Most powerful & important Female Leaders in world history

[Blue3]

Who are the most powerful & important Female Leaders in world history?

The ones that immediately spring to my mind are: Queen Isabella I of Spain, Queen Elizabeth I of England, Queen Victoria of the UK, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, Eleanor of Aquitane, Catherine II of Russia, Indira Gandhi of India, Margaret Thatcher of the UK, and Cleopatra of Egypt.

[PiMp DaDdy FitzGerald]

Dowager Cixi

[Del Tachi]

The most important and powerful women in world history are the wives of history's most powerful men.

[The Dowager Mod]

The most important and powerful women in world history are the wives of history's most powerful men.

That is a pretty ignorant thing to say.
Elizabeth I, Catherine II, Victoria and Thatcher all rode their husbands coattails? LOL!

[Del Tachi]

The most important and powerful women in world history are the wives of history's most powerful men.

That is a pretty ignorant thing to say.
Elizabeth I, Catherine II, Victoria and Thatcher all rode their husbands coattails? LOL!

The wives of men such as Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, Martin Luther, George Washington, or Nelson Mandela have been hugely influential in world history because of the influence they have held over their husbands.  People's personalities and philosophies are shaped by the relationships that they have with each other, and no relationship is as intimate or an personal as one between a husband and wife.

[PiMp DaDdy FitzGerald]

The most important and powerful women in world history are the wives of history's most powerful men.

That is a pretty ignorant thing to say.
Elizabeth I, Catherine II, Victoria and Thatcher all rode their husbands coattails? LOL!

The wives of men such as Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, Martin Luther, George Washington, or Nelson Mandela have been hugely influential in world history because of the influence they have held over their husbands.  People's personalities and philosophies are shaped by the relationships that they have with each other, and no relationship is as intimate or an personal as one between a husband and wife.

And as we all know, those women are very influential.

[Blue3]

And an influential relationship to those ladies were their husbands, etc. Everyone's decisions are informed by all of their relationships. But at the same time, each person is their own person.

It's wrong to say the most powerful & important female leaders were just the wives of the most powerful & important male leaders.

[⛄]

According to the Times Magazine Angela Merkle.

[Lincoln Republican]

Hatshepsut, pharaoh in ancient Egypt.

Empress Theodora, joint ruler of Byzantine Empire.

Both powerful and influential empires at the time they ruled.

[Blue3]

Any new thoughts on this?

[Lincoln Republican]

Edith Wilson, wife of President Woodrow Wilson, was the de facto President of the United States.

http://michiganradio.org/post/edith-wilson-first-lady-and-acting-president

(Scroll down until you come to the section on Edith Wilson)

One of the big questions of the 2016 presidential race is whether we’ll finally see a woman in the White House.

But there’s a little-known secret that’s finally coming to light: It wouldn’t be the first time a woman has run the country.

From late 1919 until March 1921, first lady Edith Galt Wilson was the de facto president of the United States.


Sorry Hillary.

[Sir Mohamed]

I'd say Cleopatra, Katharina of Russia, Queen Victoria, Margaret Thatcher and Angela Merkel.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

In terms of lasting impact, Elizabeth I, hands down.

Victoria never actually "ruled".

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

For some lesser-known figures, there are Zenobia of Palmyra, Julia Maesa, and Boudica from the Roman era, as well as Eleanor of Aquitaine and Betty Friedan who I think have been pretty important. Friedan may not have been powerful but she was definitely influential, and arguably started second-wave feminism in the West.

[The Mikado]

In terms of lasting impact, Elizabeth I, hands down.

Victoria never actually "ruled".

Wouldn't Queen Anne be a better choice? Great Britain was a world power in 1710 in a way that England wasn't in 1590.

Anyway, has anyone mentioned the Byzantine Empress Irene yet? Not many women rulers who can take credit for an Ecumenical Council.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

In terms of lasting impact, Elizabeth I, hands down.

Victoria never actually "ruled".

Wouldn't Queen Anne be a better choice? Great Britain was a world power in 1710 in a way that England wasn't in 1590.

Yes, but Tudor monarchs laid down the foundations of England, later Britain, turning into a maritime and commercial power, allowing her to compete with, and eventually outdo, bigger powers like Spain.

As of Anne, she more "presided" over the establishment of a Union rather than ruled the way previous monarchs had.

[Beet]

In terms of lasting impact, Elizabeth I, hands down.

Victoria never actually "ruled".

Yes, Elizabeth I was a big one. Anne Boleyn also played a role by pushing along the English Reformation.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Agrippina?

[Kingpoleon]

Cleopatra, Catherine de Medici, Catherine the Great, Queen Victoria, (on a slightly lesser scale)Margaret Thatcher and Indira Ghandi, and (on an still lesser scale)Golda Meir.