List of current monarchs of sovereign states explained

A monarch is the head of a monarchy, a form of government in which a state is ruled by an individual who normally rules for life or until abdication, and typically inherits the throne by birth.^[1] Monarchs may be autocrats (as in all absolute monarchies)^[2] or may be ceremonial figureheads, exercising only limited or no reserve powers at all, with actual authority vested in a legislature and/or executive cabinet (as in many constitutional monarchies).^[3] In many cases, a monarch will also be linked with a state religion.^[4] Most states only have a single monarch at any given time, although a regent may rule when the monarch is a minor, not present, or otherwise incapable of ruling.^[5] Cases in which two monarchs rule simultaneously over a single state, as is the current situation in Andorra, are known as coregencies.^[6]

A variety of titles are applied in English; for example, "king" and "queen", "prince" and "princess", "grand duke" and "grand duchess", "emperor" and "empress". Although they will be addressed differently in their local languages, the names and titles in the list below have been styled using the common English equivalent. Roman numerals, used to distinguish related rulers with the same name,^[7] have been applied where typical.

In political and sociocultural studies, monarchies are normally associated with hereditary rule; most monarchs, in both historical and contemporary contexts, have been born and raised within a royal family.^{[6] [8]} Succession has been defined using a variety of distinct formulae, such as proximity of blood, primogeniture, and agnatic seniority. Some monarchies, however, are not hereditary, and the ruler is instead determined through an elective process; a modern example is the throne of Malaysia.^[9] These systems defy the model concept of a monarchy, but are commonly considered as such because they retain certain associative characteristics.^[10] Many systems use a combination of hereditary and elective elements, where the election or nomination of a successor is restricted to members of a royal bloodline.^{[11] [12]}

Entries below are listed beside their respective dominions, which are organised alphabetically. These monarchs reign as head of state in their respective sovereign states. Monarchs reigning over a constituent division, cultural or traditional polity are listed under constituent monarchs. For a list of former ruling families or abolished thrones, see: former ruling families.

Monarchs by country

Title	Monarch (Birth year)		Sovereign state(s)	Since	Length	House	Type	Heir to the throne
Co-Prince	Joan Enric Vives i Sicília<	-- --> (b. 1949)	<	-- -->	Andorra				Ceremonial	Ex officio	^[13] ^[14]
	Emmanuel Macron (b. 1977)
King	Charles III (b. 1948)		Antigua and Barbuda Australia Belize Canada Grenada Jamaica New Zealand Papua New Guinea Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Solomon Islands Tuvalu United Kingdom			Windsor	Ceremonial	William, Prince of Wales	^[15] ^[16] ^[17] ^[18] ^[19] ^[20] ^[21] ^[22] ^[23] ^[24] ^[25] ^[26] ^[27] ^[28] ^[29]
King	Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa (b. 1950)		Bahrain				Executive	Salman, Crown Prince of Bahrain	^[30]
King	Philippe (b. 1960)		Belgium				Ceremonial	Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant	^[31]
Druk Gyalpo	Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (b. 1980)		Bhutan				Executive	Jigme Namgyel	^[32]
Sultan	Hassanal Bolkiah (b. 1946)						Absolute	Al-Muhtadee Billah	^[33]
King	Norodom Sihamoni (b. 1953)		Cambodia				Ceremonial	Hereditary and elective
King	Frederik X (b. 1968)						Ceremonial	Christian, Crown Prince of Denmark	^[34]
King	Mswati III (b. 1968)						Absolute	Hereditary and elective
Emperor	Naruhito (b. 1960)		Japan				Ceremonial	Fumihito, Prince Akishino (Heir presumptive)	^[35]
King	Abdullah II (b. 1962)		Jordan				Executive	Hereditary and elective (presumably Hussein bin Abdullah)	^[36] ^[37]
Emir	Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (b. 1940)		Kuwait				Executive	Hereditary and elective (presumably Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah)	^[38]
King	Letsie III (b. 1963)		Lesotho				Ceremonial	Lerotholi Seeiso	^[39] ^[40]
Prince	Hans-Adam II (b. 1945)		Liechtenstein				Executive	The Hereditary Prince Alois (currently Prince Regent)	^[41]
Grand Duke	Henri (b. 1955)		Luxembourg				Ceremonial	Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg	^[42]
Yang di-Pertuan Agong	Ibrahim Iskandar (b. 1958)		Malaysia				Ceremonial & Federal	Elective (presumably Nazrin Shah)	^[43]
Prince	Albert II (b. 1958)		Monaco				Executive	Jacques, Hereditary Prince of Monaco	^[44]
King	Mohammed VI (b. 1963)		Morocco				Executive	Moulay Hassan, Crown Prince of Morocco	^[45]
King	Willem-Alexander (b. 1967)						Ceremonial	Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange	^[46]
King	Harald V (b. 1937)		Norway				Ceremonial	Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway	^[47]
Sultan	Haitham bin Tariq (b. 1954)		Oman				Absolute	Theyazin bin Haitham	^[48]
Emir	Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (b. 1980)		Qatar				Executive^[49]	Abdullah bin Hamad	^[50]
King	Salman (b. 1935)		Saudi Arabia				Absolute	Mohammed bin Salman	^[51]
King	Felipe VI (b. 1968)		Spain				Ceremonial	Leonor, Princess of Asturias (Heir presumptive)	^[52]
King	Carl XVI Gustaf (b. 1946)		Sweden				Ceremonial	Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden	^[53]
King	Vajiralongkorn (b. 1952)		Thailand				Ceremonial	Dipangkorn Rasmijoti (Heir presumptive)	^[54]
King	Tupou VI (b. 1959)		Tonga				Executive	Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala
President	Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (b. 1961)		United Arab Emirates				Executive & Federal	Hereditary and elective (presumably Khaled bin Mohamed Al Nahyan)	^[55]
Pope	Francis (b. 1936)		(Holy See)				Absolute	Elective	^[56]

