The King had more sons with their mother, Hussa bint Ahmed Al Sudairi, than he did with any of his other wives.
[1] The Sudairi Seven – the seven sons of King Abdulaziz and Hassa bint Ahmed – were the largest bloc of full brothers[4][5] and as a consequence, were able to wield a degree of coordinated influence and power.
[6] King Abdulaziz and Hassa bint Ahmed married twice;[7][8] their first marriage started in 1913[7] and may have produced a son, Prince Sa'ad (1914–19).
[17] Unlike many of King Abdulaziz's other sons who dealt much more with business activities, the Sudairi Seven tended to be interested in politics.
One of the earliest significant roles played by the Sudairi Seven was in March 1962 when they collaborated with Crown Prince Faisal.
[6] King Khalid reduced Sudairi Seven's power concerning succession in 1977 when he was in London for treatment.
[19][20] The Sudairis consolidated their hold over these fiefs by appointing their brothers and sons to their own ministries and other key positions.
[6] His other son Prince Khalid, the co-commander with U.S. General Norman Schwarzkopf in the Gulf War (1991), became vice defence minister.
Upon Prince Abdullah's accession to the throne, he created a new family council, the Allegiance Commission, to determine the future succession.
Lastly, another Sudairi Prince Turki, who returned to Riyadh in early 2011 after a long and at least partly voluntary exile in Cairo, was said to agitate for a more senior position.
[26] However, although the Sudairi brothers support each other against other princes, each attempts to form, with his sons, another power group.
His son Mohammad bin Salman became both minister of defense and secretary general of the Court, combining two of the most powerful offices in the government, and Mohammed bin Nayef bypassed hundreds of senior princes to become the first of the third generation to be officially placed in the line of succession.
Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud was named as deputy crown prince by his father, thus effectively putting the future of the throne in the Sudairi Seven clan's firm grip.