Iraq Diplomatic Passport 1953 – Prince Zeid al-Hussein
Iraq Diplomatic Passport 1953: Prince Zeid al-Hussein, Ambassador in London
Let me tell you why this passport stopped me in my tracks.
What you are looking at is the 1953 Iraqi diplomatic passport of His Royal Highness Prince Zeid al-Hussein, issued when he served as Iraq’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom in London. It is, without question, one of the most historically loaded pieces I have come across in years of collecting.
Prince Zeid bin Hussein (February 28, 1898 – October 18, 1970) was no ordinary diplomat. He was a Hashemite prince, the fourth son of Hussein bin Ali, the Sharif and Emir of Mecca, and the only child born to Hussein’s third wife, Adila Khanum. He was educated at Galatasaray High School in Istanbul, then Constantinople College, and finally Balliol College, Oxford. The man moved through worlds.
Soldier First, Diplomat Second
Before he ever picked up an ambassador’s pen, Zeid commanded the Arab Northern Army from 1916 to 1919. That is the Arab Revolt. The real thing. And in 1918, none other than T.E. Lawrence, yes, Lawrence of Arabia, floated his name as a candidate for king of north-western Syria. Think about that for a moment.
When the French took control of the region, that door closed. Zeid pivoted to the Iraqi Cavalry in 1923, reached the rank of Colonel, and eventually transitioned fully into diplomacy. Berlin in the 1930s. Ankara in the 1930s. And then London in the 1950s, the very posting that produced this passport.
ملخص:
جواز السفر الدبلوماسي هذا الصادر عام 1953 يعود لصاحب السمو الملكي الأمير زيد بن الحسين، حين كان سفيراً للعراق في لندن. الأمير زيد كان عضواً بارزاً في الأسرة الهاشمية، وابن الشريف حسين بن علي، أمير مكة المكرمة.
قبل دخوله عالم الدبلوماسية، قاد الأمير زيد الجيش العربي الشمالي خلال الثورة العربية الكبرى بين عامَي 1916 و1919. وقد رشّحه لورانس العرب ملكاً على أجزاء من سوريا عام 1918، غير أن الحكم الفرنسي أغلق هذا الباب.
في 14 يوليو 1958، اغتيل الملك فيصل الثاني وأُعلن العراق جمهورية. كان الأمير زيد في لندن حين وقعت الكارثة، فأصبح رأس الأسرة المالكة العراقية في المنفى. توفي في باريس عام 1970، ودُفن في ضريح العائلة المالكة في قصر الرغدان بعمّان، الأردن.
هذا الجواز ليس مجرد وثيقة سفر، بل هو شاهد نادر على حقبة مفصلية من تاريخ العالم العربي في القرن العشرين.
The Passport That Survived a Revolution
Here is where history gets brutal.
On July 14, 1958, General Muhammad Najib ar-Ruba’i’s forces assassinated King Faisal II and declared Iraq a republic. The Hashemite monarchy was over in a single day. Prince Zeid was in London when it happened, sitting in his ambassador’s chair. He never went back.
“That day, he became Head of the Royal House of Iraq. A title with no kingdom behind it.“
He and his family stayed in London, living in exile. Prince Zeid died in Paris on October 18, 1970, and was buried at the Royal Mausoleum at Raghdan Palace in Amman, Jordan.
Why This Passport Matters
Diplomatic passports from Iraq’s Hashemite period are rare to begin with. One issued to a prince of this rank, covering one of the most consequential chapters in modern Middle Eastern history, is something else entirely. This is not a document you frame for decoration. This is a primary source.
If you are serious about passport history or the history of the Arab world in the 20th century, this one belongs on your radar. And it is for SALE!
Tom Topol | Passport Historian & Author
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