In a world historically dominated by male rulers, the women who
have sat on thrones of their own shine out brightly. Some queens
and empresses were born to greatness, while others fought their way
to power. Queens ranges from the ancient world to the present day,
telling the stories of these women who ruled, from murderous former
courtesan Wu Zetian in 7th century China to Elizabeth I, the
'Virgin Queen' of England. In 6th century Constantinople, Empress
Theodora, who had been a street performer before catching the eye
of Emperor Justinian, extended rights for women, passing laws that
allowed them to divorce and own property and made rape a crime
punishable by death. In 12th century Europe, Eleanor of Aquitaine
first married the king of France and then the king of England. At
the Mughal court in Lahore in the early 17th century, Nur Jahan,
wife of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir, was the political powerhouse
behind the throne. In more recent history, the book explores the
reigns of Catherine the Great, revealing how a minor German
aristocrat came to rule and expand the Russian Empire, Queen
Victoria, whose family dominated the world in the early 20th
centuty, and her more recent descendent, Elizabeth II, the
longest-ruling queen in history. Female rulers are often described
as ambitious rather than bold, as devious rather than
diplomatically astute and as intriguers and meddlers, all
characterizations that are destructive to the reality of women's
lives in the world's monarchies. Even genealogies still often leave
out the women of royal families, overlooking their genuine
contributions. To some extent, we will never know these great women
of history as well as we know their menfolk; the sources simply
leave too many gaps. However, we can and will do better in giving
the women rulers of history the recognition they deserve Carefully
researched, superbly entertaining and illustrated throughout with
more than 180 photographs and artworks, Queens highlights the true
personalities and real lives of the women who became monarchs and
empresses.
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