Hussein of Jordan

Lore & Background

Hussein was born in Amman as the eldest child of Talal bin Abdullah and Zein al-Sharaf bint Jamil. He began his schooling in Amman, continuing his education at Victoria College in Alexandria, Egypt, and later at Harrow School in England, where he befriended his paternal second cousin Faisal II of Iraq. His grandfather, King Abdullah I, focused on his upbringing, assigning a private tutor and having Hussein act as interpreter during meetings with foreign leaders. On 20 July 1951, Hussein survived an assassination attempt in Jerusalem that killed his grandfather; a bullet was deflected by a medal on his uniform that his grandfather had given him.

After Talal became king in 1951, Hussein was named heir apparent. The Jordanian Parliament forced Talal to abdicate a year later due to his mental illness, and a regency council was appointed until Hussein came of age. He was enthroned at age 17 in 1953. He started his rule by allowing the formation of the only democratically elected government in Jordan's history in 1956, which he forced to resign a few months later, declaring martial law and banning political parties. Under Hussein, Jordan fought three wars with Israel, including the 1967 Six-Day War, which ended in Jordan's loss of the West Bank. In 1970, he expelled Palestinian militants from Jordan in what became known as Black September. He renounced Jordan's ties to the West Bank in 1988 after the Palestine Liberation Organization was recognized internationally as the sole representative of the Palestinians. He lifted martial law and reintroduced elections in 1989 when riots over price hikes spread in southern Jordan. In 1994 he became the second Arab head of state to sign a peace treaty with Israel.

Reader's Guide

Hussein's significance lies in his long reign over a young nation with few natural resources and a large Palestinian refugee population. He successfully balanced pressures from Arab nationalists, Islamists, the Soviet Union, Western countries, and Israel. After 1967 he engaged in efforts to solve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, acting as a conciliatory intermediate between various Middle Eastern rivals and coming to be seen as the region's peacemaker. He was revered for pardoning political dissidents and opponents, giving them senior posts in the government. He survived dozens of assassination attempts and plots to overthrow him, becoming the region's longest-reigning leader. His legacy includes transforming Jordan into a stable modern state and signing a peace treaty with Israel in 1994. He died at age 63 from cancer in 1999 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Abdullah II.

Did You Know?

• Hussein survived an assassination attempt in Jerusalem in 1951 that killed his grandfather, King Abdullah I.
• He was enthroned at age 17 in 1953 after his father Talal was forced to abdicate due to mental illness.
• He expelled Palestinian militants from Jordan in 1970 in what became known as Black September.