Worldwide Guide to Women in Leadership

WOMEN IN POWER 
1670-1700

Female leaders
and women in other positions of political authority
of independent states and
self-governing understate entities


 

1670-91 Regent Dowager Princess Anna Eleonore von Stolberg-Wernigerode of Anhalt-Köthen (Germany)

Her husband, Emanuel (1631-50-70), died after only 7 months of marriage, and she became joint regent with Johan Georg II von Anhalt-Dessau, for her posthumously born son, Emmanuel Albrecht (1671-1704), and got Imperial confirmation as regent in 1671. She lived (1651-91).


1670-85 Reigning Dowager Lady Queen Dowager Sophie Amalie zu Braunschweig-Lüneburg of Denmark of Lolland-Falster and the County of Hørsholm, Denmark

Recieved the fief in 1660 as security for loans to her husband, Frederik 3, and she also administered the estates of Ibsholm and Dronninggaard. She was quite influential during the reign of her husband from 1648. She was mother of among others, Prince Jørgen (George) the husband of Queen Anne of England and Scotland. Sophie Amalie lived (1628-85).


 

1670-75 Princess-Abbess Maria Bernarda Östringer of Heggbach (Germany)

Continued the building and renovation works of her predecessor, but marked by illness during the whole of her short reign. She lived (1650-75).


1670-1704 Reigning Abbess Gabrielle de Rochechouart de Mortemart of the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud (France)

Marie-Madeleine-Gabrielle was the sister of the Marquise de Montespan, she is said to have translated all the works of Plato from the Latin version of Ficino. The children of the highest nobility frequented the abbey school, and her successors were entrusted with the education of the daughters of Louis XV.


 

1670/71 Abbess Nullius Faustina Sforza of the Royal Convent of Saint Benedetto in Conversano, Temporal and Secular Ruler of Conversano (Italy)

In the alternative list of Abbesses she is listed as ruler 1663-70, 1675 and 1683.


1670-73 Politically Active Queen Eleonora Maria Josefa von Habsburg of Poland 
1690-97 Politically Active Dowager Duchess of Lorraine (France)

Politically active during reign of her first husband, king Michał Korybut Wiśniowieckiof Poland, and in 1673 she prevented the civil war in Poland. After the death of her second husband, Karl IV Leopold, she tried to fulfil the last wishes of her husband by putting all her energy into the return of Lorraine to her children. At the German Reichstag in Regensburg she presented an offer for the restoration of Lorraine and established the rights of her eldest son, Leopold Joseph. In 1697 at the Treaty of Rijswijk she achieved her aims, but died only a few weeks after. Mother of 5 children with second husband, and lived (1653-97).


1671-96 Rani Regnant Chennamma of Keladi (or Bednur) (India)

Also known as Chennammaji, she succeeded her husband Somashekara Nayak I at a very young age but managed to take over the throne in spite of scheming councillors and external dangers. Apparently she was skilled with the sword as well. Several ministers and the commander-in-chief plotted to take away power from her but she successfully circumvented them. A member of the royal family who felt he should have succeeded to the crown made alliance with the Wodeyer ruler of Mysore, but the she defeated him in battle and forced a treaty on Mysore. Taking advantage of the situation the chieftains of Sodi, Sirsi and Vanavasi declared war but they too were crushed. Other leaders in the kingdom also revolted but she banished them. Rajaram, son of Chatrapati Shivaji came to Chennamna while fleeing from Aurangazeb. She granted him safe passage. This led to a war between Keladi and the Mughal empire. Though the resources of the Mughals were gigantic compared with the small state of Keladi, the latter's strategy was superior. They destroyed a major part of the Mughal army led by Aurangazeb's son, captured several Mughal captains, and booty. Ultimately a treaty was signed. She was succeeded by adopted son, Asavappa Nayakka I.


 

1671-ca. 73 In Charge of the Government Dowager Duchess Dorothea Auguste von Holstein-Gottorp of Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderborg-Plön (Denmark and Germany)

Her son, Hans Adolf von Holsten-Pløn (1634-71-1704) participated in various wars in the service of the German Emperor, and left the government in her hand and then in the hand of her daughter-in-law, Dorothea Sophia von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel. Dorothea Auguste was widow of Joachim Ernst of Plön, the areas of Kenfeld and Ahrensbök, during whose reign the armies of Wallenstein went through the Duchy in 1627, the Swedes looted in 1643 and the Danish-Swedish war 1657-60 devastated the state. She lived (1602-82).


