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The Sudairi Seven ( ar, السديريون السبعة, ''As Sudayriyyūn as Sabʿah''), also spelled ''Sudairy'' or ''Sudayri'', is the commonly used name for a powerful alliance of seven full brothers within the
Saudi royal family The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) 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), ...
. They are also sometimes referred to as the Sudairi clan ( ar, عائلة السديري ''ʿĀʾilat as-Sudayrī'') or the Sudairi faction. They are among the forty-five sons of the country's founder,
King Abdulaziz Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud ( ar, عبد العزيز بن عبد الرحمن آل سعود, ʿAbd al ʿAzīz bin ʿAbd ar Raḥman Āl Suʿūd; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted ...
. The King had more sons with their mother,
Hussa bint Ahmed Al Sudairi Hussa bint Ahmed Al Sudairi ( ar, حصة بنت أحمد السديري; 1900–1969) was one of the wives of King Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, with whom she had seven sons and four daughters. Her sons included two future Saudi kings, Fahd and Sa ...
, than he did with any of his other wives. The oldest of the Sudairi Seven ( Fahd) served as
King of Saudi Arabia The king of Saudi Arabia is the monarchial head of state and ruler of Saudi Arabia who holds absolute power. He is the head of the Saudi Arabian royal family, the House of Saud. The king is called the "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques" (), a ...
from 1982 to 2005; the second- and fourth-oldest (
Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...
and
Nayef Nayef ( ar, نايف) is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Nayef Aguerd (born 1996), Moroccan football player * Nayef Hawatmeh, founder of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine * ...
) served as
Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia The crown prince of Saudi Arabia is the second-most important position in Saudi Arabia, second to the King, and is his designated successor. Currently, the Crown Prince assumes power with the approval of the Allegiance Council after he is no ...
, but predeceased King Abdullah; and the sixth-oldest ( Salman) succeeded Abdullah as king in 2015. One of the Sudairi Seven, Prince Turki, had broken off with his brothers in 1978. Following the death of Prince Abdul Rahman in 2017 only the two youngest of the Seven Salman and
Ahmed Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ve ...
) survive, with the youngest brother, Prince Ahmed under house arrest by order of
King Salman Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, سلمان بن عبد العزیز آل سعود, , ; born 31 December 1935) is King of Saudi Arabia, reigning since 2015, and served as Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2022. The 25th son of Kin ...
.


Origins and composition

In the early twentieth century, King Abdulaziz rapidly expanded his power base in Nejd to establish the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932, and became its first king. As part of this process of expansion, he married women from powerful Nejdi and other Arabian families to cement his control over all parts of his new domain. It is believed he married as many as 22 women as a result. One of these marriages was to Hussa bint Ahmed Al Sudairi, a member of the powerful Al Sudairi clan to which King Abdulaziz's mother,
Sara bint Ahmed Al Sudairi Sara bint Ahmed Al Sudairi ( ar, سارة بنت أحمد السديري ''Sara bint Aḥmed Al Sudairī''; died 1910) was a Saudi royal. She was a member of the Al Sudairi family and the wife of Abdul Rahman bin Faisal who was the last ruler of ...
, belonged. The number of children that King Abdulaziz fathered in total, with all his wives, is unknown. One source indicates that he had 37 sons. The Sudairi Seven – the seven sons of King Abdulaziz and Hassa bint Ahmed – were the largest bloc of full brothers and as a consequence, were able to wield a degree of coordinated influence and power."The Saudi succession: When kings and princes grow old"
''The Economist'', 15 July 2010.
King Abdulaziz and Hassa bint Ahmed married twice; their first marriage started in 1913 and may have produced a son, Prince Sa'ad (1914–19). Hassa then married
Muhammad bin Abdul Rahman Muhammad bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud ( ar, محمد بن عبد الرحمن آل سعود ''Muḥammad bin ʿAbd ar Raḥman Āl Suʿūd''; 1877 – 25 July 1943) was an Arabian soldier and politician who played a role in the conquests of his ha ...
, the half-brother of King Abdulaziz, with whom she had a son, Prince Abdullah, the father of
Fahd bin Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Saud Fahd bin Abdullah Al Saud ( ar, فهد بن عبد الله آل سعود) (born 1941) is the former deputy defence minister of Saudi Arabia and a member of the House of Saud. Early life and education Prince Fahd is the son of Abdullah bin Moha ...
. Hassa and King Abdulaziz married again in 1920, and their second marriage produced seven sons and four daughters.


