Profile Text
Birth Name: Her Sultanic Highness Princess Fawzia bint Fuad
Date of Birth: 5 November, 1921
Place of Birth: Ras el-Tin Palace, Alexandria, Sultanate of Egypt (now Egypt)
Date of Death: 2 July, 2013
Place of Death: Alexandria, Egypt
Ethnicity: Egyptian, Albanian, Turkish, Circassian, one eighth French
Fawzia of Egypt (فوزية) was an Egyptian princess. She was the daughter of Fuad I of Egypt and Nazli Sabri. She became the first wife of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi , and thus received the title of Shahbanu of Iran, from 16 September, 1941 to 17 November, 1948; they were teenagers when they married. She was of the Muhammad Ali house by birth, and of the Pahlavi house by marriage. Her gaze was often compared to that of film stars Hedy Lamarr and Vivien Leigh. She was also known as Fawzia Pahlavi and Fawzia Chirine.
Fawzia was born in Ras el-Tin Palace, Alexandria. Her father was born in Giza Palace, Cairo, Khedivate of Egypt, then in the Ottoman Empire, and was Sultan of Egypt, from 9 October, 1917 to 15 March, 1922, and King of Egypt and Sovereign of Nubia, the Sudan, Kordofan and Darfur, from 15 March, 1922 to 28 April, 1936. He was a fourth-generation ruler of Egypt. Her mother was born in Alexandria, Khedivate of Egypt, and came from a prominent political family. She was Egypt’s first Queen Consort. Fawzia’s brother was Farouk of Egypt, who was King of Egypt and the Sudan, from 28 April, 1936 to 26 July, 1952, when he was overthrown in a military coup; and Head of the House of Alawiyya, from 28 April, 1936 to 18 March, 1965. Her maternal uncle, Hussein Sabri Pasha, was an influential politician, who was Governor of Alexandria, from 1925 to 1937.
Fawzia was later married to royal diplomat Ismail Chirine, until his death. She had a daughter, Shahnaz Pahlavi, with Reza Pahlavi; and two children with Ismail. Shahnaz was married to politician and diplomat Ardeshir Zahedi. Fawzia was a Sunni Muslim.
Fawzia’s great-great-grandfather, viceroy and governor Muhammad Ali of Egypt, was an ethnic Albanian Muslim, who was Wāli of Egypt, its de facto ruler, from 17 May, 1805 to 20 July, 1848. He was considered modern Egypt’s founder. Fawzia was also of Egyptian, other Albanian, Turkish, Circassian, and one eighth French, descent. She was also said to have had Greek ancestry. It is not clear if this is accurate.
Fawzia’s paternal grandfather was Isma’il Pasha of Egypt, known as Ismail the Magnificent (the son of Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt and Hoshiyar Qadin). Fawzia’s grandfather Isma’il Pasha was born in Cairo, Egypt Eyalet, Ottoman Empire, and was Khedive (ruler) of Egypt and Sudan, from 19 January, 1863 to 26 June, 1879. Fawzia’s great-grandfather Ibrahim Pasha was born in Kavala or Nusratlı, Drama, Rumelia Eyalet, Ottoman Empire, now Kavala, Greece, and was a general and politician. He was Wāli of Egypt, also including Sudan, Syria (incl. Palestine and Transjordan), Hejaz, Morea, Thasos, Crete, from 20 July, 1848 to 10 November, 1848. He was the son of Muhammad Ali of Egypt and Amina Hanim, who was Fawzia’s great-great-grandfather’s first princess consort. Muhammad Ali was born in Ottoman Albania, the son of ethnic Albanian parents, Ibrahim Agha, a tobacco and shipping merchant; and Zaynab Hanim. He was the grandson of Muslim Albanian notable Çorbaci Husain Agha. Fawzia’s great-great-grandmother Amina was born in Nikiforos, Rumelia Eyalet, Ottoman Empire, now Greece, the daughter of Nusretli Ali Agha, governor of Kavala; and a relative of the Chorbaji.
Fawzia’s great-grandmother Hoshiyar was a consort to her great-grandfather. She was described as being of Circassian or European origin.
Fawzia’s paternal grandmother was named Ferial Qadin. Ferial was a consort to Ismail Pasha.
Fawzia’s maternal grandfather was Abdel Rahim Sabri Pasha (the son of Hussein Sabri and Niaz Hanim). Abdel was born in Alexandria, Egypt, and was Governor of Monufia, from 1913 to 1917, Governor of Cairo, from 24 December, 1917 to 2 June, 1919, and Minister of Agriculture, from 23 May, 1919 to 20 November, 1919. Fawzia’s great-grandfather Hussein was said to have been governor of several regions.
Fawzia’s maternal grandmother was Tawfika Sherif/Cherif Hanim/Khanum (the daughter of Mohamed/Muhammad Sherif/Sharif/Cherif Pasha and Nazli al-Faransawi Hanim). Fawzia’s great-grandfather Mohamed was born in Kavala, Rumelia Eyalet, then in the Ottoman Empire, now Greece, and was a statesman. He was Prime Minister of Egypt, from 7 April, 1879 to 18 August, 1879, again, from 14 September, 1881 to 4 February, 1882, and again, from 21 August, 1882 to 7 January, 1884. He was the son of Ahmad Cherif. Fawzia’s great-grandmother Nazli’s father was Col. Joseph Anthelme Sèves, who was born in Lyon, Rhône, Rhone-Alpes, France, the son of Anthelme Sève/Sevoz and Antoinette Juillet. He was a French non-commissioned officer who became Suleiman Pasha under Mehmet Ali. Nazli’s mother was Maria Myriam Hanem.
Sources: Genealogies of Fawzia of Egypt – https://www.findagrave.com https://www.geni.com