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List of current reigning monarchs by length of reign facts for kids

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Hassanal Bolkiah, October 2021
Hassanal Bolkiah, the current longest-reigning monarch

This article lists the monarchs who have been ruling their countries for the longest time. A monarch is a king, queen, sultan, or prince who is the head of a country. They usually inherit their position from their family.

This list includes monarchs who rule over entire nations or important parts of nations. It does not include former rulers, people who claim to be monarchs but don't actually rule, or leaders who are only monarchs because of another job they have. It also doesn't include traditional rulers who don't have official power over a country.

Currently, Hassanal Bolkiah is the longest-reigning monarch. He has been the Sultan of Brunei since October 5, 1967. He became the longest-reigning monarch after Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom passed away on September 8, 2022.

Longest-Reigning Monarchs Today

This section shows a list of monarchs who are currently ruling, ordered by how long they have been in power.

Rank Monarch State Born Current age Acceded Years reigned
Reigns as of 16 September 2026 T 13:40 (UTC)
1 Hassanal Bolkiah Brunei 15 July 1946 80 years, 63 days 5 October 1967 58 years, 346 days
2 Sultan bin Mohamed Al-Qassimi III Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) 6 July 1939 87 years, 72 days 25 January 1972 54 years, 234 days
3 Carl XVI Gustaf Sweden 30 April 1946 80 years, 139 days 15 September 1973 53 years, 1 day
4 Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi Fujairah (United Arab Emirates) 22 February 1949 77 years, 206 days 18 September 1974 51 years, 363 days
5 Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi III Ajman (United Arab Emirates) 1 January 1931 95 years, 258 days 6 September 1981 45 years, 10 days
6 Mswati III Eswatini 19 April 1968 58 years, 150 days 25 April 1986 40 years, 144 days
7 Hans-Adam II Liechtenstein 14 February 1945 81 years, 214 days 13 November 1989 36 years, 307 days
8 Harald V Norway 21 February 1937 89 years, 207 days 17 January 1991 35 years, 242 days
9 Letsie III Lesotho 17 July 1963 63 years, 61 days 7 February 1996 34 years, 292 days
10 Mizan Zainal Abidin Terengganu (Malaysia) 22 January 1962 64 years, 237 days 15 May 1998 28 years, 124 days
11 Abdullah II Jordan 30 January 1962 64 years, 229 days 7 February 1999 27 years, 221 days
12 Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa Bahrain 28 January 1950 76 years, 231 days 6 March 1999 27 years, 194 days
13 Mohammed VI Morocco 21 August 1963 63 years, 26 days 23 July 1999 27 years, 55 days
14 Syed Sirajuddin Perlis (Malaysia) 17 May 1943 83 years, 122 days 17 April 2000 26 years, 152 days
15 Henri Luxembourg 16 April 1955 71 years, 153 days 7 October 2000 25 years, 344 days
16 Sharafuddin Idris Shah Selangor (Malaysia) 11 December 1945 80 years, 279 days 22 November 2001 24 years, 298 days
17 Norodom Sihamoni Cambodia 14 May 1953 73 years, 125 days 14 October 2004 21 years, 337 days
18 Albert II Monaco 14 March 1958 68 years, 186 days 6 April 2005 21 years, 163 days
19 Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Dubai (United Arab Emirates) 15 July 1949 77 years, 63 days 4 January 2006 20 years, 255 days
20 Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck Bhutan 21 February 1980 46 years, 207 days 9 December 2006 19 years, 281 days
21 Muhriz Negeri Sembilan (Malaysia) 14 January 1948 78 years, 245 days 29 December 2008 17 years, 261 days
22 Saud bin Rashid Al Mualla Umm al-Quwain (United Arab Emirates) 1 October 1952 73 years, 350 days 2 January 2009 17 years, 257 days
23 Ibrahim Iskandar Johor (Malaysia) 22 November 1958 67 years, 298 days 23 January 2010 16 years, 236 days
24 Muhammad V Kelantan (Malaysia) 6 October 1969 56 years, 345 days 13 September 2010 16 years, 3 days
25 Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Ras al-Khaimah (United Arab Emirates) 10 February 1956 70 years, 218 days 27 October 2010 15 years, 324 days
26 Tupou VI Tonga 12 July 1959 67 years, 66 days 18 March 2012 14 years, 182 days
27 Francis Vatican City 17 December 1936 89 years, 273 days 13 March 2013 13 years, 187 days
28 Willem-Alexander Netherlands 27 April 1967 59 years, 142 days 30 April 2013 13 years, 139 days
29 Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani Qatar 3 June 1980 46 years, 105 days 25 June 2013 13 years, 83 days
30 Philippe Belgium 15 April 1960 66 years, 154 days 21 July 2013 13 years, 57 days
31 Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah Perak (Malaysia) 27 November 1956 69 years, 293 days 29 May 2014 12 years, 110 days
32 Felipe VI Spain 30 January 1968 58 years, 229 days 19 June 2014 12 years, 89 days
33 Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Saudi Arabia 31 December 1935 90 years, 259 days 23 January 2015 11 years, 236 days
34 Vajiralongkorn (Rama X) Thailand 28 July 1952 74 years, 50 days 13 October 2016 9 years, 338 days
35 Mahmud Sallehuddin Kedah (Malaysia) 30 April 1942 84 years, 139 days 11 September 2017 9 years, 5 days
36 Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah Pahang (Malaysia) 30 July 1959 67 years, 48 days 15 January 2019 7 years, 244 days
37 Naruhito Japan 23 February 1960 66 years, 205 days 1 May 2019 7 years, 138 days
38 Haitham bin Tarik Al Said Oman 11 October 1954 71 years, 340 days 11 January 2020 6 years, 248 days
39 Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) 11 March 1961 65 years, 189 days 13 May 2022 4 years, 126 days
40 Charles III Antigua and Barbuda 14 November 1948 77 years, 306 days 8 September 2022 4 years, 8 days
Australia
Bahamas
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
41 Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Kuwait 27 September 1940 85 years, 354 days 16 December 2023 2 years, 274 days
42 Frederik X Denmark 26 May 1968 58 years, 113 days 14 January 2024 2 years, 245 days

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