New Emir of Qatar

Congratulations to Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, 33, on his accession as the new Emir of Qatar. A monarchist knows he is getting older when two of the world's monarchs (the other being the King of Bhutan), and one other head of state, are younger than he is.

Transition in Qatar

Abdication seems to be The Thing To Do this year. First the Vatican, then the Netherlands, now Qatar. Sheikh Tamin (b 1980) will be the world's third head of state younger than I am, joining the King of Bhutan and that odd character in North Korea.

Dictators Go, Monarchs Stay

I am not a fan of American neoconservative Democracy projects, but this article by former Bush administration security adviser Elliott Abrams nevertheless makes good points comparing monarchies to republics in the Middle East.

Royalty of the World at Windsor

Front row (L-R): HIM the Emperor of Japan, HM the Queen of the Netherlands, HM the Queen of Denmark, HM the King of the Hellenes, HM the King of Romania, HM the Queen of the United Kingdom, HM the King of Bulgarians, HM the Sultan of Brunei, HM the King of Sweden, HM the King of Swaziland, HSH the Prince of Liechtenstein.

Middle row (L-R): HSH the Prince of Monaco, HRH the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, HM the King of Lesotho, HM the King of the Belgians, HM the King of Norway, HH the Emir of Qatar, HM the King of Jordan, HM the King of Bahrain, HM the Yong di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.

Back row (L-R): HH Prince Nasser Mohamed of Kuwait, HH the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, HRH the Crown Prince of Yugoslavia, HM the King of Tonga, HRH the Crown Prince of Thailand, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem of Morocco, HRH Prince Mohammed bin Nayaf of Saudi Arabia.


Apparently that April 22 Telegraph article was much ado about nothing, as the former King of the Hellenes attended the Queen's Diamond Jubilee lunch after all, with no earth-shattering consequences, whatever Greek republicans say, resulting in a wonderful unique photograph (perhaps the most comprehensive ever taken) of most of the world's reigning monarchs.  Other members of the British royal family including the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge joined the Queen in welcoming this illustrious international assembly of royalty to Windsor Castle.  The absence of Queen Sofia and any representative of the royal families of Cambodia, Bhutan, and Oman is to be regretted, though monarchists can rejoice to see not only King Constantine but also the former kings of Romania and Bulgaria and the crown prince of Yugoslavia included.  Discussion however has been dominated by the presence of the controversial Kings of Bahrain and Swaziland, though I doubt most British people really mind nearly as much as noisy troublemakers apparently think they should.  Once again I say the Queen can invite who she likes; it's not as if democratic republican governments never host controversial republican heads of state!

The Monitor on Monarchies

The Christian Science Monitor has a decent and thorough (albeit slightly patronizing) article on the world's remaining monarchies. It's nice to see monarchies besides Britain's covered in a prominent English-language publication, though the map omits Bhutan. I'm not always sure if contemporary monarchists should be offended by the label "anachronistic," or embrace it. What do readers think?

Wealthy Asian Monarchs Outrank QEII

Forbes released its list of the world's richest royals, with Queen Elizabeth II (whose personal wealth has often been greatly exaggerated) ranked 12th.