The king of the Kingdom of Bahrain (Arabic: ملك مملكة البحرين Malik Mamlakat al-Baḥrayn) is the monarch and head of state of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The House of Khalifa has been the ruling family since 1783. Between 1783 and 1971, the Bahraini monarch held the title of hakim, and, from 1971 until 2002, the title of emir. On 14 February 2002, the emir of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, declared Bahrain a kingdom and proclaimed himself the first king. The king enjoys wide ranging powers, which include appointing the prime minister and the cabinet, holding supreme command over the Defence Force, chairing the Higher Judicial Council, appointing the parliament's upper house and dissolving its elected lower house. (Full article...)