Series:
- Powerful Women Rulers You Should Know
- Ancient Women Rulers
- Medieval Queens, Empresses, and Women Rulers
- Women Rulers of the Early Modern Period (1600-1750)
- Women Rulers of the Eighteenth Century
- Women Rulers of the Nineteenth Century
- Women Prime Ministers and Presidents: 20th Century
Anne of Austria
1601 - 1666She was the daughter of Philip III of Spain and queen consort of Louis XIII of France. She ruled as regent for her son, Louis XIV. Alexander Dumas included her as a figure in Three Musketeers.
Anna Nzinga
1581-1663Queen of the Ndongo (Angola) and queen of Matamba, she led the resistance to Portuguese settlement in central Africa.
Anne Stuart
1665 - 1714She succeeded her brother-in-law, William of Orange, as ruler of Scotland and England, and was Queen at the creation of Great Britain with the Act of Union in 1707. She was married to George of Denmark, but though she was pregnant 18 times, only one child survived past infancy, and he died at age 12. Because she had no offspring to inherit the throne, her successor was George I, son of her cousin, Sophia, Electress of Hanover.
Catherine I
1684 - 1727Married to Peter the Great of Russia, she ruled with her husband until his death, when she ruled as a figurehead for two years until her own death.
Christina of Sweden
1626 - 1689Christina of Sweden is famous -- or infamous -- for ruling Sweden (1632 - 1654) in her own right, being raised as a boy, rumors of lesbianism and an affair with an Italian cardinal, and her abdication of the Swedish throne.
Elizabeth Bathory
1560 - 1614Countess of Hungary, she was tried in 1611 for torturing and killing between 30 and 40 young girls.
Henrietta of France
1609 - 1669Married to Charles I of England, she was the daughter of Marie de Medici and mother of Charles II. When her son was deposed, Henrietta worked to have him restored.
Isabella Farnese
1692 - 1766Queen consort and second wife of Spain's Philip V, she virtually ruled while he was alive. She briefly served as regent between the death of her stepson, Ferdinand VI, and the succession of his brother, Charles III.
Khadija Turhan
1627 - 1683Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, she was regent for her son Mehmed IV, helping defeat a plot against him.
Maria Anna
1606 - 1646Married to the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III, she was politically active until her death from poisoning.
