A king-emperor (the female equivalent being queen-empress) is a sovereign ruler who is simultaneously a king of one territory and emperor of another. This title usually results from a merger of a royal and imperial crown, but recognises that the two territories are different politically or culturally and in status (emperor being a higher rank than king). It also denotes a king's imperial status through the acquisition of an empire or vice versa. The dual title signifies a sovereign's dual role, but may also be created to improve a ruler's prestige. Both cases, however, show that the merging of rule was not simply a case of annexation where one state is swallowed by another, but rather of unification and almost equal status, though in the case of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchy the suggestion that an emperor is higher in rank than a king was avoided by creating the title "king-emperor" or "queen-empress" instead of "emperor-king" or "empress-queen".

In the British Empire

The British Crown had officially taken over the governing of British India from the East India Company in 1858, in the aftermath of what the British called 'the Indian Mutiny'. Henceforth, the new British Raj was ruled directly from Whitehall via the India Office. In 1876, Queen Victoria was recognized as Emperor of India, Empress of India by the British Government, via the Royal Titles Act 1876; this title was proclaimed in India at the Delhi Durbar of 1877. She was thus the Queen-Empress, and her successors, until George VI of the United Kingdom, George VI, were known as King-Emperors. This title was the shortened form of Style of the British Sovereign#Styles of British sovereigns, the full title, and in widespread popular use. The reigning King-Emperors or Queen-Empress used the initials ''R I'' (''Rex (title), Rex Imperator'' or ''Regina Imperatrix'') or the abbreviation ''Ind. Imp.'' (''Indiae Imperator/Imperatrix'') after their name (while the one reigning Queen-Empress, Victoria, used the initials ''R I'', the three Queen consort, consorts of the married King-Emperors simply used ''R''). Coins of the pound sterling, British coins, and those of the British Empire and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth dominions, routinely included some variation of the titles ''Rex Ind. Imp.'', although in India itself the coins said "Empress", and later "King Emperor." When, in August 1947, India became independent, all dies had to be changed to remove the latter two abbreviations, in some cases taking up to a year. In the United Kingdom, coins of George VI carried the title to 1948.

In the German Empire

In 1871, the North German Confederation united with the Southern German states to form the German Empire. The Constitution of the German Empire, Constitution stated that the King of Prussia, then Wilhelm I, German Emperor, William I, would be crowned German Emperor (''Deutscher Kaiser''). Wilhelm had wanted to be proclaimed Emperor of Germany (''Kaiser von Deutschland''), but this would have caused sovereignty problems with the southern German princes and also with Austria-Hungary, Austria. After the devastating loss in the First World War and the German Revolution, Emperor Wilhelm II, William II attempted to abdicate the throne of Germany while retaining his throne as King of Prussia, believing the Kingdom of Prussia and the German Empire to be in a personal union. But after being informed that he could not abdicate one throne without the other, William was forced to abdicate both thrones and lived the rest of his live in exile in the Netherlands.

In Austria-Hungary

Another use of this dual title was when, in 1867, the multi-national Austrian Empire, which was Ethnic German, German-ruled and facing growing nationalism, undertook a reform that gave nominal and factual rights to Hungary, Hungarian nobility. This reform revived the Austrian-annexed Kingdom of Hungary, and therefore created the personal union, dual-monarchic union state of Austria-Hungary and the dual title of "emperor-King of Hungary, king" (in German language, German ''Kaiser und König'', in Hungarian language, Hungarian ''Császár és Király''). The Habsburg dynasty therefore ruled as Emperors of Austria over the western and northern half of the Empire (Cisleithania), and as Kings of Hungary over the Kingdom of Hungary and much of Transleithania. Hungary enjoyed some degree of self-government and representation in joint affairs (principally foreign relations and defence). The federation bore the full name of "The Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Crown of St. Stephen, Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen".

In the Italian colonial empire

Following the Italian Ethiopia, Italian occupation of Ethiopia in 1936, King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy#Emperor of Ethiopia, Victor Emmanuel III was proclaimed Emperor of Ethiopia. Thus, he became King-Emperor (in Italian ''Re Imperatore''), ruling over both the Kingdom of Italy and the Ethiopian Empire. The King-Emperor was represented by the Viceroy, who was also appointed as List of governors-general of Italian East Africa, Governor-General of Italian East Africa (AOI – Africa Orientale Italiana). The capital city of the Viceroy and Governor-General was Addis Ababa.

Titles

* The Serbian emperor Stefan Dušan (r. 1346–55), earlier king (1331–45), is attested with the title "Emperor of Greece and King of All Serb Lands and the Pomorje, Maritime" in a document dating to between 1347–56 (see also Emperor of the Serbs). Dušan has been described as a "king-emperor". * The Holy Roman Emperors were also Kings of Italy, Bohemia, Germany and Burgundy for most of the time that title existed. * Napoleon was simultaneously Emperor of the French and Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic), King of Italy. His title was shortened in "Emperor-King" (''Empereur-Roi'' or ''l'Empereur et Roi'') rather than "King-Emperor". * John VI of Portugal was made titular Emperor of Brazil alongside being King of Portugal and was titled as King-Emperor until his death. After John VI's death, his son Pedro I of Brazil, Pedro briefly acceded him as King of Portugal while reigning as Emperor of Brazil.

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