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The Catholic population in Egypt is considerably small as compared to the rest of the Christian population in Egypt, which is a significant minority among (mainly Sunni) Muslims. The Catholic population in Egypt is said to have begun during the British control of Egypt. However, many returned to Europe after the 1952 Revolution in Egypt, which also caused the overthrow and exile of King Farouk of Egypt. Catholics in Egypt belong to seven distinct ritual Particular Churches sui iuris, the largest being the Coptic Catholic Church, led by its Patriarch of Alexandria.
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The majority of the Christians in Egypt are members of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. The number of Catholics (less than 200,000) in Egypt makes up much less than 1% of the total Egyptian population, which is roughly 75 million people. Many of Egypt's Latin Catholics are of Italian or Maltese descent, while Egypt's Melkite Greek Catholics and Maronite Catholics are predominantly of Syro-Lebanese descent.