Queen mother


A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English, since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of similar yet distinct monarchical concepts in non-European cultures around the world. The rank does not go to all mothers of monarchs though. A mother of a ruling monarch may only be referred to as queen mother if she was a queen consort as opposed to a princess consort.
" Queen Mother" usually, in English, refers to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, who was the mother of Queen Elizabeth II and one of the few people to use the term as an official style. However, it was also used as an official title in Thailand where Sirikit, the mother of King Vajiralongkorn, was officially styled "The Queen Mother".

Status

A queen mother is often a queen dowager, a widow of a king, who is simultaneously a former queen consort and the mother of the current monarch. As there is only one monarch, there can only be one queen mother.
It is unclear if a queen consort whose husband abdicates the throne, or a queen regnant who abdicates, and is the mother of the current monarch would be the queen mother. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, a monarch loses the title of king or queen after abdication. For example, Juliana of the Netherlands, who abdicated in favor of her daughter Beatrix, was sometimes colloquially referred to as the queen mother despite declining the title and having reverted to being a princess. Queen Paola of Belgium, whose husband Albert II abdicated but retained the title of king, has generally been referred to as the queen mother of Philippe despite not being a queen dowager.
A former queen consort who is the grandmother of the reigning monarch is sometimes called the queen grandmother. Queen Sri Savarindira of Thailand was known by this style.

United Kingdom

The title "queen mother" evolved to distinguish a queen dowager from all other queens when she is also the mother of the reigning sovereign. Thus, upon the death of her husband, King George V, Queen Mary became queen mother, retaining the status throughout the reigns of her sons, Edward VIII and George VI.
The title also distinguishes former queens consort from those who are simply the mother of the current monarch. For example, Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was "the queen's mother" when her daughter Victoria became queen regnant, but she was not "queen mother" as her husband was never a king. The title in British usage is purely a courtesy title. While the wife of a king is called "queen", there is no constitutional or statutory recognition of "queen mother" as a title.
There is no male equivalent to a queen mother. This would occur only if the husband of a queen regnant outlived the queen and was thereafter father to the new king or queen. Such a situation has never occurred. Since the title "queen mother" derives from the woman's previous title of "queen", it would also be incongruous to call such a father of a monarch the "king father", as the husbands of queens regnant are not given the title "king", but rather titled as a prince. The exact title such a person would assume has not been clarified by royal lineage experts. "Prince father" is a possibility.

Ottoman Empire

In the Ottoman Empire, valide sultan or sultana mother was the title held by the mother of a ruling Sultan. The title was first used in the 16th century for Hafsa Sultan, consort of Selim I and mother of Suleiman the Magnificent, superseding the previous title of mehd-i ülya. The Turkish pronunciation of the word Valide is.
The second position the most important position in the Ottoman Empire after the sultan himself and being more powerful in the hierarchy than Haseki sultan. As the mother to the sultan, by Islamic tradition, the valide sultan would have a significant influence on the affairs of the empire. She had great power in the court and her own rooms and state staff. In particular during the 17th century, in a period known as the "Sultanate of Women", a series of incompetent or child sultans raised the role of the valide sultan to new heights.

India

In India, a queen who becomes queen-mother was known in Sanskrit and Hindi as a rajamata - literally, mother of the king/monarch.

Africa

In Eswatini, the queen mother, or Ndlovukati, reigns alongside her son. She serves as a ceremonial figurehead, while her son serves as the administrative head of state. He has absolute power. She is important at festivals such as the annual reed dance ceremony.
In Lesotho, became Queen mother when her son King Letsie III became King. She served as Queen Mother until her death. There are many other tribal monarchies, most of whom have served as regents to their sons.
In many matrilineal societies of West Africa, such as the Ashanti, the queen mother is the one through whom royal descent is reckoned and thus wields considerable power. One of the greatest leaders of Ashanti was Nana Yaa Asantewaa, who led her subjects against the British Empire during the War of the Golden Stool in 1900.
In more symbolically driven societies such as the kingdoms of the Yoruba peoples, the queen mother may not even be a blood relative of the reigning monarch. She could be a female individual of any age who is vested with the ritual essence of the departed queens in a ceremonial sense, and who is practically regarded as the monarch's mother as a result. A good example of this is Oloye Erelu Kuti I of Lagos, who has been seen as the iya oba or queen mother of every succeeding king of that realm, due to the activities of the three successors to her noble title that have reigned since her demise.

