King Harald V of Norway Age: 77 years Born: 21 February 1937 Ascended the throne: 17 January 1991 Length of reign: 24 years.
After all, you're one step closer to the throne.
The struggle between Catholics and Protestants, and the national and international intrigue surrounding the French throne in the early 17th century, are the terrain for one of the most famous adventure stories ever written.
If Muqrin does come to the throne, he is likely to be the last of the sons of the founder of Saudi Arabia, King Abdulaziz (Ibn Saud), who died in 1953.
(If the "credibility and effectiveness" of Irish bishops have been undermined, as he says, by the scandals, what of his own standing as a bishop, as the power behind John Paul II's throne and now as pope?) There is no explicit endorsement of the new protocols in Ireland demanding that all suspicions be referred to the police.
"In the eyes of Europe you are a pretender to the throne of England, because the marriage of your father, Henry VIII, to your mother, Anne Boleyn, is deemed invalid!" one says.
Did they applaud the Guardian for its expenditure of time and resources in order to reveal the pressures applied by the heir to the throne on elected politicians?
The Thai king is not the oldest head of state, but he is the longest-serving, have ascended to the throne in 1946.
Tom Rosenthal is the perfect choice to play crap-haired milquetoast Alfred the Great, thrust on to the throne after the deaths of all four of his elder brothers.
Prince Charles's ministerial correspondence give the clearest picture yet of the mind of the heir to the throne, and of what he calls his "mobilising" and critics call his "meddling".
King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, on the throne for 68 years, is the current longest reigning monarch.