 

1671-98 Sovereign Marchioness Henriëtte Francisca zu Hohenzollern-Hechingen of Bergen op Zoom, Countess of Walhain (The Netherlands)

One year after the death of her mother, Maria Elisabeth II van der Bergh s'-Heerenberg, she was given the Marchionate as a fief, but was not inaugurated until 1781. She married Frédéric Maurice de La Tour, Comte d'Auvergne et d'Oliergues, and had nine children. During the war between the United Republic of the Netherlands and France, Bergen op Zoom was given two times to the King-Stadholder Willem IIII (1672-78 and 1788-97). She was succeeded son, Francois Egon. Also known as Franziska Henriette, she lived (1642-98). 


 

Ca. 1671-76 Squaw Sachem Awashonks of Sakonnet in Rhode Island (United States of America)

Also known as Awashunckes, she was a Sachem or Suncksqua of very high standing and a major player in events leading up to the native King Philip's (Metacomet's) War (1675-76). Repeatedly, we hear of her negotiating war and peace at the council fire, backed by her war leaders, most of who were her sons and she was among those signing the "submission" after the Native American army was defeated. She was contemporary with three other women sachems of the period Weetamoo and Potok Magnus and an unnamed woman leader from Concord in Massachusetts.


 

1671-75 Abbess Nullius Maria Acquavia d'Aragona of the Royal Convent of Saint Benedetto in Conversano, Temporal and Secular Ruler of Conversano (Italy)

Member of the family that ruled Conversano and a number of other territories in Italy.


The Duchess of Portsmouth

1671-85 Politically Influential Duchess Louise Renée de Kéroualle of Portsmouth in England (United Kingdom)

French mistress of Charles II of England. She exerted a powerful influence over the king in favour of France until his death in 1685. She was made Duchess of Portsmouth and d'Aubigny in 1673 and was the mother by the king, of Charles Lennox, duke of Richmond. Many English hated her as a French-Catholic menace; she stayed mostly in France after 1685, and lived (1649–1734).


 

1672-75 Regent Dowager Duchess Louise von Anhalt-Dessau of Liegnitz and Brieg in Slesia (Schlesien-Liegnitz-Brieg) (Poland)
1672-80 Reigning Dowager Duchess in Ohlau and Wołów (Oława) (Poland)

Also known as Ludwika Anhalcka. After the death of her husband, Christian of Wołów (1664-72), who inherited Legnica and Brzeg from his older brothers, she became regent for their son, Jerzy Wilhelm von Schlesien-Brieg-Liegnitz and Wohlau (1660-75), who was declared of age by the emperor against her protests, but he died soon after, and with him the Piast line of the Dukes of Legnica, Brzeg and Wołów died out. In his will he asked Emperor Leopold I to allow the inhabitants of his lands the freedom of confession. She built the grave chapel of the line of the Princely family in the Choir of the Church of St. Johannes. She was daughter of Duke Johan Kasimir von Anhalt-Dessau and Agnethe von Hessen-Kassel, and lived (1631-80).


Marie de Orléans-Longueville, Princesse Souveraine Neuchâtel et Valangin, Duchesse-Consort de Nemours

1672-74, 1679-82 and 1699-1707 Sovereign Princess Marie de Orléans-Longueville of Neuchâtel and Valangin (Switzerland)

The daughter of Henri II d'Orléans, Duke de Longueville, and his first wife, Louise de Bourbon-Soissons, Marie lost her mother at age 12, and in 1642 came under the authority of her stepmother, the celebrated intriguer of the Fronde, Anne-Geneviève de Bourbon-Condé. Raised in a strict, studious atmosphere, Marie came to have little in common with her scandalous stepmother and eventually fled to Dieppe and then to Flanders in 1651 upon the renewed outbreak of the wars of the Fronde. For a time she was considered a possible bride for the Duke of York and even for Charles II of England, who had asked her hand. In 1657 she married Henri II, Duke de Nemours, a near invalid, who died two years later, leaving her childless. The rest of her life was spent in a cruel, arduous legal battle with her stepmother's relatives, trying to establish her own inheritance. In 1698 she lost her case as far as the French property was concerned, but she did establish her right to the sovereign principality of Neufchatel the following year. In her Memoirs she dealt with the Fronde, writing with sympathy toward her father and with particular hatred for her stepmother and other Condés. She lived (1625-1707)


 

1672-93 Princess-Abbess Maria Cleopha Schenkin von Castell of Säckingen (Germany)

Had to flee for the rench troops during the Dutch Wwar in 1678. Säckingen was looted and a large part of the city burned down, including the church. Ten years later the territory was again attacked during the War of the Palatine (Pfälzischen Krieg) and she moved her residence to Etzgen. She was an able financial administrator and defended the seignorial rights of the chapter in Hornussen and Stein in Switzerland and ended disputes with the Lord of Grandmont over the rights within the Lordship of Laufenburg. Daughter of Ulrich Christoph Schenk von Castell and Maria Cleophe von Wolfurt. Various male members of her family were Prince-Bishops of Eichstätt. She lived (1639-93).


