He was born in Tabriz, the son of Crown Prince Mohammad Hassan Mirza and his second wife Mohtaram Razzaghi.

[citation needed] His early years were spent at Golestan Palace until he was sent by his father at the age of 4 to be educated in England.

In 1934 Hamid Mirza enrolled in the Thames Nautical Training College aboard HMS Worcester in Greenhithe, Kent.

At the outbreak of World War II, Hamid Mirza tried to join the Royal Navy but was not accepted.

Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden asked him to adopt a British name for his service, due to possible political or diplomatic complications.

[3] During the war there were discussions between the British government and Hamid Mirza and his father about the possible restoration of the Qajar dynasty, since Reza Shah had been deposed.

[2] He became head and the Heir Presumptive of the Qajar dynasty on the death of his cousin Fereydoun Mirza on 24 September 1975.