Dowager Queen
Dowager Queen or Queen Dowager is a title held by the widow queen of a deceased King.[1]
History
After the death of their royal spouse, a queen retains her title as queen and is known as the Dowager Queen or Queen Dowager. The Dowager Queen may still hold political power after her husband's death. Dowager Queen Visenya Targaryen advised her nephew King Aenys I Targaryen, though, paralyzed by indecision, he heeded little of it. She would go on to ensure her own son, Aenys' half-brother Maegor I Targaryen, succeeded as king and worked closely with Maegor to enforce his rule until her death.[1] In the immediate hours after her husband Viserys I Targaryen's death, Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower was central figure in the scheme to crown her son Aegon II Targaryen as king over their father's chosen heir, Aegon's elder sister Rhaenyra Targaryen.[2]
The Dowager Queen may also serve as Queen Regent in her son's minority. Dowager Queen Alyssa Velaryon would act as regent for her son Jaehaerys I Targaryen until he came of age.[3] Queen Dowager Cersei Lannister also served as Queen Regent[4] for both her sons, King Joffrey Baratheon[5] and King Tommen Baratheon.[4] The extent of this power can vary. In the case of Cersei, the willful personality of Joffrey[6] as well as the presence of her brother Tyrion Lannister[7] and father Tywin Lannister as Hand of the King curtailed her influence.[8] During Tommen's reign, without the influence of father and brother and with a far more obedient son, the Dowager Queen and Regent was able to govern as she wished.[9]
In some cases, the queen may marry a surviving relative of the deceased king and thus not take on the title of Dowager Queen, as was the case of Queen Margaery Tyrell,[10] who wed first the self-proclaimed King Renly Baratheon[11] and then his alleged nephews, King Joffrey Baratheon[10] and King Tommen Baratheon.[12]
The widow of a lord may also be similarly styled as a Dowager Lady, as in the case of Samantha Hightower, Dowager Lady of Oldtown,[13] and Catelyn Stark, Dowager Lady of Winterfell.[14]
Known Dowager Queens
- Visenya Targaryen, widow of King Aegon I Targaryen[1]
- Alyssa Velaryon, widow of King Aenys Targaryen[3]
- Rhaena Targaryen, widow of King Maegor I Targaryen[15]
- Alicent Hightower, widow of King Viserys I Targaryen[16]
- Cersei Lannister, widow of King Robert Baratheon[4]
Presumed Dowager Queens
Characters who are not explicitly referred to as such in the text, but who would by definition be Dowager Queens, as the title refers to widows of deceased kings:
- Rhaella Targaryen, widow of King Aerys II Targaryen[N 1]
- Elinor Costayne, widow of King Maegor I Targaryen
- Sharra Arryn, widow of the King of Mountain and Vale
Notes
- ↑ A Game of Thrones establishes that Aerys II predeceased her in Daenerys's first chapter
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Fire & Blood, The Sons of the Dragon.
- ↑ Fire & Blood, The Dying of the Dragons - The Blacks and the Greens.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Fire & Blood, Prince into King - The Ascension of Jaehaerys I.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 A Feast for Crows, Appendix.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 57, Sansa V.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 65, Arya V.
- ↑ A Clash of Kings, Chapter 2, Sansa I.
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Chapter 32, Tyrion IV.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 7, Cersei II.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 60, Tyrion VIII.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 69, Tyrion IX.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 12, Cersei III.
- ↑ Fire & Blood, Under the Regents - The Hooded Hand.
- ↑ George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire, Catelyn Tully.
- ↑ Fire & Blood, Birth, Death, and Betrayal Under King Jaehaerys I.
- ↑ Fire & Blood, The Dying of the Dragons - A Son for a Son.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The Iron Islands: The Black Blood.