Emperor: Encyclopedia II - Emperor - History on other imperial traditions

Emperor - History on other imperial traditions

Emperor - Pre-Columbian American traditions

The only pre-Columbian North American rulers to be commonly called emperors were the Hueyi Tlatoani of the Aztec Empire (1375–1521). Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés slew Emperor Cuauhtémoc and installed puppet emperors who became vassals for Spain. Mexican Emperor Maximilian built his palace over the ruins of the Aztec one at Chapultepec.

The only pre-Columbian South American rulers to be commonly called emperors were the Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire (1438–1533). Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro, conquered the Inca for the royal crown of Spain, killed Emperor Atahualpa, and installed puppets as well.

Emperor - Pre-colonial Africa:

In Ethiopia, the Solomonid dynasty used, beginning in 1270, the title of "Nəgusä Nägäst" which also translates to Emperor and is literally "King of Kings". The use of the king of kings style might however already have started a millennium earlier in this region. Another title used by this dynasty was "Itegue Zetopia".

"Itegue" translates as Empress, and was also used by the only female reigning Empress, Zauditu, along with the official title Negiste Negest (Queen of Kings).

In 1936, the Italian king Victor Emmanuel III took the title of Emperor of Ethiopia when that country was under Italian occupation and made part of a colonial entity . After the defeat of the Italians by the British (1941), Haile Selassie was restored to the throne but Victor Emmanuel did not relinquish his claim to the title until 1943.

Haile Selassie had an unusual sort of godhead status after the second world war (see rastafari) which he did not endorse and was not of Ethiopian tradition. He was deposed in 1974, the imperial title ending the next year when his son, who had succeeded him, was deposed and exiled.

Emperor - Far East

In 221 BC, Zheng, who was king of Qin at the time, proclaimed himself shi huangdi, which translates as "first emperor". Huangdi is composed of huang ("august one") and di ("sage-king"), and referred to legendary/mythological sage-emperors living several millennia earlier, of which three were huang and five were di (the sānhuáng wǔdì, sometimes speled ti, see: The Three August Ones and the Five Emperors). Thus Zheng became Qin Shi Huang, abolishing the system where the huang/di titles were reserved to dead and/or mythological rulers.

The imperial title continued in China until the Qing dynasty was overthrown in 1912. The title was briefly revived from January 1, 1916 to March 22, 1916 by President Yuan Shikai and again in early July , 1917 when General Zhang Xun attempted to restore last Qing emperor Puyi to the throne. Puyi retained the title and attributes of Emperor, as a personal status, until 1924.

In general, an emperor would have one empress (Huanghou, 皇后) at one time, although posthumous entitlement to empress for a concubine was not uncommon. The earliest known usage of empress was in the Han Dynasty. The emperor would generally select the empress from his harem. In subsequent dynasties, when the distinction between wife and concubine became more accentuated, the crown prince would have chosen an empress-designate before his reign. Imperial China produced only one reigning empress, Wu Zetian, and she used the same Chinese title as an emperor (Huangdi, 皇帝).

The Khitan Empire was founded in this region on 907. They were overthrown by the Jurchen Jin Empire (1115–1234) which was in turn conquered by Mongol armies. In 1616, Ming China's Jurchen vassal, Nurhaci, rebelled and crowned himself emperor of the renamed Manchus. His successors, the Qing dynasty, conquered China in 1644 and reigned until revolution toppled them in 1912. After the Japanese occupied Manchuria in 1931, they proclaimed it to be the Empire of Manchukuo, and Puyi, the last Qing emperor of China, became puppet emperor. This puppet state came to an end with the Japanese defeat in 1945.

The title Khagan (khan of khans or grand khan) was held by Genghis Khan, founder of the Mongol Empire in 1206. When the empire, the largest the world had ever seen, was partitioned, the Yuan dynasty Great khans in the richest realm, China (where they also took the native title huangdi) were nominal rulers of the whole Mongol empire, but in fact the Khans of several major hordes would remain independent. After being overthrown in China by the Ming dynasty, the Yuan fled back to Mongolia and were subsequently known to historians as the Northern Yuan. They kept their title of Grand Khan until the Manchu emperor Hong Taiji (yet another Chinese dynasty) forced them to surrender it in 1634.

