The Prophet founder of the Bahá'í Faith, Mirza Husayn Ali, was born the son of a wealthy nobleman in Persia (modern day Iran) in 1817.  He later became known by the title, Bahá'u'lláh, which means "The Glory of God".  He distinguished himself from early childhood as being wise beyond His years and much concerned about the welfare of others.  As a youth, He was sought out by the Persian divines and officials for His insightful interpretations of complex scriptures and the resolution of difficult problems.  

In 1844, a young man in the city of Shiraz began to preach a new religion.  He called Himself  The Bab (see History of the Bahá'í Faith) and declared that His purpose was to prepare the way for another Prophet (or "Manifestation of God") who would usher in a long awaited Day of Peace and Prosperity for humankind.  He continually made reference to "Him Whom God Will make Manifest", describing Him as the Promised One of all religions.  Bahá'u'lláh was one of the early and most prominent of the followers of the Bab (called Babis).   The Bab was martyred in 1850.

It was in 1852 in a prison dungeon, where He had been sent for being a follower of The Bab, that Bahá'u'lláh realized, through a vision, that He was the successor to whom The Bab had so frequently referred. Bahá'u'lláh made the public declaration of His mission ten years later in 1863 in a garden called Ridvan in Baghdad to many who were already aware of His station. 

It was Bahá'u'lláh's social standing that prevented Him from being executed. It did not, however, prevent Him from being banished several times by government and ecclesiastical authorities during the last four decades of His life.  He, His family, and many of His followers (called Bahá'ís) suffered great hardships and deprivation.  The last place to which Bahá'u'lláh and His family were exiled was Akka, Israel, the most desolate of prison cities in the Ottoman empire -- a fortress prison, dating back to the crusades, where the very worst criminals were sent with the expectation that they would not survive the experience.  Bahá'u'lláh died near Akka just north of Haifa in 1892.  Today, the Shrine of  Bahá'u'lláh can be visited there. The Shrine of The Báb and the buildings of the Bahá'í World Center are in Haifa, Israel.

Bahá'ís believe that Bahá'u'lláh is the revealer of God's Will for the coming of age of humkind and the Promised One of all religions.  Humkind's maturity calls for no less than the unification of the planet in a world commonwealth, an auxiliary and universal language synthetically created or chosen from the existing languages and the total equality of women and men in every part of the globe, as well as the oneness of God, the oneness of mankind and the essential oneness of religion.  See Bahá'í Teachings to read about other principles espoused by Bahá'u'lláh in His writings.