The Free Princes Movement () was a Saudi liberal

political movement A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some t ...

that existed from 1958 to 1964. Its members were known as the Young Najd (Najd al-Fattah in Arabic), Free Princes, and Liberal Princes.

Establishment

The movement was founded by Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud because of the tensions between Crown Prince Faisal and King Saud. It was heavily idealized around the iconic figure of

Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...

and his pan-Arab nationalism. It called for political reforms and a

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

. The movement received support from the relatively liberal (and at the time, relatively small) Saudi

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

, but generally did not have a large base of support within the broader population.Pascal Menoret. (2005)
The Saudi Enigma: a History
New York: Zed. pp. 115-116 The movement was supported by Talal's brothers, Nawwaf bin Abdulaziz, Fawwaz bin Abdulaziz, Majid bin Abdulaziz and Badr bin Abdulaziz. Another brother, Prince Abdul Muhsin, vocally supported the movement and suggested a constitutional monarchy. In addition, the movement was also supported by younger princes from the

cadet branch A cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets (realm, titles, fiefs, property and incom ...

es of the

House of Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...

. Another significant ally was then oil minister Abdullah Tariki. Crown Prince Faisal expelled many of its members to

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

and later pardoned them when he became king.

Internal royal opposition

Prince Talal suggested the creation of a national council in 1958. The group drafted its own

which placed more power in the hands of the cabinet, removed most of the authority of the King, and created a partially-elected advisory committee.Riz Khan. (2005)
Alwaleed: Businessman, Billionaire, Prince.
New York: William Morrow. pp. 17-19 Most members of the Al Saud were strongly opposed to the movement, and both King Saud and Crown Prince Faisal repudiated its reforms initially. It was also attacked as "crypto-

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

" by Saud. In May 1960, Prince Talal told the Egyptian newspaper '' Al Gomhuria'' of a gradual trend towards a "

constituent assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...

, first constitution,

supreme court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

, and a supreme planning commission". He went on to say "the problem is how to accomplish this experiment." However, in December 1960, Talal's supporters formed a coalition with Saud to undermine Faisal's growing influence. Saud promoted Talal from minister of transport to minister of finance. But in a turn of events, the movement began to support many of Crown Prince Faisal's reforms. In the late 1961, King Saud began to lose considerable support in the House of Saud. Ironically, he increasingly became dependent on the few Nasserite nationalists in his Cabinet. Saud reconciled with Faisal under Faisal's precondition to remove the movement entirely from the Cabinet. The members of the movement were exiled to

; for the next few years, Prince Talal moved between

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

and

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 ...

. At the end of 1962, they formed the Arab National Liberation Front ('Free Saudis Movement') in Cairo, commonly referred to as Free Princes Movement.

Egyptian link and Yemen revolution

Its name originates from the Free Officers Movement, a group led by Nasser that overthrew the Egyptian monarchy. Talal applauded Nasser after Egypt's successful long-range missile tests. Even after Nasser called for the overthrow of the Al Saud in Saudi Arabia by stating "to liberate all Jerusalem, the Arab peoples must first liberate Riyadh", Talal went to Cairo to meet Egypt's military brass. Talal's supporters (Prince Fawwaz, Prince Badr, and a cousin, Saad bin Fahd) also self-exiled to Cairo. Yemen's revolution, which evolved into a cold war between Saudi Arabia and Egypt, led to increased power for the Free Princes, which did not call for the complete overthrow of the Saudi monarchy but simply major democratic reforms.A Brief History of Saudi Arabia by James Wynbrandt, Fawaz A. Gerges In September 1962 Egyptian, Syrian, and Yemeni radio stations openly encouraged Saudis to rebel against their "corrupt" and "reactionary" monarchy and for its supplanting with members of the Free Princes.

Estrangement with Nasser

Soon, Radio Yemen (an Egyptian-controlled organ) called for the assassination of the

Al Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling fac ...

including the Free Princes. That was one reason that the Free Princes became increasingly embittered with Nasser. In August 1963, Talal declared that he was "entirely wrong" in the past and praised Faisal's reforms. By early 1964, the Free Princes returned from exile in

. The movement ended.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Movement, Free Princes 1958 establishments in Saudi Arabia 1964 disestablishments in Asia Arab nationalism in Saudi Arabia Egypt–Saudi Arabia relations House of Saud Political movements in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabian democracy movements Saudi Arabian opposition groups