King Hussein of Jordan

In 1955, he married Egyptian-born Sharifa Dina bint 'Abdu'l-Hamid who was a former lecturer in English literature at Cairo University. A daughter was born to them the next year but the marriage did not last long and they soon divorced.

His second marriage was to Antoinette Avril Gardiner, a field hockey player and daughter of a British army officer, in 1961. This marriage produced four children. The couple divorced in 1971 after a decade of marriage.

He married an Egyptian born Palestinian, Alia Baha el-Din Toukan, in 1971. Alia gave birth to two children and the couple also adopted a baby girl. Unfortunately his third wife died in a helicopter crash in 1977.

He was born on 14 November 1935 to Prince Talal bin Abdullah and Princess Zein al-Sharaf bint Jamil in Amman. He had two brothers, Prince Muhammad and Prince El Hassan, and one sister, Princess Basma.

He received his elementary education in Amman after which he went to Egypt to pursue his higher studies. After studying at Victoria College in Alexandria, Egypt, he moved to England to study at the Harrow School. He also went to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

He went to Jerusalem to perform Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque with his grandfather, King Abdullah I, on 20 July 1951 when a Palestinian assassin opened fire at the king and the prince. The king died in the attack but Hussein survived as the bullet shot at him was deflected by a medal he was wearing.

Following his grandfather’s death his father Talal became the King of Jordon, and Hussein was appointed the Crown Prince. His father however suffered from some mental health problems and was unable to administer his responsibilities properly; he was later diagnosed with schizophrenia.

King Talal was forced to abdicate the throne due to his illness and the Crown Prince Hussein, was proclaimed King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on 11 August 1952. Hussein was just 16 years old at that time so a Regency Council was appointed until he came of age.

In 1956, he replaced all the British Officers in the Jordanian Army with Jordanians in order to assert Jordanian independence.

He held several meetings with Israeli ministers Abba Eban and Golda Meir in order to establish peaceful relations between the two nations. Jordan and Israel had been involved in disputes for long and he tried his best to resolve the dispute peacefully.

He was genuinely interested in the welfare of his citizens and emphasized on the development of the industrial and economic sectors of the country. Several industries were built, and the country’s major industries—phosphate, potash, and cement—thrived.

He focused his efforts on ensuring that proper infrastructure facilities such as highways and water works were built throughout the nation. During his reign there was a marked rise in the standard of life of the Jordanians.