Ali of Hejaz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ali bin Hussein (1879–1935) was King of Hejaz and Grand Sharif of Mecca from October 1924 until December 1925. He was the eldest son of Sharif Hussein bin Ali, the first modern King of Hejaz, and a scion of the Hashemite family.
Ali bin Hussein's father was appointed Grand Sharif of Mecca by the Ottoman Empire in 1908. However, his relationship with the Young Turks in control of the Empire increasingly became strained, and, in 1916, he became one of the leaders of the Arab Revolt against Turkish rule. Following the Revolt's success, Hussein made himself the first King of Hejaz with British support. His sons Abdullah and Faisal were made kings of Jordan and Iraq, respectively, while Ali remained the heir to his father's lands in Arabia.
However, King Hussein soon found himself embroiled in fighting with the Saud family, based in Riyadh. Following military defeats by the Saud family, King Hussein abdicated all of his secular titles to Ali on October 3, 1924 (Hussein had previously awarded himself the religious title of caliph in March of that year). In December of the following year, Saudi forces finally overran Hejaz, which they eventually incorporated into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Ali and his family fled to Iraq. Ali bin Hussein died in Baghdad, Iraq in 1935. He had four daughters and one son, 'Abd al-Ilah, who went on to become the Regent of Iraq during the minority of King Faisal II.
| Preceded by: Hussein bin Ali |
King of Hejaz 1924-1925 |
Succeeded by: Ibn Saud |