Notable examples

These mothers of monarchs, and others, albeit not always officially so titled have also been considered equal to queen mothers:
  • Adela of Champagne France
  • Adelaide of Aquitaine France
  • Adelaide of Burgundy Germany and Italy
  • Adelaide of Maurienne France
  • Adelaide of Paris West Francia
  • Ageltrude Italy
  • Agnes of Aquitaine Aragon
  • Agnes of Brandenburg Denmark
  • Agnes of Poitou, Germany, Italy, and Burgundy
  • Alexandra of Denmark United Kingdom
  • Alice of Champagne Cyprus
  • Alice of Ibelin Cyprus
  • Aliya bint Ali Iraq
  • Amalie Auguste of Bavaria Saxony
  • Amarindra Siam
  • Amélie of Orléans Portugal
  • Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Denmark
  • Anastasia of Kiev Hungary
  • Anna Pavlovna of Russia Netherlands
  • Anne of Austria France
  • Anne of Kiev France
  • Athaliah Judah
  • Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Prussia
  • Bathsheba Israel and Judah
  • Bertha of Swabia Burgundy
  • Bertrada of Laon Francia
  • Beatrice of Castile Portugal
  • Beatrice of Castile Portugal
  • Beatrix of the Netherlands Netherlands
  • Berengaria of Castile Castile
  • Blanche of Castile France
  • Blanche of Namur Norway
  • Bona Sforza Poland
  • Carlota Joaquina of Spain Portugal and Brazil
  • Catherine Cornaro Cyprus
  • Catherine de' Medici France
  • Catherine of Lancaster Castile
  • Catherine of Valois England
  • Charlotte of Savoy France
  • Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel Denmark and Norway
  • Christina Hvide Sweden
  • Christina of Denmark Sweden
  • Christina of Holstein-Gottorp Sweden
  • Christina of Saxony Denmark and Norway
  • Clementia of Hungary France
  • Constance of Aragon Hungary
  • Constance of Arles France
  • Constance of Hungary Bohemia
  • Constance of Portugal Castile and León
  • Constance of Sicily Aragon and Sicily
  • Damit binti Abdul Rahman Brunei
  • Désirée Clary Sweden and Norway
  • Dorothea of Brandenburg Denmark and Norway
  • Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg Denmark and Norway
  • Eadgifu of Kent Wessex
  • Eadgifu of Wessex West Francia
  • Ealhswith Wessex
  • Eleanor of Alburquerque Aragon
  • Eleanor of Anjou Sicily
  • Eleanor of Aquitaine England
  • Eleanor of Aragon Cyprus
  • Eleanor of Aragon Portugal
  • Eleanor of England Castile
  • Elizabeth of Poland Hungary
  • Eleanor of Provence England
  • Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg Hungary and Bohemia
  • Elena of Montenegro Italy
  • Ælfthryth England
  • Elisabeth of Bavaria Belgium
  • Elisabeth of Bavaria Jerusalem and Sicily
  • Elisabeth Farnese Spain
  • Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Hungary and Bohemia
  • Elizabeth of Austria Poland
  • Elizabeth of Bosnia Hungary and Croatia
  • Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon United Kingdom: the widow of King George VI and mother of Queen Elizabeth II. In some of the British media, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was often referred to as the Queen Mum, and the term "Queen Mother" remained associated with her after her death.
  • Elizabeth of Carinthia Sicily
  • Elizabeth the Cuman Hungary
  • Elizabeth of Luxembourg Bohemia and Hungary
  • Elizabeth of Aragon Portugal
  • Elizabeth Woodville England
  • Emma of Italy West Francia
  • Emma of Normandy Denmark and England
  • Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont Netherlands
  • Ermengard of Italy Provence
  • Ermengarde de Beaumont Scotland
  • Estrid of the Obotrites Sweden
  • Euphrosyne of Kiev Hungary
  • Frederica of Hanover Greece
  • Frederica Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt Prussia
  • Gayatri Rajapatni Majapahit
  • Gerberga of Saxony West Francia
  • Gisela of Swabia, Germany, Italy, and Burgundy
  • Giovanna of Italy Bulgaria
  • Gunnhild, Mother of Kings Norway
  • Hafsa Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Hamida Banu Begum Mughal India
  • Handan Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Halime Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe Tonga
  • Hedvig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp Sweden
  • Helen of Greece and Denmark Romania
  • Helena of Serbia Hungary
  • Helvig of Holstein Sweden
  • Helvis of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Cyprus
  • Henrietta Maria of France England and Scotland
  • Hortense de Beauharnais Holland
  • Huzaima bint Nasser Iraq
  • Ingeborg of Denmark Norway
