List of kings of Saudi Arabia
From Free net encyclopedia
Template:Politics of Saudi Arabia
The King of Saudi Arabia is Saudi Arabia's head of state and monarch. He serves as the head of the Saudi Monarchy and House of Saud.
Within Saudi Arabia the king is known by the title of The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques (خادم الحرمين الشريفين), which refers to Saudi Arabia's jurisdiction over the mosques of Masjid al Haram in Mecca and Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina.
This is a list of kings of Saudi Arabia:
- King Abdul Aziz (Ibn Saud) (1902/1932-1953)
- King Saud, son of King Abdul Aziz (1953-1964)
- King Faisal, son of King Abdul Aziz (1964-1975)
- King Khalid, son of King Abdul Aziz (1975-1982)
- King Fahd, son of King Abdul Aziz (1982-2005)
- King Abdullah, son of King Abdul Aziz (2005-)
King Abdul Aziz began conquering today's Saudi Arabia in 1902, by restoring his family as emirs of Riyadh. He then proceeded to conquer first the Nejd (1922) and then the Hejaz (1925). He progressed from Sultan of Nejd, to King of Hejaz and Nejd, and finally to King of Saudi Arabia (1932).
The other kings have all been sons of his, and all likely immediate successors to the reigning King Abdullah are his sons as well. Sons of Ibn Saud are considered to have primary claim on the Kingship of Saudi Arabia. It is intended that a family assembly choose heirs from their or the next generation at some time in the future, but the line of succession is never set beyond the appointed Crown Prince at any given time. This makes the Saudi Monarchy quite distinct from Western monarchies, which usually feature large, clearly defined royal families and orders of succession. The current Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia is Abdullah's half-brother, Prince Sultan.
The King of Saudi Arabia is also considered the Head of the House of Saud.
Saudi Arabia is ruled by Islamic law and purports to be an Islamic state; but many Muslims see a monarchy as being a non-Islamic system of government. This attitude stems from Muhammad's own injunction against hereditary rule, and rather in favor of selecting rulers based on who is most qualified. The caliphate, however, became a hereditary system after the time of the first four Sunni Caliphs Rashidun, and for this reason was dismantled. The caliphate is now viewed as non-Islamic by traditional (sunni) Muslims.ar:ملوك السعودية et:Saudi Araabia kuningas gl:Lista de Reis de Arabia Saudí id:Raja Arab Saudi he:מלך ערב הסעודית ms:Raja Arab Saudi pl:Władcy Arabii Saudyjskiej pt:Lista de reis da Arábia Saudita fi:Saudi-Arabian kuningas sv:Lista över Saudiarabiens regenter zh:沙特阿拉伯国王