Hussein Pasha Hosni
Hussein Pacha Hosni (2 December 1896 – 26 November 1985) was the personal secretary and close confidant of King Farouk I, the last king of Egypt. He was born in Cairo into a traditional Egyptian noble family with Albanian roots.
He studied a lot. He earned a bachelor’s degree with honors from the Supreme School for Teachers and then earned a doctorate in history and politics from the University of Montpellier in France, writing about the Suez Canal and Egyptian policy. He also studied at the Sorbonne, Oxford, and Cambridge. He spoke Turkish, French, English, Italian, and German.
Three early events shaped his thinking: the rise of Turkey and Japan, the Denshawai incident, and Mustafa Kamil Pasha’s push for independence. After teaching, he worked in education and suggested translating and sharing important Egyptian documents from London, Paris, and Vienna with researchers.
In February 1925 he joined the Foreign Office as vice-consul in Izmir, Turkey, then served as consul in Naples. In 1928 he was King Fouad’s delegate to the Imam of Yemen. He later became assistant to the Chief of Cabinet and then Secretary for Ceremonies. He eventually became the king’s private secretary and trusted advisor, serving until the monarchy ended on 26 July 1952.
He wrote Days With King Farouk, the memoirs of Farouk’s personal secretary, in Arabic.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 23:39 (CET).