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Emperor

Emperor

:This article is about Emperor in the meaning of "monarch", for all other uses, see: Emperor (disambiguation) An emperor is a (male) monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress is the feminine form and can either be the wife of an emperor or a woman being an imperial monarch herself. Emperors are generally recognised to be above kings in honour and rank. Emperor Akihito of Japan is the world's only reigning emperor.

Distinction between Emperor and other types of monarch

Both kings and emperors are monarchs. There is no single rule to distinguish the one from the other: several factors, like interpretations of historians, the size and characteristics of the governed realm, and the title(s) chosen by the monarch play a part in distinguishing the one from the other. General characteristics indicating that a monarch is to be considered an emperor rather than a king include:
- The monarch chose a title that usually translates as "emperor" in English, and/or is accepted as the equivalent of "emperor" in international diplomatic relations;
- The monarch rules over other monarchs, without stripping monarchy-related titles from these subjects ("vassals" or non-sovereign monarchs);
- The monarch assumes divine or other high-ranked religious characteristics (see: imperial cult, caesaropapism);
- The monarch rules several formerly sovereign countries, or peoples from different nations or ethnic provenance. Where the title chosen by the monarch has become a separate concept in the English language, the distinction whether this monarch would have been an "emperor" or a "king" is often no longer made: for instance caliph, sultan or khan as a concept of a type of monarch is usually defined separately, making it redundant to apply the emperor/king distinction to these types of monarchy.

Imperium maius

In Christian Europe the use of the title emperor is more than an affectation. A king recognises that the church is an equal or superior in the religious sphere, emperors do not. This was illustrated by Henry VIII of England who started to use the word imperium in his dispute with the Pope over his first divorce. By stating that they were emperors the Russian Tsars claimed to be the head of the (Russian Orthodox) church and did not recognise any superior authority but God.

Historical development

Europe

Roman Tradition

In the Roman tradition a large variety in the meaning and importance of the Imperial form of monarchy developed: in intention it was always the highest office, but it could as well fall down to a redundant title for nobility that had never been near to the "Empire" they were supposed to be reigning. Also the name of the office split in several branches of Western tradition, see section on the Origin of the Western terminology below. Importance and meaning of Coronation ceremonies and regalia also varied within the tradition: for instance Holy Roman Emperors could only be crowned emperor by the pope, which meant the coronation ceremony usually took place in Rome, often several years after these emperors had ascended to the throne (as "king") in their home country. The first Latin Emperors of Constantinople on the other hand had to be present in the newly conquered capital of their Empire, because that was the only place where they could be granted to become Emperor. Early Roman Emperors on the other hand avoided any type of ceremony or regalia different from what was already usual for republican offices in the Roman Republic: the most intrusive change had been changing the color of their robe to purple. Later new symbols of worldly and/or spiritual power, like the orb became an essential part of the Imperial accessories. Rules for indicating successors also varied: there was a tendency towards male inheritance of the supreme office, but as well election by noblemen, as ruling Empresses (for empires not too strictly under salic law) are known. Ruling monarchs could additionally steer the succession by adoption, as often occurred in the two first centuries of Imperial Rome. Of course, intrigue, murder and military force could also mingle in for appointing successors, the Roman Imperial tradition made no exception to other monarchical traditions in this respect. Probably the epoch best known for this part of the Imperial tradition is Rome's third century

Roman Emperors

Ancient Rome - origin of Western terminology

:see: Roman Emperor When Republican Rome turned into a monarchy again, in the second half of the 1st century BC, at first there was no name for the title of the new type of monarch: ancient Romans abhorred the name Rex ("king"), and after Julius Caesar also Dictator (which was an acknowledged office in Republican Rome, Julius Caesar not being the first to hold it). In fact Caesar Augustus, who can be considered the first Roman Emperor, avoided to name himself anything that could be reminding of "monarchy" or "dictature". Instead, these first Emperors constructed their office as a complicated collection of offices, titles, and honours, that were consolidated around a single person and his closest relatives (while in the republic the "taking of turns", often in shared offices, had been the principle for passing on power). These early Roman emperors didn't need a specific name for their monarchy: they had enough offices and powers accumulated so that in any field of power they were "unsurpassable", and besides: everybody just knew they had supreme power. If needed that supreme power could be demonstrated by a proces for high treason, exile, poisoning, or whatever, for those who gave semblance not to understand. As the first Roman Emperors did not rule by virtue of any particular republican or senatorial office, the name given to the office of "head of state" in this new monarchical form of government became different depending on tradition, none of these traditions consolidated in the early days of the Roman Empire:
- Princeps (as, for example, in Tacitus' Annals). This tradition did not continue. An echo can be found in Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince, where "Prince" is used as a generic name for "monarch", and later in the first dynasties of Imperial monarchs of ancient Rome being called principate by historians. This name for the Roman monarch appears to go back to the office of Princeps senatus (which can be translated as "president of the senate"), an office since Augustus held exclusively by the ruling monarch.
- Caesar (as, for example, in Suetonius' Twelve Caesars). This tradition continued in many languages: in German it became "Kaiser"; in certain Slavic languages it became "Tsar"; in Hungarian it became "Császár", and several more variants. The name derived from Julius Caesar's cognomen "Caesar": this cognomen was adopted by all Roman emperors, exclusively by the ruling monarch after the Julio-Claudian dynasty had died out. In this tradition Julius Caesar is sometimes described as the first Caesar/emperor (following Suetonius).
- Augustus was the honorific first bestowed on Emperor Augustus: after him all Roman emperors added it to their name. Although it had a high symbolical value, something like "akin to divinity", it was generally not used to indicate the office of Emperor itself. Exceptions include the title of the Augustan History, a half-mockumentary biography of the Emperors of the 2nd and 3rd century. Augustus had (by his last will) granted the feminine form of this honorific (Augusta) to his wife. Since there was no "title" of Empress(-consort) whatsoever, women of the reigning dynasty sought to be granted this honorific, as the highest attainable goal. Few were however granted the title, and certainly not as a rule all wives of reigning Emperors.
- Imperator (as, for example, in Pliny the Elder's Naturalis Historia). In the Roman Republic Imperator meant "(military) commander". In the late Republic Imperator was a title granted to Roman generals by their troops and the Roman Senate after a great victory, roughly comparable to field marshal. This title, during the Republic, had been given to people seven times at all: in 90 BC to a Gaius Julius Caesar, in 84 BC to Cneus Pompeus, in 60 BC to the other, most famous, Gaius Julius Caesar, relative of the former, in 50 BC to Marcus Tullius Cicero, in 45 BC again to Caius Julius Caesar, in 44 BC to Marcus Iunius Brutus, and in 41 BC to Lucius Antonius (relative and ally of the more famous Marcus Antonius). Soon after the emergence of the imperial monarchy in Rome "Imperator" also became an exclusive title, adopted by the ruling monarch. This led to "Emperor" in English and, among other examples, "Empereur" in French. The Latin feminine form Imperatrix only developed after "Imperator" had gotten the connotation of "Emperor".
- : although the Greeks used equivalents of "Caesar" (Καίσαρ) and "Augustus" (in two forms: Αύγουστος or translated as Σεβαστός/"Sebastos") these were rather used as part of the name of the Emperor than as an indication of the office. Instead of developing a new name for the new type of monarchy, they used ("autokratôr", only partly overlapping with the modern understanding of "autocrat") or ("basileus", until then the usual name for "king"). "Autokratôr" could be seen as a translation of the Latin "Imperator" (it was certainly used as its replacement in Greek-speaking part of the Roman Empire), but also here there is only partial overlap between the meaning of the original Greek and Latin concepts. For the Greeks "Autokratôr" was not a military title, and was closer to the Latin dictator concept ("the one with unlimited power"), before it came to mean Emperor. Basileus appears not to have been used in the meaning of Emperor before the 7th century. After the problematic year 69, the Flavian Dynasty reigned for about half a century. The succeeding Nervan-Antonian Dynasty, ruling for most of the 2nd century, stabilised the Empire. This epoch became known as the era of the Five Good Emperors, and was followed by the short-lived Severan Dynasty. In the 3rd century Barracks Emperors succeeded one another at short intervals. The next period, known as the Dominate, started with the Tetrarchy installed by Diocletian. Through most of the 4th century, there were separate emperors for the Western and Eastern part of the Empire. Although there were several dynastic relations between the Emperors of both parts, they also often were adversaries. The last Emperor to rule a unified Roman Empire was Theodosius. Less than a century after his death in 395, the last Emperor of the Western half of the Empire was driven out.

