Early Life
Abdullah was born in Amman to King Hussein of Jordan during his marriage to British-born Princess Muna al-Hussein (born Antoinette Avril Gardiner). He was the king's eldest son and as such he was heir apparent to the throne of Jordan under the 1952 constitution. However, due to unstable times in the 1960s, King Hussein decided to appoint his brother, Prince Hassan bin Talal, as his heir.
King Abdullah II attended St Edmund's School, Hindhead, Surrey, before moving on to Eaglebrook School and Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Massachusetts. He joined the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1980, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, and served as a troop commander in the 13th/18th Royal Hussars. In 1982, King Abdullah II attended Pembroke College at Oxford University where he completed a one-year Special Studies course in Middle Eastern Affairs. In 1987, he attended the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Abdullah would later serve in the Jordanian forces and became Major General in May 1998.
In the 1980s, King Hussein considered arranging for the throne to pass to his brother and then to his son Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, but changed his mind by 1992. He seriously considered appointing one of his nephews as heir, but on his deathbed, on 25 January 1999, he named Abdullah as his heir. On 8 April 2012 Sheikh Nazim declared Abdullah to be Caliph ordering his followers to give allegiance to him.
Read more about this topic: Abdullah II Of Jordan
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or life:
“As I went forth early on a still and frosty morning, the trees looked like airy creatures of darkness caught napping; on this side huddled together, with their gray hairs streaming, in a secluded valley which the sun had not penetrated; on that, hurrying off in Indian file along some watercourse, while the shrubs and grasses, like elves and fairies of the night, sought to hide their diminished heads in the snow.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“While each child is born with his or her own distinct genetic potential for physical, social, emotional and cognitive development, the possibilities for reaching that potential remain tied to early life experiences and the parent-child relationship within the family.”
—Bernice Weissbourd (20th century)