List of monarchs who abdicated
List
| class="wikitable sortable"
!width="150pt"|Ruler !width="140pt"|Country !width="160pt"|Position !width="130pt"|Abdication date !Successor/Fate |
| Kuai of Yan
|318 BC |
| Wuling of Zhao
|299 BC |
| Liu Ying
|10 January AD 9 |
| Xian of Han
|11 December 220 |
| Cao Huan
|4 February 266 |
| Diocletian
|1 May 305 |
| Maximian
|1 May 305 |
| Maximian
|11 November 308 |
| Lü Guang
|339 |
| Vetranio
|25 December 350 |
| An of Jin
|20 December 403 |
| Constantine III
|411 |
| Gong of Jin
|5 July 420 |
| Avitus
|17 October 456 |
| Xianwen of Northern Wei
|20 September 471 |
| Glycerius
|24 June 474 |
| Shun of Liu Song
|29 May 479 |
| He of Southern Qi
|502 |
| Xiaojing of Eastern Wei
|550 |
| Xiao Dong
|551 |
| Jing of Liang
|557 |
| Gong of Western Wei
|557 |
| Wucheng of Northern Qi
|8 June 565 |
| Xuan of Northern Zhou
|1 April 579 |
| Jing of Northern Zhou
|581 |
| Yang of Sui
|8 December 617 |
| Gong of Sui
|12 June 618 |
| Yang Tong
|23 May 619 |
| Gaozu of Tang
|4 September 626 |
| Kōgyoku
|12 July 645 |
| Jitō
|22 August 697 |
| Wu Zhao
|21 February 705 |
| Ruizong of Tang
|8 September 712 |
| Genmei
|3 October 715 |
| Theodosius III
|25 March 717 |
| Genshō
|3 March 724 |
| Ceolwulf
|737 |
| Shōmu
|19 August 749 |
| Xuanzong of Tang
|12 August 756 |
| Eadberht
|758 |
| Kōken
|7 September 758 |
| Junnin
|6 November 764 |
| Kōnin
|30 April 781 |
| Shunzong of Tang
|28 August 805 |
| Heizei
|18 May 809 |Saga |
| Staurakios
|2 October 811 |
| Michael I Rangabe
|11 July 813 |
| Saga
|29 May 823 |
| Junna
|22 March 833 |
| Yōzei
|4 March 844 |Kōkō |
| Ninmyō
|4 May 850 |
| Seiwa
|18 December 876 |
| Uda
|4 August 897 |
| Ai of Tang
|12 May 907 |
| Daigo
|16 October 930 |
| Rui of Yang Wu
|937 |
| Suzaku
|16 May 946 |
| Yin of Later Han
|951 |
| Gong of Later Zhou
|960 |
| Reizei
|27 September 969 |
| En'yū
|24 September 984 |
| Kazan
|1 August 986 |
| John XVIII
|{{flag|Papal States}} |Pope |July 1009 |
| Ichijō
|16 July 1011 |
| Sanjō
|10 March 1016 |
| Go-Suzaku
|5 February 1045 |
| Benedict IX
|{{flag|Papal States}} |Pope |July 1045 |
| Michael VI Bringas
|30 August 1057 |
| Isaac I Komnenos
| 22 November 1059 |
| Romanos IV Diogenes
|1 October 1071 |
| Go-Sanjō
|18 January 1073 |
| Nikephoros III Botaneiates
|1 April 1081 |
| Shirakawa
|3 January 1087 |
| Henry IV
|{{flag|Holy Roman Empire}} |1105 |
| Toba
|25 February 1123 |
| Huizong of Song
|18 January 1126 |
| Sutoku
|5 January 1142 |
| Eric III
|1146 |
| Go-Shirakawa
|5 September 1158 |Nijō |
| Gaozong of Song
|24 July 1162 |
| Nijō
|3 August 1165 |
| Rokujō
|9 April 1168 |
| Dermot McMurrough
|1169 |
| Takakura
|18 March 1180 |
| Xiaozong of Song
|18 February 1189 |
| Guangzong of Song
|24 July 1194 |
| Go-Toba
|18 February 1198 |
| Władysław III Spindleshanks
|1206 |
| Tsuchimikado
|12 December 1210 |
| Juntoku
|13 May 1221 |
| Chūkyō
|29 July 1221 |
| Shenzong of Western Xia
|1223 |
| Go-Horikawa
|17 November 1232 |
| Go-Saga
|16 February 1246 |
| Kameyama
|6 March 1274 |
| Waldemar
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sweden}} |1277 (deposed 1275) |
| Go-Uda
|27 November 1287 |
| Celestine V
|{{flag|Papal States}} |Pope |13 December 1294 |
| John Balliol
|{{flag|Kingdom of Scotland}} |10 July 1296 |
| Fushimi
|30 August 1298 |
| Go-Fushimi
|2 March 1301 |
| Hanazono
|29 March 1318 |
| Edward II
|{{flag|Kingdom of England}} |20 January 1327 |
| Andronikos II Palaiologos
|{{flag|Eastern Roman Empire}} |24 May 1328 |
