Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifah
Encyclopedia
King
Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa ' onMouseout='HidePop("55084")' href="/topics/Bahrain">Bahrain
) is the King of Bahrain
(since 14 February 2002), having previously been its Emir
(from 6 March 1999). He is the son of Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the previous Emir.
. His parents were Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa who in 1950 was the Crown Prince and Hessa bint Salman Al Khalifa
. After attending Manama Secondary School in Bahrain, Hamad was sent to England
to complete the remainder of his education. He attended Applegarth College in Godalming
, Surrey
before taking a place at The Leys School
in Cambridge
. Hamad then underwent military training, first with the British Army
at Mons Officer Cadet School
at Aldershot
in Hampshire
, graduating in September 1968. Four years later in June 1972 Hamad attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth
in Kansas, graduating the following June with a degree in leadership.
.
by his father on 27 June 1964. In 1968 Hamad was appointed as the Chairman of the Irrigation Council and Manama Municipal Council. He was commissioned into the Bahrain National Guard on 16 February 1968 and appointed as its commander the same year, remaining in that post until 1969 when he was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Bahrain Defence Force. In 1970 Hamad became the head of the Bahraini Department of Defence and the Vice-Chairman of the Administrative Council, remaining in both offices until 1971. From 1971 to 1988 he was the Minister of State for Defence.
In October 1977, Hamad started learning to fly helicopters, successfully completing the training in January 1978. He then worked to establish the Bahrain Amiri Air Force which came into being in 1987 when the Defence Force air wing was reconstituted as an air force
.
, Bahrain's King Hamad boasted of his ties with Israel's intelligence services and told his government to stop referring to the Jewish state as the "Zionist enemy," a leaked US cable from 2005 showed.
The cable, which was given exclusively to Israel's Haaretz newspaper by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks, was written after talks between the king and Washington's ambassador to Bahrain, William Monroe, in February of that year.
"He revealed that Bahrain already has contacts with Israel at the intelligence/security level (i.e. with Mossad) and indicated that Bahrain will be willing to move forward in other areas," Monroe wrote, referring to Israel's spy agency.
The cable also indicated King Hamad had ordered his public information minister to stop referring to Israel as the "Zionist entity" or "enemy" in official statements, Haaretz quoted the cable as saying.
But the king reportedly baulked at the idea of establishing trade ties with Israel, saying it would have to wait until the establishment of a Palestinian state, it said.
The cable was leaked as the Gulf kingdom struggles with a wave of protests led by the Shiite majority against the ruling Sunni Al-Khalifa dynasty.
Israel and Bahrain do not have diplomatic relations, and two years ago, MPs in Manama tried to push through a law outlawing any contact with the Jewish state, which would have seen offenders slapped with a $27,000 fine and up to seven years in jail.
, a bimonthly American magazine classified Hamad as one of the bad guys the U.S. still supports, due to the massive crackdown on mainly Shiite protesters during the Arab Spring
in Bahrain
. He was put in number 3 out of 8.
(1 February 1967) Order of the Two Rivers, 1st class (Iraq
, 22 February 1969) Order of Muhammad (Morocco
, 16 October 1970) Grand Cordon of the Order of the Renaissance (Jordan
, 1 September 1972) Collar of the Order of the Republic of Egypt (24 January 1973)Collar of the Order of the Crown
(Iran, 28 April 1973) Collar of Abdulaziz al Saud
(Saudi Arabia
, 4 April 1976) Star of the Republic of Indonesia
, 1st class (8 October 1977) Order of the Republic of Mauritania, 1st class (4 April 1978) Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
(UK
, 15 February 1979) Grand Conqueror of Libya, 1st class (1 September 1979) Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland (2006)
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King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa ' onMouseout='HidePop("55084")' href="/topics/Bahrain">Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
) is the King of Bahrain
King of Bahrain
The King of Bahrain is the monarch and head of state of Bahrain. Between 1783 and 1971, the Bahraini monarch held the title of Hakim, and, from 1971 until 2002, the title of Emir...
(since 14 February 2002), having previously been its Emir
Emir
Emir , meaning "commander", "general", or "prince"; also transliterated as Amir, Aamir or Ameer) is a title of high office, used throughout the Muslim world...
(from 6 March 1999). He is the son of Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the previous Emir.
Early life and education
Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa was born on 28 January 1950 in Riffa, BahrainBahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
. His parents were Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa who in 1950 was the Crown Prince and Hessa bint Salman Al Khalifa
Hessa bint Salman Al Khalifa
HRH Sheikha Hessa bint Salman Al Khalifa was a member of the Bahraini royal family. She was the Queen consort and widow of the former Emir of Bahrain, Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifah, who reigned from 1960 until his death in 1999...
. After attending Manama Secondary School in Bahrain, Hamad was sent to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to complete the remainder of his education. He attended Applegarth College in Godalming
Godalming
Godalming is a town and civil parish in the Waverley district of the county of Surrey, England, south of Guildford. It is built on the banks of the River Wey and is a prosperous part of the London commuter belt. Godalming shares a three-way twinning arrangement with the towns of Joigny in France...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
before taking a place at The Leys School
The Leys School
The Leys School is a co-educational Independent school, located in Cambridge, England, and is a day and boarding school for about 550 pupils aged between 11 and 18 years...
