KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, who died today, was Malaysia's 11th king under a five-year rotational system dating back to independence from Britain in 1957.

Under the constitution the position of king - known in Malay as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (He Who is Made Lord) - is rotated between the traditional Malay rulers of nine states.

In seven of the states the rulers are known as sultans, while the title of rajah is used in the northern state of Perlis and Yang d-Pertuan Besar (He Who Is Made Great) in Negeri Sembilan.

Historical reasons dating back to the British occupation left the other four states - Malacca, Penang, Sabah and Sarawak - without royal rulers.

The king is the nominal head of the military and all three branches of government. He signs bills, although he lost the power of veto in 1983, and appoints ministers, judges and ambassadors.

Discretionary powers

Acting on the advice of the cabinet, the king legally still enjoys discretionary powers over the appointment of prime ministers and can withhold his consent to any request to dissolve parliament.

Real power, however, is wielded by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who has held the position for 20 years.

While the order of royal rotation is set, rulers are not bound to ascend to the throne when their turn comes. The final decision rests with the nine rulers who convene a "council of rajahs" to choose the new king.

The council is held on the sidelines of the "conference of rulers" which includes the prime minister and other elected representatives of the federal government as well as the elected chief minister of each state.

The original constitution gave the rulers immunity from prosecution, but this was removed by a constitutional amendment passed in 1993 after a period of confrontation with Mahathir over the "misbehaviour" of certain rulers.