dowager empress
Late emperor's consort
A dowager empress is the widow of an emperor, retaining her title after his death.
The term distinguishes her from a reigning empress or the current emperor's wife.
Dowager empresses have sometimes wielded significant political power as regents or behind-the-scenes figures: The dowager empress ruled China for nearly half a century.
- widowBereaved wife, unmarried since
- power behind the throneHidden controller of affairs
- throneCeremonial chair for sovereigns
- dragon throneChinese emperor's chair
- palaceMonarch's official residence
imperial · matriarch · dynasty · court · queen mother · crown · royal · regal · consort · heir · succession · aristocrat · noble birth · veil · mourning · mourning dress · power · intrigue
- royaltyking, queen, prince, princess, kings
- imperial familyprince, princess, crown prince, heir apparent, consort
- royal titlesqueen, king, prince, princess, duke
- Imperial ChinaHan dynasty, dynasties, Three Kingdoms, Forbidden City, civil service exam
- Asian RoyaltyKangxi, Hirohito, crown prince, imperial family, dynasty
- Japanese Royaltyimperial family, imperial household, imperial throne, imperial palace, mikado