World Sovereigns, 2015

Imagine that, miraculously, an overwhelming wave of monarchist sentiment swept the world, resulting in the restoration of all the monarchies that existed when the twentieth century began, as well as those of France, Mexico, Brazil, Hawaii, and those created subsequently. (I've omitted Europe's two tiny non-hereditary monarchies for various reasons.) Here then is what the list of contemporary sovereigns might look like, with (in disputed cases) the most widely favored claimants selected, and seniority dated retroactively to whenever they actually became head of their respective house.

CountrySovereignBornAcceded
RomaniaKing Michael I25 Oct19216 Sep1940
BulgariaKing Simeon II16 Jun193728 Aug1943
Thailand King Bhumibol Adulyadej5 Dec19279 Jun1946
United Kingdom and Commonwealth RealmsQueen Elizabeth II21 Apr19266 Feb1952
Egypt King Ahmad Fuad II16 Jan195226 Jul1952
Zanzibar Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah16 Sep19297 Jul1963
GreeceKing Constantine II6 Jun19406 Mar1964
Brunei Darussalam Sultan Sir Muda Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzadin Waddaulah15 Jul19465 Oct1967
Maldives Sultan Muhammad Nur ud-dinMay1969
Oman Sultan Qabus bin Said18 Nov194223 Jul1970
IraqKing Ra'ad18 Feb193618 Oct1970
SerbiaKing Alexander II17 Jul19453 Nov1970
DenmarkQueen Margrethe II16 Apr194014 Jan1972
SwedenKing Carl XVI Gustaf30 Apr194619 Sep 1973
EthiopiaEmperor Zere Yacob II15 Aug19531975
SpainKing Juan Carlos I5 Jan193822 Nov1975
PortugalKing Duarte III14 May194524 Dec1976
BurundiQueen Rosa Paula Iribagiza20 Mar19341 May1977
ChinaEmperor Hengzhen19441977
LaosKing Soulivong Savang8 May1963Mar1980
IranShah Reza II Pahlavi31 Oct196027 Jul1980
BrazilEmperor Luiz I6 Jun19385 Jul 1981
SikkimChogyal Wangchuk Namgyal, 13th Maharaja1 Apr195329 Jan1982
ItalyKing Vittorio Emanuele IV12 Feb193718 Mar1983
MontenegroKing Nikola II7 Jul194424 Mar1986
Swaziland King Mswati III196825 Apr1986
Japan Emperor Akihito23 Dec19337 Jan1989
LiechtensteinPrince Hans Adam II14 Feb194513 Nov 1989
NorwayKing Harald V21 Feb193717 Jan1991
RussiaEmpress Maria I23 Dec195321 Apr1992
LibyaKing Muhammed al-Hasan ar-Rida al-Senussi20 Oct196228 Apr1992
TurkeySultan Osman V18 Aug191212 Mar1994
GermanyEmperor Georg Friedrich I10 Jun197625 Sep1994
Lesotho King Letsie III17 July19637 Feb 1996
TunisiaKing Muhammed Bey19281996
YemenSultan Ageel bin Muhammad al-Badr19736 Aug1996
Central African EmpireEmperor Bokassa II2 Nov19753 Nov1996
HawaiiKing Quentin I Kawananakoa28 Sep196129 Jul1997
Jordan King Abdullah II30 Jan19627 Feb1999
Bahrain King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa28 Jan19506 Mar1999
FranceKing Henri VII14 Jun193319 Jun1999
Morocco King Mohammed VI21 Aug196323 Jul1999
MexicoEmperor Maximilian II2 Mar19448 Aug1999
LuxembourgGrand Duke Henri16 Apr19557 Oct 2000
NepalKing Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev7 Jul19474 Jun2001
Cambodia King Norodom Sihamoni14 May195314 Oct2004
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, Emir of Abu Dhabi19483 Nov2004
MonacoPrince Albert II14 Mar19586 Apr2005
Korea Emperor Yi Won196216 Jul2005
Saudi ArabiaKing Abdullah19241 Aug2005
Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah24 Jan2006
BhutanKing Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuk21 Feb198015 Dec2006
SamoaTupua Tamasese Tupuola Tufuga Efi, O le Ao o le Mao1 Mar193816 Jun2007
AfghanistanKing Ahmed Shah Khan23 Sep193423 Jul2007
VietnamEmperor Bao Thang30 Sep194328 Jul2007
GeorgiaKing David XIII24 Jun197616 Jan2008
Austria-HungaryEmperor Karl II11 Jan19614 Jul2011
AlbaniaKing Leka II26 Mar198230 Nov2011
MalaysiaParamount Ruler Abdul Halim28 Nov192713 Dec2011
Tonga King ʻAhoʻeitu ʻUnuakiʻotonga Tukuʻaho12 Jul195918 Mar2012
Netherlands King Willem-Alexander27 April196730 April2013
Qatar Emir Tamim bin Hamad ath-Thani3 Jun198025 Jun2013
BelgiumKing Philippe I15 Apr 196021 Jul2013
SpainKing Felipe VI30 Jan196819 Jun2014

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