The King of Saudi Arabia is Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

's head of state

Head of State

A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...

 and absolute monarch. He serves as the head of the Saudi monarchy — House of Saud

House of Saud

The House of Saud , also called the Al Saud, is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia and one of the wealthiest and most powerful dynasties in the world. The family holds thousands of members...

. The King is called the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques , a historical term, was a pious title taken by the Ayyubids, the Mamluk Sultans of Egypt, and the Ottoman Sultans; it has been revived by modern Saudi kings.-Saudi monarchy:...

(خادم الحرمين الشريفين). The title, which signifies Saudi Arabia's jurisdiction over the mosques of Masjid al Haram in Mecca

Mecca

Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...

 and Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina

Medina

Medina , or ; also transliterated as Madinah, or madinat al-nabi "the city of the prophet") is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and...

, replaced His Majesty

Majesty

Majesty is an English word derived ultimately from the Latin maiestas, meaning "greatness".- Origin :Originally, during the Roman republic, the word maiestas was the legal term for the supreme status and dignity of the state, to be respected above everything else...

 (صاحب الجلالة) in 1986.

History

King Abdul-Aziz began conquering today's Saudi Arabia in 1902, by restoring his family as emirs of Riyadh

Riyadh

Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...

. He then proceeded to conquer first the Nejd (1922) and then the Hejaz

Hejaz

al-Hejaz, also Hijaz is a region in the west of present-day Saudi Arabia. Defined primarily by its western border on the Red Sea, it extends from Haql on the Gulf of Aqaba to Jizan. Its main city is Jeddah, but it is probably better known for the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina...

 (1925). He progressed from Sultan of Nejd, to King of Hejaz and Nejd, and finally to King of Saudi Arabia in 1932.

Succession

The other kings have all been his sons and all likely immediate successors to the reigning King Abdullah will be from his progeny. Sons of Ibn Saud are considered to have primary claim on the Kingship of Saudi Arabia. This makes the Saudi Monarchy quite distinct from Western monarchies, which usually feature large, clearly defined royal families and orders of succession.

Legal position

Saudi Arabia is ruled by Islamic law and purports to be an Islamic state, but many Muslims see a hereditary monarchy as being a discouraged system of government in Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

.

Other functions

The King of Saudi Arabia is also considered the Head of the House of Saud

House of Saud

The House of Saud , also called the Al Saud, is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia and one of the wealthiest and most powerful dynasties in the world. The family holds thousands of members...

 and Prime Minister. The Crown Prince

Crown Prince

A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....

 is also the "Deputy Prime Minister." The kings after Faisal have named a "second Deputy Prime Minister" as the subsequent heir after the Crown Prince. Former Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and Abdullah's half-brother, Prince Sultan died on 22 October, 2011.The former Second Deputy Minster, and now Crown Prince from 27 October, 2011 is Prince Nayef.

House of Saud

House of Saud

The House of Saud , also called the Al Saud, is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia and one of the wealthiest and most powerful dynasties in the world. The family holds thousands of members...

Image	Name	Date of birth	King From	King Until	Date of death
	Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia King Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia was the first monarch of the Third Saudi State known as Saudi Arabia. He was commonly referred to as Ibn Saud....  (Ibn Saud Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia King Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia was the first monarch of the Third Saudi State known as Saudi Arabia. He was commonly referred to as Ibn Saud.... )	15 January 1876	22 September 1932	9 November 1953
	Saud Saud of Saudi Arabia Saud bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1953 to 1964. He was removed from power by Faisal because of Saud's mismanagement and waste. He was the eldest surviving son of Ibn Saud and became Crown Prince in 1933. He died in exile in Greece.-Early life:Saud was born in 1902 in Kuwait...	12 January 1902	9 November 1953	2 November 1964 (abdicated)	23 February 1969
	Faisal Faisal of Saudi Arabia Faisal bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1964 to 1975. As king, he is credited with rescuing the country's finances and implementing a policy of modernization and reform, while his main foreign policy themes were pan-Islamic Nationalism, anti-Communism, and pro-Palestinian...	1906	2 November 1964	25 March 1975 (assassinated)
	Khalid Khalid of Saudi Arabia Khalid bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1975 to 1982. He ruled during Saudi Arabia's oil boom years. In 1979, he had to deal with the Grand Mosque Seizure...	1912	25 March 1975	13 June 1982
	Fahd Fahd of Saudi Arabia Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, was King of Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005...	16 March 1921	13 June 1982	1 August 2005
	Abdullah Abdullah of Saudi Arabia Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, is the King of Saudi Arabia. He succeeded to the throne on 1 August 2005 upon the death of his half-brother, King Fahd. When Crown Prince, he governed Saudi Arabia as regent from 1998 to 2005...	1 August 1924	1 August 2005	current