Hussein Kamel was the second son of Khedive Ismail Pasha, who ruled Egypt from 1863 to 1879.

He was declared Sultan of Egypt on 19 December 1914, after the occupying British forces had deposed his nephew, Khedive Abbas Hilmi II, on 5 November 1914.

This brought to an end the de jure Ottoman sovereignty over Egypt, which had been largely nominal since Muhammad Ali's seizure of power in 1805.

At the beginning of Naguib Mahfouz's novel Palace Walk, Ahmad Abd al-Jawwad says "What a fine man Prince Kamal al-Din Husayn is!

"[1] Stereoscope photographs of the coronation and burial processions of Sultan Hussein are available on the Rare Books and Special Collections Digital Library of the American University in Cairo.