Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud

Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud (18 June 1923 – 8 May 2007) was a Saudi businessman and a senior member of the House of Saud. He held several cabinet posts in the government of Saudi Arabia in the 1950s and was the first Minister of Interior in Saudi Arabian history.

Abdullah Al Faisal
Abdullah Al Faisal Al Saud (1966)
Governor of Hejaz
In office1946– 1949
PredecessorPrince Mansour bin Abdulaziz
MonarchKing Abdulaziz
Minister of Interior
In office1951– 1959
PredecessorOffice established
SuccessorCrown Prince Faisal
MonarchKing Abdulaziz
King Saud
Born18 June 1923
Riyadh, Kingdom of Nejd
Died8 May 2007(2007-05-08) (aged 83)[1]
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Burial
Al Adl cemetery, Mecca
Full name
Abdullah bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
HouseHouse of Saud
FatherKing Faisal
MotherSultana bint Ahmed Al Sudairi
ReligionWahhabi Hanbali Sunni Islam

Early life and education

Prince Abdullah was born in Riyadh in 1923.[2][3][4] He was the eldest son of King Faisal.[5][6] His mother was Sultana Al Sudairi, daughter of Ahmed bin Muhammad Al Sudairi.[7] Abdullah bin Faisal's mother and the mother of the Sudairi Seven, Hussa bint Ahmed Al Sudairi, were sisters. It is believed that Prince Abdullah was the second grandson of King Abdulaziz after Faisal bin Turki I, who was born in 1918.[5][8][9] The marriage of Prince Faisal and Sultana bint Ahmed was prearranged while Prince Faisal was travelling abroad. They never saw each other until the marriage. She also bore him three daughters. They later divorced.[9]

Abdullah bin Faisal completed his education in Mecca in 1939.[5] He was older than the majority of King Abdulaziz's children i.e. his uncles and aunts.[7]

Career

Abdullah bin Faisal assumed a number of government positions. He started his political career in 1945 when he disputed his half-uncle Mansour's appointment as acting viceroy of Hijaz and actually assumed the office one year later.[7]

He served as the minister of health from 1949 to 1950.[10] Then, he was appointed minister of interior in 1951, being the first interior minister of the Kingdom.[5][11] He served in this post during the reign of King Abdulaziz and also, of King Saud.[12] His term lasted until 1959 when he resigned.[10] His appointment as minister of health and of interior was a move to make him equal in status to then-minister of defense Prince Mishaal.[13]

Abdullah bin Faisal later left his government job to devote his time to business and cultural activities. He was the founder of Al Faisaliah Group, which was established in Jeddah in 1970.[14][15] He also founded the SIGMA (Saudi Investment Group and Marketing) company in 1979. The chairman and CEO of the company was his son, Prince Saud, who passed away in June 2020.[16]

Abdullah bin Faisal received a number of international honors including an honorary doctorate degree in humanities.[10] He was rewarded with the State Acknowledgement Award for Literature in 1984. A composer of both classical and colloquial poetry, his works include the collection The Inspiration of Deprivation (Min Wahye al Hirman), 1980. A number of singers have sung his poems, including the famous Egyptian singer, Um Kulthoum.

He was formerly chairman of Al-Ahli Club.[10]

Works

His publications include:

  • Mahrum: Min Wahye al Hirman

Prince Abdullah's poems were put into music and sung by the Egyptian singer Umm Khalthoum.[6]

Death

Prince Abdullah died on 8 May 2007.[17] Funeral prayers were performed at the Masjid al Haram in Mecca and attended by late Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, his younger brothers late Prince Saud and Prince Khaled as well as other members of the royal family.[17] Prince Abdullah was buried in the Al Adl cemetery in Mecca.[18]

Ancestry

References
  1. الأمير عبدالله الفيصل بن عبدالعزيز أل سعود (in Arabic). RoyalKSA.com. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  2. Some sources list 1921 or 1922.
  3. Winberg Chai (22 September 2005). Saudi Arabia: A Modern Reader. University Press. p. 193. ISBN 978-0-88093-859-4. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  4. "Abdullah Al Faisal". Rulers. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
  5. Sharif, Sabri (2001). The House of Saud in Commerce: A Study of Royal Entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia. New Delhi: I. S. Publication. ISBN 81-901254-0-0.
  6. Luddington, Nick (5 April 1975). "King Faisal's eight sons". Lewiston Evening Journal. Jeddah. Associated Press. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  7. Kechichian, Joseph A. (2001). Succession in Saudi Arabia. New York: Palgrave. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  8. "Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Sudairi". Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  9. "Sultana bint Ahmad bin Muhammad Al Sudairi". Datarabia. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  10. Ahmad, Mahmoud (9 May 2007). "Abdullah Al-Faisal Passes Away". Arab News. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  11. Advisers, heirs and heir apparent. Time. 21 December 1953. p. 72. ISSN 0024-3019. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  12. House of Saud. Time. 21 December 1953. p. 66. ISSN 0024-3019. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  13. Hertog, Steffen (2007). "Shaping the Saudi State: Human agency's shifting role in rentier-state formation" (PDF). International Journal of Middle East Studies. 39: 539–563. doi:10.1017/S0020743807071073. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  14. "Past". Al Faisaliah Group. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2012.
  15. Anthony Shoult (1 May 2006). Doing Business with Saudi Arabia. GMB Publishing Ltd. p. 481. ISBN 978-1-905050-67-3. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  16. "About us". SIGMA Company. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2012.
  17. "Saudi royal family mourns another senior prince". The Daily Star. 10 May 2007. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  18. "Prince Muhammad Al Faisal dead". Saudi Gazette. Jeddah. 22 August 2011. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
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