 

1672-88 Princess-Abbess Barbara II Sauther of Baindt (Germany)

As Princess of The Empire (Fürstäbtissin or Reichsäbtissin), she sat on the Ecclesiastical Bank in the Diet of the Holy Roman Empire. From 1663 the Diet sat indefinitely and became known as the Everlasting Diet (Immerwährender Reichstag). From now on emperor was represented by a prince of the empire as his commissioner; a jurist was appointed as Subcommissioner; and the elector of Mainz, Archchancellor of the empire, had charge of the business of the meetings of the Diet. This assembly of representatives without legislative power disappeared when the realm collapsed under Napoleon's attack in 1806.


 

1672-88 Reigning Abbess Catherine II de Bernemiscourt of Bourbourg, Lady of Oxelaere, Noordpeene, Faumont and Coutiches (France)

Since the chapter was under the direct protection of the Pope, he or his personal representative was the only one who could conduct visitations to the chapter (control visits).


 

1672 Reigning Lady Regina Katharina von Galler von Purgstall of  Riegersburg in der Steiermark (Austria)

The daughter of Katharina Elisabeth Wechsler, Lady of Riegersburg 1648-72, and Lord Hans Wilhelm von Galler. She married Johann Ernst Graf von Purgstall, and the Lordship remained in the possession of this family until 1817, when the possessions was divided among 17 persons.


Elisabeth Sophia von Sachsen-Altenburg

1672-75 Hereditary Duchess Elisabeth Sophia von Sachsen-Altenburg of Altenburg (Germany)

In 1672 her unmarried cousin Duke Friedrich Wilhelm III, died, and she inherited Altenburg against the claims of Friederich Wilhelm's sister Johanna Magdalena- and her husband, Duke Ernst I of Sachsen-Gotha (1601-75) added Altenburg to his title. He was already in charge of Tenneberg, Waltershausen, Wachsenburg, Ichtershausen, Königsberg, Tonndorf, Heldburg, Eisfeld, Salzungen, Frauenbreitungen, Wasungen, Kranichfeld, and from 1672 also of Leuchtenburg, Orlamünde, Krainburg, Eisenberg, Stadtroda, Ronneburg, Saalfeld, Grafenthal, Probstzella, Coburg, Sonneberg, Haldburghausen, Themar, Untermassfeld, Meiningen, Behringen and Römhild. When he died in 1675, their oldest son Friedrich I became Duke of Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg etc. Elisabeth Sofie had already inherited the Saxon claim to Jerusalem when her father, Johann Philipp, died in 1629. She was mother of 18 children, and lived (1619-80).


 

1673-83 Sovereign Countess Katharina Agathe von Rappoltstein of Rappoltstein and Hohenach, Lady zu Geroldseck am Wasichin (Germany)

Oldest daughter of Johann Jacob (1598-1673), and through an old Imperial privilege it was possible for women to inherit the title.  She was married to Christian II, Pfalzgraf bei Rhein, Duke von der Pfalz-Birkenfeld und Bischweiler and was succeeded by their oldest son, Christian III. The descendants of her aunt, Anna Elisabeth von Rappoltstein, the Princess of Waldeck-Pyrmont later assumed the title of Count of Rappoltstein, but never perused their claim. Catharina Agathe lived (1648-83).


Isabelle Angelique de Montmorency, Herzogin zu Mecklenburg-Schwerin

1673 Regent Duchess Isabelle Angélique de Montmorency of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Germany)

Appointed by her husband, Christian Ludwig I, during his absence in the war against the Netherlands. They had married in 1664 but she had remained in France where she was deeply involved in the political affairs, but her pro-French and her relationship with Kammerjunker Bernstorff and she soon returned to France. She had been married to the Hugenot Gaspard IV. de Coligny, Duke de Châtillon, who was killed in a duel after a few years. Her posthumously born son, Gaspard, died in 1657. During the Fronde she supported the Prince de Condé, who was finally defeated by Cardinal Mazarin, which ended the independent position of the nobility. King Louis XIV considered her as expert in German Affairs and sent her at a diplomatic mission to Braunschweig where she managed to recruit Hannover as French allied. She was daughter of François III de Montmorency-Boutteville, Comte de Luxé and Elisabeth Angélique de Vienne and lived (1627-95).


