Kings (And Queens) Of The World: Where Monarchies Still Exist

The British royal family never seems to lack attention from the press — witness the hype surrounding the marriage of Prince William, second in line to the throne, and Kate Middleton. Queen Elizabeth's rule does extend across the world; she's the sovereign of 15 Commonwealth realms in addition to the United Kingdom. But she's not the only royal out there. Here, a look at where monarchies — and sultanates and emirates, which are similar systems — still exist around the world.

Interactive

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Map of countries around the world that still have monarchies.

Notes

- For definitions of the various types of governments and a more in-depth look at each country, see the CIA World Factbook.
- The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of more than 50 independent countries – most of which used to be under British rule. Of the Commonwealth countries, 16, known as "realms," recognize Queen Elizabeth II as their sovereign, while others have their own monarch or are free of monarchical affiliation.

Source: CIA World Factbook, The Washington Post, The British Monarchy (royal.gov.uk), Embassy of the United Arab Emirates

Credit: Alyson Hurt, Mary Glendinning, Becky Lettenberger, Erica Ryan and Meghan Collins Sullivan / NPR | Photos: Christopher Furlong/AFP, Axel Schimdt/AFP, Thierry ROGE/AFP, Paula Bronstein, Chris Jackson, Jacques Demarthon/AFP, Sean Gallup, Kiyoshi Ota, Chris Kleponis/AFP, Yasser Al-Zayyata/AFP, Javier Galeano/AP, Eddy Risch/AP, Mark Renders, Tengku Bahar/AFP, Gerard Julien/AFP, Abdelhak Senna/AFP, Robert Michael/AFP, Johannes Eisele/AFP, Mohammed Mahjoub/AFP, Atta Kenare/AFP, Marwan Naamani/AFP, Eduardo Parra, Lunga Masuku/AFP, Pascal Le Segretain, Pornchai Kittiwongsakul/AFP, Torsten Blackwood/AFP and Eric Feferberg/AFP / Getty Images

 

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