List of kings of Iraq

King of Iraq
ملك العراق
Longest reigning
Faisal II

4 April 1939–14 July 1958
Details
StyleHis Majesty
First monarchFaisal I
Last monarchFaisal II
Formation23 August 1921
Abolition14 July 1958
ResidenceRoyal Palace, Baghdad
AppointerHereditary
Pretender(s)Ra'ad bin Zeid

The king of Iraq (Arabic: ملك العراق, romanizedMalik al-‘Irāq) was Iraq's head of state and monarch from 1921 to 1958. He served as the head of the Iraqi monarchy—the Hashemite dynasty. The king was addressed as His Majesty (صاحب الجلالة).

History

In the aftermath of World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the three provinces (vilayets) of Ottoman Iraq came under the control of the United Kingdom. Under British occupation, the people rebelled and Iraq showed itself a hard land to govern. In order to establish a pro-British client regime, a dynasty of Hashemite kings from the Hejaz region was established, beginning with Faisal I who was the son of Hussein bin Ali. As a family originating in the Hejaz, the House of Hashim was foreign to Iraq. The British Government appointed them as Iraq's royal family after a plebiscite in 1921.[1] The Hashemites were largely opposed by the Iraqi Shiites and Kurds. The Kingdom of Iraq existed until an Iraqi nationalist coup d'état in 1958 known as the 14 July Revolution established the Iraqi Republic.

King-designate of Iraq (1920)

NameLifespanReign startReign endNotesFamilyImage
Abdullah
  • عبد الله الأول بن الحسين
(1882-02-02)2 February 1882 – 20 July 1951(1951-07-20) (aged 69)19201920Designated by Cairo Conference. Never took throne.
Son of Hussein bin Ali
HashemiteAbdullah I of Jordan

Kings of Iraq (1921–1958)

NameLifespanReign startReign endNotesFamilyImage
Faisal I
  • فيصل الأول
(1883-05-20)20 May 1883 – 8 September 1933(1933-09-08) (aged 50)23 August 19218 September 1933[2]Previously King of Syria for a short period in 1920.
Brother of Abdullah
HashemiteFaisal I of Iraq
Ghazi I
  • غازي الأول
(1912-03-21)21 March 1912 – 4 April 1939(1939-04-04) (aged 27)8 September 19334 April 1939[3]Son of Faisal IHashemiteGhazi I of Iraq
Faisal II
  • فيصل الثاني
(1935-05-02)2 May 1935 – 14 July 1958(1958-07-14) (aged 23)4 April 193914 July 1958
(deposed)
Son of Ghazi IHashemiteFaisal II of Iraq

Timeline

Faisal II of IraqGhazi of IraqFaisal I of Iraq

Royal standard

Royal Standard of the King

See also

References

  1. ^ Anderson, Terry H. (2011). Bush's Wars. Oxford University Press. p. 12. ISBN 9780199747528.
  2. ^ "FEISAL OF IRAQ DIES SUDDENLY IN BERNE". The New York Times. 9 September 1933. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  3. ^ "King Ghazi of Iraq Killed In an Automobile Accident". The New York Times. 4 April 1939. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_kings_of_Iraq&oldid=1197423827"