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. Hamad then underwent military training, first with the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
at Mons Officer Cadet School
Mons Officer Cadet School
The Mons Officer Cadet School was a British military training establishment in Aldershot.1942 saw the RMC move to Mons Barracks where it became 161 OCTU. Cadets underwent a three month training programme prior to the Commisioning Passing Out Parade. Those passing out slow marched up the steps from...
at Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, graduating in September 1968. Four years later in June 1972 Hamad attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth is a United States Army facility located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, immediately north of the city of Leavenworth in the upper northeast portion of the state. It is the oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C. and has been in operation for over 180 years...
in Kansas, graduating the following June with a degree in leadership.
Reign
On the death of his father Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Hamad became Emir of Bahrain on 6 March 1999. As Emir, Hamad brought several political reforms to Bahrain. These included the release of all political prisoners, the dissolution of the State Security Court and the abolition of the 1974 Decree on State Security Measures. Additionally, many Bahraini citizens were permitted to return after several years in exile overseas. In 2002 he declared himself kingKing
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
.
Crown prince
Hamad was designated as heir apparentHeir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
by his father on 27 June 1964. In 1968 Hamad was appointed as the Chairman of the Irrigation Council and Manama Municipal Council. He was commissioned into the Bahrain National Guard on 16 February 1968 and appointed as its commander the same year, remaining in that post until 1969 when he was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Bahrain Defence Force. In 1970 Hamad became the head of the Bahraini Department of Defence and the Vice-Chairman of the Administrative Council, remaining in both offices until 1971. From 1971 to 1988 he was the Minister of State for Defence.
In October 1977, Hamad started learning to fly helicopters, successfully completing the training in January 1978. He then worked to establish the Bahrain Amiri Air Force which came into being in 1987 when the Defence Force air wing was reconstituted as an air force
Air force
An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...
.
Prince William wedding decline
King Hamad was invited to the royal wedding of Prince William of Wales and Kate Middleton. He declined amidst protests by human rights activists who had pledged to disrupt his stay in Britain because of his violent response to demonstrators. Earlier in 2005, he was the only sovereign head of state to attend the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla Parker Bowles.Views on Israel
According to wikileaksWikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
, Bahrain's King Hamad boasted of his ties with Israel's intelligence services and told his government to stop referring to the Jewish state as the "Zionist enemy," a leaked US cable from 2005 showed.
The cable, which was given exclusively to Israel's Haaretz newspaper by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks, was written after talks between the king and Washington's ambassador to Bahrain, William Monroe, in February of that year.
"He revealed that Bahrain already has contacts with Israel at the intelligence/security level (i.e. with Mossad) and indicated that Bahrain will be willing to move forward in other areas," Monroe wrote, referring to Israel's spy agency.
The cable also indicated King Hamad had ordered his public information minister to stop referring to Israel as the "Zionist entity" or "enemy" in official statements, Haaretz quoted the cable as saying.
But the king reportedly baulked at the idea of establishing trade ties with Israel, saying it would have to wait until the establishment of a Palestinian state, it said.
The cable was leaked as the Gulf kingdom struggles with a wave of protests led by the Shiite majority against the ruling Sunni Al-Khalifa dynasty.
Israel and Bahrain do not have diplomatic relations, and two years ago, MPs in Manama tried to push through a law outlawing any contact with the Jewish state, which would have seen offenders slapped with a $27,000 fine and up to seven years in jail.
One of America's Unsavory Allies
The Foreign PolicyForeign Policy
Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel.Originally, the magazine was a quarterly...
, a bimonthly American magazine classified Hamad as one of the bad guys the U.S. still supports, due to the massive crackdown on mainly Shiite protesters during the Arab Spring
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
in Bahrain
2011 Bahraini uprising
The 2011 Bahraini uprising, sometimes called the February 14 Revolution is a series of demonstrations, amounting to a sustained campaign of civil resistance, in the Persian Gulf country of Bahrain...
. He was put in number 3 out of 8.
Family
King Hamad has four wives and in total twelve children, seven sons and five daughters:- He married his first wife, Queen Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, at Rifa’a on 9 October 1968. Together they have three sons and one daughter:
- HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of BahrainSalman bin Hamad bin Isa Al KhalifaPrince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain is the heir apparent of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and is deputy supreme commander of the Bahrain defence force...
(born 21 October 1969) - HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al KhalifaAbdullah Bin Hamad Bin Isa Al-KhalifaSheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa is the second son of the present King of Bahrain, Sheikh Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifah and his first wife, Queen Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa....
(born 30 June 1975) - HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 4 June 1977)
- HH Sheikha Najla bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 20 May 1981)
- HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain
- His second wife, Sheikha Sheia bint Hassan Al-Khrayyesh Al-Ajmi, is a lady from KuwaitKuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
. Together they have two sons:- HH Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al KhalifaShaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al KhalifaSheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa is the president of the Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation...
