Powell, A Different Shade of Coloni…, loc. 819