Empress consort in the context of "Title"

An emperor (from Latin: imperator, via Old French: empereor) is the (male) ruler of an empire. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules in her own right and name (empress regnant or suo jure). Emperors are generally recognized to be of the highest monarchic honour and rank, surpassing king. In Europe, the title of Emperor has been used since the Middle Ages, considered in those times equal or almost equal in dignity to that of Pope due to the latter's position as visible head of the Church and spiritual leader of the Catholic part of Western Europe. The emperor of Japan is the only currently reigning monarch whose title is translated into English as "Emperor", although he no longer reigns over an empire.

Both emperors and kings are monarchs or sovereigns, both emperor and empress are considered monarchical titles. In as much as there is a strict definition of emperor, it is that an emperor has no relations implying the superiority of any other ruler and typically rules over more than one nation. Therefore, a king might be obliged to pay tribute to another ruler, or be restrained in his actions in some unequal fashion, but an emperor should in theory be completely free of such restraints. However, monarchs heading empires have not always used the title in all contexts—the British sovereign did not assume the title Empress of the British Empire even during the incorporation of India, though she was declared Empress of India.

Empress Zetian (624 – 16 December 705), commonly known as Wu Zetian, personal name Wu Zhao, was the empress regnant (huangdi, 皇帝) and only ruler of the (Wu) Zhou dynasty from 690 to 705. She had previously held power as the second wife and empress consort of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang dynasty from 660 to 683 and as empress dowager during the reigns of her sons Emperors Zhongzong and Ruizong of Tang between 683 and 690, holding de facto power during these periods. She was the only female sovereign in the history of China who is widely regarded as legitimate. Modern scholarship has re-examined Wu Zetian's rule beyond traditional portrayals of manipulation and cruelty. Recent studies highlight her administrative reforms, expansions of the civil-service examination system, and support of Buddhist symbolism as instruments of governance and legitimacy. During her 45 year tenure, China grew larger, its culture and economy were revitalized, and corruption in the court was reduced. She was eventually removed from power during the Shenlong Coup [zh] and died a few months later.

In early life, Empress Wu was a concubine of Emperor Taizong. After his death, she married his ninth son and successor, Emperor Gaozong, officially becoming Gaozong's empress, the highest-ranking of his consorts, in 655. Empress Wu held considerable political power even before becoming empress, and began to control the court after her appointment. After Gaozong's debilitating stroke in 660, she became administrator of the court, a position with similar authority to the emperor's, until 683. History records that she "was at the helm of the country for long years, her power no different from that of the emperor". On Emperor Gaozong's death in 683, rather than entering retirement, and not interfering in the government, Empress Wu broke with tradition and took acquisition of complete power, refusing to allow either of her sons to rule. She took the throne in 690 by officially changing the name of the dynasty from Tang to Zhou, changing the name of the imperial family from Li to Wu, and holding a formal ceremony to crown herself as emperor.

Josei Tennō (女性天皇) is a Japanese term referring to an empress regnant. Tennō is the title for the emperor; the addition of the term josei (女性, woman) distinguishes that the emperor is a woman. It is distinct from the title Kōgō, which refers to an empress consort.

Zoe Porphyrogenita (also spelled Zoë; Greek: Ζωή Πορφυρογέννητη, romanized: Zōē Porphyrogénnētē, Medieval Greek: [zoˈi] "life"; c. 978 – 1050) was a member of the Macedonian dynasty who briefly reigned as Byzantine empress in 1042, alongside her sister Theodora. Before that she was enthroned as empress consort or empress mother to a series of co-rulers, two of whom were married to her.

Zoe was born when her father Constantine was nominal co-emperor to his brother, Basil II. After a planned marriage to Holy Roman Emperor Otto III in 996 failed to materialise, Zoe spent subsequent years in the imperial palace. Her uncle Basil died in 1025 when Zoe was 47, and her father acceded the Byzantine throne as Constantine VIII. As he had no sons, Constantine hoped to continue the dynasty by marrying off one of his daughters. Zoe, aged 50, was married to Romanos Argyros. She and Romanos took the throne the next day on her father's death.

Isabella of Portugal (Portuguese: Isabel de Portugal; 24 October 1503 – 1 May 1539) was the empress consort of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Spain, Archduke of Austria, and Duke of Burgundy. She was Queen of Spain and Germany, and Lady of the Netherlands from 10 March 1526 until her death in 1539, and became Holy Roman Empress and Queen of Italy in February 1530. She acted as regent of Spain during her husband's long absences.