20. Other Children Have Reigned as King
Howard Carter discovered King Tut’s tomb in 1922. Part of the frenzy that followed was about the fact that he had been a boy king. The fact that he reigned at such a young age sparked much interest, because the widespread belief, particularly in the United States, is that someone must be of mature age and demonstrate political acuity before ascending to a high office. He or she must undergo years of formal training and take solemn oaths and vows. Anything less can lead to corruption and degradation of the entire country. The thought that a child could lead a nation, particularly one as great as ancient Egypt, seemed absurd.
However, he was far from the only child monarch in history. When Egypt was part of the Roman Empire, Ptolemy XIII became pharaoh when he was only 11 or 12 years old. He became jealous of his sister, Cleopatra, and expelled her from Egypt. In Rome, the emperor Elagabalus may have been as young as 15 years old when he ascended to the throne of the largest empire in history. In China in 1643, a 12-year-old prince named Fulin became emperor and promoted religious tolerance throughout his land, particularly for Buddhists and Catholics.