See also

• List of current reigning monarchs by length of reign
• List of current non-sovereign monarchs
• List of current heads of state and government
• Heads of former ruling families
• List of monarchies
• List of living former sovereign monarchs
• List of current heirs apparent
• List of current consorts of sovereigns
• Records of heads of state

External links

• Web site: Soszynski, Henry . Genealogical Gleanings: Royal and Noble Lineages . University of Queensland . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110512204117/http://uqconnect.net/~zzhsoszy/ . 12 May 2011.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Monarch . CollinsDictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition. . 22 September 2012.
2. Book: Herb, Michael . All in the family: absolutism, revolution, and democracy in the Middle East . SUNY Press . 1999 . New York . 235 . 978-0-7914-4168-8.
3. Book: Spellman, W. M. . Monarchies 1000–2000 . Reaktion Books . 2001 . London . 22–23 . 978-1-86189-087-0.
4. Book: Harris, Nathanial . Systems of Government: Monarchy . Evans Brothers . 2009 . London . 38 . 978-0-237-53932-0.
5. Web site: Regent . CollinsDictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition. . 22 September 2012.
6. Book: Hindley, Geoffrey . The Royal Families of Europe . Constable & Robinson . 2000 . London . 1–6 . 978-0-7867-0828-4.
7. Book: Merriam-Webster's manual for writers and editors . Merriam-Webster, Inc . 1998 . Springfield, United States . 94 . 978-0-87779-622-0.
8. Book: Forty, Sandra . Millidge, Judith; Riley, Ed . World Royal Families . Book Sales, Inc . 2009 . United States . 94 . 978-0-7858-2530-2.
9. [s:Constitution of Malaysia#Article 32|Constitution of Malaysia, Art. 32, Sec. 3]
10. Book: Bouvier, John . Rawle, Francis . Bouvier's Law Dictionary and Concise Encyclopedia . 2 . 3rd . Vernon Law Book Company . 1914 . 2237–2238.
11. Book: Shawcross, William . Cambodia's new deal: a report . Carnegie Endowment for International Peace . 1994 . 106 . 978-0-87003-051-2 .
12. Book: Garner, James Wilford . Introduction to Political Science: A Treatise on the Origin, Nature, Functions, and Organization of the State . American Book Company . 1910 . 169–178 . 978-1-115-59599-5.
13. Web site: Government of Andorra . Recepció de Nadal del copríncep episcopal Joan-Enric Vives . Portal web del Govern d’Andorra . Government of Andorra . 23 December 2009 . 7 December 2010 . ca.
14. [s:Constitution of Andorra|Constitution of Andorra, Ch. 3]
15. Web site: Government of the United Kingdom . The King of the Commonwealth . Official website of the British Monarchy . The Royal Household . 12 April 2010.
16. Constitution of Antigua and Barbuda, Art. 68.
17. [s:Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act#Chapter II. The Executive Government.|Constitution of Australia, Art. 61]
18. Constitution of the Bahamas, Art. 71.
19. Constitution of Belize, Art. 36.
20. Constitution of Canada, Art. 9.
21. Constitution of Grenada, Art. 57.
22. Constitution of Jamaica, Art. 68.
23. Constitution Act 1986: Part 1.
24. [s:Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea/Part V|Constitution of Papua New Guinea, Art. 82]
25. Constitution of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Art. 51.
26. Constitution of Saint Lucia, Art. 59.
27. Constitution of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Art. 50.
28. Constitution of Solomon Islands, Art. 1.
29. Constitution of Tuvalu, Art. 48.
30. The Kingdom of Bahrain: The Constitutional Changes . The Estimate . The International Estimate, Inc. . 22 February 2002 . 12 November 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091003120816/http://www.theestimate.com/public/022202b.html . 3 October 2009.
31. Web site: Government of Belgium . King Philippe . The Belgian Monarchy . Federal Public Service; Chancery of the Prime Minister . 22 July 2013.
