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Faisal II (, 1935 - July 14 , 1958 ) was the last King Of Iraq from April 4 , 1939 to 1958 . He was the son of the second King Of Iraq , Ghazi , who was killed in an automobile accident when Faisal was three. For most of his reign his uncle 'Abd Al-Ilah ruled as Regent (until Faisal came of age in 1953 ). As a teen, Faisal attended Harrow School in the United Kingdom , together with his cousin King Hussein of Jordan . The two boys were close, and reportedly planned even then to merge their two realms to counter what they considered the threat of militant Pan-Arab Nationalism . On February 1 1958 neighbouring Syria joined with Nasser's Egypt to form the United Arab Republic . This prompted the Hashemite kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan to strengthen their position by establishing a similar bloc. Just two weeks later, on February 14 , this was signed into existence as the Arab Federation Of Iraq And Jordan . Faisal, as the senior member of the Hashemite family, became head of state. The reign of Faisal, together with the new state, came to an end a mere five months later. During the summer Hussein asked for Iraqi military assistance in Jordan. A military officer, Abdul Karim Qassim , used the resulting troop movements as the opportunity to stage a coup, capturing Baghdad and proclaiming a republic on July 14 . The young king and other members of his family surrendered, but Faisal and Abd al-Ilah were killed by an army officer as they left the palace. |