The Eastern Emperors after 476

:see Byzantine Emperor

=Byzantine Emperors

= Byzantine Emperors: that's why this famous mosaic, featuring the Byzantine emperor in the center, can be admired at Ravenna.]] Historians generally call the eastern part of the Roman Empire the Byzantine Empire due to its capital Constantinople, whose ancient name was Byzantium (now Istanbul). After the fall of Rome to barbarian forces in 476, the title of "emperor" lived on in rulers of Constantinople (New Rome). The Byzantine Emperors completed the transition from the idea of the Emperor as a semi-republican official to the Emperor as a traditional monarch when Emperor Heraclius took the title of Basileus (the original Greek word for "King") in the seventh century. A specifically Byzantine development of emperor's position was cesaropapism, position as leader of christians. The Byzantine empire produced also three reigning empresses: Irene, Zoe, and Theodora.

=Latin Emperors

= In 1204, the Fourth Crusade captured Constantinople, and soon established a Latin Empire of Constantinople under one of the Crusader leaders. The Latin Empire was, however, unable to consolidate control of the whole of the former territories of the Byzantine Empire. Driven out of Constantinople in 1261 some territories in Greece still recognized their authority for some time. Eventually, the Imperial title became redundant and did not even contribute any longer to the prestige of the noblemen in their own country: it remained dormant in 1383.

=Byzantine Emperors after the 4th Crusade

= In Asia Minor, after being driven out of Constantinople, relations of the last pre-Crusader emperors established the Empire of Nicaea and the Empire of Trebizond. Similarly, the Despotate of Epirus was founded in the Western Balkans (the rulers of the latter took the title of Emperor for a short time following their conquest of Thessalonica a few decades later). Eventually, the Nicaean Emperors were successful in reclaiming the Byzantine imperial title. They managed to force Epirus into submission and retake Constantinople by 1261, but Trebizond remained independent. The restored Byzantine empire finally fell due to Ottoman invasion in 1453. The Trapezuntines held on until 1461.

Revival of the title in the Western part of Europe

:See: Holy Roman Emperor

=Charlemagne and his heirs

= On 25 December , 800, Charles I, King of the Franks, was crowned Emperor by Pope Leo III in Rome. This was seen as a revival of the Western Roman Empire, and descendants of Charlemagne continued to be crowned in Rome through the 9th century. The increasing divisions within the Frankish lands, however, led to a suspension of the office.

=Holy Roman Emperors

= Western Roman Empire is pictured as performing the actual coronation, the highly symbolical sword ("Reichsschwert") and Holy Lance are handed by the saints Ulrich († 973) and Emmeram († 652) - Henry had actually been crowned Emperor by Pope Benedict VIII in 1014.]] In 962, Otto I, King of the Eastern Franks (or Germany) was again crowned Emperor by the Pope. His successors became known as Holy Roman Emperors. The Holy Roman Empire, such as it was, consisted of the Kingdoms of Germany, Italy, and Burgundy. After the 13th century and the fall of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, the universalistic aspirations of the Emperors became increasingly theoretical, and their control over Italy, still seen as the locus of the proper empire, became increasingly tenuous. Rather than being hereditary, emperors were chosen by the prince-electors, in a process codified by the Golden Bull of 1356. Coronations in Rome became rarer and rarer, until in 1508, King Maximilian I, after receiving permission from the pope, declared himself Emperor-Elect without having been crowned in Rome. Although Maximilian's grandson and successor, Charles V, was crowned in Bologna in 1529 by the Pope, he was the last, and thereafter the position of Holy Roman Emperor was a wholly German post until the Empire's dissolution in August 6, 1806. Even in Germany itself, real control was increasingly tenuous, as various local princes increased their power, so that the Habsburg emperors who ruled almost continuously from 1438 until the end of the empire derived their power much more from their hereditary lands in the south-eastern part of the monarchy than from their position as emperor. As religious differences added to the tensions, compromise was needed (Peace of Augsburg, 1555). The Habsburg dynasty attempted to reassert authority over the Empire in the Thirty Years War, which ended with the Peace of Westphalia (1648) that recognized princes sort of sovereign instead of dependents. The impotence of the Emperors' position became most nakedly apparent during the brief reign of Charles VII from 1742 to 1745. As Duke of Bavaria, Charles was the only non-Habsburg emperor for the last three hundred fifty years of the empire's existence, and his utter inability even to protect his own hereditary lands from the forces of his enemy, Maria Theresa, the Habsburg heiress, showed how empty the position of Holy Roman Emperor had become. The conquests of the French revolutionary armies in the 1790s made the Empire itself untenable, so that Emperor Francis II in 1804 took the title of Emperor of Austria (see below), and ultimately, allowed the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire a few years later.

Overview

Austria

:see: Emperor of Austria On 11 August , 1804 anticipating the eventual collapse of the Holy Roman Empire at the behest of Napoleon I, Francis II of the Holy Roman Empire assumed the additional title of Emperor of Austria (as Francis I thereof). The precaution was a wise one, because two years later on August 6 1806 he was obliged to proclaim the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire. Emperor Karl of Austria, the last ruling hereditary monarch in that country, "relinquished every participation in the administration of the State" on November 11 1918.

Bulgaria

In 913, Bulgarian king Simeon I crowned himself "Emperor and Autocrat of all the Bulgars and Greeks" following a victory over the Byzantines. His successors held on to the title Tsar until the conquest of Bulgaria by the Byzantines in 1018. In 1186, Bulgaria again achieved independence, and its rulers again took the style of Tsar, which they held until 1396 when Bulgaria fell to the invading Ottoman Empire. The title was again revived from 1908 to 1946. Simeon II, the last tsar, abdicated and the monarchy was abolished. The title of the modern Bulgarian tsars is frequently translated into English as king.