| Kōgon
|Northern Court of Japan |7 July 1333 |
| Go-Daigo
|Southern Court of Japan |18 September 1339 |
| Irene Palaiologina
|17 July 1341 |Anna |
| Magnus VII
|15 August 1343 |
| Kōmyō
|Northern Court of Japan |18 November 1348 |Sukō |
| Tribhuwana Wijayatunggadewi
|Majapahit Empire |1350 |
| Sukō
|Northern Court of Japan |26 November 1351 |
| John VI Kantakouzenos
|{{flag|Eastern Roman Empire}} |10 December 1354 |
| Hugh IV
|24 November 1358 |
| Go-kōgon
|Northern Court of Japan |9 April 1371 |
| Go-En'yū
|Northern Court of Japan |24 May 1382 |
| Chōkei
|Southern Court of Japan |1383 |
| Go-Kameyama
|19 November 1392 |
| Richard II
|{{flag|Kingdom of England}} |29 September 1399 |
| Albert
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sweden}} |1405 (deposed 1389) |
| Go-Komatsu
|5 October 1412 |
| Gregory XII
|{{flag|Papal States}} |Pope |4 July 1415 |
| Murad II
|{{flag|Ottoman Empire}} |August 1444 |
| Go-Hanazono
|21 August 1464 |
| Charles I
|June 1450 |
| Afonso V
|{{flag|Kingdom of Portugal}} |11 November 1477 |
| John II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Portugal}} |15 November 1477 |
| Catherine Cornaro
|26 February 1489 |
| Bayezid II
|{{flag|Ottoman Empire}} |25 April 1512 |
| Charles I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Spain}} |16 January 1556 |
| Charles V
|{{flag|Holy Roman Empire}} |27 August 1556 |
| Mary I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Scotland}} |24 July 1567 |
| Ōgimachi
|17 December 1586 |
| Go-Yōzei
|9 May 1611 |
| Go-Mizunoo
|22 December 1629 |
| Meishō
|14 November 1643 |
| Christina
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sweden}} |6 June 1654 |
| Go-Sai
|5 March 1663 |
| John II Casimir Vasa
|20px Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth |16 September 1668 |
| Reigen
|2 May 1687 |
| James II and VII
|{{flag|Kingdom of England}} |
| Augustus II
|20px Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth |24 September 1706 |
| Higashiyama
|27 July 1709 |
| Ulrica Eleanor
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sweden}} |29 February 1720 |
| Philip V
|{{flag|Kingdom of Spain}} |14 January 1724 |
| Victor Amadeus II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sardinia}} |3 September 1730 |
| Ahmed III
|{{flag|Ottoman Empire}} |1 October 1730 |
| Nakamikado
|13 April 1735 |
| Sakuramachi
|9 June 1747 |
| Charles VII and V
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sicily}} |King of Naples and Sicily |6 October 1759 |
| Go-Sakuramachi
|23 May 1770 |
| Stanislaus II Augustus
|20px Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth |7 January 1795 |
| Qianlong
|{{flag|China|1889}} (Qing dynasty) |9 February 1796 |
| Rana Bahadur Shah
|{{flag|Kingdom of Nepal}} |8 March 1799 |
| Charles Emmanuel IV
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sardinia}} |4 June 1802 |
| Francis II
|{{flag|Holy Roman Empire}} |6 August 1806 |
| Charles IV
|{{flag|Kingdom of Spain}} |19 March 1808 |
| Ferdinand VII
|{{flag|Kingdom of Spain}} |6 May 1808 |
| Gustav IV Adolf
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sweden}} |29 March 1809 |
| Louis Bonaparte
|{{flagicon|Netherlands}} Kingdom of Holland |2 July 1810 |
| Joseph I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Spain}} |11 December 1813 |
| Frederick VI
| 14 January 1814 |
| Napoleon I
|{{flag|First French Empire}} | 11 April 1814 |
| Christian Frederick
| 10 October 1814 |
| Kōkaku
