Tahrir Square

Tahrir Square (ميدان التحرير , meˈdæːn ettæħˈɾiːɾ, English: Liberation 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 since the early 20th century; the city's previous central square was Salah al-Din Square. The 2011 Egyptian revolution and the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak occurred at the Tahrir Square. The square was originally called "Ismailia Square" (ميدان الأسماعيليّة ), 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 (Liberation) Square. In 1933 King Fuad I (r. 1922–1936), the son of Khedive Ismail, renamed the square officially to Khedive Ismail Square (). Before the end of his reign in 1936, a roundabout with a garden was created at the center of the square. Under his successor, King Farouk (r. 1936–1952), a pedestal was installed in the center of square which was intended to support a statue of Khedive Isma'il, but the commissioned statue was never installed. The square was officially renamed to "Tahrir Square" in 1953, after the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 which changed Egypt from a constitutional monarchy into a republic. On 13 October 1981, one week after the assassination of President Sadat, the square was renamed as "Anwar El Sadat Square" and a statue was planned to be erected. This new official name, however, never entered popular usage and was not familiar to most Egyptians. The statue-less pedestal erected by King Farouk was eventually removed in 1987 during the construction of the Sadat metro station under the square. The square was a focal point for the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and subsequent protests, up to the 2013 Egyptian protests which led to the overthrow of President Morsi. In November 2013, after these events, the interim government erected a memorial to activists and protesters who were killed by security forces during the 2011 and 2013 protests.