Coronation of the British monarch monarch by making the ceremony a spectacle for ordinary people, started with the coronation in 1377 of Richard II who was a 10-year-old boy, thought unlikely to command respect simply by his physical appearance. On the day before the coronation, the boy king and his retinue were met outside the City of London by the lord mayor, aldermen and the livery companies, and he was conducted to the Tower of London where he spent the night in vigil. The following morning, the king travelled on horseback in a great procession through the decorated city streets to Westminster. Bands played along
Monarchies in Africa the Swazi were ruled by Sobhuza II, who became King upon independence. In 1973, Sobhuza abolished the democratic constitution put in place at the time of independence and declared himself the absolute ruler. Upon his death in 1982, Sobhuza had reigned for eighty-two years, the longest verified reign of any monarch. The present ruler, King Mswati III, became monarch in 1986. A new constitution was established in 1998 which allowed for some degree of democratic rule, but, in practice, Swaziland remains an absolute monarchy and the ability of citizens to participate in the political process is limited. The Canary Islands