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[[File: Wafd_Flag.png|300px|thumbnail|right|The Flag of the Egyptian Wafd Party]]

The nascent native nationalism that began to take hold in Egypt during Ottoman rule came to full fruition after the British conquered the country in 1882. Native Egyptian nationalism became ascendant in political circles during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, which was led by the Wafd Party. The Wafd Party was founded by Saad Zaghloul (1859-1927) in 1919 as a secular pro-independence nationalist party. Zaghloul made sure to emphasize the organization’s secular nature by having both Muslims and Copts in important positions, holding interfaith marches, and by adopting a party flag that featured both the Islamic crescent and the Coptic cross, although the crescent was noticeably larger. <ref> Guirgis, p. 191</ref> The Copts appeared poised to position themselves in a favorable spot when Egypt finally achieved independence.

===Nasser Comes to Power===