Iraqi Royalty. He served as the Regent of Iraq from both April 4, 1939 to April 1, 1941 and June 1, 1941 to May 2, 1953. Son of the Hashimite king Ali ibn Husayn of Hejaz, he accompanied his father to Iraq in 1925. When King Ghazi of Iraq passed away in 1939, he was appointed regent for his four-year-old nephew, Faiṣal II. He ruled Iraq for 14 turbulent years, loyally serving the throne and supporting the Allies during World War II. In April 1941, faced with an uprising of army officers led by Rashīd ʿĀlī al-Gaylānī, who was sympathetic to Germany and Italy, he was forced to leave Iraq. With British assistance, however, the revolt was suppressed by the end of May, and he returned to Baghdad. Thereafter, in close collaboration with Prime Minister Nuri as-Said, he pursued a policy of moderate Iraqi nationalism and maintained strong ties with the West. When King Faiṣal reached legal age on May 23, 1953, he relinquished his functions as regent, but remained as the young king's chief adviser and companion until both were killed during the Iraq revolution of 1958.
Iraqi Royalty. He served as the Regent of Iraq from both April 4, 1939 to April 1, 1941 and June 1, 1941 to May 2, 1953. Son of the Hashimite king Ali ibn Husayn of Hejaz, he accompanied his father to Iraq in 1925. When King Ghazi of Iraq passed away in 1939, he was appointed regent for his four-year-old nephew, Faiṣal II. He ruled Iraq for 14 turbulent years, loyally serving the throne and supporting the Allies during World War II. In April 1941, faced with an uprising of army officers led by Rashīd ʿĀlī al-Gaylānī, who was sympathetic to Germany and Italy, he was forced to leave Iraq. With British assistance, however, the revolt was suppressed by the end of May, and he returned to Baghdad. Thereafter, in close collaboration with Prime Minister Nuri as-Said, he pursued a policy of moderate Iraqi nationalism and maintained strong ties with the West. When King Faiṣal reached legal age on May 23, 1953, he relinquished his functions as regent, but remained as the young king's chief adviser and companion until both were killed during the Iraq revolution of 1958.
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