Only the Yuan Emperors of China between 1279 and 1368 are normally referred to as Emperors in English.

In Japan, the ruler in Yamato court was called "Tennō" (天皇) (heavenly emperor), which in Western languages is equivalent to Emperor of Japan. Like in early Western tradition, the highest position of secular power was combined with the highest religious office (comparable with the Roman Emperor also being pontifex maximus) and claims of godhood (see Arahitogami). In several eras, the high-priestly role of the Monarch has even been paramount, with a no more than formal secular role.

Japanese monarchs placed themselves from 607 on equal footing with Chinese emperors in titulary, but rarely was the Chinese-style "Son of Heaven" term used. In the Japanese language, the word tennō is restricted to Japan's own monarch; kōtei or koutei (皇帝) is used for foreign emperors. Historically, retired emperors have kept power over a child-emperor as de facto Regent. Fairly long, a Shōgun (formally the imperial generalissimo, but made hereditary) or Regent wielded actual political power. In fact, through much of Japanese history, the emperor has been little more than a 'constitutional' Head of state.

After World War II, all claims of divinity were dropped (see Ningen-sengen). Parliamentary government has wielded the power, reducing the office of emperor again to a mere ceremonial function^[3]. By the end of the 20th century, Japan was the only country with an emperor on the throne.

In the early 21st century, Japan succession law prevents a female from ascend to the through. However, with the birth of a daughter as the first child of the current Crown Prince, Naruhito, Japan is considering abandoning that rule. Historically, Japan has had eight reigning empresses who used the genderless title Tennō, rather than the female consort title kōgō (皇后) or chūgū (中宮). There is ongoing discussion of the Japanese Imperial succession controversy.

Although current Japanese law prohibits female succession, all Japanese emperors trace their lineage to the supreme deity in the Shintō religion, Amaterasu the Sun Goddess.

Some early legendary dynasties of Korea used the title tanje (tan meaning "birch", je meaning "emperor"). The Balhae (669–926), which ruled parts of northern Korea and Manchuria, used hwangje (Chinese huangdi, see above).

Rulers of the Goryeo kingdom (from Gwangjong onward) took the title of emperor as a means of enhancing the prestige of the monarchy. The title was stripped in the 13th century, however, after the surrender to the Mongols, when the Korean rulers were demoted to Kings and, as such, vassals of Kublai Khan's China-based Mongol Yuan Dynasty (1276 - 1368). The full style of the ruler (27 March 1393 - 7 January 1895, during the Ming and (Manchu) Qing dynasties in China) was: Seongju Sangteon Cheonha {untranslatable}, Joseon Guk-wang (Chinese: Zhaoxian guowang) "King of the Choseon State".

Following the Chinese defeat by Japan in 1895, Korea declared its total independence from China (see Treaty of Shimonoseki) and King Gojong took the title of Daehan Hwangje, translated as 'Emperor of the Great Han'. Yeonho=Nyonho (era names, a very strong indication of sovereignty vis-à-vis imperial China), were adopted on 1 January 1896. The full style of the ruler (7 January 1895 - 12 October 1897) was : Taegunju P'yeha {untranslatable}, Joseon Guk-wang "King of the Choseon State";

In the Great Han Empire, since 12 October 1897, the full imperial style was Daehan Hwangje ("Emperor of Great Han"; Chinese: Daihan huangdi).

On 17 November 1905, the empire was declared a Japanese protectorate (effective 21 December 1905) until it came to an end with the Japanese annexation on 29 August 1910, which lasted until 12 September 1945.

Although the Vietnamese rulers acknowledged the supremacy of China, and were known to the Chinese emperors as simply King of Annam, domestically they took on a full Chinese-style imperial regalia in 1806, and are usually referred to as emperors in English. Axis-occupied Vietnam was declared an empire by the Japanese in March 1945. The line of emperors came to an end with Bao Dai, who was deposed after the war, although he later served as head of state of South Vietnam from 1949 to 1955.