  • Ingrid of Sweden Denmark
  • Isabeau of Bavaria France
  • Isabella II of Spain Spain
  • Isabella of Angoulême England
  • Isabella of France England
  • Isabella of Ibelin Cyprus and Jerusalem
  • Isabella of Portugal Portugal
  • Jadwiga of Kalisz Poland
  • Joan Beaufort Scotland
  • Jezebel Israel
  • Josephine of Leuchtenberg Sweden and Norway
  • Jijabai Maratha Empire
  • Juana Manuel Castile and León
  • Judith of Bavaria West Francia
  • Keōpūolani Hawaii
  • Kesang Choden Bhutan
  • Kösem Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Kunigunda of Halych Bohemia
  • Louisa Ulrika of Prussia Sweden
  • Louise of Sweden Denmark
  • Luisa de Guzmán Portugal
  • 'Mamohato Bereng Seeiso Lesotho
  • Atossa
  • Amestris
  • Parysatis
  • Musa of Parthia
  • Shapurdukhtak
  • Sayyida Shirin
  • Terken Khatun
  • Zubayda Khatun
  • Terken Khatun
  • Sara Khatun
  • Seljuk Shah Begum
  • Terken Khatun
  • Tajlu Khanum
  • Sultanum Begum
  • Anna Khanum
  • Nakihat Khanum
  • Asiye Khanum Ezzeddin Qajar
  • Galin Khanum
  • Malek Jahan Khanom Persia
  • Malekeh Jahan Persia
  • Margaret of Denmark Norway
  • Margaret of Bourbon Navarre
  • Margaret of Durazzo Naples
  • Margaret of Navarre Sicily
  • Margaret Sambiria Denmark
  • Margaret Tudor Scotland
  • Margaret of Provence France
  • Margaret Skulesdatter Norway
  • Margherita of Savoy Italy
  • Margrethe II of Denmark Denmark
  • Maria of Austria Hungary and Bohemia
  • María de Molina Castile and León
  • Maria of Portugal Castile and León
  • Maria of Romania Yugoslavia
  • Maria Amalia of Saxony Naples and Sicily
  • Maria Anna of Austria Portugal
  • Maria Christina of Austria Spain
  • Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies Spain
  • Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg Sweden
  • María Isabella of Spain Two Sicilies
  • Maria Laskarina Hungary
  • Maria Leopoldina of Austria Portugal
  • Maria Luisa of Parma Spain
  • Maria Luisa of Spain Hungary and Bohemia
  • Maria Luisa of Spain Etruria
  • Maria Pia of Savoy Portugal
  • Maria Theresa Germany
  • Maria Theresa of Austria Sardinia
  • Mariam-uz-Zamani Mughal India
  • Mariana of Austria Spain
  • Mariana Victoria of Spain Portugal
  • Marie de Coucy Scotland
  • Marie de' Medici France
  • Marie of Anjou France
  • Marie of Prussia Bavaria
  • Marie of Edinburgh Romania
  • Mary of Guelders Scotland
  • Mary of Guise Scotland
  • Mary of Hungary Naples
  • Mary of Teck United Kingdom: widow of King George V and mother of kings Edward VIII and George VI. Queen Mary never used the title Queen Mother, because she thought it implied advancing years, choosing instead to be known as "Queen Mary" and that style was used to describe her in the Court Circular.
  • Mary, Queen of Scots Scotland
  • Musbah bint Nasser Jordan
  • Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II Ashanti people
  • Narriman Sadek Egypt
  • Natalija Keshko Serbia
  • Nazli Sabri Egypt
  • Norodom Monineath Cambodia
  • Nurbanu Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Olga Constantinovna of Russia Greece
  • Ota East Francia
  • Paola Ruffo di Calabria Belgium
  • Pauline Therese of Württemberg Württemberg
  • Phuntsho Choden Bhutan
  • Plaisance of Antioch Cyprus
  • Perestu Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Ratna Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah Nepal
  • Rikissa of Denmark Sweden
  • Richeza of Poland Hungary
  • Safiye Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Sancha of Castile Aragon
  • Sancha of León León
  • Saovabha Phongsri Thailand
  • Sibylla of Acerra Sicily
  • Sirikit Thailand
  • Sofía of Greece and Denmark Spain
  • Sophia of Halshany Poland
  • Sophia of Minsk Denmark
  • Sophia of Nassau Sweden
  • Sophia of Prussia Greece
  • Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow Denmark and Norway
  • Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Calenberg Denmark and Norway
  • Sophia Dorothea of Hanover Prussia
  • Sophia Magdalena of Denmark Sweden
  • Sophie Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach Denmark and Norway
  • Tadj ol-Molouk Persia
  • Taj ol-Molouk Persia
  • Theophanu Germany
  • Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen Bavaria
  • Tiye Egypt
  • Tshering Yangdon Bhutan
  • Turhan Sultan Ottoman Empire
  • Violant of Aragon Castile and León
  • Victoria, Princess Royal Prussia
  • Xiaoqinxian Qing China
  • Zein al-Sharaf Talal Jordan