1673-1702 In Charge of the Government Duchess Dorothea Sophia zu Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel of Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderborg-Plön
1704-06 Member of the Guardian Government
1704-22 Titular Duchess of Reinfeld and Reigning Dowager Lady of the Castle and Administrative Office
 (Germany)

After her marriage to Hans Adolf, Of the Grace of God, Heir of Norway, Duke to Schleswig-Holstein (1634-71-1704), who participated in various wars in the service of the German Emperor and spend very little time in Plön, she took over the government from her mother-in-law Dorothea Auguste von Holstein-Gottorp. After his death she became member of the guardian government for her grandson, Leopold August, who died after 2 years at the age of 4. She was given the title of titular duchess and Castle of Reinfeld as her dowry. She lived (1653-1722).


Anne Genevière de Bourbon-Condé

1674-79 Sovereign Princess Anne Genevieve de Bourbon-Condé of Neuchâtel (Switzerland)

Born in the prison of Vincennes, into which her father Henri de Bourbon, Prince de Condé, and mother Charlotte Marguerite de Montmorency, had been thrown for opposition to Marshal D'Ancre, the favourite of the Regent, Marie de' Medici. In 1642 she was married to the Duc de Longueville, governor of Normandy, a widower twice her age. After Richelieu's death her father became chief of the council of regency during the minority of Louis XIV. She became of political importance in 1646 when her husband was the chief envoy during the drafting of the Treaty of Westphalia, where she was addressed as the " goddess of peace and concord." She maintained a long liaison with the duc de La Rochefoucauld and joined him as a leader of the Fronde. A determined enemy of Cardinal Mazarin, she obtained the assistance of her brother Armand de Bourbon, prince de Conti, during the first Fronde, and that of the Vicomte de Turenne and her brother, the Great Condé, The king pardoned her and she became the great protectress of the Jansenists. As her health failed she hardly ever left the convent of the Carmelites in which she had been educated. On her death in 1679 her brother buried her with great splendour, and her heart, as she had directed, was sent to the nuns of the Port Royal des Champs. She lived (1619-79).


Unnamed Dutch American Lady

1674-89 Acting Patroon Maria van Cortland van Rensselaer of the Patroonship of Rensselaerswijk in New Amsterdam (USA)

After the death of her husband, Jeremias van Rensselaer, who was the Third Director, Fourth Patroon, and Second Lord of the Manor of Rensselaerwyck, she acted stand-in for son. The Dutch colonized the area, which later became New York after it was sold to the British. She was daughter of Oloff Stevensen Van Cortlandt, a wealthy Manhattan merchant, and Anna Lookerman, mother of 6 children, and lived (1645-89). 


1674-98 Reigning Dowager Lady Dowager Duchess Maria Dorothea Sophie von Oettingen-Oettingen of Nürtingen and Kirchheim in Württemberg-Stuttgart (Germany)

After the death of her husband, Eberhard III (1617-74), she took over her dowry and resided there until her death. After Kirchheim burned down in 1690 she moved to Nürtingen and lead the reconstruction of the city. She was his second wife, and had no children. She lived (1636-98).


 

1674-95 Reigning Dowager Lady Dowager Countess Johanna Dorothea von Anhalt-Dessau of Gronau in Bentheim-Tecklenburg (Germany)

Widow of Moritz zu Bentheim-Tecklenburg (1615-74), and she lived (1612-95).


Queen Maria Kazimiera of Poland

1674-96 Politically Influential Queen Maria Kazimiera d'Arquien of Poland

Also known as Marysieńka, she was very political influential during the reign of her husband, king Jan III Sobieski (1629-74-96). Since 1699 she lived in Rome and from 1714 in France. She lived (1641–1716).


Katarzyna Sobieska

1674-93 Political Advisor Katarzyna Sobieska in Poland

During the reign of her brother, King of Poland Jan III Sobieski, she was politically influential. First married to Władysław Dominik Zasławski and secondly to Michał Kazimierz Radziwiłł on June 13, 1658. She lived (1634-1694).


