The Last Kings: Succession in the Persian Gulf

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The world has only a handful of old-fashioned kings, the kind whose subjects must follow their every command.

Europe’s monarchs gave way to constitutions and elected governments long ago, as did those in Japan and Thailand. Almost all of the remaining absolute monarchs are in the oil-rich countries ringing the Persian Gulf, one of the globe’s most turbulent neighborhoods.

That’s focused attention on who will succeed the region’s elderly and increasingly frail sovereigns. Succession could pose a risk to the stability of these countries and their alliances, such as those battling insurgent Islamist groups.

As the Arab world grapples with new threats and calls to modernize, the Gulf monarchies remain bound by opaque and centuries-old traditions for passing on power.

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