Great Royal Wife, or alternatively, Chief King's Wife (
Ancient Egyptian: ''ḥmt nswt wrt'', cop, Ⲟⲩⲏⲣ Ⲟⲩⲣϣ), is the title that was used to refer to the
principal wife of the
pharaoh
Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: ''pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the an ...
of
Ancient Egypt, who served many official functions.
Description
While most ancient Egyptians were
monogamous
Monogamy ( ) is a form of Dyad (sociology), dyadic Intimate relationship, relationship in which an individual has only one Significant other, partner during their lifetime. Alternately, only one partner at any one time (Monogamy#Serial monogamy, ...
, a male pharaoh would have had other, lesser wives and
concubine
Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive.
Concubi ...
s in addition to the Great Royal Wife. This arrangement would allow the pharaoh to enter into diplomatic marriages with the daughters of allies, as was the custom of ancient kings.
In the past the
order of succession in Ancient Egypt was thought to pass through the royal women. This theory, referred to as the Heiress Theory, has been rejected regarding the Eighteenth Dynasty ever since a 1980s study of its royalty.
[O'Connor and Cline (Editors), Amenhotep III: Perspectives on his reign, pg 6] The throne likely passed to the eldest living son of those pharaohs.
The mother of the heir to the throne was not always the Great Royal Wife, but once a pharaoh was crowned, it was possible to grant the mother of the king the title of Great Royal Wife, along with other titles. Examples include
Iset
Iset or Aset is an Ancient Egyptian name, meaning "(She) of the throne". It was the name of the goddess better known by her Greek name Isis. For its etymology see Isis – Etymology.
Its notable bearers were:
* Iset, mother of Thutmose III
* ...
, the mother of
Thutmose III,
Tiaa
The Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America-College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA, formerly TIAA-CREF), is a Fortune 100 financial services organization that is the leading provider of financial services in the academic, research, ...
, the mother of
Thutmose IV and
Mutemwia
Mutemwiya (also written as Mutemwia, Mutemuya or Mutemweya) was a minor wife of the Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh Thutmose IV, and the mother of Pharaoh Amenhotep III. Mutemwiya's name means "Mut in the divine barque". While unconfirmed, it has bee ...
, the mother of
Amenhotep III
Amenhotep III ( egy, jmn-ḥtp(.w), ''Amānəḥūtpū'' , "Amun is Satisfied"; Hellenized as Amenophis III), also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent or Amenhotep the Great, was the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. According to different ...
.
Meretseger, the chief wife of
Senusret III
Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the hellenised form, Sesostris III) was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the Twelfth Dynasty of the ...
, may be the earliest queen whose name appears with this title; she also was the first
consort known to write her name in a
cartouche
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a cartouche is an oval with a line at one end tangent to it, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name. The first examples of the cartouche are associated with pharaohs at the end of the Third Dynasty, but the fea ...
. However, she is only attested in the
New Kingdom
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
so the title might be an anachronism. Perhaps the first holder of its title was
Nubkhaes
Nubkhaes (''The Gold'' Hathor.html"_;"title="Hathor">Hathor''appears'')_was_an_ancient_Egypt.html" ;"title="Hathor">Hathor.html" ;"title="Hathor.html" ;"title="Hathor">Hathor">Hathor.html" ;"title="Hathor">Hathor''appears'') was an ancient Egyp ...
of the
Second Intermediate Period.
A special place in the history of great royal wives was taken by
Hatshepsut. She was Great Royal Wife to her half-brother
Thutmose II. During this time Hatshepsut also became
God's Wife of Amun (the highest ranking priestess in the temple of Amun in Karnak). After the death of her husband, she became
regent
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
because of the minority of her stepson, the only male heir (born to Iset), who eventually would become
Thutmose III. During this time Hatshepsut was crowned as
pharaoh
Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: ''pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the an ...
and ruled as a regent very successfully in her own right for many years. Although other women before her had ruled Egypt, Hatshepsut was the first woman to take the title, ''pharaoh'', as it was a new term being used for the rulers, not having been used before the eighteenth dynasty. When she became pharaoh, she designated her daughter,
Neferure, as
God's Wife of Amun to perform the duties of high priestess. Her daughter may have been the great royal wife of Thutmose III, but there is no clear evidence for this proposed marriage.
[Tyldesley, Chronicle of the Queens of Ancient Egypt, pg 110]
Elsewhere, in
Kush
Kush or Cush may refer to:
Bible
* Cush (Bible), two people and one or more places in the Hebrew Bible
Places
* Kush (mountain), a mountain near Kalat, Pakistan Balochistan
* Kush (satrapy), a satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire
* Hindu Kush, a m ...
and other major states of ancient
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, the rulers often structured their households in much the same way as has just been described.
Asiya, the chief consort of the Biblical Pharaoh, is regarded to have been the adoptive mother of
Moses
Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...
in
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, as opposed with
Pharaoh's daughter (Exodus) in the Judeo-Christian tradition.
Examples
Ancient Egypt
Middle Kingdom
Second Intermediate Period
New Kingdom
Third Intermediate Period
Late Period
See also
*
List of Ancient Egyptian Royal Consorts
*
List of consorts of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty, for the modern queens and sultanas of Egypt
*
God's Wife of Amun
*
Divine Adoratrice of Amun
*
Interregnum queen
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
*
Great Wife
Great Wife, otherwise appearing in West Africa as Senior Wife, is an honorific applied to contemporary royal and aristocratic consorts in states throughout modern Africa (e.g., Mantfombi Dlamini of eSwatini, who once served as the chief consort of ...
, for the modern aristocratic consorts of Africa
References
{{Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
Ancient Egyptian titles
Egyptian royal titles
Ancient Egypt-related lists