Malaysia just crowned a new King - but he already knows when he will step down

Saturday marked the coronation of Malaysia's new King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar only five years after the coronation of the country's previous King.

The new King was honoured with traditional pomp and cannon fire and formalised his role as Malaysia's 17th King pledging to govern fairly during the five-year term of his reign.

The coronation comes as part of Malaysia's unique rotating monarchy, which sees the role of monarch rotate between nine Malay state rulers every five years.

It's a monarchy that strays from the norms of most royal families, with the likes of the British Royal Family observing a monarchy that sees the crown descend the bloodline. Here's a look into Malaysia's unique ruling system.

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What is a rotating monarchy?

Malaysia's rotating monarchy sees the crown shared between the hereditary rulers of nine Malay states. Every five years, or when there is a vacancy, the positions of king and deputy king are rotated among the nine royal families.

Malaysia has 13 states but only nine of the states have royal families- with some dating back to historic Malay kingdoms.

History of the rotating monarchy?

Malaysia's rotating monarchy dates back to 1957 when the country gained independence from British rule. The system stands to provide the nine Malay states an equal opportunity to serve as the supreme leader.

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Who are the nine royal families?

Of Malaysia's nine states with royal families, seven of them Kedah, Kelantan, Johor, Perlis, Pahang, Selangor and Terengganu are hereditary monarchies. In the state of Perak, the crown is rotated between three branches of the royal family. While the state of Negeri Sembilan is an elective monarchy which sees a ruler elected from male members of the royal family.

Each time it is required swear in a new monarch, the rulers come together as the Conference of Rulers to elect the new monarch known as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

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Who is Sultan Ibrahim?

The newly coronated Sultan Ibrahim is the latest monarch of Malaysia's rotating monarchy. The 65-year-old billionaire was sworn in on January 31 this year with this weekend's coronation formalising his reign. Sultan Ibrahim is the sultan of the state of Johor in Malaysia's south. He is the fifth sultan of modern Johor and ascended to the throne following the death of his father Sultan Iskander in 2010.

Who is next in line?

Sultan Ibrahim replaced Al-Sultan Abdullah of Pahang as Malaysia's monarch this year. The rotation of Malaysia's monarchy has followed the order of seniority since the first cycle, this being so it is expected the next monarch in five years time will be the Sultan of Perak.

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