Princess Faiza (; 8 November 1923 – 6 June 1994) was an

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

princess and a member of the

Muhammad Ali dynasty The Muhammad Ali dynasty or the Alawiyya dynasty was the ruling dynasty of Egypt and Sudan from the 19th to the mid-20th century. It is named after its progenitor, the Albanians, Albanian Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, regarded as the fou ...

Early life

Princess Faiza was born in the

Abdeen Palace Abdeen District is the home of Abdeen Palace (), a 19th-century Cairo palace built by Khedive Ismail and served as the Egyptian royal household's primary official residence from 1874 until the July Revolution in 1952. Since then it has been one ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, on 8 November 1923. She was the third child of King Fuad I and

Nazli Sabri Nazli Sabri (; 25 June 1894 – 29 May 1978) was the first queen consort in the Kingdom of Egypt from 1919 to 1936. She was the second wife of King Fuad I. Early life Nazli was born on 25 June 1894 to an Egyptians, Egyptian father and a mother o ...

. Princess Faiza was the sister of

King Farouk Farouk I (; ''Fārūq al-Awwal''; 11 February 1920 – 18 March 1965) was the tenth ruler of Egypt from the Muhammad Ali dynasty and the penultimate King of Egypt and the Sudan, succeeding his father, Fuad I, in 1936 and reigning until his ...

, Princess Fawzia, Princess Faika and Princess Fathia. Her maternal great-grandfather was Major-General

Muhammad Sharif Pasha Mohamed Sherif Pasha GCSI (February 1826 – 20 April 1887) () was an Egyptian statesman. He served as Prime Minister of Egypt three times during his career. His first term was between 7 April 1879 and 18 August 1879. His second term was served ...

, prime minister and minister for foreign affairs, who was of Turkish origin.

Marriage and activities

Princess Faiza did not want to marry a member of the Middle East royal family. Instead, she married her Turkish cousin Bulent Rauf, who was thirty-four years old, in Cairo on 17 May 1945. Their marriage was arranged through familial relations. He was a Western educated man and the grandson of Ismail Pasha. King Farouk did not support their marriage, but reluctantly endorsed it. Princess Faiza and her husband lived in the Zohria Palace on

Gezira Island Gezira is an island in the Nile, in central Cairo, Egypt. The southern portion of the island contains the Gezira district, and the northern third contains the Zamalek district. Gezira is west of downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square, connected acr ...

on the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

after their marriage. Princess Faiza was instrumental in Princess Fawzia's long period of convalescence in Egypt after divorcing from the

Shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

in 1948. Faiza was one of the leading figures of the

Red Crescent Society The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

in Egypt during the reign of King Farouk. King Farouk put her and her husband under house arrest due to his suspicion. She and her husband launched a homemade film about a military coup six weeks before the events of 1952. They had no issue, and divorced in 1962.

Later life and death

After the abdication of King Farouk following the

1952 Revolution The Egyptian revolution of 1952, also known as the 1952 coup d'état () and the 23 July Revolution (), was a period of profound political, economic, and societal change in Egypt. On 23 July 1952, the revolution began with the toppling of King ...

in Egypt, Princess Faiza moved to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

in 1954. Then, she and her husband went to Spain and France. Next, she went to the US and settled in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

, leaving her husband in Paris. Princess Faiza died on 9 June 1994 at the age of 70 in

Westwood, Los Angeles Westwood is a commercial and residential neighborhood in the northern central portion of the Westside (Los Angeles County), Westside region of the city of Los Angeles, California. It is the home of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCL ...

Ancestry

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fazia 20th-century Egyptian women 20th-century Egyptian people 1923 births 1994 deaths Daughters of kings Daughters of sultans Egyptian Muslims Egyptian people of Albanian descent Egyptian people of Circassian descent Egyptian people of Turkish descent Egyptian expatriates in France Egyptian expatriates in Germany Egyptian expatriates in Turkey Egyptian expatriates in the United States Muhammad Ali dynasty princesses