Following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday, eldest son King Charles III became her successor. He will be proclaimed monarch at an Accession Council in St James's Palace on Saturday.
King Charles III was born on November 14, 1948, making him 73 years old - the oldest person to ever ascend the British throne. The septuagenarian joins a list of oldest living monarchs in the world, all of whom are over 73 years of age.
The oldest reigning monarch is King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who is currently 86 years old. Ruling since 2015, he is the sixth of King Abdulaziz’s twenty-five sons to rule over the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In second place is Pope Francis, born in 1936 in Buenos Aires. The Pope became the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State in 2013.
King Harald V is in third place. Born in 1937, he became the king of Norway after his father’s death in 1991, as his only son.
Emir Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is in fourth place. The 85-year-old became the Emir of Kuwait in 2020.
Queen Margrethe II, now the only reigning female monarch, is in fifth place. The Queen of Denmark and commander-in-chief of the Danish Defence is 82 years old and has been the ruler of Denmark since 1972.
Research by Diggity Marketing shows a list of the current oldest living monarchs in the world. Here is the full list:
Top 10 world's oldest living monarchs
- King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | Saudi Arabia | age 86
- Pope Francis | Vatican City State | age 85
King Harald V | Norway | age 85
Emir Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah | Kuwait | age 85
Queen Margrethe II | Denmark | age 82
Prince Regnant Hans-Adam II | Liechtenstein | age 77
King Carl XVI Gustaf | Sweden | age 76
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah | Brunei Darussalam | age 76
King Charles lll | United Kingdom + 14 other Commonwealth realms | age 73
Co-Prince Archbishop Joan Enric Vives i Sicília | Andorra | age 73
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