British queen mothers

British queen mothers are queen dowagers who have been the mother of the reigning sovereign of England, Scotland or the United Kingdom. The term queen mother has been used in the English language since at least 1560.[1][2] British queen mothers assume the style of "Her Majesty Queen [first name]" upon their husband's death. Moreover, a queen mother is not necessarily the mother of a queen regnant; the title applies regardless of the current monarch's gender.

List

English queen mothers

House of Wessex and House of Denmark

Portrait Name Father House by birth Birth Became queen mother Ceased to be queen mother Death Spouse Sovereign issue
Ælfthryth Ordgar, Ealdorman of Devon c. 945 18 March 978 17 November 1000 or 1001 Edgar Æthelred the Unready
Emma of Normandy Richard I of Normandy Normandy c. 984 17 March 1040 8 June 1042 6 March 1052 Cnut Harthacnut
8 June 1042 6 March 1052 Æthelred the Unready Edward the Confessor

House of Plantagenet

Portrait Name Father House by birth Birth Became queen mother Ceased to be queen mother Death Spouse Sovereign issue
Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine William X, Duke of Aquitaine Ramnulfids c. 1124 3 September 1189 6 April 1199 1 April 1204 Henry II Richard I
27 May 1199 1 April 1204 John
Isabella, Countess of Angoulême Aymer, Count of Angoulême Taillefer c. 1186 or c. 1188 28 October 1216 4 June 1246 John Henry III
Eleanor of Provence Ramon Berenguer V, Count of Provence Barcelona c. 1223 20 November 1272 24 or 25 June 1291 Henry III Edward I
Isabella of France Philip IV, King of France Capet c. 1295 25 January 1327 22 August 1358 Edward II Edward III
Catherine of Valois Charles VI, King of France Valois 27 October 1401 1 September 1422 3 January 1437 Henry V Henry VI
Elizabeth Woodville Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers c. 1437 9 April 1483 25 June 1483 8 June 1492 Edward IV Edward V

House of Stuart

Portrait Name Father House by birth Birth Became queen mother Ceased to be queen mother Death Spouse Sovereign issue
Henrietta Maria of France Henry IV, King of France Bourbon 25 November 1609 29 May 1660 10 September 1669[3] Charles I Charles II

Scottish queen mothers

House of Dunkeld

Portrait Name Father House by birth Birth Became queen mother Ceased to be queen mother Death Spouse Sovereign issue
Ermengarde de Beaumont Richard I of Beaumont c. 1170 4 December 1214 12 February 1233 or 1234 William I Alexander II
Marie de Coucy Enguerrand III, Lord of Coucy Coucy c. 1218 6 July 1249 1285 Alexander II Alexander III

House of Stuart

Portrait Name Father House by birth Birth Became queen mother Ceased to be queen mother Death Spouse Sovereign issue
Joan Beaufort John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset Beaufort c. 1404 21 February 1437 15 July 1445 James I James II
Mary of Guelders Arnold, Duke of Guelders Egmond 17 January 1433 3 August 1460 1 December 1463 James II James III
Margaret Tudor Henry VII, King of England Tudor 28 November 1489 9 September 1513 18 October 1541 James IV James V
Mary of Guise Claude, Duke of Guise Guise 22 November 1515 14 December 1542 11 June 1560 James V Mary I
Henrietta Maria of France Henry IV, King of France Bourbon 25 November 1609 30 January 1649 3 September 1651 10 September 1669[3] Charles I Charles II
29 May 1660 10 September 1669

Queen mothers of the United Kingdom

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and House of Windsor

Portrait Name Coat of arms Birth Father (House by birth) Spouse Sovereign issue Death Years as queen mother Notes
Alexandra of Denmark 1 December 1844 Christian IX, King of Denmark

(Glücksburg)

Edward VII George V 20 November 1925

80 years, 354 days

1910–1925[4] Preferred not to use the title
Mary of Teck 26 May 1867 Francis, Duke of Teck

(Teck)

George V Edward VIII and George VI 24 March 1953

85 years, 302 days

1936–1952[5]
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon 4 August 1900 Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne

(Bowes-Lyon)

George VI Elizabeth II 30 March 2002

101 years, 238 days

1952–2002 Her fifty-year widowhood is the longest that anyone has held the status of Queen Mother.[6]

References

  1. ^ "queen mother, n.". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.): "The widow of a king who is also the mother of the reigning monarch. "
  2. ^ Webster's Third New International Dictionary.
  3. ^ a b "No. 398". The London Gazette. 9 September 1669. p. 2.
  4. ^ "No. 28392". The London Gazette. 5 July 1910. p. 4765.
  5. ^ "No. 38109". The London Gazette. 28 October 1947. p. 5073.
  6. ^ "No. 39549". The London Gazette. 23 May 1952. p. 2796.

Further reading

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