Dynastic Longevity

[Alexander I]

This thread if for discussing dynasties, most especially those that have been especially short- or long-lived.

To get the ball rolling I'll start with one of each.

Long - The Habsburgs
Celebrating 645 years of empire in central Europe. Rudolf von Hapsburg became Holy Roman Emperor in 1273, and his dynasty lasted until 1918, when its latest form (Austria-Hungary) became defunct under Karl. The current Hapsburg heir is Otto von Hapsburg (b. 1912), still called "Majesty" even though he is crownless.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Habsburg

Short - The Qin
15 glorious years of Chinese imperial power! The great Qin (Ch'in) Shi Huang of Civ4 fame spent most of his life conquering the warring feudal states of China, ruling as its first emperor from 221-210 BC. His heir Qin Er Shi lasted until 206 BC, when the dynasty was overthrown. Short-lived dynasty, but a massive impact. Qin Shi Huang created the original Great Wall, and "China" still bears the name of Qin today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Dynasty

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

The moral of that story appears to be "don't hang around too long".

[Cyclotron]

Short - The Bokassan Dynasty

Ah, the storied history of the Central African Empire. Wait, the what? Oh, surely you've heard of the Central African Emperors... well, Emperor. Jean-Bedel Bokassa proclaimed himself Emperor, proceeded to blow a third of the government's annual budget on the coronation ceremony - which world leaders, though invited, failed to attend for some odd reason or another. Bokassa turned out to be the first and last emperor, ruling from 1976 to 1979 - after which the dynasty, and the Empire itself, was dissolved (by the French) in favor of the republic it briefly replaced.

[Dr Strangelove]

The Holy Roman empire was disolved by Napoleon in the early 19th century, so actually the Hapsburg dynasty of Holy Roman Emporers can be said to have only lasted ~532 years even though they continued on as the emporers of Austria.
How long did the Romanov dynasty last?

[Nikolai]

According to Wikipedia, the Romanovs ruled from 1613 to 1761, at which it was replaced by a Oldenburg line(Danish IIRC?). It still was called Romanov though, but it wasn't any longer that by the paternal line.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Originally posted by Nikolai
a Oldenburg line(Danish IIRC?).

German- though it also produced the Danish royal family and Prince Phillip, the Duke of Edinburgh.

[Traianvs]

Originally posted by Cyclotron
Short - The Bokassan Dynasty

Ah, the storied history of the Central African Empire. Wait, the what? Oh, surely you've heard of the Central African Emperors... well, Emperor. Jean-Bedel Bokassa proclaimed himself Emperor, proceeded to blow a third of the government's annual budget on the coronation ceremony - which world leaders, though invited, failed to attend for some odd reason or another. Bokassa turned out to be the first and last emperor, ruling from 1976 to 1979 - after which the dynasty, and the Empire itself, was dissolved (by the French) in favor of the republic it briefly replaced.

What a guy