Emperor - Persian and Islamic traditions

As the Arabic title Caliph is primordially that of a religious leader, it is generally not rendered as emperor. However, given the true paramountcy of their (semi-hereditary) position, politically as well, and the might of their empire, the Caliphs were no less imperial then most non-European Monarchs included on his page.

In Persia (or Iran), from the time of the Cyrus the Great, Persian rulers used the title Shahanshah which is sometimes translated as emperor and is literally "King of Kings". Persians were founders of one of the earliest and largest empires of the world, extending from India to Greece and Libya. Alexander the Great probably crowned himself shahanshah after conquering Persia. The last Shahanshah abdicated in 1979, when Iran became a republic. In English, the Shahanshah title is usually translated as "King" for ancient rulers of the Achaemenid, Arsacid, and Sassanid dynasties, and is shortened to "Shah" for rulers since the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century.

Ottoman rulers held the title Padishah, equivalent to the Persian shahanshah. After conquering the Byzantine Empire in 1453, Mehmed II also took the title of Roman emperor. Although in English the Ottoman rulers are generally known by the Turkish title Sultan, their titles of Padishah and Emperor would remain among the lists of titles carried by the Ottoman sultans until the monarchy was abolished in 1922.

The Sanskrit word for emperor is Samrāṭ (word stem: samrāj). This word has been used as an epithet of various Vedic deities, like Varuna, and has been attested in the Holy Rig Veda, possibly the oldest compiled book among the Indo-Europeans. Typically, in the later Vedic age, only that king (rajah) were called Samrāṭ who had performed the Vedic Rājasūya sacrifice, enabling him by religious tradition to claim superiority over the other kings and princes. Another word for emperor is sārvabhaumā. The title of Samrāṭ has been used by many rulers of the Indian subcontinent as claimed by the Hindu mythologies. In proper history, most historians like to call Chandragupta Maurya as the first samrāṭ (emperor) of the Indian subcontinent, because of the huge empire that he ruled on. Of course, the most liberal and righteous of all emperors was his grandson Ashoka the Great. The other dynasties that are considered imperial by the historians are the Kushanas, the Guptas and the Vardhanas. The followers of Hindutva regard Prithviraj Chauhan (12th century CE) as the last Hindu emperor of India.

After India was invaded by the Mongol Khans and Turkish Muslims, the rulers of their major states on the subcontinent were titled Sultan, which may not be translated as emperor (except for the Ottoman 'Great Sultan', but he is actually styled, amongst other titles, Sultan of Sultans, proving there is a rank above Sultan, while an emperor has no superior). In this manner, the only empress ever to have actually sat on the throne of Delhi was Razia Sultan. Some other Indian (Hindu) monarchs held the rare title Maharajadhiraja ('Great King of Kings') but because it was awarded to their political vassals by the Mughals and the British, it is usually not considered imperial. The Mughal Emperors (1526–1857), originally another dynasty of Sultans of Delhi, adopted the Muslim title Badshah (of corruption of padishah, an imperial style used by the Persian and Ottoman emperors; ) ?or Shahanshah. Their throne became vacant after Bahadur Shah Zafar was unseated by the British, whence the title of the emperor could later be assumed by the British Monarch, then Queen Victoria, as successor to the (now colonial) position of Paramount ruler.

For the episode from 1877 to 1947 when British Emperors and Empresses ruled in India, see above. Note that if Razia Sultan's short reign is excluded, Queen Victoria was the only reigning empress of India, though she never actually sat on the throne of Delhi.

In the valley of Swat (in modern Pakistan), Miangul Golshahzada Abdul Wadud, in fact a petty ruler, pompously titled himself badshah in 1918. In 1926, he was granted recognition of authority over Swat by the British in return for taking the lesser title of wali.

Ahmad Shah founded the Durrani Empire in 1747 with the title Padshah. The Sadozai were overthrown in 1823 but there was a brief restoration by Shoja Shah in 1839. The title went dormant after his assassination in 1842 until 1926 when Amanullah Khan resurrected it. The title was finally laid to rest with the abdication of Mohammed Zahir Shah in 1973 following a coup.

Afghan padshah is normally translated into English as king.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History on other imperial traditions", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki