by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2020

Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was born on October 21, 1969, in Riffa, Bahrain. He is the eldest of the twelve children of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain, who has four wives, and the eldest of the four children and the eldest of the three sons of King Hamad and his first wife and his first cousin, Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa.

Salman has two brothers and one sister:

• Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa (born 1975), married
• Hessa bint Salman al Khalid Al Khalifa, had two sons and two daughters
• Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1977)
• Sheikha Najla bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1981)

Salman has two half-brothers from his father’s second wife Sheia bint Hassan Al Khrayyesh Al Ajmi:

• Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1987), married Shaikha bint Mohammed bin Rashed Al Maktoum, daughter of the Emir of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, had one daughter and three sons
• Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1989), married (1) Princess Sahab bint Abdullah Al Saud, daughter of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, had two sons, divorced (2) Sheikha Hessa bint Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalif, had one daughter (3) Nouf Al Ajmi

Salman has one half-brother and two half-sisters from his father’s third wife Hessa bint Faisal Muhammad Shreim Al-Marri:

• Sheikh Faisal bin Hamad Al Khalifa (1991 – 2006), unmarried, died in a car accident
• Sheikha Noura bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1993)
• Sheikha Munira bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1990)

Salman has one half-brother and two half-sisters from his father’s fourth wife Binh bint Jabr Al-Nuaimi:

• Sheikh Sultan bin Hamad Al Khalifa
• Sheikha Hessa bint Hamad Al Khalifa married Sheikh Hashim bin Muhammad bin Salman Al Khalifa, had children
• Sheikha Rima bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 2002)

Salman attended the Bahrain School, a United States Department of Defense school located in Juffair, Manama, Bahrain. The student body is primarily the children of the United States Navy stationed in Bahrain. However, about half of the students are children of diplomatic personnel, employees of ARAMCO ( the state-owned oil company of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabi), and wealthy Bahraini citizens. After graduating from the Bahrain School, Hamad attended American University in Washington D.C. where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 1992. He then attended Queens’ College, Cambridge in England, receiving a Master of Arts degree in the Philosophy of History in 1994.

Salman served as vice-chairman of the Bahrain Centre for Studies and Research from 1992–1995 and then served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1995–1999. In addition, Salman served as Undersecretary of Defence at the Ministry of Defence from 1995–1999.

On March 6, 1999, Salman’s grandfather Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain died and his father became Emir of Bahrain. Three days later, Salman was sworn in as Crown Prince of the Emirate of Bahrain. Following a national referendum, Bahrain was declared a constitutional monarchy in 2002, becoming the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Salman’s father Hamad became King of Bahrain.

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Crown Prince Salman with The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall in 2016

In his role as Crown Prince, Salman was appointed to the following positions:

• Chairman of the Economic Development Board (appointed 2002): formulates and oversees Bahrain’s economic development strategy
• Deputy Supreme Commander of the Bahrain Defence Force (appointed 2008)
• First Deputy Prime Minister (appointed 2013)

Salman married Sheikha Hala bint D’aij Al Khalifa, the youngest daughter of D’aij bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the Assistant Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Finance & National Economy. Hala was the Honorary President of the Women and Children Information Center and President of the Bahrain Society for Mental Retardation. She also began the “Be Free” campaign to protect children from abuse. On June 10, 2018, the state-run Bahrain News Agency announced Hala’s death. The press release had no details about Hala’s death but it described Hala as the “former wife” of Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa so it can be inferred that the couple had divorced.

Salman and Hala had two sons and two daughters:

• Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa (born 1990), second in the line of succession after his father, educated at Bahrain School, graduated from American University in Washington DC, married Sheikha Jawaher Bint Abdullah Bin Isa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, has three sons
• Mohammed bin Salman Al Khalifa (born 1991), educated at Bahrain School, graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, graduated from King’s College in London, England, married, has a son and a daughter
• Fatima Al Danah bint Salman Al Khalifa, attended Riffa Views International School in Al Mazrowiah, Bahrain
• Al Joud bint Salman Al Khalifa

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ar.wikipedia.org. 2020. سلمان بن حمد آل خليفة. [online] Available at: <https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86_%D8%A8%D9%86_%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF_%D8%A2%D9%84_%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%81%D8%A9> [Accessed 7 August 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Salman, Crown Prince Of Bahrain. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salman,_Crown_Prince_of_Bahrain> [Accessed 7 August 2020].
• Office of the First Deputy Prime Minister, K., 2020. About His Royal Highness Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa – Office Of The First Deputy Prime Minister, Kingdom Of Bahrain. [online] Fdpm.gov.bh. Available at: <https://www.fdpm.gov.bh/en/biography.html> [Accessed 7 August 2020].
• Sheikha Hala, Wife of Bahrain’s Crown Prince, Dies. [online] @businessline. Available at: <https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/world/sheikha-hala-wife-of-bahrains-crown-prince-dies/article24127495.ece> [Accessed 7 August 2020].

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2020

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Sheikh Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain was born on June 3, 1933, in the village of Al Jasra in Bahrain. He was the son of Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa, Hakim of Bahrain and Mouza bint Hamad al-Khalifa, one of his father’s three wives.

Isa had one full brother and one half-brother and six half-sisters.

Isa’s full brother:

• Prince Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa (1935 – 2020), married Hessa bint Ali Al Khalifa, had three sons and one daughter

Isa’s half-brother from his father’s wife Latifa bint Ibrahim al-Khalifa:

• Prince Muhammad bin Salman al-Khalifa (1940-2009), had two wives who had a total of ten sons and five daughter

Isa’s six half-sisters:

• Thajba bint Salman al-Khalifa
• Fatima bint Salman Al Khalifa
• Maryam bint Salman al-Khalifa
• Aisha bint Salman al-Khalifa
• Sheikha bint Salman al-Khalifa
• Nura bint Salman al-Khalifa

On May 8, 1949, Isa married his cousin Hessa bint Salman al-Khalifa (1933 – 2009) and the couple had five sons and four daughters:

• Sheikh Hamad bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, King of Bahrain (born 1950), Wife 1 Sabika bint Ibrahim al-Khalifa, had three sons and one daughter; Wife 2 Sheia bint Hassan al-Khrayyesh Al Ajmi, had two sons; Wife 3 Hessa bint Faisal Muhammad Shreim al-Marri, had one son and two daughters; Wife 4 Binh bint Jabr al-Nuaimi, had one son and two daughters
• Sheikh Rashed bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa (? – 2011), married ?, had seven sons
• Sheikh Mohamed bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, married Sheika Kholoud al-Khalifa, had two sons and one daughter
• Sheikh Abdullah bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, married Sheikha Haya bint Muhammad al-Khalifa, had three sons and one daughter
• Sheikh Ali bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa (born 1955), married Sheikha Anoud bint Muhammad al-Khalifa, had three sons and one daughter
• Sheikha Munira bint Isa al-Khalifa, married Sheikh Salman bin Muhammad al-Khalifa, had five sons and one daughter
• Sheikha Maryam bint Isa al-Khalifa, married Sheikh Ali bin ‘Abdullah al-Khalifa, had two sons and three daughters
• Sheikha Shaikha bint Isa al-Khalifa married Sheikh Duaij bin Hamad al-Khalifa had two sons and three daughters
• Sheikha Noura bint Isa al-Khalifa (? – 2018), married and divorced Sheikh Isa bin Ali bin Hamad al-Khalifa, had two sons

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Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain and his son and heir Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at the Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot, the UK in 1968, after the Commissioning Parade, where the Hamid  was commissioned into the Bahrain Royal Guard

The Kingdom of Bahrain is an island country in the Persian Gulf, situated between the Qatar peninsula and the northeastern coast of Saudi Arabia. In the 1800s, Bahrain became a protectorate of the United Kingdom and remained so until independence was declared in 1971. The House of Khalifa has reigned in Bahrain since 1783.

Isa became Hakim of Bahrain upon the death of his father on November 2, 1961. On August 15, 1971, Bahrain declared its independence from the United Kingdom and signed a new treaty of friendship with the United Kingdom. Isa changed the title of the ruler of Bahrain to the Emir of Bahrain and appointed his brother Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa as the first Prime Minister of the newly sovereign country, the Emirate of Bahrain.

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Queen Elizabeth ll and Prince Philip with Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain, following dinner at the Al-Qudaibiya Palace in Manama, Bahrain in 1979

In 1973, Isa introduced a moderate form of parliamentary democracy, and men (but not women) were allowed to vote in parliamentary elections. However, parliamentary democracy was short-lived. In August 1975, however, Isa dissolved Parliament because it refused to pass the State Security Law of 1974 which caused a period of political suppression with the torture of political prisoners and human rights violations. In 2001, Isa’s son Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, who had succeeded him as Emir of Bahrain in 1999, abolished the State Security Law, declared Bahrain a constitutional monarchy following a national referendum, and changed the title of the ruler of Bahrain to King of Bahrain.