|7 May 1817 |
| Victor Emmanuel I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sardinia}} |13 March 1821 |
| Pedro IV
|{{flag|Kingdom of Portugal}} |28 May 1826 |
| Charles X
|{{flag|Kingdom of France}} |2 August 1830 |
| Louis XIX
|{{flag|Kingdom of France}} |2 August 1830 |
| Pedro I
|{{flag|Empire of Brazil}} |7 April 1831 |
| Miguel
|{{flag|Kingdom of Portugal}} |26 May 1834 |
| William I
|{{flag|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} |7 October 1840 |
| Rajendra Bikram Shah
|{{Flag|Kingdom of Nepal}} |12 May 1847 |
| Louis Philippe
|{{flag|Kingdom of France}} |
| Ferdinand I
|{{flag|Austrian Empire}} |2 December 1848 |
| Charles II
|{{flag|Duchy of Parma}} |14 March 1849 |
| Charles Albert
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sardinia}} |23 March 1849 |
| Leopold II
|21 July 1859 |
| Isabella II
|{{flag|Spain|name=Kingdom of Spain}} |25 June 1870 |
| Amadeo I
|{{flag|Spain|name=Kingdom of Spain}} |11 February 1873 |
| Milan II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Serbia}} |6 March 1889 |
| Liliuokalani
|{{flag|Kingdom of Hawaii}} |24 January 1895 |
| Oscar II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Norway}} |26 October 1905 |
| Sunjong
|{{flag|Korean Empire}} |
| Xuantong
|{{flag|China|1889}} (Qing dynasty) |
| Hongxian |
| Nicholas II
|{{flag|Russian Empire}} |
| Ferdinand I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Bulgaria}} |3 October 1918 |
| Wilhelm II
|{{flag|German Empire}} {{Flag|Kingdom of Prussia}} |
| Marie-Adélaïde
|{{flag|Grand Duchy of Luxembourg}} |14 January 1919 |
| Constantine I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Greece|state}} |27 September 1922 |
| Hussein
|{{flag|Kingdom of Hejaz}} |3 October 1924 |Ali |
| Taimur bin Feisal
|{{flag|Oman|name=Sultanate of Oman}} | 10 February 1932 |
| Prajadhipok
|{{flag|Thailand|name=Kingdom of Thailand}} |2 March 1935 |
| Edward VIII
|{{flag|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland}} |
| Carol II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Romania}} |6 September 1940 |
| Rezā Shāh
|{{flagicon|Iran|1964}} Iran |16 September 1941 |
| Bảo Đại
|25 August 1945 |
| Victor Emmanuel III
|{{flag|Kingdom of Italy}} |9 May 1946 |
| Michael I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Romania}} |30 December 1947 |
| Wilhelmina
|{{flag|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} |4 September 1948 |
| Leopold III
|{{flag|Kingdom of Belgium}} |16 July 1951 |
| Farouk I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Egypt}} |26 July 1952 |
| Talal
|{{flag|Jordan|name=Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan}} |11 August 1952 | Hussein |
| Norodom Sihanouk
|{{flag|Cambodia (1953–1970)|name=Kingdom of Cambodia}} |3 March 1955 |
| Ali bin Abdullah Al Thani
|{{flag|Qatar|name=State of Qatar}} |24 October 1960 |
| Saud
|{{flag|Saudi Arabia|1932|name=Kingdom of Saudi Arabia}} |2 November 1964 |
| Charlotte
|{{flag|Grand Duchy of Luxembourg}} |12 November 1964 |Jean |
| Mohammed Zahir Shah
|{{flag|Kingdom of Afghanistan|name=Afghanistan}} |24 August 1973 |
| Sisavang Vatthana
|{{flag|Kingdom of Laos|name=Laos}} |2 December 1975 |
| Juliana
|{{flag|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} |30 April 1980 |
| Letsie III