France

Simeon II), at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
The painting by David commemorating the event is equally famous: the gothic cathedral restyled style Empire, supervised by the mother of the Emperor on the balcony (a fictional addition, while she had not been present at the ceremony), the pope positioned near the altar, Napoleon proceeds to crown his then wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais as Empress.]] Napoléon Bonaparte who was already First Consul of the French Republic (Premier Consul de la République française) for life, declared himself Emperor of the French (Empereur des Français) on May 18, 1804. Despite being ruled by an emperor, it continued to be the French Republic (République Française) until 1808, when it was renamed the French Empire (Empire Français). Napoleon relinquished the title of Emperor of the French on 6 April and again on April 11, 1814, but was allowed to style himself Emperor of Elba, the island of his first exile. After his attempted restoration and defeat in 1815 he was stripped of even that usage during his second exile. His nephew Napoleon III resurrected the title on December 2, 1852 after establishing the Second French Empire in a presidential coup, and lost it when he was deposed on September 4, 1870 by the Third Republic. It has not been used in France since then.

Germany

Following victory after the Franco-Prussian war and the founding of the German Empire, the Prussian king had himself crowned German Emperor as Wilhelm I on January 18 1871, as part of the competition with the Emperor of Austria for dominance in the German-speaking lands. With defeats in World War I and revolution breaking out, Emperor Wilhelm II abdicated on 9 November 1918 and a republic was established.

Russia

In 1472, the last Byzantine emperor's niece, Sophia Paleologue, married Ivan III, grand duke of Moscow, who began championing the idea of Russia being the successor to the Byzantine Empire. Their grandson Ivan IV crowned himself tsar in 16 January, 1547. On 31 October , 1721 Peter I was crowned emperor as well. He based his claim partially upon a letter discovered in 1717 written in 1514 from Maximilian I to Vasili III, Sophia's son and Ivan IV's father, in which the Holy Roman Emperor used the term in referring to Vasili. The title has not been used in Russia since the abdication of Emperor Nicholas II on 15 March, 1917. Imperial Russia produced four reigning empresses, all in the eighteenth century.

Serbia

After a series of victories against his neighbors, Serbian king Stefan Uros IV proclaimed himself "Tsar and Autocrat of Serbs, Greeks, Bulgarians and Albanians" in 1346. His son, Stefan Uros V, was unable to retain the empire. After his death in 1371, no Serb monarch would use the title Tsar.

Spain

King Sancho III of Navarre declared himself emperor of Spain in 1034. His son, Ferdinand I of Castile also took the title in 1039. Ferdinand's son, Alfonso VI of Castile took the title in 1077. Alfonso VI's grandson, Alfonso VII was the only one who actually had an imperial coronation in 1135. The title was not exactly hereditary but self proclamations by those that had, wholly or partially, united Christian (northern) Spain often at the expense of killing rival siblings. The popes and Holy Roman emperors protested at the usage of the imperial title as a usurpation of leadership in western Christendom. After Alfonso VII's death in 1157, the title was abandoned.

British Emperors and Empresses

In the late 3rd century, by the end of the epoch of the barracks emperors in Rome, there were two Britannic Emperors, reigning for about a decade.

England

King William I of England thought it important enough to request and get a Papal blessing for his conquest of England. Throughout the high Middle Ages the English kings recognised the supremacy of the Pope in matters spiritual. For example, when Thomas à Becket was murdered, King Henry II of England was forced to recognise that, although he ruled temporal matters, spiritual matters came under the authority of the Church in Rome. This changed with the dispute between Henry VIII of England and Pope Clement VII over Henry's wish to have his marriage to Catherine of Aragon annulled. The Act in restraint of Appeals (1533) explicitly stated that :Where by divers sundry old authentic histories and chronicles it is manifestly declared and expressed that this realm of England is an empire, and so hath been accepted in the world, governed by one supreme head and king, having the dignity and royal estate of the imperial crown of the same. The next year the Act of Supremacy (1534) explicitly tied the head of church to the imperial crown: :The only supreme head in earth of the Church of England called Anglicana Ecclesia, and shall have and enjoy annexed and united to the imperial crown of this realm. The an Act by the Irish Parliament in 1541 (effective 1542) changed the traditional title used by the Monarchs of England for the reign over Ireland, from Lord of Ireland to King of Ireland and naming Henry head of the Church of Ireland, for similar reasons. During the English Interregnum these laws were annulled, but the acts which caused the laws to be in abeyance were themselves, deemed to be null and void by the Parliaments of the English Restoration, so by act of Parliament The Crown of England and (later the British and UK crowns) are imperial crowns.

Britain

In 1801 when Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland, it was proposed that George III become Emperor of the British and Hanoverian Dominions, and therefore Emperor of the British Empire. George III however rejected the idea, favouring the traditional title of king. When a royal marriage made it obvious to the British in 1877 that their Queen Victoria would be outranked by her own daughter who would someday become German Empress, the British government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, conferred the additional title Empress of India by an Act of Parliament. That title was relinquished by George VI with effect from August 15 1947, when India was granted independence. The Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 in which it was agreed that the United Kingdom and the dominions were "equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations". This in effect along with the Statute of Westminster, 1931 marked the beginning of the end of the British Empire and set the basis for the continuing relationship between the Commonwealth Realms and the structure of the Crown.

The Americas

Brazil

Brazil declared independence from Portugal in 1822, and made Dom Pedro, eldest son of the then-King of Portugal, who was acting as regent, Emperor as Pedro I on 12 October. The empire came to an end with the overthrow of Emperor Pedro II in 1889.

Haiti

Haiti was declared an empire by its ruler, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who made himself Jacques I, in 20 May, 1805. He was assassinated the next year. Haiti again became an empire from 1849 to 1859 under Faustin Soulouque.

Mexico

Faustin Soulouque In Mexico, there were two short-lived attempts to create an Empire. Agustín de Iturbide, the general who helped secure Mexican independence from Spanish rule, was proclaimed Emperor Agustín I in 12 July, 1822, but was overthrown the next year. In 1863, the invading French, in alliance with Mexican conservatives, proclaimed an empire and invited Archduke Maximilian, younger brother of the Austrian Emperor, to become emperor as Maximilian I. The childless Maximilian also adopted Agustín's grandson as his heir to bolster his claim. After the withdrawal of French protection in 1867, Maximilian was captured and executed by liberal forces.

Africa

Central African Empire

In 1976, president Jean-Bédel Bokassa of the Central African Republic, proclaimed the country to be the Central African Empire, and made himself Emperor as Bokassa I. The expenses of his coronation ceremony actually bankrupted the country, and he was overthrown three years later, and the republic restored.

Ethiopia

:see: Emperor of Ethiopia In Ethiopia, the Solomonid dynasty used, beginning in 1270, the title of "Negus Negust" which also translates to Emperor and is literally "King of Kings". The use of the king of kings style might however already have started a millennium earlier in this region. Another title used by this dynasty was "Itegue Zetopia". "Itegue" translates as Empress, and was also used by the only female reigning Empress, Zauditu, along with the official title Negiste Negest (Queen of Kings). In 1936, the Italian king Victor Emmanuel III took the title of Emperor of Ethiopia when that country was under Italian occupation. After the defeat of the Italians by the British (1941), Haile Selassie was restored to the throne but Victor Emmanuel did not relinquish his claim to the title until 1943. Haile Selassie was the rare example of an Emperor with some sort of godhead status after the second world war, see rastafari. He was deposed in 1974, the Imperial title ending the next year when his son, who had succeeded him, was deposed and exiled.

