Muhammad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | |||||
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Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia | |||||
Tenure | 2 November 1964 – 29 March 1965 | ||||
Predecessor | Faisal bin Abdulaziz | ||||
Successor | Khalid bin Abdulaziz | ||||
Monarch | Faisal | ||||
Governor of Al Madinah Province | |||||
Tenure | December 1925–1954 | ||||
Predecessor | Office established | ||||
Successor | Abdul Muhsin bin Abdulaziz | ||||
Monarch | Abdulaziz Saud Faisal | ||||
Born | Riyadh, Emirate of Riyadh | 4 March 1910||||
Died | 25 November 1988 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | (aged 78)||||
Burial | 25 November 1988 Al Oud cemetery, Riyadh | ||||
Spouse | Sara bint Saad bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud | ||||
Issue | 8 | ||||
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House | Al Saud | ||||
Father | King Abdulaziz | ||||
Mother | Al Jawhara bint Musaed Al Jiluwi | ||||
Occupation |
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Muhammad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (Arabic: محمد بن عبد العزيز آل سعود Muḥammad bin ʿAbdulʿazīz Āl Saʿūd; 4 March 1910 – 25 November 1988) was the crown prince of Saudi Arabia from 1964 to 1965 and the nominal governor of Al Madinah Province from 1925 to 1954. He resigned as crown prince in order to pave the way for his brother Khalid bin Abdulaziz to become the heir apparent. Prince Muhammad was one of the wealthiest and most powerful members of the House of Saud. His advice was sought and deferred to in all matters by his brothers.
Prince Muhammad was a son of King Abdulaziz and Al Jawhara bint Musaed Al Jiluwi. He often played a role in his father's campaigns which resulted in the formation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He opposed the appointment of his elder half-brother Saud as the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. Prince Muhammad was the acting viceroy of Hejaz in 1932 during the absence of the viceroy Faisal bin Abdulaziz (later king), another of his half-brothers, from the country. The royal family council, under the leadership of Prince Muhammad, deposed King Saud and placed Faisal on the throne in 1964.
After taking the throne, King Faisal nominated Prince Muhammad as crown prince, but he stepped away from the succession. His younger full brother, Prince Khalid, then became crown prince. Following the assassination of King Faisal in 1975, the members of the royal family council including Prince Muhammad proclaimed Khalid as king. Prince Muhammad was an important advisor to King Khalid. He was a traditionalist who opposed efforts at modernising Saudi Arabia in the late 1970s, believing the reforms would harm the country's traditional Islamic values. He ordered the controversial execution of his granddaughter Misha'al bint Fahd on charges of adultery in 1977. He led the family council in swearing allegiance to his younger half-brother Fahd as king upon the death of King Khalid in 1982. Six years later, Prince Muhammad died aged 78.