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Biography of Faisal ibn Abd al Aziz ibn SaudName: Faisal ibn Abd al Aziz ibn SaudBirth Date: 1904 Death Date: March 25, 1975 Place of Birth: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Nationality: Saudi Gender: Male Occupations: king, politician Faisal ibn Abd al Aziz ibn Saud King Faisal ibn Abd al Aziz ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia (1904-1975) was the most prominent Arab leader in the early 1970s. He participated for more than a half century in the creation of modern Saudi Arabia and, as king, was known for his conservative Islamic policies and his staunch anti-Communism.Faisal was born in Riyadh in 1904, the son of Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud, founder of Saudi Arabia. His mother, Tarfa, a member of the leading religious family of the Al al-Shaikh, died when he was quite young, and he was raised by his maternal grandfather, who taught him the Koran and the principles of the Islamic religion, an education which left an impact on him for the remainder of his life.Faisal gradually assumed state responsibilities, starting at the age of 13 as a soldier in his father's army. At the age of 18 he became commander of the Saudi army in …showed first 150 words…
…showed last 150 words…death sentences were pronounced against the perpetrators.Faisal was criticized for his pro-American foreign policy, his conservative Islamic ideology, and the slowness of his reforms. He was finally the victim of a successful assassination attempt. On March 25, 1975, he was murdered by one of his nephews. There was no public trial and hence the real motives of the assassin remain obscure. However, they are believed to lie in a long-standing family feud and the young prince's dislike of policies he considered too conservative. Further Reading Additional information on Faisal can be found in David Holden and Richard Johns, The House of Saud: the Rise of the Most Powerful Dynasty in the Arab World (1981); Gerald de Gaury, Faisal, King of Saudi Arabia (1966); Alexander Bligh, From Prince to King, Royal Succession in the House of Saud in the Twentieth Century (1984); and Willard A. Beling, King Faisal and the Modernization of Saudi Arabia (London, 1980). |