China

Qin tradition

:see: Emperor of China Emperor of China, China's first Emperor]] In 221 BC, Zheng, who was king of Qin at the time, proclaimed himself shi huangdi, which translates as "first emperor". Huangdi is composed of huang ("august one") and di ("sage-king"), and referred to legendary/mythological sage-emperors living several millennia earlier, of which three were huang and five were di (the sānhuáng wǔdì, see: The Three August Ones and the Five Emperors). Thus Zheng became Qin Shi Huang, abolishing the system where the huang/di titles were reserved to dead and/or mythological rulers. The imperial title continued in China until the Qing dynasty was overthrown in 1912. The title was briefly revived from December 12, 1915 to March 22, 1916 by President Yuan Shikai and again in early July , 1917 when General Zhang Xun attempted to restore last Qing emperor Puyi to the throne. Puyi retained the title and attributes of Emperor, as a personal status, until 1924. In general, an emperor would have one empress (Huanghou, 皇后) at one time, although posthumous entitlement to empress for a concubine was not uncommon. The earliest known usage of empress was in the Han Dynasty. The emperor would generally select the empress from his harem. In subsequent dynasties, when the distinction between wife and concubine became more accentuated, the crown prince would have chosen an empress-designate before his reign. Imperial China produced only one reigning empress, Wu Zetian, and she used the same Chinese title as an emperor (Huangdi, 皇帝).

Manchuria

The Khitan Empire was founded in this region on 907. They were overthrown by the Jurchen Jin Empire (1115–1234) which was in turn conquered by Mongol armies. In 1616, Ming China's Jurchen vassal, Nurhaci, rebelled and crowned himself emperor of the renamed Manchus. His successors, the Qing dynasty, conquered China in 1644 and reigned until revolution toppled them in 1912. After the Japanese occupied Manchuria in 1931, they proclaimed it to be the Empire of Manchukuo, and Puyi, the last Qing emperor of China, became puppet emperor. This puppet state came to an end with the Japanese defeat in 1945.

Mongol Emperors of the Yuan dynasty

The title Khagan (khan of khans or grand khan) was held by Genghis Khan, founder of the Mongol Empire in 1206. When the empire was partitioned, the Yuan dynasty khans in China (where they also took the native title huangdi) were nominal rulers of the whole Mongol realm. After being overthrown, the Yuan fled back to Mongolia and were subsequently known to historians as the Northern Yuan. They kept their title of Grand Khan until the Manchu emperor Hong Taiji forced them to surrender it in 1634. Only the Yuan Emperors of China between 1279 and 1368 are normally referred to as Emperors in English.

Japan

:See Emperor of Japan Emperor of Japan In Japan, the ruler in Yamato court was called "Tenno" (天皇) (heavenly emperor), which in Western languages is equalled to Emperor of Japan. Like in early Western tradition, the highest position of secular power was combined with the highest religious office (comparable with the Roman pontifex maximus) and claims of godhood (see Arahitogami). In several eras, the high-priestly role of the monarch has even been paramount, with a no more than formal secular role. Japanese monarchs placed themselves from 607 on equal footing with Chinese emperors in titulary and also took the Chinese style "Son of Heaven". In the Japanese language, tenno is restricted to Japan's own monarch. Koutei (皇帝) is used of foreign emperors. Often in Japan, retired emperors have kept effective power over a child-emperor. At same or other times, a Shogun or Regent has wielded effective power. After World War II, "Son of Heaven" and all other claims of divinity were dropped (see Ningen-sengen). Parliamentary government has wielded the power, reducing the office of emperor again to a mere ceremonial function. By the end of the 20th century Japan was the only (real) country with an emperor on the throne. In the early 21st century, Japan is under the Salic Law preventing female succession, but considering to abandon that rule. In earlier times, Japan has had eight reigning empresses who used the basically unigender title "Tenno" over the female consort title kōgō (皇后) or chugu. There is ongoing discussion of the Japanese Imperial succession controversy. Although current Japanese law prohibits female succession, all Japanese emperors trace their lineage to the supreme deity in Shinto religion, Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess.

Korea

Some early legendary dynasties used the title tanje which is translated as "emperor under the birch". The Bohai (669–926), which ruled parts of northern Korea and Manchuria used hwangje (huangdi). Rulers of the Koryo/Goryo dynasty (from Guangjong, the second ruler of the dynasty, onward) took the title of emperor as a means of enhancing the prestige of the monarchy. The title was stripped in the 13th century, however, after the surrender to the Mongols and the Korean rulers were demoted to kings thereafter and, as such, vassals of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty of China. Following the Chinese defeat by Japan in 1895, Korea declared total independence from China (see Treaty of Shimonoseki) and King Gojong took the title of Taehan Hwangje, translated as Emperor of Greater Korea. The empire came to an end with Japanese annexation in 1910.

Vietnam

Although the Vietnamese rulers acknowledged the supremacy of China, and were known to the Chinese emperors as simply King of Annam, domestically they took on a full Chinese-style imperial regalia in 1806, and are usually referred to as emperors in English. Axis-occupied Vietnam was declared an empire by the Japanese in March 1945. The line of emperors came to an end with Bao Dai, who was deposed after the war, although he later served as head of state of South Vietnam from 1949 to 1955.

Persian tradition

Iran

In Persia (or Iran), from the time of the Cyrus the Great, Persian rulers used the title Shahanshah which is sometimes translated as emperor and is literally "King of Kings". Persians were founders of one of the earliest and largest empires of the world, extending from India to Greece and Libya. Alexander the Great probably crowned himself shahanshah after conquering Persia. The last Shahanshah abdicated in 1979, when Iran became a republic. In English, the Shahnshah title is usually translated as "King" for ancient rulers of the Achaemenid, Arsacid, and Sassanid dynasties, and is shortened to "Shah" for rulers since the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century.

Ottoman Emperors

Ottoman rulers held the title Padishah, equivalent to the Persian shahanshah. After conquering the Byzantine Empire in 1453, Mehmed II also took the title of Roman emperor. Although in English the Ottoman rulers are generally known by the Turkish title Sultan, their titles of Padishah and Emperor would remain among the lists of titles carried by the Ottoman sultans until the monarchy was abolished in 1922.

India and Pakistan

Some Indian monarchs held the rare title Maharajadhiraja (Great King of Kings) but because it was treated as subordinate under the Mughals and the British, it is usually not considered imperial. The Mughal Emperors (1526–1857) held the title Badshah (padishah). The throne became vacant after Bahadur Shah II was unseated by the British. For the episode from 1877 to 1947 when British Emperors and Empresses ruled in India, see above. Note that Queen Victoria was the only reigning empress of India. In the valley of Swat (in modern Pakistan), Miangul Golshahzada Abdul Wadud titled himself badshah in 1918. In 1926, he was granted recognition of authority over Swat by the British in return for taking the lesser title of wali.

