Founder’s life … This is how late King Abdulaziz ruled Saudi Arabia

It has been 68 years since the death of King Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al-Faisal Al Saud, founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but the nation’s memory has been shrinking the personal details of this inspiring leader.

Historians differed about the date of the birth of King Abdulaziz Al Saud, but many of them went to the sources of historian Hashem bin Saeed Al-Naami who explained that he was born in the city of Riyadh in 1876, according to what was mentioned in a historical volume from among 12 volumes printed by the King Abdulaziz House on the biography and personality of the king Abdulaziz and the stages of building the third Saudi state.

Riyadh’s city came under the rule of the first and second Saudi state, then returned to the rule of the third Saudi state by King Abdulaziz Al Saud in 1902. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud assumed the twenty-fifth son of the founding king twice in the Emirate of Riyadh.

Late King Abdulaziz insisted on returning to Riyadh, which is a historical extension of the path of the parents and grandparents, he was born and brought up in it.

Late King Abdulaziz learned from his scholars after his father, Imam Abdul Rahman bin Faisal Al Saud, entrusted him to Judge Abdullah Al-Kharji to teach him the Holy Qur’an and reading and writing when he was seven years old.

At the age of ten, Late King Abdulaziz received his achievement in jurisprudence and monotheism at the hands of Sheikh Abdullah bin Abdul Latif Al Sheikh, and in parallel with that King, Abdulaziz was learning horse riding and equestrian skills.

King Abdulaziz’s personality was greatly influenced by the personality of his father, Imam Abdul-Rahman Al-Faisal, where he was a father, teacher, brother, and friend of his son, as well as his mother’s character, Princess Sarah Al-Sudairy, who was one of the most thoroughly thoughtful women.

Late King Abdulaziz’s was a lover of his brothers (Khaled, Faisal, Fahd, Muhammad, Noura), But his relationship with Princess Noura occupied a great place in himself until he said: “I am Noura’s brother, I am the brother of Al-Anwar (Lightings),”

Late King Abdulaziz has a strong, captivating, and charismatic personality that affected everyone he met. On the other hand, he had a bright, smiling smile with cheerful reports of what was known about him from the softness of the side, humility, and fun, and his lack of engagement in talking to his people and his flock, as well as his generosity with everyone, so he was not a king Only, he was ahead of a family, a lover of all, and a role model in his actions and behaviors.

The personality of King Abdulaziz dazzled many thinkers and historians in the world, among them the Chinese historian Professor Yang Yanhong, who said of him: “King Abdulaziz was one of the geniuses who provided their nations and homelands with great services through their tremendous efforts, which are not tired or bored, and affected the development and progress of human societies. Toward the desired end, they recorded great feats in the historical record full of immortal glories. “

Dr. von Daisel of Austria, who visited the Kingdom in 1926, described King Abdulaziz as a genius, citing the saying: Ibn Saud succeeded in creating an empire that exceeded the total area of ​​Germany, France, and Italy, together after he was a leader who only initially led many men.

“He managed, with their help, to restore Riyadh, the capital of his ancestors, with no doubts, this man who did this, should be entitled “Genius”. Daisel added.

King Abdulaziz was known for his great respect for the scholars throughout his life, regularly, late Abdulaziz presented scholars to his brothers in his council and listened to them, and that was the reason for King Abdulaziz’s complete belief in the value of science and scholars and their impact on life.

The historians considered the departure of King Abdulaziz, with his father Imam Abdul Rahman and some members of his family from Riyadh in 1891, the most difficult event in his life, as he left it in the age of 12 years, and it was said 15 years.

During the departure trip, the first stop after Riyadh was the “Yabreen” oasis in Al-Ahsa, so Bahrain until they arrived later on to Kuwait, they settled there for several years, during which King Abdulaziz remained hanging in the heart of Riyadh, where he was born and raised, and in which his aspirations and hopes grew.

