Abdication

Abdication is the act of resigning from an office (official job), especially from being the leader of a country. The word is normally used for kings and queens who decide to give up their position which brings an end to a reign.^[1] The term is also used for popes.^[2] called emeritus.

A similar term for an elected or appointed official is resignation.

King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom is an example of a king who abdicated.^[3]

Select list of abdications

• Caedwalla of Wessex, 688^[4]
• Ine of Wessex, 726^[5]
• Pope Benedict IX, 1048^[6]
• Stephen II of Hungary, 1131^[1]
• Pope Celestine V, 1294^[7]
• Richard II of England, 1399^[1]
• Pope Gregory XII, 1415.^[7]
• Murad II, Ottoman Sultan, 1444-1445^[1]
• Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, 1556^[1]
• Christina of Sweden, 1654^[8]
• James II of England, 1688^[9]
• Philip V of Spain, 1724^[1]
• Ahmed III, Sultan of Turkey, 1730^[1]
• Napoleon I, Emperor of France, 1814^[10] and 1815^[11]
• Charles X of France, 1830^[1]
• Pedro I of Brazil, 1831^[12]
• Miguel of Portugal, 1834^[1]
• Louis Philippe I of France, 1848^[1]
• Fredrik Kaarle I of Finland, 1918
• Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, 1936
• Pope Benedict XVI, 2013.^[7]
• Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, 2013
• King Albert II of Belgium, 2013
• King Juan Carlos I of Spain, 2014
• Emperor Akihito of Japan, 2019^[13]
• Margrethe II of Denmark, 2024