Afghanistan

Ahmad Shah founded the Durrani Empire in 1747 with the title Padshah. The Sadozai were overthrown in 1823 but there was a brief restoration by Shoja Shah in 1839. The title went dormant after his assassination in 1842 until 1926 when Amanullah Khan resurrected it. The title was finally laid to rest with the abdication of Mohammed Zahir Shah in 1973 following a coup. Afghan padshah is normally translated into English as king.

Pre-Columbian American traditions

Aztec Emperors

The only pre-Columbian North American rulers to be commonly called emperors were the Hueyi Tlatoani of the Aztec Empire (1375–1521). Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés slew Emperor Cuauhtémoc and installed puppet emperors who became vassals for Spain. Mexican Emperor Maximilian built his palace over the ruins of the Aztec one at Chapultepec.

Inca Emperors

The only pre-Columbian South American rulers to be commonly called emperors were the Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire (1438–1533). Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro, a second cousin of Hernán Cortés, conquered the Inca for Spain, killed Emperor Atahualpa, and installed puppets as well.

Other traditions

Lists of emperors

Emperors of traditional empires

Ancient empires

- Persian Empire (559 BC–330 BC) - see List of kings of Persia
- Empire of Alexander the Great (334 BC–281 BC)
- Mauryan Empire (321 BC–185 BC) - see Mauryan dynasty
- Chinese Empire (221 BC–1911) - see Table of Chinese monarchs
- Roman Empire (27 BC–476) - see List of Roman Emperors

Medieval empires

- Holy Roman Empire (800 and 962–1806) - see List of Holy Ro

Emperor (disambiguation)

Emperor and/or The Emperor can indicate:
- A (type of) monarch, see: Emperor
- The ruler of the Roman Empire, see: Roman Emperor
- A Norwegian Black Metal band, see: Emperor (band)
- Beethoven's 5th Piano Concerto is known as the "Emperor Concerto"
- A Tarot card, see: The Emperor (Tarot card)
- Animals:
- Emperor penguin
- Emperor moth
- In Fiction:
- The character called "The Emperor" in the Star Wars films, see: Palpatine
- In Frank Herbert's Dune universe:
- The Padishah Emperor, ruler of the known universe
- God Emperor of Dune, the fourth novel in the original series
- Emperor: Battle for Dune, a computer game by Westwood Studios
- Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom is a computer game
- Warhammer 40,000: The God-Emperor of Mankind

Monarch

:For other senses, see monarch (disambiguation). A monarch (see sovereign) is a type of ruler or head of state. Monarchs almost always inherit their titles and are rulers for life. Historically monarchs have been more or less absolute rulers, though modern monarchs are typically figureheads with little power. Monarchs usually represent a larger monarchical system which has established rules and customs regarding succession, duties, and powers. A nation ruled by a monarch is called a monarchy. The word "monarch" derives from Greek monos archein, meaning "one ruler," and referred to an absolute ruler in ancient Greece. With time, the word has been succeeded in this meaning by others, like autocrat or dictator, and the word monarch in modern usage almost always refers to a traditional system of hereditary rulership (but see the discussion on elective monarchies below).

Possible definitions of the term

Which rulers are considered monarchs today is partially a matter of tradition, so there are no hard and fast rules. There are, however, a number of characteristics that are commonly, though not universally, distinguishing for monarchs:
- Most monarchs hold their office for life, while most other rulers do not. A monarch may chose to resign his position through abdication, though this is a rare and dramatic practice.
- Exceptions to this include the French co-prince of Andorra, who is not appointed for life (he is the French President, elected for a five year period by the French people), but still generally considered a monarch because of the use of a traditionally monarchical title. (Though, a purist might regard Andorra as a diarchy.) Similarly, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) of Malaysia is considered a monarch although only holding the office five years at a time. On the other hand, several life-time dictators around the world have not been considered monarchs.
- Most monarchs are raised within a royal family where they are taught to expect and obey their future "duties," and they are, formally or informally, succeeded upon their death or abdication by members of their own family, usually their eldest son or eldest child. As a result, most stable monarchies have a long legacy of rule by a single family or bloodline.
- Once again, Malaysia is an exception, as is the Vatican City (the Pope bears the title "Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City"). Also, the practice is not totally uncommon in systems which are not considered monarchical, such as family dictatorships.
- Most monarchs hold titles that are traditional among monarchs (see below). While this is a fairly arbitrary characteristic, it might just be the best distinction between monarchs and non-monarchs at the moment.

Different types of monarchs

Monarchy is the form of government involving a monarch. It can be either absolute or constitutional, and constitutional monarchies may even restrict the powers of the monarch to the point where he is little more than a near-powerless figurehead, which is a common modern practice. The word monarchy can also be used about a country which has such a system. Normally however, such countries identify themselves more narrowly depending on the actual title used by the monarch – e.g., as a kingdom, grand duchy, or principality. Elective monarchies were once common, although only a very small portion of the population was eligible to vote. As the impact of the feudal system diminished, many monarchs were eventually allowed to introduce hereditary succession, guaranteeing that the title and office will stay within the family. Today, almost all monarchies are hereditary monarchies in which the monarchs come from one royal family with the office of sovereign being passed from one family member to another upon the death or abdication of the incumbent. Existing elective monarchies include Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and the Holy See. The former system of the election of the doge in Venice is also widely known. A sovereign is the monarch of a sovereign state. Although non-sovereign states have often had monarchs historically (not least within the Holy Roman Empire), all European monarchs since 1918 have been sovereigns. Outside Europe there still exist several monarchs of subnational entities however, most notably in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates. A more obscure example is that of Kings of the French Wallis and Futuna territory. In a few cases a monarch is associated with a particular group (or nation) within a state, such as Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu of the Maori (the Maori Queen) and Osei Tutu II of the Ashanti.

European monarchical titles

In Europe, a monarch may traditionally bear any of several titles. Although monarchs have normally been male, each of these titles also has a female counterpart. This is used not only in the (historically rare) case that the monarch is female, but also for wives of monarchs (when there is need to distinguish between the two cases, terms like Queen regnant and Queen consort are used). The converse is not true however: the husband of a queen regnant is not automatically a king (e.g., the Duke of Edinburgh is not King Philip of the United Kingdom). The more frequent use of the word monarch in recent years arises from this possibility of a male or female ruler. Formerly, the ruler was expected to be male, therefore a terminology of masculine words developed, the feminine words expressing a different role. The word monarch covers both sexes so is more acceptable in a general discussion in a gender-conscious culture. The normal monarch title in Europe – i.e., the one used if the monarch has no higher title – is Prince. It was a common title within the Holy Roman Empire, along with a number of higher titles listed below. Such titles were granted by the Emperor, while the titulation of rulers of sovereign states was generally left to the discretion of themselves, most often choosing King. Such titulations could cause diplomatic problems, and especially the elevation to Emperor was seen as an offensive action. During the 19th and 20th centuries most small monarchies in Europe disappeared to form larger entities, and so King has become the most common title today.
- As popes are usually Catholic priests (technically not a requirement, see Pope - Election), a celibate office forbidden to women, there is no female equivalent. Legends of female popes (see Pope Joan) refer to them as "pope." Some European languages have a feminine form of the word pope, such as the French papesse (to pape) or German Päpstin (to Papst), used, among other things, for the High Priestess tarot card. Note that some of these titles have several meanings and do not necessarily designate a monarch. A Prince can be a person of royal blood (some languages uphold this distinction, see Fürst). A Duke can be a British peer. In Imperial Russia, a Grand Duke was a son or grand-son of the Tsar. Holders of titles in these alternative meanings did not enjoy the same status as actual monarchs of the same title. Within the Holy Roman Empire, there were even more titles that were occasionally used for monarchs although they were normally noble; Margrave, Count Palatine, Landgrave. An actual monarch with such low titles still outranked a noble Duke. Today, there are seven kingdoms, one grand duchy, and two principalities in Europe, excluding the peculiar case of Andorra.

