Ismail Chirine

Ismail Hussein Chirine (17 October 1919 – 14 June 1994) was a royal Egyptian diplomat. He served as commander in chief of the Egyptian army. His ancestors had relations to Muhammad Ali dynasty.[1]

Ismail Chirine
With wife Princess Fawzia
Born17 October 1919
Alexandria, Sultanate of Egypt
Died14 June 1994(1994-06-14) (aged 74)
Alexandria, Egypt
Burial
Cairo
SpousePrincess Fawzia
IssueNadia Chirine
Hussein Chirine
Full name
Ismail Hussein Chirine Bey
HouseMuhammad Ali Dynasty
FatherHussein Chirine
MotherAmina Bahrouz Fadel
ReligionIslam
Ismail Hussein Chirine
Allegiance Kingdom of Egypt
Service/branchArmy
Years of service1939–1952
RankColonel
Honorary Field Marshal
UnitCavalry
Battles/warsWorld War II
1948 Arab–Israeli War

Early life and education

Chirine was born in Alexandria on 17 October 1919 to Hussein Chirine (died 1934) and Princess Amina Bahrouz Fadel (1886–1947).[2] His mother was half Albanian-Egyptian and half Turkish Circassian. She died in an airplane accident near Rome, remarried Ali Rateb from Alexandria and his father married Gulsun Hanem Aflaton. His uncle was the governor of Cairo.[3] From the age of 12, Chirine preferred to live with his aunt Zeinab Chirine, wife of Haidar Pasha.

He was educated at Victoria College in Alexandria, Great Chesterfield College and Trinity College, Cambridge.[2][4]

Career

Chirine assumed different public posts in Egypt. When Chirine returned from the United Kingdom he firstly worked for the Bank El Ahly El Masry. Later he became an officer in the army, where his proficiency in the English language was useful during negotiations in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, together with Rahmani Bey who later became ambassador to Czechoslovakia. Chirine became colonel in the army. He was a member of Egypt's delegation to the 1949 Armistice Agreements in Rhodes. In 1948, he served as secretary of Egyptian delegation to the United Nations.[5] Then he acted as aide-de-champ of King Farouk.[6] In 1949 he served as the press officer for the cabinet.[3]

He briefly became defense minister of Egypt just before the Egyptian Revolution in 1952.[2]

Personal life

Chirine married Princess Fawzia, the sister of King Farouk, in March 1949, five months after the Princess's divorce from the Shah of Iran.[5][7] The wedding ceremony was held in Koubba Palace.[8] Following the wedding they lived in an estate owned by the Princess in Maadi.[8] They also resided in a villa in Smouha.[9]

They had two children, Nadia (19 December 1950[6] – October 2009) and Hussein (born 1955). Their daughter, Nadia, wed to Egyptian actor Youssef Shabaan.[9]

He lived the rest of his life in Alexandria, tending his property in the South of Egypt and spending summers in Switzerland, to allow his wife to meet her eldest daughter, Princess Shahnaz Pahlavi.

Death

Chirine died at military hospital in Alexandria on 14 June 1994 at the age of 74. He was buried in Cairo.[10]

References
  1. "Princess wed by proxy". Daytona Beach Morning. Cairo. UPI. 29 March 1949. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  2. Sahar Hamouda; Colin Clement (2002). Victoria College : A history revealed. American Univ in Cairo Press. p. 65. ISBN 978-977-424-756-9. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  3. "Shah of Iran's Ex-wife to Marry Again..." The Pittsburgh Press. Cairo. UP. 27 March 1949. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
  4. "Princess Fawzia engaged". The Indian Expree. 28 March 1949. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  5. "Bride absent from wedding". Saskatoon Star Phoenix. Cairo. AP. 31 March 1949. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  6. "Girl is born to Princess Fawzia". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Cairo. AP. 20 December 1950. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  7. "Princess Fawzia Fuad of Egypt". The Telegraph. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
  8. "Princess Fawzia weds diplomat". Meriden Record. 29 March 1949. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
  9. Sami, Soheir (4–10 June 1998). "Profile: Youssef Shaaban". Al Ahram Weekly (380). Archived from the original on 22 December 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  10. Ghazal, Rym (8 July 2013). "A forgotten Egyptian Princess remembered". The National. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
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