ABSTRACT
Other monarchs, however, remained in power and oversaw the tedious and often tumultuous process of state-building, which their countries underwent during the second half of the twentieth century. The kings of Jordan and Morocco emerge as good examples of this process. They were able to consolidate the monarchy’s position within the political system, the former by using his political acumen to help rally his subjects around the newly created state and its institutions, and the latter by drawing on his religious and political prestige. Their efforts to bolster national pride and identity often resulted in a weakened political system, which was overshadowed by the royal palace. A closer scrutiny of monarchical actions related to forging identity reveals – at least in the Moroccan case – a far more elusive and complex process than what might have previously been considered.
