
Not all queens dowager are the queen mother they may have a relation other than mother to the reigning monarch, such as aunt or grandmother. Not every queen mother is a queen dowager, such as Queen Paola of Belgium, who became the queen mother of her son Philippe after her husband Albert II abdicated the throne but retained the title of king. Distinction from queen mother Ī queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the current monarch. Thus it hath pleased Almighty God to take out of this transitory life unto His Divine Mercy the late Most High, Most Mighty and Most Excellent Princess Elizabeth, Queen Dowager and Queen Mother, Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Lady of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, Lady of the Imperial Order of the Crown of India, Grand Master and Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order upon whom had been conferred the Royal Victorian Chain, Dame Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, Dame Grand Cross of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John, Relict of His Majesty King George the Sixth and Mother of Her Most Excellent Majesty Elizabeth The Second by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, Sovereign of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, whom may God preserve and bless with long life, health and honour and all worldly happiness. The Garter King of Arms's proclamation in the United Kingdom of the styles and titles of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother at her funeral on 9 April 2002 illustrates her dual status as a queen dowager and a queen mother: There may be more than one queen dowager at any given time. Many former queens consort do not formally use the word "dowager" as part of their titles.


A new reigning king would have (at accession or eventually) a wife who would be the new queen consort and therefore the queen and, of course, a queen regnant would also be called the queen. Queen Ratna of Nepal was queen dowager until the abolition of the Nepalese monarchy in 2008.Ī queen dowager has an important royal position (whether or not she is the mother of the reigning sovereign) but does not normally have any rights to succeed a king as monarch on his death unless she happens to be next in line to the throne (one possibility would be if the king and queen were also cousins and childless, the king had no other siblings, and she in her other position as his cousin was also his heiress presumptive).Ī queen dowager continues to enjoy the title, style, and precedence of a queen, but is no longer referred to as the queen. A queen mother is a former queen consort, often a dowager queen, who is the mother of the reigning monarch.Ĭurrently (2019) there are four queens dowager: Kesang Choden of Bhutan (who is the only living queen grandmother worldwide), Norodom Monineath of Cambodia (who is also queen mother), Lisa Najeeb Halaby (Noor Al'Hussein) of Jordan, and Sirikit Kitiyakara of Thailand (who is also queen mother). wife of a king), while dowager indicates a woman continues to hold the title from her deceased husband (a queen who reigns in her own right is a queen regnant).
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Its full meaning is clear from the two words from which it is composed: queen indicates someone who served as queen consort (i.e. In the case of the widow of an emperor, the title of empress dowager is used. JSTOR ( November 2021) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)Ī queen dowager or dowager queen (compare: princess dowager or dowager princess) is a title or status generally held by the widow of a king.Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.


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