32. News: Staff writer . Bhutanese king steps down early . BBC News . 15 December 2006 . British Broadcasting Corporation . 13 November 2011.
33. Web site: Government of Brunei . Prime Minister . The Royal Ark . Office of the Prime Minister . 12 November 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111007033949/http://www.pmo.gov.bn/pmo1/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50&Itemid=82 . 7 October 2011.
34. Web site: Government of Denmark . Her Majesty The Queen of Denmark . The Danish Monarchy . Royal Court of Denmark . 12 April 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100625042848/http://kongehuset.dk/publish.php?dogtag=k_en_fam_oue . 25 June 2010.
35. Web site: Government of Japan . Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress . Imperial Household Agency . 12 April 2010.
36. Web site: Government of Jordan . His Majesty King Abdullah II . Abdullah II Official Website . The Royal Hashemite Court . 12 November 2011.
37. Web site: Government of Jordan . The Hashemites: Introduction . Office of King Hussein I . The Royal Hashemite Court . 7 December 2010.
38. Web site: 2023-12-16 . Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah named Emir of Kuwait . 2023-12-16 . . en.
39. Web site: Government of Lesotho . His Majesty King Letsie III . The Lesotho Monarchy . 28 April 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20090626212620/http://www.lesotho.gov.ls/articles/2004/King_Birth_2004/king.html. 26 June 2009.
40. Web site: Olivier, J . Basotho in Lesotho . Sesotho Online . 7 December 2010.
41. Web site: Prince Hans-Adam II . Das Furstenhaus von Liechtenstein . Princely House of Liechtenstein . https://web.archive.org/web/20230601064143/https://fuerstenhaus.li/en/the-princely-house/h-s-h-prince-hans-adam-ii/. 1 June 2023.
42. Web site: Government of Luxembourg . Grand Duke Henri . Press and Information Service . 11 November 2010.
43. Web site: National Library of Malaysia . Yang di-Pertuan Agong XIV . Government of Malaysia . 5 January 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120114110652/http://www.malaysianmonarchy.org.my/malaysianmonarchy/?q=en%2Fydpa14 . 14 January 2012 . dead.
44. Web site: The House of Grimaldi . Infinite Public Relations . 12 April 2010.
45. News: Laurenson, John . The most powerful man in Morocco . BBC News . 11 March 2006 . British Broadcasting Corporation . 15 November 2011.
46. Web site: Government of the Netherlands . Zijne Majesteit Koning Willem-Alexander . nl . His Majesty King Willem-Alexander . The Dutch Royal House . Government Information Service . 30 April 2013.
47. Web site: Government of Norway . His Majesty King Harald . Official website of the Royal House of Norway . Royal Court of Norway . 7 December 2010.
48. Book: Nyrop, Richard F . Area Handbook for the Persian Gulf States . Wildside Press LLC . 2008 . 341 . 978-1-4344-6210-7.
49. News: Thafer . Dania . Qatar's first elected parliament may have more power than other Persian Gulf legislatures. Here's why. . 2 April 2022 . . 14 October 2021.
50. Web site: Government of Qatar . H.H. The Amir's Biography . Amiri Diwan . 18 February 2018.
51. News: Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah dies . . 23 January 2015 . 23 January 2015.
52. Web site: The Royal Household of His Majesty the King . His Majesty the King Juan Carlos . The Royal Household of His Majesty the King . 3 June 2014.
53. Web site: Government of Sweden . H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf . Sveriges Kungahus . Information and Press Department . 7 December 2010 . sv.
54. Web site: The Illustrious Chakri Family . Mahidol University . 28 April 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090201152646/http://mahidol.ac.th/thailand/chakri.html . 1 February 2009.
55. Web site: 13 May 2022 . President Sheikh Khalifa dies aged 73 . 13 May 2022 . The National . en.
56. News: Argentina's Jorge Mario Bergoglio elected Pope . . 13 March 2013 . 13 March 2013.