page_title: Hussein of Jordan
section_title: Personal life
hierarchical_section_title: Hussein of Jordan / Personal life
caption_attribution_description: English: On a trip to the United Kingdom
context_page_description: Hussein bin Talal reigned as King of Jordan from 11 August 1952 until his death on 7 February 1999. As a member of the Hashemite dynasty, the royal family of Jordan since 1921, Hussein was a 40th-generation direct descendant of Muhammad.
  Hussein was born in Amman as the eldest child of Talal bin Abdullah and Zein Al-Sharaf. Hussein began his schooling in Amman, continuing his education abroad. After Talal became King of Jordan in 1951, Hussein was named heir apparent. The Parliament forced Talal to abdicate a year later due to his illness, and a regency council was appointed until Hussein came of age. He was enthroned at the age of 17 on 2 May 1953. Hussein was married four separate times and fathered eleven children: Princess Alia from Dina bint Abdul-Hamid; Abdullah II, Prince Faisal, Princess Aisha, and Princess Zein from Antoinette Gardiner; Princess Haya and Prince Ali from Alia Touqan; Prince Hamzah, Prince Hashim, Princess Iman, and Princess Raiyah from Lisa Halaby.
  Hussein, a constitutional monarch, started his rule with what was termed a "liberal experiment," allowing, in 1956, the formation of the only democratically elected government in Jordan's history.
context_section_description: King Hussein married four times and had eleven children:
  Sharifa Dina bint Abdul-Hamid (1929–2019), on 19 April 1955. She was an Egyptian-born third cousin of King Hussein's father, King Talal. She was a member of the Hashemite family like Hussein and a graduate of Cambridge University and former lecturer in English literature at Cairo University. The marriage was arranged. They separated in 1956 and were divorced in 1957, at which time Princess Dina became known as Her Royal Highness Princess Dina Abdul-Hamid of Jordan. She became an Egyptian citizen in 1963, and in October 1970, Princess Dina of Jordan married Lieut-Colonel Asad Sulayman Abd al-Qadir, alias Salah Ta'amari, a Palestinian guerrilla commando who became a high-ranking official in the Palestine Liberation Organization.
  Daughter: Princess Alia bint Hussein (born in 1956). Married first to Nasser Wasfi Mirza, they have one child together, a son, Hussein. They divorced in 1987. She remarried in 1988 to Sayyid Mohammed Al-Saleh; they have two sons, Talal and Abdul-Hamid.
  Antoinette Gardiner ("Toni Gardiner," born in 1941), on 25 May 1961, titled Princess Muna Al-Hussein from marriage. An award-winning field hockey player and daughter of a British army officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Walter Percy Gardiner, she was given the title Her Royal Highness Princess Muna al-Hussein, retaining this title after they divorced on 21 December 1971.
  Children:
  Abdullah II (born in 1962). The current King of Jordan. Married to Rania Al-Yassin. They have four children: Crown Prince Hussein, Princess Iman, Princess Salma and Prince Hashem.
  Prince Faisal bin Hussein (born in 1963). Lieutenant-General, former Commander of Royal Jordanian Air Force. Currently Deputy Supreme Commander of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Married first to Alia Tabbaa (now known as Princess Alia Tabbaa). They have four children: Princess Ayah, Prince Omar, and twins Princess Sara and Princess Aisha. They divorced in 2008. He remarried in 2010 to Sara Qabbani and divorced in 2013. He is now married to Zeina Lubadeh, with whom he has two sons, Prince Abdullah and Prince Muhammad.
  Princess Aisha bint Hussein (born in 1968, Zein's twin). Brigadier-General of Jordanian Armed Forces. Married to Zeid Juma, they have two children, a son, Aoun, and a daughter, Muna. They are now divorced. She married Ashraf Banayoti in 2016 and divorced him in the same year.
  Princess Zein bint Hussein (born in 1968, Aisha's twin). Married to Majdi Al-Saleh, they have two children: a son Jaafar and a daughter Jumana, and an adopted daughter called Tahani Al-Shawan.
  Alia Bahauddin Toukan, Queen Alia Al-Hussein (1948–1977), on 24 December 1972, after whom Jordan's international airport (Queen Alia International Airport) is named. She died in a helicopter crash in Amman, Jordan, in 1977. An Egyptian-born daughter of Jordan's first ambassador to the United Nations, Sayyid Baha ud-din Toukan.
  Children:
  Princess Haya bint Hussein (born in 1974). President of the Fédération Equestre Internationale 2008–2014. Married to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai. They have two children: Sheikha Jalila and Sheikh Zayed.
  Prince Ali bin Hussein (born in 1975). Married to Rym Brahimi now known as Princess Rym al-Ali. They have two children, Princess Jalilah and Prince Abdullah.
  Abir Muhaisen, (born in 1972, adopted by the couple in 1976).
  Lisa Najeeb Halaby (born in 1951), renamed Queen Noor Al-Hussein on her conversion to Islam, married in Amman on 15 June 1978. An Arab-American of Syrian descent, daughter of Najeeb Halaby.
  Children:
  Prince Hamzah bin Hussein (born in 1980). Married first to Princess Noor bint Asem, third daughter of Prince Asem bin Nayef, by his first wife, Princess Firouzeh Vokhshouri. Princess Noor became Princess Noor al-Hamzah upon her marriage. Together they have a daughter, Princess Haya. They divorced in 2009. He remarried in 2012 to Princess Basmah Bani Ahmad; they have four daughters and a son: Princess Zein, Princess Noor, Princess Badiya, Princes
caption: Hussein preparing to fly a de Havilland Vampire aircraft, 1 January 1955
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