Monarchical titles in use by non-monarchs

It is not uncommon that people who are not generally seen as monarchs nevertheless use monarchical titles. There are three cases of this:
- Claiming an existing title, challenging the current holder. This has been very common historically. For centuries, the British monarch used, among his other titles, the title King of France, despite the fact that he had no authority over French territory. There have also been numerous antipopes.
- Retaining the title of an extinct monarchy. This can be coupled with a claim that the monarchy was in fact never, or should never have been, extinct. An example of the first case is the Prince of Seborga. Examples of the second case are several deposed monarchs or otherwise pretenders to thrones of abolished monarchies, e.g., Leka, Crown Prince of Albania who is styled by some as the "King of Albania." Retaining the title of an extinct monarchy can, however, be totally free of claims of sovereignty, as when Juan Carlos I of Spain includes "King of Jerusalem" in his full title. When it comes to deposed monarchs, it is customary to continue the usage of their monarchical title (e.g., Constantine II, King of the Hellenes) as a courtesy title, not a constitutional office, for the duration of their lifetime. However the title then dies with them and cannot be used by anyone else unless the crown is restored constitutionally. (Some republicans take offence at this custom.) Monarchs who have freely abdicated lose their right to use their former title. However where a monarch abdicated under duress (e.g., Michael I of Romania), it is customary to see the abdication as invalid and to treat them as deposed monarchs entitled to use their monarchical style for their lifetime.
- Inventing a new title. This is common by founders of micronations, and also may or may not come with a claim of sovereignty. When it does, it is most often disregarded by state leaders. A notable example is Paddy Roy Bates, styling himself the "Prince of Sealand," but not recognized as such by any national government, thus failing at least the constitutive condition for statehood (see Sealand for a fuller discussion of his claims).

Other monarchical titles

In China, "king" is the usual translation for the term wang, which designated the sovereign before the Qin dynasty and during the Ten Kingdoms period. During the early Han dynasty, China had a number of small kingdoms, each about the size of a county and subordinate to the Emperor of China. When a difference exists, male titles are placed to the left and female titles are placed to the right of the slash.

By region

- Africa
- Chieftain - Leader of a "primitive" people
- Pharaoh - early Egypt
- Negus - Ethiopia
- Oba - Yoruba people of Nigeria
- Americas
- Cacique - Aboriginal Hispaniola
- Hueyi Tlatoani - Aztec Empire
- Ajaw - Maya
- Inca - Tahuantinsuyu (Inca Empire)
- Asia
- Druk Gyalpo —heriditary title given to the king of Bhutan
- Chogyal — "Divine Ruler" — ruled Sikkim till 1975
- Hwangje - States that unified Korea
- Wang - States of Korea that do not have control over all of Korea
- Badshah - India (emperor)
- Huangdi - Imperial China
- Maharaja/Maharani - India
- Nawab, Wali - Muslim rulers of principalities or princes under Mughal (Mogul) or British Indian Empires
- Nizam - Hyderabad, India
- Susuhanan - the Indonesian princely state of Surakarta until its abolition
- Sultan - Aceh, Brunei Darussalam
- Meurah -Aceh before Islam
- Yang Dipertuan Agong - king of Malaysian Federations, elected each 5 years among the reining monarch in Malaysia.
- Tenno or Mikado - Japan
- Wang - pre-Imperial China
- Europe
- Arqa / Thagavor - Armenian king
- Germanic king
- Βασιλεύς-Greek
- Vezér - Ancient Hungarian
- Fejedelem - Ancient/Medieval Hungarian
- Vojvod (Serbian) / Vajda (Hungarian) - Serbian / Hungarian / Romany Title
- Rí and Ard Rí - Respectively King and High King in Ireland.
- Kniaz'/Knyaginya (generally translated as "prince") - Kievan Rus'
- Tsar/Tsaritsa - Imperial Russia
- Kunigaikshtis (Kunigaikštis) - Lithuanian,duke as in Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
- Middle East
- Bei
- Caliph - Islamic holy title
- Emir - Arabic holy title
- Khan - Mongol Emperor or Turkish, Afghan, Pashtun or other Central Asian chieftain
- Malik/Malika - Arabic leader
- Pharaoh - Ancient Egypt
- Shah - Persia/Iran, Afghanistan
- Shahenshah - Persia/Iran, "King of Kings" or emperor
- Shaikh - Arabic leader
- Sultan/Sultana - Arabic King
- Oceania
- Chieftain - Leader of a "primitive" people
- King - there were/are also kings in Oceania (i.e. Tonga,Wallis and Futuna, Nauru)
- Houeiki - Chief status in the Tongan traditional system.

General monarch titles

- Autocrat - General term for absolute monarch.
- Emperor/Empress - Empire
- Grand Duke/Grand Duchess - Grand Duchy
- King/Queen - Kingdom
- Prince/Princess - Sovereign Principality
- Sovereign Duke/Count/Baron - Sovereign Duchy/County/Barony - (Grand)Children have the title Princely-, like Princely-Lord

Succession

Succession from one monarch to another varies from country to country. Traditionally, hereditary succession within members of one family has been most common. The usual hereditary succession has based on some cognatic principles and on seniority, though also merits have influenced. Thus, the most common hereditary system in feudal Europe was based on cognatic primogeniture, where a lord was succeeded by his eldest son, and failing sons, by either daughters or by sons of daughters. The system of tanistry was semi-elective and gave weight also to merits and capability. The Quasi-Salic succession provided firstly male members of the family to succeed, and secondarily males also from female lines. In most feudal fiefs, females (such as daughters and sisters) were allowed to succeed, brothers failing, but usually the husband of the heiress became the real lord and most often also got title, iure uxoris. Great Britain and Spain are today continuing this old model of succession law, in form of cognatic primogeniture. In more complex medieval cases, the sometimes conflicting principles of proximity and primogeniture battled, and outcomes could have been idiosyncratic. As the average life span increased (lords limited their own participation in dangerous battles, and society's more wealthy had increasingly better sustenance and living conditions, which improved general health among princes), primogeniture began to win the battle against proximity, tanistry, seniority and election. Later, when lands were strictly divided among noble families and tended to remain fixed, agnatic primogeniture (practically the same as Salic Law) became the most usual: succession going to the eldest son of the monarch; if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the nearest male relative through male line. Some countries however accepted female rulers early on, so that if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the eldest daughter. (This, cognatic primogeniture, was the rule that let Elizabeth II become Queen.) In 1980, Sweden became the first European monarchy to abolish this preference for males altogether, declaring equal primogeniture or full cognatic primogeniture, so that the eldest child of the monarch now ascends to the throne, be that child male or female. Other kingdoms (Norway in 1990, Belgium in 1991 and the Netherlands) have followed. In some monarchies, e.g. Saudi Arabia, succession to the throne has passed to the monarch's next eldest brother, and only to the monarch's children after that (= agnatic seniority). In some other monarchies (e.g. Jordan), the monarch chooses who will be his successor, who need not necessarily be his eldest son.

