List of longest-reigning monarchs facts for kids

This article lists some of the longest-reigning monarchs in history. These are kings, queens, and other leaders who ruled for a very long time. Their reigns are ranked by how many years they were in power.

Louis XIV, who ruled for a very long time.

Monarchs of Independent Countries

This section shows the monarchs who ruled countries that were recognized as independent by other nations for most or all of their time in power.

It's important to know that if a monarch had a regent (someone who ruled for them because they were too young or unable), that time still counts towards their reign. For example, Louis XIV of France is listed first, even though his mother ruled for him for 8 years when he was a child. Also, this list includes both monarchs who had total power (like an absolute ruler) and those who were more like a symbol (like in a constitutional monarchy).

No.	Portrait	Name	Country	From	To	Duration (years, days)
1		Louis XIV	France and Andorra	May 14, 1643	September 1, 1715	72 years, 110 days
2		Elizabeth II	United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand	February 6, 1952	September 8, 2022	70 years, 214 days
3		Rama IX	Thailand	June 9, 1946	October 13, 2016	70 years, 126 days
4		Johann II	Liechtenstein	November 12, 1858	February 11, 1929	70 years, 91 days
5		Kʼinich Janaabʼ Pakal I	Palenque (Mexico)	July 27, 615	August 29, 683	68 years, 33 days
6		Franz Joseph I	Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary	December 2, 1848	November 21, 1916	67 years, 355 days
7	Chan Imix Kʼawiil.	Chan Imix Kʼawiil	Copán (Honduras)	February 5, 628	June 15, 695	67 years, 130 days
8		Ferdinand III	Sicily and Two Sicilies	October 6, 1759	January 4, 1825	65 years, 90 days
9		Victoria	United Kingdom	June 20, 1837	January 22, 1901	63 years, 217 days
10		James I	Crown of Aragon	September 12, 1213	July 27, 1276	62 years, 319 days
11		Emperor Shōwa	Empire of Japan and Japan	December 25, 1926	January 7, 1989	62 years, 13 days
12		Kangxi Emperor	Qing dynasty (China)	February 5, 1661	December 20, 1722	61 years, 318 days
13		Honoré III	Monaco	December 29, 1731	January 13, 1793	61 years, 15 days
14		Itzamnaaj Bahlam III	Yaxchilan (Mexico)	October 20, 681	June 15, 742	60 years, 238 days
15		Kʼakʼ Tiliw Chan Yopaat	Quiriguá (Guatemala)	December 29, 724	July 27, 785	60 years, 210 days
16		Qianlong Emperor	Qing dynasty (China)	October 18, 1735	February 9, 1796	60 years, 114 days
17		Christian IV	Denmark–Norway	April 4, 1588	February 28, 1648	59 years, 330 days
18		George III	Great Britain, Ireland, United Kingdom	October 25, 1760	January 29, 1820	59 years, 96 days
19		Louis XV	France and Andorra	September 1, 1715	May 10, 1774	58 years, 251 days
20	Pedro II of Brazil.	Pedro II	Brazil	April 7, 1831	November 15, 1889	58 years, 222 days
21		Al-Mustansir Billah	Fatimid Caliphate (Egypt)	June 13, 1036	December 29, 1094	58 years, 199 days
22		Nicholas I	Principality of Montenegro and Kingdom of Montenegro	August 13, 1860	November 26, 1918	58 years, 105 days
23		Wilhelmina	Netherlands	November 23, 1890	September 4, 1948	57 years, 286 days
24		James VI	Scotland	July 24, 1567	March 27, 1625	57 years, 246 days
25		Conrad I	Burgundy	July 11, 937	October 19, 993	56 years, 100 days

Monarchs of Dependent States

This section lists monarchs who ruled areas that were not fully independent countries for most of their reign. These areas might have been part of a larger empire or under the control of another nation.

Sobhuza II, the longest-reigning monarch whose reign is fully confirmed.

No.	Portrait	Name	State	From	To	Duration (years, days)
1		Sobhuza II	Swaziland (a British protectorate until 1968)	December 10, 1899	August 21, 1982	82 years, 254 days
2		Bernhard VII	Lippe (part of the Holy Roman Empire)	August 11, 1429	April 2, 1511	81 years, 234 days
3		Udai Pratap Nath Shah Deo	Chotanagpur (part of the British Raj)	July 9, 1869	September 21, 1950	81 years, 74 days
4		William IV	Henneberg-Schleusingen (Holy Roman Empire)	May 26, 1480	January 24, 1559	78 years, 243 days
5		Karansinhji II Vajirajji	Lakhtar State	June 15, 1846	August 8, 1924	78 years, 54 days
6	Maeda Tsunanori.	Maeda Tsunanori	Kaga Domain (Japan)	April 30, 1645	May 6, 1723	78 years, 6 days
7		Heinrich XI	Reuss-Obergreiz (Holy Roman Empire)	March 17, 1723	June 28, 1800	77 years, 103 days
8		Idris ibni Muhammad al-Qadri, Tunku Besar of Tampin	Tampin (Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia)	May 31, 1929	December 26, 2005	76 years, 209 days
9		Christian August	Palatinate-Sulzbach (Holy Roman Empire)	August 14, 1632	April 23, 1708	75 years, 253 days
10		Bishan Chandra Jenamuni	Rairakhol State	March 13, 1825	June 10, 1900	75 years, 89 days

There are many more monarchs who ruled dependent states for long periods. This list shows just the top 10.

Monarchs with Approximate Reign Dates

For some very old rulers, the exact start and end dates of their reigns are not known. This section lists some of them, grouped by how many full years they ruled. Because the exact days are unknown, this list isn't perfectly ordered. We only include those who likely ruled for at least 56 years.

Some ancient Japanese emperors are said to have ruled for 60-100 years, but modern historians don't have enough proof for these very long reigns.

Portrait	Name	Country	From (approx.)	To (approx.)	Duration (approx. years)
	Min Hti	Launggyet Dynasty of Arakan (Myanmar)	1279	1374	95 years
	Pepi II Neferkare	Egypt (Old Kingdom)	2278 BC	2184 BC	94 years
	Taejo	Goguryeo (Korea)	53 AD	146 AD	93 years
	Nintoku	Japan (Kofun period)	313 AD	399 AD	86 years
	Abd al-Muttalib	Quraysh (Mecca, Saudi Arabia)	497 AD	578 AD	81 years
	Ermanaric	Oium (Ukraine)	296 AD	376 AD	80 years
	Hanayos	Hariphunchai (Thailand)	669 AD	749 AD	80 years
	Raja Sawai Basavalinga I Rajendra Udaiyar	Sundem (Portuguese India)	1763	May 15, 1843	80 years
	Trần Minh Công	Trần Lãm (Vietnam)	888	967	79 years
An Dương Vương.	An Dương Vương	Âu Lạc (Vietnam)	257 BC	179 BC	78 years

Images for kids

• 

  Chan Imix Kʼawiil.

• 

  Maeda Tsunanori.

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  Pedro II of Brazil.

• 

  An Dương Vương.

See also

• List of shortest-reigning monarchs
• Lists of state leaders
• Records of heads of state

Sources