The Seven

Image:Fahd bin Abdul Aziz.jpg, Fahd
(1921–2005)
Image:Prince Sultan.jpg,
Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

(1925–2011)
Image:Emblem of Saudi Arabia.svg,
Abdul Rahman Abd al-Rahman ( ar, عبد الرحمن, translit=ʿAbd al-Raḥmān or occasionally ; DMG ''ʿAbd ar-Raḥman''; also Abdul Rahman) is a male Arabic Muslim given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', '' ...
(1931–2017) Image:Nayef bin AbdulAziz.jpg,
Nayef Nayef ( ar, نايف) is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Nayef Aguerd (born 1996), Moroccan football player * Nayef Hawatmeh, founder of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine * ...

(1934–2012)
Image:Emblem of Saudi Arabia.svg, Turki II
(1934–2016)
Image:Salman bin Abdull aziz December 9, 2013.jpg, Salman
(born 1935)
Image:Emblem of Saudi Arabia.svg,
Ahmed Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ve ...

(born 1942)


Their sisters

* Princess Luluwah (1928–2008) was married to Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah bin Saud Al Saud * Princess Latifa (deceased) * Princess Al Jawhara (died 2019) was married to Prince
Khalid bin Abdullah bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud Khalid (variants include Khaled and Kalid; Arabic: خالد) is a popular Arabic male given name meaning "eternal, everlasting, immortal", and it also appears as a surname.
*
Princess Jawahir Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...
(died June 2015)


Rise to power

The influence of the Sudairi Seven, which can be termed as ''
asabiyya 'Asabiyyah or 'asabiyya ( ar, عصبيّة, 'group feeling' or 'social cohesion') is a concept of social solidarity with an emphasis on unity, group consciousness, and a sense of shared purpose and social cohesion, originally used in the contex ...
'' (group spirit) following the Khaldûnian terminology, grew constantly after the accession of its leader, Prince Fahd, to crown prince in 1975 and then king in 1982. They represented one out of five of King Abdulaziz’s sons. However, they gained influence and power not solely because of their number. Unlike many of King Abdulaziz's other sons who dealt much more with business activities, the Sudairi Seven tended to be interested in politics. The Sudairi Seven's rise to power can be traced back to the accession of King Faisal and his earlier struggle with
King Saud Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, سعود بن عبد العزيز آل سعود ''Suʿūd ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Suʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 15 January 1902 – 23 February 1969) was King of Saudi Arabia from 9 November 1953 ...
. Although not a Sudairi himself, Faisal, in his struggle to overthrow Saud, relied heavily upon the seven Sudairi brothers. One of the earliest significant roles played by the Sudairi Seven was in March 1962 when they collaborated with Crown Prince Faisal. They threatened five members of King Saud's cabinet to submit their resignations following the announcement of the constitution by the king which had been drafted by the members of the Free Princes movement with the help of Egyptian lawyers. The ministers, including Oil Minister Abdullah Tariki, resigned from the office as a result of their extensive campaign against them. Then in 1962, as prime minister and heir apparent, Prince Faisal appointed Prince Fahd as interior minister, Prince Sultan as defense minister, and Prince Salman as governor of Riyadh. All were key posts. Following his accession to the throne after King Saud's deposition in 1964, King Faisal continued to favor the Sudairi Seven as his allies. In 1975, following the death of King Faisal and the accession of
King Khalid Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, خالد بن عبد العزيز آل سعود ''Khalid ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Suʿūd'' ; 13 February 1913 13 June 1982) was a Saudi Arabian statesman and politician who served as King and Prime Minister of ...
, Prince Fahd became Crown Prince and Prince Nayef succeeded him at the ministry of interior. King Khalid reduced Sudairi Seven's power concerning succession in 1977 when he was in London for treatment. Following their unsuccessful attempt to overthrow King Khalid and to install Prince Sultan as crown prince instead of Prince Abdullah King Khalid asked Crown Prince Fahd and Prince Abdullah to fully obey the existing succession plan without any change. The Sudairis consolidated their hold over these fiefs by appointing their brothers and sons to their own ministries and other key positions. Prince Sultan appointed one of his younger Sudairi brothers – Prince Abdul Rahman – and one of his own sons – Prince Khalid – as his deputies. Another of Prince Sultan’s sons,
Prince Bandar A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
, served for two decades as Saudi ambassador in
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
and then head of the
Saudi National Security Council The Saudi National Security Council (SNSC) ( ar, مجلس الأمن الوطني) was the body in charge of coordinating Saudi Arabia's national security, intelligence and foreign policy strategy. It was established in 2005 by King Abdullah ...
. His other son Prince Khalid, the co-commander with U.S. General Norman Schwarzkopf in the
Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
(1991), became vice defence minister. Prince Nayef also appointed one of his sons –
Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد;  570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mon ...
– as his deputy at the ministry of the interior. The Sudairis’ rise to power and hold over government brought continuity to the system. It also prompted other princes to align quietly against them. The main opposition to the Sudairis came from Prince Abdullah prior to his accession to the throne. He cultivated allies among his other brothers and with King Faisal’s sons. Upon Prince Abdullah's accession to the throne, he created a new family council, the
Allegiance Commission The Allegiance Council ( ar, هيئة البيعة ''Hay’at al-Bay‘ah''), also known as the Allegiance Commission or Allegiance Institution or Succession Commission, is the body responsible for determining future succession to the throne of ...
, to determine the future succession. The Sudairis filled a fifth of the council’s seats which is seen as a dilution of Sudairi power since their overall control over the state is perceived as proportionately greater than this.