Current monarchs

NOTE: The table comprises all sovereign monarchs of the world today, but is severely incomplete with regard to the non-sovereign monarchs.

External links

- [http://www.heraldica.org/topics/odegard/titlefaq.htm A Glossary of European Noble, Princely, Royal and Imperial Titles]
- [http://www.archontology.org Archontology]
- Monarch Monarch Category:Titles zh-min-nan:Ông ko:군주 ja:君主

Empire

:For alternative meanings, see Empire (disambiguation) An empire (also known technically, abstractly or disparagingly as an imperium, and with powers known among Romans as "imperium") comprises a set of regions locally ruled by governors, viceroys or client kings in the name of an emperor. By extension, one could classify as an empire any large, multi-ethnic state ruled from a single center. Like other states, an empire maintains its political structure at least partly by coercion. Land-based empires (such as Mongol or Achaemenid Persia) tend to extend in a contiguous area; sea-borne empires, also known as thalassocracies (the Athenian and British empires provide examples), may feature looser structures and more scattered territories. The actual political concept predates the Romans by several hundred years: empires began to appear soon after the first cities made the necessary administrative structures possible. The Akkadian Empire of Sargon of Akkad furnishes one of the earliest known examples. Compare the concept of "empire" with that of a federation, where a large, multi-ethnic state — or even an ethnically homogeneous one like Japan or a small area like Switzerland — relies on mutual agreement amongst its component political units. Also, one can compare physical empires with potentially more abstract or less formally structured hegemonies, which add cultural influences to their power repertory within their spheres of influence, compare empires with superpowers. superpower, from William R. Shepherd, Historical Atlas, 1911: compare Nation state]]

European Imperialism

The modern term "empire" derives from the Latin word imperium, a word coined in what became possibly the most famous example of this sort of political structure, the Roman Empire founded in 31 BC. The first empire, however, was the empire created by Sargon of Akkad in Mesopotamia. For many centuries, the term "Empire" in the West applied exclusively to states which considered themselves to be successors to the Roman Empire, such as the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, or, later, the Russian Empire. In 1204, when Constantinople was sacked during the Fourth Crusade, the Crusaders created a Latin Empire in Constantinople, while the descendents of the Byzantine Empire went to Asia Minor and established two smaller empires: the Empire of Nicaea and the Empire of Trebizond. These "empires" were short lived and the region was finally conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1453. It would not be until Peter the Great's crowning in St. Petersburg as Tsar of Russia that Eastern Imperialism would resurface. Likewise, upon the fall of the Holy Roman Empire after the Napoleonic Wars, the Austrian Empire, later reshaped as Austria-Hungary, inherited western imperialism. There were two attempts by Napoleon I and Napoleon III to seize the Western Imperial claim for France. Western Imperialism would also be usurped in the period of 1878–1918 by the German Empire. Over time, other monarchies which viewed themselves as greater in size and power than mere kingdoms used the name or its translation. In 1056, King Ferdinand I of Leon, proclaimed himself "Emperor of Spain", beginning the Reconquista. Bulgaria furnishes another example. Europeans came to apply the term "empire" to large non-European monarchies, such as the Empire of China or the Mughal Empire, and to extend it to past policies. The word eventually came to apply loosely to any entity meeting the criteria, whether kings governed or not, even whether a monarchy or not. In some cases synonyms of empire such as tsardom, realm or reich occur. Empires can accrete around different types of state. They have traditionally originated as powerful monarchies under the rule of a hereditary (or in some cases, self-appointed) emperor, but the so-called empires of Athens, Britain and the United States developed under democratic auspices. Brazil leapt from colonial to self-declared empire status in 1822. France has twice made the transition from republic to empire. Historically, most empires came into being as the result of a militarily strong state conquering other states and incorporating them into a larger political union. Typically, a monarchy or an oligarchy rooted in the original core territory would continue to dominate this union. Many ancient empires maintained control of their subject peoples by controlling the supply of a vital resource, usually water; historians refer to such régimes as "hydraulic empires". The introduction of a common religion also often strengthened empires, as occurred (pace Edward Gibbon) with the adoption of Christianity under Constantine I of the Roman Empire. And cultural influence played a large part in the survival of the Chinese empire and of its semi-imperial sphere of influence. An empire can mutate into some other form of polity. Thus the Bernese empire of conquest no longer appears so imperial, but its territories have become absorbed into the canton of Bern or become cantons or parts of cantons elsewhere in the Swiss Confederation. The Holy Roman Empire, itself in a sense a re-constitution of the Roman Empire, underwent many transformations in its long history, fissuring extensively, experimenting with federalism and re-constituting itself as the Austrian Empire - vastly different in nature and in territory. The former second British Empire has spawned a loose multi-national Commonwealth of Nations, and the old French colonial empire has also left traces of its existence in cultural networks and associations. The Soviet Empire leaves behind it the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). An Emperor-based empire can readily become (say) a republic by means of a coup (Brazil, 1889; Central African Empire, 1979); or it can become a republic with its dominions reduced to a core territory (Germany (1918–1919), Ottoman Empire (1918–1923)). The breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 provides an example of a multi-ethnic superstate fissuring into multiple constituent or new parts: the republics, kingdoms or provinces of Austria, Hungary, Transylvania, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Czechoslovakia, Ruthenia, Galicia… The world's largest contiguous land empire was the Mongol Empire, created by Genghis Khan in 1206. It encompassed huge portion of Eurasia under Mongol rule. The Mongol Empire was governed by specific written code by Genghis Khan called Yasa. The Mongol Empire was governed by kurultai, and there was freedom of religion, tax exemption and extensive trade routes that were nurtured by the Khan. For example, the Mongol Empire provided political stability to the Silk Road. Other famous empires include the Persian empire. The Persians had numerous great empires, and are not usually known for a particular one, both pre and post islamic Persia had powerful empires. The Macedonians had one great empire, led by Alexander the Great.

Imperialism

The discovery of the New World provided an opportunity for many European states to embark upon programs of imperialism on a different model, colonization. Under this model (previously trialled in the Old World in the Canary Islands and in Ireland), subject states became de jure subordinate to the imperial state, rather than de facto as in earlier empires. This led to a good deal of resentment in the client states, and therefore probably to the demise of this system by the early- to mid-twentieth century. The heyday of imperialism, the 19th century, coincided with a boom in the setting up of empires: from Haiti, France and Austria through Mexico to India and Germany. In contrast, the 20th century saw many empires demolished or dismembered: for example those of Russia, Austria-Hungary, Germany, Italy, France, Britain and the Central African Empire. One might describe one problem with the European imperial model as gerrymandering. In the interest of expediency, an imperial power tended to carve out a client state based solely on convenience of geography, while ignoring extreme cultural differences in the resulting area. An example of the attendant problems occurred in the Indian sub-continent. Formerly part of the British Empire, when the sub-continent gained its independence it split along cultural/religious lines producing modern India and the two-part country of Pakistan, which later split yet again resulting in the independence of Bangladesh.

