Queens

Trung Sisters

In ancient Vietnam, before the Chinese came, women were clan rulers and queens. Society was built on what seems to have been a gender-equal footing, and women routinely wielded political power, went ...

Victoria

Queen Victoria (1819-1901) was the second longest-ruling female monarch in history, exceeded only by the late Queen Elizabeth II. People often think of her as the elderly widow of her later years, ...

Wu Zetian

Wu Zetian (624-705) was the only woman to ever rule as Empress of China. We show three depictions of her above: on the left is an antique portrait, on the right is a photo of an actress in a ...

Zenobia

Zenobia (240–274?) was the great Syrian queen of Palmyra who built a desert empire, conquered Egypt, and briefly gave the Romans a run for their money. She lost in the end, alas, and was paraded ...