Reign of King Abdullah (2005–2015)

Mai Yamani Mai Yamani ( ar, مي يماني; born 6 September 1956) is an independent Saudi scholar, author and anthropologist. Early life Yamani was born in Cairo, Egypt, in 1956 to an Iraqi mother from Mosul and a Saudi Arabian father from Mecca. Her pate ...
argues that the Sudairi brothers, previously known as the Sudairi seven, since King Fahd’s death in August 2005 reduced to ''al-Thaluth'' (‘the trio’), referring only to Prince Sultan, Prince Nayef and Prince Salman. Prince Sultan became the leader of the group after King Fahd's demise. On 28 October 2011, Prince Nayef became the Crown Prince after the death of Prince Sultan, and his other full brother Prince Salman, who had been long-term Riyadh governor, was appointed the minister of defence. However, the eldest surviving member of the Sudairi brothers, Prince Abdul Rahman, was replaced by Prince Sultan's son Prince Khalid as deputy minister of defence. Prince Abdul Rahman was reported to argue that he should have been promoted instead of Prince Salman. On the other hand, the youngest of the Sudairi brothers, Ahmed, who was Prince Nayef's deputy at the ministry of interior since 1975, was reported to complain about that Prince Nayef was actively promoting the interest of his own son, Prince Mohammed. Lastly, another Sudairi Prince Turki, who returned to Riyadh in early 2011 after a long and at least partly voluntary exile in
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metr ...
, was said to agitate for a more senior position. On the other hand, Prince Turki fully supported the appointment of Prince Nayef as Crown Prince, indicating that the decision was completely right and that Prince Nayef had wisdom, sound management and long history in serving the country. However, although Sudairi brothers support each other against other princes, each attempts to form, with his sons, another power group. On 16 June 2012, Crown Prince Nayef died in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
. His posts were filled by his younger full-brothers. Prince Salman was named as the Crown Prince and deputy prime minister, and Prince Ahmed as the minister of interior on 18 June 2012. Prince Salman and Prince Ahmed became the only politically active members of the group. However, on 5 November 2012, Prince Ahmed resigned from his post and was succeeded by Mohammed bin Nayef, son of Prince Nayef. On 23 January 2015, King Abdullah died at the age of 90 and he was succeeded by Prince Salman.


Reign of King Salman (2015–present)

King Salman immediately began to consolidate power on behalf of the clan. His son
Mohammad bin Salman Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud ( ar, محمد بن سلمان آل سعود, translit=Muḥammad bin Salmān Āl Su‘ūd; born 31 August 1985), colloquially known by his initials MBS or MbS, is Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia. H ...
became both minister of defense and secretary general of the Court, combining two of the most powerful offices in the government, and Mohammed bin Nayef bypassed hundreds of senior princes to become the first of the third generation to be officially placed in the line of succession. On 28 April 2015, Mohammed bin Nayef was named crown prince, replacing Prince
Muqrin bin Abdulaziz Muqrin bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, مقرن بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود, Muqrin ibn ‘Abd al ‘Azīz Āl Su‘ūd; born 15 September 1945)Lacey gives his birth year as 1943. is a Saudi Arabian politician, businessman, and former milit ...
, the younger half-brother of the Sudairi Seven. Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud was named as deputy crown prince by his father, thus effectively putting the future of the throne in the Sudairi Seven clan's firm grip. On 21 June 2017 Mohammad bin Salman was made crown prince, and Mohammed bin Nayef was removed from his posts and stripped of his titles. The interior minister was succeeded by Abdulaziz bin Saud, the grandson of Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz. Thus the lines of Nayef and Salman, if not those of the other Sudairi brothers, maintain strong influence.


See also

* Descendants of Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia * Succession to the Saudi Arabian throne


References


External links

{{Sons of King Abdulaziz Sons of Ibn Saud