(born 8 May 1987) - HH Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 23 September 1989)
- HH Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa
- He also has a third wife, a lady from QatarQatarQatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
, with whom he has two sons and four daughters:- HH Sheikh Faisal bin Hamad Al Khalifa (12 February 1992 - 12 January 2006), died in a fatal car accident
- HH Sheikh Sultan bin Hamad Al Khalifa
- HH Sheikha Hessa bint Hamad Al Khalifa
- HH Sheikha Nura bint Hamad Al Khalifa
- HH Sheikha Munira bint Hamad Al Khalifa
- HH Sheikha Reema bint Hamad Al Khalifa
- He does not have any children with his fourth wife, a lady from Qatar.
Titles and styles
- 28 January 1950 – 16 December 1961: SheikhSheikhNot to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa - 16 December 1961 – 27 June 1964: His ExcellencyExcellencyExcellency is an honorific style given to certain members of an organization or state.Usually, people styled "Excellency" are heads of state, heads of government, governors, ambassadors, certain ecclesiastics, royalty, aristocracy, and military, and others holding equivalent rank .It is...
Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa - 27 June 1964 – 6 March 1999: His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Heir Apparent of Bahrain
- 6 March 1999 – 14 February 2002: His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain
- 14 February 2002 – present: His MajestyHis MajestyHis Majesty, or, The Court of Vingolia is an English comic opera in two acts with dialogue by F. C. Burnand, lyrics by R. C. Lehmann, additional lyrics by Adrian Ross and music by Alexander Mackenzie....
Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of Bahrain
Honours and awards
Hamad has received numerous honours, for example: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of JordanOrder of the Star of Jordan
The Order of the Star of Jordan or The Order of Hussein ibn Ali is an award and military decoration of the sovereign state of Jordan and is awarded for military or civil merit. It was founded in honour of his father, by King Abdullah I on 22 June 1949, King Abdullah ibn Hussain...
(1 February 1967) Order of the Two Rivers, 1st class (Iraq
Ba'athist Iraq
The History of Iraq , referred to as Ba'athist Iraq, covers the period of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party's rule over Iraq. Ba'athist rule in Iraq first occurred briefly in 1963 under Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr until overthrown that same year. Ba'athism was restored to power five years later after...
, 22 February 1969) Order of Muhammad (Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, 16 October 1970) Grand Cordon of the Order of the Renaissance (Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, 1 September 1972) Collar of the Order of the Republic of Egypt (24 January 1973)Collar of the Order of the Crown
Order of the Crown (Iran)
The Order of the Crown was founded in 1900 by Sjah Mouzaffar ud-Din of the Qajar dynasty.The first Shah from the Pahlavi dynasty reformed the order after his coronation. The ribbon was changed into skyblue and cornyellow. A collar was added to the five classes of the order...
(Iran, 28 April 1973) Collar of Abdulaziz al Saud
Order of Abdulaziz al Saud
The Order of Abdulaziz al Saud is a Saudi-Arabian Order of merit. The order has been named after Abdulaziz Al Saud who founded the Saudi kingdom and died in 1953.-History:...
(Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, 4 April 1976) Star of the Republic of Indonesia
Orders, decorations, and medals of Indonesia
Awards and decorations of the Republic of Indonesia are both military and civilian awards for service and personal contributions to the Republic of Indonesia. According to the Indonesian Constitution, Chapter III Article 15: "The President grants designations, awards, and other distinctions that...
, 1st class (8 October 1977) Order of the Republic of Mauritania, 1st class (4 April 1978) Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, 15 February 1979) Grand Conqueror of Libya, 1st class (1 September 1979) Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland (2006)
External links
- The Monarchy - official website of the Bahrain Embassy
- The New Amir of Bahrain: Marching Sideways, Abdulhadi KhalafAbdulhadi KhalafAbdulhadi Khalaf is a Bahrani leftist political activist and academic. He received his primary and secondary education in Bahrain, then went abroad for college. He obtained a doctorate in sociology from Sweden's University of Lund in 1972...
, Civil Society, Volume 9, Issue 100, April 2000, Abdulhadi Khalaf, Fourth Mediterranean Social and Political Research Meeting, European University InstituteEuropean University InstituteThe European University Institute ' in Florence is an international postgraduate and post-doctoral teaching and research institute established by European Union member states to contribute to cultural and scientific development in the social sciences, in a European perspective...
, March 2003 - Generational change and elite-driven reforms in the Kingdom of Bahrain. (Sir William Luce Fellowship Paper No. 7) Dr. Steven Wright (2006) Institute for Middle East and Islamic Studies, University of Durham, (PDF Format)
- Bahrian: The Royals rule, Le Monde Diplomatique, March 2005
- An Arab exception: Reform in Bahrain The Economist, 29 July 2004 (requires subscription)
- Genealogy of the Al-Khalifa Dynasty, Page 10 - website The Royal Ark
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