Reign

A reign is the period of time that a monarch (a king, queen, emperor, etc.) rules over a country.[1] It can also be the period of time that a spiritual leader rules in a particular office. For example, the reign of a pope, dalai lama, patriarch etc. A reign can also be used for an office or championship.[1] In many cases a reign lasts until the monarch (or leader) resigns, dies, or is removed. A monarch's reign was sometimes used to mark time officially. In Anglo-Saxon England for example, many royal documents were dated by the regnal year of the king.[2] This lasted until about the 10th century.[2]

Current Longest Reigning Monarchs

Some of the longest reigning current monarchs are:

Elizabeth II, United Kingdom, 62+ years .[3]
Sikiru Kayode Adetona, Nigeria,[3] 55+ years.
Hassanal Bolkiah, Brunei, 47+ years.[3]
Margrethe II of Denmark, 42+ years.[3]
Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, United Arab Emirates, 42+ years.[3]
Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden 41+ years.[3]

Some of the longest reigning monarchs of all time are:

Sobhuza II, Swaziland, reigned for 82 years, 253 days.[4]
Bernard VII, Lord of Lippe, reigned for 81 years, 234 days.[4]
Bhagvat Singh, ruler of Gondal, India, reigned for 74 years, 87 days.[4]
Louis XIV of France reigned for 72 years, 110 days.[4]

Shortest Reigning Monarchs in History

Some of the shortest reigns in history are:

Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême as "Louis XIX of France", reigned for 20 minutes.[5]
Dipendra of Nepal, reigned for 56 hours (in a coma).[5]
Dục Đức reigned as Emperor of Vietnam for 3 days.[5]
Lady Jane Grey reigned as Queen of England for 9 days.[5]
Edward V of England was King of England for 2 months, 16 days.[5]
Dafydd ap Gruffydd was the Prince of Wales (last independent ruler) for 6 months, 11 days.[5]

References

"reign". Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
Michael Jones, A Handbook of Dates: For Students of British History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), p. 21
"World's longest-serving monarchs – where does the Queen rank?". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
Caroline Davies (9 September 2015). "UK's longest-reigning monarch, but Queen ranks only 48th in world". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
Victoria Lambert (16 January 2016). "King for a day: who was the shortest-reigning monarch?". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 December 2015.

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[MW-1] "reign". Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Retrieved 30 December 2015.

[Jones21-2] Michael Jones, A Handbook of Dates: For Students of British History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), p. 21

[Telegraph-3] "World's longest-serving monarchs – where does the Queen rank?". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 December 2015.

[DaviesTG-4] Caroline Davies (9 September 2015). "UK's longest-reigning monarch, but Queen ranks only 48th in world". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 December 2015.

[LambertTT-5] Victoria Lambert (16 January 2016). "King for a day: who was the shortest-reigning monarch?". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 December 2015.