When King Abdulaziz reached the age of twenty when he was in Kuwait, he headed on the fifth of Ramadan in 1902 to Riyadh on a heroic journey that he led in the company of 40 men so that they could penetrate the desert hollow, whose sands are burning in the hot sun, and they fasted Ramadan in the oasis of “Yibrin” In Al-Ahsa, they returned to a site called “Abu Jafan”.

While walking on the road, King Abdulaziz Al Saud took a seat from the “Yabreen” oasis to implement his plan to restore Riyadh. This oasis is located along the sands of the Empty Quarter from the north, 160 miles south of Al-Ahsa, 175 miles from Riyadh to the east, and during the walk, King Abdulaziz and his men passed In Haradh, which is one of the villages of Al-Ahsa.

In 1902, King Abdulaziz and his men arrived at the “Al Shaqib side” which is about an hour and a half away from Riyadh, and from the side, they advanced to Riyadh, which was entered by King Abdulaziz with the intelligence of the experienced leader and restored things to their right after A long-running heroic protector operation did not last long

Late King Abdulaziz was able to extend the time of the previous era in Riyadh, and announced the beginning of the prosperous era in Najd, after he was pledged to allegiance by the people of Riyadh and their dignitaries in 1903 – as a Prince of Najd and imam of its people.

With the arrival of Ibn Saud to power in the Kingdom, the Arab peninsula witnessed unprecedented political stability after years from the turmoil; unity of governance was one of the most important factors that paved the way for Riyadh to enter a new stage of growth.

King Abdulaziz Al Saud was able, through a long journey in which he spent long walks and thinking, to grasp the diaspora of the country, restore security, and address the chaos that prevailed in the Arabian Peninsula at the time.

Late King Abdulaziz was concerned with the development of the country, so he issued a royal decree in 1932 to transfer the name of the country from (the Kingdom of Hijaz and Najd and its annexes) to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

At the beginning of organizing the affairs of the state, King Abdulaziz directed attention to the two holy mosques and their expansion, serving pilgrims and pilgrims, as well as starting to open schools, establishing hospitals, building villages, soil reform, settlement of the desert, and excavating irrigation water to support agriculture, however, these efforts faced numerous obstacles such as the availability of money, which kept King Abdulaziz thinking until a consultant advised him to search for mineral resources under the ground.

In line with the desire to advance the country, in the autumn of 1933, oil exploration began in some lands of the Kingdom, but four lean years have passed since its work did not yield a satisfactory positive result for the discovery of oil reservoirs until the experts decided to excavate about water well in an area called “Ain Jet” King Abdulaziz had stopped there in 1902 on his way from Kuwait to Riyadh, and the surprise was the presence of oil at a depth of 5000 feet under the ground.

The desert land revived with the exit of oil, which transformed the arid desert of the country with the roar of winds into a dynamic city full of workers, engineers, and oil exports.

King Abdulaziz’s interest in foreign affairs was the same as his interest in the internal affairs of the country.

The founder dealt with all countries of the world with high-level diplomacy taking into account the Kingdom’s right to independence and choosing the nature of its relations with countries without prejudice to its position: religious, civilizational, and cultural, which made it loved by the various leaders of the world countries.

King Abdulaziz sought to settle the country’s situation, and to secure recognition with the neighboring Arab countries first, then with the rest of the Arab and Islamic countries.

 To reach the countries of the world, he concluded agreements and treaties with Arab countries aimed at settling the borders with these countries on the one hand, and creating an atmosphere of peace and security and friendship with it on the other hand, in addition to establishing a diplomatic relationship that meets the interests of the country with these countries of the world without prejudice to its principles.

From here, the Egyptian writer and thinker Abbas Al-Akkad described the personality of King Abdulaziz by saying: “King Abdulaziz was stubborn with the strong, humble with the weak, but he heard the other opinion, and if he was convinced of him, he returned to him, because he took the truth and the law as an imam and a ruler.”

In 1953, King Abdulaziz died after being ill during his stay in Taif.