king
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...
, or an empress consort in the case of an emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator
The Latin word "imperator" derives from the stem of the verb la, imperare, label=none, meaning 'to order, to command'. It was originally employed as a title roughly equivalent to ''commander'' under the Roma ...
. A queen consort usually shares her spouse's social rank
Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking
A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either "rank ...
and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical title
A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the firs ...
s, and is crowned and anointed, but historically, she does not formally share the regnant's political and military powers, unless on occasion acting as regent
A regent (from the Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken in the area around Rome, known as Latium. Through the power of the Roman Repu ...
.
In contrast, a queen regnant
A queen regnant (plural: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank and title to a king (title), king, who reigns in her own right over a realm known as a "kingdom"; as opposed to a queen consort, who is the wife of a reigning king ...
is a female monarch
A monarch is a head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona
A persona (plural personae or personas), depending on the context, can refer to either the public image of one's personality, or the social role tha ...
who rules in her own right, and usually becomes queen by inheriting the throne upon the death of the previous monarch. A queen dowager#REDIRECT Queen dowager
A queen dowager, dowager queen or queen mother (compare: princess dowager, dowager princess or princess mother) is a title or status generally held by the widow of a king. In the case of the widow of an emperor
An emp ...
is the widow of a king, and a queen mother
A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager
A queen dowager, dowager queen or queen mother (compare: princess dowager, dowager princess or princess mother) is a title or status generally held by the widow of a king. In the case of t ...
is a former queen who is the mother of the current monarch.
Titles
When a title other than king is held by the sovereign, his wife is referred to by the feminine equivalent, such asprincess consort
Princess consort is an official title or an informal designation that is normally accorded to the wife of a sovereign prince. The title may be used for the wife of a king
of the King of the Romans (variant used in the early modern period)
...
or empress consort.
In monarchies where polygamy
Polygamy (from Late Greek
Late Greek means writings in the Greek language
Greek (modern , romanized: ''Elliniká'', Ancient Greek, ancient , ''Hellēnikḗ'') is an independent branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family o ...
has been practiced in the past (such as Morocco
)
, image_map = Morocco (orthographic projection, WS claimed).svg
, map_caption = Location of Morocco in northwest Africa.Dark green: Undisputed territory of Morocco.Lighter green: Western Sahara, a United Nations lis ...
and Thailand
Thailand ( th, ประเทศไทย), historically known as Siam, () officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia. It is located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , wi ...
), or is practiced today (such as the Zulu
Zulu may refer to:
Zulu people
* Zulu Kingdom or Zulu Empire, a former monarchy in what is now South Africa
* Zulu language, a Bantu language spoken in southern Africa
* Zulu people, an ethnic group of southern Africa
Arts, entertainment, and med ...
nation and the various YorubaYoruba may refer to:
* Yoruba people
The Yoruba people () are a Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa (commonly called Black Africa) is, geographically, the area of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. According to the Uni ...
polities), the number of wives of the king varies. In Morocco, King Mohammed VI
Mohammed VI ( ar, محمد السادس; ber, ⴰⴳⵍⵍⵉⴷ ⵎⵓⵃⴰⵎⵎⴷ ⵙⴷⵉⵙ ; born 21 August 1963) is the List of rulers of Morocco, King of Morocco. He belongs to the Alaouite dynasty and ascended to the throne on 23 Ju ...
has broken with tradition and given his wife, Lalla Salma, the title of princess. Prior to the reign of King Mohammed VI, the Moroccan monarchy had no such title. In Thailand
Thailand ( th, ประเทศไทย), historically known as Siam, () officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia. It is located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , wi ...
, the king and queen must both be of royal descent
A royal descent is a genealogical
Genealogy (from el, γενεαλογία ' "the making of a pedigree") is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, ge ...
. The king's other consorts are accorded royal titles that confer status.
Other cultures maintain different traditions on queenly status. A Zulu chieftain
A tribal chief or chieftain is the leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom.
Tribe
The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia.
Tribal societies are sometimes categor ...
designates one of his wives as "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 Swaziland, chief consort of the Zulu King).
His ...
", which would be the equivalent to queen consort. Conversely, in Yorubaland
Yorubaland (); is the homeland and cultural region
's map of native American cultural areas within the territory of the United States (1948)
as defined by Melville J. Herskovits
influence
, homelands of the Celtic languages
The Celti ...
, all of a chief's consorts are essentially of equal rank. Although one of their number, usually the one who has been married to the chief
Chief may refer to:
Title or rank
Military and law enforcement
* Chief master sergeant
Chief Master Sergeant (CMSgt) is the ninth, and highest, United States Air Force enlisted rank insignia, enlisted rank in the United States Air Force, ...
for the longest time, may be given a chieftaincy of her own to highlight her relatively higher status when compared to the other wives; she does not share her husband's ritual power as a chieftain. When a woman is to be vested with an authority similar to that of the chief, she is usually a lady courtier in his service who is not married to him, but who is expected to lead his female subjects on his behalf.
While the wife of a king is usually titled as the queen, there is much less consistency for the husband of a reigning queen. The title of king consort is rare. Examples are Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley
Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546 – 10 February 1567) was the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. From his marriage in 1565, he was List of Scottish consorts, king consort of Scotland.Elaine Finnie Greig, 'Stewart, Henry, duke of Albany
,_in_Scotland.html" ;"title=" ...
Past queens consort:
* Queen Jang, consort to 