|{{flag|Lesotho|1987|name=Kingdom of Lesotho}} |King of Lesotho{{cite web|url=http://helplesotho.org/index.php/who-we-are/the-team/king-letsie-iii/king-letsie-iii-bio/ |title=King Letsie III Bio | Help Lesotho |accessdate=12 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130412034323/http://helplesotho.org/index.php/who-we-are/the-team/king-letsie-iii/king-letsie-iii-bio/ |archivedate=12 April 2013 }} |25 January 1995 |
| Jean
|{{flag|Grand Duchy of Luxembourg}} |7 October 2000 |
| Norodom Sihanouk
|{{flag|Cambodia|name=Kingdom of Cambodia}} |7 October 2004 |
| Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah
|{{flag|Kuwait|name=State of Kuwait}} |24 January 2006 |
| Jigme Singye Wangchuck
|{{flag|Bhutan|name=Kingdom of Bhutan}} |9 December 2006 |
| Benedict XVI
|{{flag|Vatican City State}} |Pope |
| Beatrix
|{{flag|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} |30 April 2013 |
| Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani
|{{flag|Qatar|name=State of Qatar}} | 25 June 2013 |
| Albert II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Belgium}} | 21 July 2013 |
| Juan Carlos I
|{{flag|Spain|name=Kingdom of Spain}} |
| Muhammad V {{small|(Sultan of Kelantan)}} |{{flag|Malaysia|name=Malaysia}} |Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia | 6 January 2019 |Abdullah |
| Akihito
|{{flag|Japan|name=Japan}} |
| Margrethe II
|{{flag|Danish Realm|name=Kingdom of Denmark}} |
=Subnational monarchs=
{{See also|Non-sovereign monarchy}}
| class="wikitable sortable"
!width="150pt"|Ruler !width="140pt"|Country !width="160pt"|Position !width="130pt"|Abdication date !Successor/Fate |
| Fulk V
|2 June 1129 |
| Amadeus VIII
|{{flag|Duchy of Savoy}} |5 February 1440 |
| Hassan X
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1701 |
| Amina I
|Sultana of the Maldive Islands |1754 |
| Alexander
|Principality of Bayreuth |Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach and Brandenburg-Bayreuth |2 December 1791 |Sold to Prussia |
| Günther Friedrich Karl I
|Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |19 August 1835 |
| Ludwig I
|{{flag|Kingdom of Bavaria}} |21 March 1848 |
| Karl
|{{flag|Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen|name=Principality of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen}} |Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen |27 August 1848 |
| Joseph
|{{flag|Saxe-Altenburg|name=Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg}} |30 November 1848 |
| Bernhard II
|{{flag|Saxe-Meiningen|name=Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen}} |20 September 1866 |
| Shō Tai
|{{flag|Ryūkyū Kingdom}} |16 October 1872 |
| Günther Friedrich Karl II
|Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |17 July 1880 |
| Ibrahim Nooraddeen
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1886 |
| Alexander
|{{flag|Principality of Bulgaria}} |7 September 1886 |
| Muhammad Mueenuddeen I
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1888 |
| Muhammad Imaaduddeen V
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1893 |
| Muhammad Shamsuddeen III
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1893 |
| Rama Varma XV
|December 1914 |
| Ernest Augustus
|{{flag|Duchy of Brunswick}} |
| Ernest Louis
|{{flag|Grand Duchy of Hesse}} |Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine | rowspan="2" |9 November 1918 |
| William Ernest
|{{flag|Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach|name=Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach}} |
| Bernhard III
|{{flag|Saxe-Meiningen|name=Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen}} | rowspan="2" |10 November 1918 |
