The oldest monarch currently reigning is Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, the King of Saudi Arabia, who was born in August 1924 and became the oldest in the world on the 11 May 2007 aged 82 years 253 days, following the death of the previous holder, Malietoa Tanumafili II of Samoa. King Abdullah succeeded to the throne on 1 August 2005, following the death of his half-brother King Fahd.