Overt ideologies of empire

Naked aggression and sadistic greed, no more than theoretical imperialism, provide little in the way of comforting justifications for the growth and continuation of empires. Geopolitical strategy does not always arouse popular enthusiasm. But more high-minded goals can help in building imperialistic solidarity, perceived in terms such as:
- Cultural superiority
- Exportation of revolution (violence) away from the homeland
- National self-determination
- Racial superiority
- Spreading the benefits of civilization

Modern "empires"

The concept of "empire" in the modern world, while still present politically, has begun to lose cohesion semantically. The only remaining country nominally ruled by an Emperor, Japan, comprises a constitutional monarchy with a population of approximately 99% ethnic Japanese. Just as monarchies (as opposed to constitutional monarchies) have largely fallen out of favor in modern times, the term "empire" itself may now become somewhat of an anachronism. The former Soviet Union had many of the criteria of an empire, but nevertheless did not claim to be one, nor was it ruled by a traditional hereditary "emperor" (see Soviet Empire). Nevertheless, historians still occasionally classify it as an empire, if only because of its similarities to empires of the past and its sway over a large multi-ethnic bloc of Eurasia. Most modern multi-ethnic states see themselves as voluntary federations (Switzerland, for example, or Belgium) or as unions (United Kingdom, Spain), and not as empires. Most have democratic structures, and operate under systems which share power through multiple levels of government that differentiate between areas of federal and provincial/state jurisdiction. Where separatist groups exist, internal and external observers may disagree on whether state action against them represents legitimate law-enforcement against a violent or non-violent fringe group, or state violence to control a broadly unwilling population. A list of multi-ethnic states with ongoing violence by and against separatists might swamp this article, although China, Russia, Indonesia and India distinguish themselves by sheer size. The United States of America, widely categorized as a federation, offers another example. The North used coercion to keep the Union together during the American Civil War, which made this characterization more ambiguous in the minds of many. In the aftermath of the Cold War, the United States has emerged as an unrivaled superpower, and although the country has not engaged in formal territorial expansion since the acquisitions of Hawaii, of the Philippines and of the Virgin Islands, many suggest its powerful military and economic influences allow it to exert a sort of informal neo-imperial hegemony on much of the modern world (see American Empire, corporate colonialism).

Historical empires (with approximate dates)

- Abyssinian Empire (–1974)
- Achaemenid Empire (commonly known as the Persian Empire) (c. 550–330 BC)
- American Empire (1898- )
- Akkadian Empire (c. 2350–2150 BC — the first historical empire ever)
- Assyrian Empire (c. 900–612 BC)
- Athenian Empire (c. 477–404 BC)
- Austro-Hungarian Empire (1867–1918)
- Austrian Empire (1804–1867)
- Axis Powers (1936–1945)
- Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere (1940–1945)
- Third German Reich (1933–1945)
- Aztec Empire (1375–1521)
- Belgian Empire (1865–1962)
- Brazilian Empire (1822–1889)
- British Empire (c. 1583— ) De jure
- Bulgarian Empire (681–1018; 1185–1396)
- Byzantine Empire (330–1453)
- Chinese Empire (221 BC–1912)
- Danish colonial empire
- Dutch colonial empire
- Egyptian Empire (1550–1070 BC)
- Elamite Empire
- French Empire
- Genoa Empire (c. 1100–1797)
- German Empire (1871–1918)
- Ghana Empire (c. 750–1240)
- Gupta Empire (c. 320–550)
- Haitian Empire (1804–1806, 1849–1859)
- Hittite Empire (c. 1460–1180 BC)
- Holy Roman Empire (843–1806)
- Inca Empire (1438–1533)
- Ilkhanate (c. 1256–1338)
- Islamicate Empire (c. 630–1924)
- Israeli Empire (c. 1000–922 BC)
- Italian Colonial Empire (1889–1943)
- Japanese Empire
- Khmer Empire (802–1462)
- Kongo Empire
- Korean Empire (1897–1910)
- Latin Empire (1204–1261)
- Macedonian Empire (c. 338 BC–309 BC)
- Magadhan Empire (c. 550–350 BC)
- Majapahit Empire (c. 1293–1500)
- Mali Empire (c. 1240–1541)
- Malinke Empire
- Maratha Empire (1674–1761)
- Mauryan Empire (321 BC–185 BC)
- Mexican Empire (1822–1823, 1864–1867)
- Mogul Empire (1526–1857)
- Mongol Empire (1206–1394)
- Nicaean Empire (1204–1261)
- Old Babylonian Empire (c. 1900–1600 BC)
- Portuguese Empire (1495–1975)
- Roman Empire (27 BC–476 AD)
- Russian Empire (1721–1917)
- Sassanian Empire (224–651)
- Serbian Empire (1345–1371)
- Seleucid Empire (323 BC–60 BC)
- Songhai Empire (1464–1591)
- Spanish Empire (1492–1975)
- Swedish Empire (1561–1878)
- Teotihuacano Empire
- Timurid Empire (1401–1505)
- Trapezuntine Empire (1204–1461)
- Tu'i Tonga Empire (950–1875?)
- Ur III Empire (c. 2100–2000 BC)
- Venetian Empire (c. 900–1797)
- Vietnamese Empire (1802–1883)
- Vijayanagara Empire (c. 1350–1700)

Notes

#The United Kingdom still has some overseas territories. The British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II can be described as head of state of the United Kingdom. She is also monarch of the other Commonwealth Realms; the constitutional role of the monarchy is identical to that of the United Kingdom, but the historical and cultural significance may differ. Queen Elizabeth is also head of The Commonwealth; this title, however, does not imply any political power over member nations, and is a non-hereditary title. # De facto, The British Empire ended in the 1960s.

External link

- [http://www.hostkingdom.net/earthrul.html To Rule the Earth...]: List of Great Empires

King

The word king has many meanings:
- For the head of state, see Monarch.
- For the origins of the word king and for the traditional kings of Germanic countries, see also Germanic king.
- See also high king, King of Kings
- See also king (chess), king (playing card)
- for the fictional gigantic gorilla, see King Kong
- for the car see King Midget
- King (band), an eighties New Wave band
- A size of Bed
- King_magazine —a lad mag for African-Americans Two broadcasting stations in the United States have the callsign KING:
- KING-FM
- KING-TV Places named King include:
- King, Ontario
- King, North Carolina
- King County, Washington :(See also Kings County, Kingston) People whose surname is or was King include:
- Ada Byron King (Ada Lovelace)
- Annette King
- B.B. King
- Billie Jean King
- Carole King
- Charles William King
- Don King
- Earl King
- Horace King
- John William King
- Kerry King
- Larry King
- Laurie R. King
- William Lyon Mackenzie King
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Philip Gidley King
- Rodney King
- Stephen King
- Tabitha King
- People named William King
-