On March 6, 1999, at the Al-Sakhir Palace in Sakhir, Bahrain, 65-year-old Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain died of a heart attack just minutes after concluding a meeting with the United States Secretary of Defense William Cohen. Isa had suffered heart problems in the past. In 1998, he visited Cleveland, Ohio to undergo heart treatment.

Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain was buried at the Al-Rifa’a Cemetery with crowds of people showering the 12-mile funeral route with flowers in a traditional display of mourning. Isa’s son and successor Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, now Emir of Bahrain, and Isa’s brother Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, attended the funeral which was held within hours of Isa’s death following the Islamic custom of quick burial. Many of the 10,000 mourners at the royal cemetery pushed forward to help members of the royal family carry the wooden bier on which Isa’s cloth-wrapped body was carried from an ambulance to his grave.

Although he had dissolved Parliament in 1975 and took on absolute power, during Isa’s 38 years as Emir, Bahrain was transformed into a modern nation and became an important financial center in the Persian Gulf area. President Bill Clinton called him “a good friend of peace” and United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan described him as “a force for stability” in the region.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ar.wikipedia.org. 2020. عيسى بن سلمان آل خليفة. [online] Available at: <https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%B3%D9%89_%D8%A8%D9%86_%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86_%D8%A2%D9%84_%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%81%D8%A9> [Accessed 3 August 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Isa Bin Salman Al Khalifa. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isa_bin_Salman_Al_Khalifa> [Accessed 3 August 2020].
• Nytimes.com. 2020. Bahrain Emir Dies In Palace After Meeting On U.S. Arms. [online] Available at: <https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/07/world/bahrain-emir-dies-in-palace-after-meeting-on-us-arms.html?ref=oembed> [Accessed 3 August 2020].
• Royalark.net. 2020. Bahrain Royal Genealogy. [online] Available at: <https://www.royalark.net/Bahrain/bahrain10.htm> [Accessed 3 August 2020].
• Tulsa World. 1999. Bahrain’s Emir Dies Suddenly. [online] Available at: <https://tulsaworld.com/archive/bahrains-emir-dies-suddenly/article_72c18e9d-2f63-5b15-a2a5-31a932fb68a7.html> [Accessed 3 August 2020].

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2014

Sheikh Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, King of Bahrain

King Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain was born January 28, 1950, in Riffa, Bahrain, the eldest son of Emir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain and his wife, Hessa bint Salman Al Khalifa.

He began his primary education in Bahrain at the age of 6, along with studying the principles of Islam and the Arabic Language. Upon completing his primary education in 1964, he was proclaimed Crown Prince. He completed his secondary education at Applegarth College, and The Leys School, both in England. He then undertook military training with the British Army at the Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot, Hampshire and the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. He later attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College, graduating with a degree in leadership in 1973.

Hamad was a driving force in the establishment of the Bahrain Defense Force (BDF) and was appointed Commander-in-Chief. He later served as Minister of Defense, and as Deputy Head of the Al Khalifa Family Council. An avid helicopter pilot, Hamad was instrumental in establishing the Bahrain Air Force.

Upon his father’s death on March 6, 1999, he became the Emir of Bahrain. Three years later, in 2002, he elevated the Emirate to a Kingdom and proclaimed himself the first King of Bahrain.

King Hamad has four wives, and a total of twelve children.

• First wife (also his first cousin): Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, had three sons and one daughter:
  • Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain (born 1969)
  • Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa (born 1975)
  • Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1977)
  • Sheikha Najla bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1981)
• Second wife: Sheia bint Hassan Al Khrayyesh Al Ajmi, had two sons:
  • Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1987)
  • Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1989)
• Third wife: Hessa bint Faisal Muhammad Shreim Al-Marri, had one son and two daughters
  • Sheikh Faisal bin Hamad Al Khalifa (1991 – 2006), died in a car accident
  • Sheikha Noura bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1993)
  • Sheikha Munira bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 1990)
• Fourth wife: Binh bint Jabr Al-Nuaimi, had one son and two daughters:
  • Sheikh Sultan bin Hamad Al Khalifa
  • Sheikha Hessa bint Hamad Al Khalifa
  • Sheikha Rima bint Hamad Al Khalifa (born 2002)

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.