| Heinrich XXIV |
| Frederick Augustus II
|{{Flag|Oldenburg|1701|name=Grand Duchy of Oldenburg}} | rowspan="2" |11 November 1918 |
| Heinrich XXVII
|{{flag|Reuss Junior Line|name=Principality of Reuss-Gera}} |
| Joachim Ernst
|{{Flag|Anhalt|name=Duchy of Anhalt}} | rowspan="2" |12 November 1918 |
| Leopold IV |
| Ludwig III
|{{flag|Kingdom of Bavaria}} | rowspan="4" |13 November 1918 |
| Frederick Augustus III
|{{flag|Kingdom of Saxony}} |
| Ernst II
|{{flag|Saxe-Altenburg|name=Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg}} |
| Friedrich
|Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont |
| Frederick Francis IV
|{{flag|Mecklenburg-Schwerin|name=Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin}} |Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin | rowspan="2" |14 November 1918 |
| Charles Edward
|{{flag|Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|name=Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha}} |
| Adolf II
|{{Flag|Schaumburg-Lippe|name=Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe}} |
| Frederick II
|{{flag|Baden|name=Grand Duchy of Baden}} | rowspan="2" |22 November 1918 |
| Günther Victor
|Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt |Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |
| William II
|{{flag|Kingdom of Württemberg}} |
| Hassan Nooraddeen II
|Sultan of the Maldive Islands |1943 |
| Charles Vyner Brooke
|{{flag|Kingdom of Sarawak}} |1 July 1946 |
| Omar Ali Saifuddien III
|{{flag|Brunei|colonial|name=Brunei Darussalam}} |4 October 1967 |
| Said bin Taimur
|{{flag|Muscat and Oman|name=Sultanate of Muscat and Oman}} |23 July 1970 |
| Ahmad Shah
|{{flag|Pahang|name=Sultanate of Pahang}} | 11 January 2019 |
Gallery
Christina of Sweden's abdication 1654.jpg|To move to Rome, Queen Christina of Sweden abdicated on her own initiative at Upsala Castle, 6 June 1654
Gustavarrest.jpg|King Gustav IV Adolph of Sweden was seized by rebels at Stockholm Palace on 13 March 1809, forcing him to abdicate two weeks later.
Bouchot - Napoléon signe son abdication à Fontainebleau 4 avril 1814.jpg|Napoleon's first abdication, signed at the Palace of Fontainebleau on 4 April 1814
Abdicacao Pedro I do Brasil.jpg|Dom Pedro I, ruler of the Empire of Brazil, delivers his abdication letter on 7 April 1831
Edward abdication.png|Instrument of abdication signed by King Edward VIII and his three brothers, Albert, Henry and George, 10 December 1936
Benedict XVI's Last Audience.jpg|Benedict XVI in the popemobile at his final Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square on 27 February 2013
Firmaleyabdicacionjuancarlos.jpg|Juan Carlos signing his own abdication law in front of PM Rajoy, June 2014
See also
Notes
{{notelist|refs=
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and Charles I of Spain were the same person. He abdicated as Lord of the Netherlands on 25 October 1555 and King of Spain on 16 January 1556 in favor of his son Philip II of Spain. Also in 1556, he separately voluntarily abdicated his German possessions and the title of Holy Roman Emperor in favor of his brother Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor.
Pedro IV of Portugal and Pedro I of Brazil were the same person. He was already Emperor of Brazil when he succeeded to the throne of Portugal in 1826, but abdicated two months later in favour of his daughter Maria II of Portugal. Later, he abdicated the throne of Brazil in favour of his son Pedro II.
}}