Unnamed Noble Muslim Lady

1675-77 H.H. Paduka Sri Sultana Naqiat ud-din Nur ul-'Alam Shah, Sultana of Aceh Dar us-Salam (Indonesia)

Granddaughter of Sultan 'Ali Mughayat II Ri'ayat Shah, who ruled 1604-07, and married Laksamana 'Abdu'r Rahman bin Zainal Abidin, Orang Kaya Kaya Maharaja Lela Melayu, son of Zainal Abidin bin Daim Mansur, Tengku of Ribee. Perhaps mother of Sultan 'Ala ud-din Ahmad Shah Johan Badr Berdaulat, but she was succeeded by Sultana Zaqiyat. Her Throne-name Naqiat ud-din Nur ul-'Alam Shah means Light of the world, Purity of the Faith. (d. 1677).


Elisabeth d'Orlèans

1675-96 Sovereign Duchess Elisabeth d'Orléans of Alençon and Angoulême (France)

Daughter of Gaston, Duc d'Orléans, son of king Henri IV of France and Marie de Bourbon. She was half sister of Anne Marie, duchesse de Montpensier and full sister of Anne, Duchess of Montpensier, Marguerite Louise, married to Cosimo III of Toscana, and  Françoise Madeleine, wife of Charles Emmanuel II, duke of Savoia. She was married to Louis Joseph, duke of Guise (1650–1675), but since their only son died as a child, the duchy reverted to the crown at her death. She lived (1646-1696).


Marie de Lorraine

1675-88 Sovereign Duchess Marie de Lorraine of Guise et de Joyeuse, Princess de Joinville (France)

She was daughter of Henriette-Catherine, Princesse de Joyeuse (1585-1608-56), and succeeded a grandnephew. In 1686 she left Guise and Joinville to Charles de Stainville, Comte de Couvonges, with a remainder to the younger sons of the duke of Lorraine’s younger sons and their heirs male. She also left Joyeuse by an act of 1688 to Charles Francois de Lorraine, prince de Commercy. The Parlement de Paris voided the donation of 1686 in 1689, and Anna Henrietta Julia of Bavaria, second daughter of the prince Palatine, distant cousin of the deceased, inherited Guise and Joinville. Marie de Lorraine lived (1615-1688).


1675-1704 Sovereign Duchess Marie Madeleine Thérèse de Vignerot of Aiguillon, Demoiselle d'Agénois et Baronne de Saujon (France)

Succeeded aunt, Marie-Madeleine Vignerot. She became a nun, and at her death her nephew Louis-Armand, marquis De Richelieu, inherited the title. Marie-Thérèse lived (1635-1705).


1675-98 Sovereign Duchess Marie-Anne de Bourbon of Vallière (France)

Her mother, Louise-Françoise de La Baume Le Blanc, resigned in her favour. In 1698 she gave the duchy to her cousin, Charles-François de La Baume Le Blanc. She had no children in her marriage with Prince Louis-Armand I de Bourbon-Conti, prince de la Roche-sur-Yon (1661-85). Also known as Marie-Anne de Blois, she was daughter of King Louis XIV, and lived (1666-1739).


 

1675-87 Regent and Guardian Dowager Countess Maria Anna Theresia von Haslang of Breitenegg (Germany)

In charge of the government in the Tillyschen Reichsgrafschaft (Tillyian Imperial Immediate County) during the minority of her son, Ferdinand Lorenz Franz Xaver, Reichsgraf von Tilly und Breitenegg (d. 1724), who was succeeded by his daughter, Maria Anna Katharina Theresia Reichsgräfin von Tilly. The County of the Realm had received a seat and vote in the Imperial Diet in 1654.


 

1675-78 Joint Gardian Dowager Countess Christiane Elisabeth von Sayn-Wittgenstein of Nassau-Weilburg (Germany)

When her husband, Friedrich von Nassau-Weilburg (1640-75), died after a fall from a horse, her sons, Johann Ernst and Friedrich Ludwig (1665-84), were placed under guardianship with her and Johann von Nassau-Idstein and after his death in 1679 Johann Ludwig von Nassau-Ottweiler, and her sons lived with him in Ottweiler until they came of age. She lived (1646-78).


 

1675-87 Princess-Abbess Maria Cäcilia I Vöhlerin of Heggbach (Germany)

In 1686 she changed the common sleeping hall for the ladies of the chapter with cells for each one of them. During her reign the bad harvests returned (in 1682 and 1685), but she started a number of commercial activities and opened a mill and a saw. Another version of her surname was Vöhlin, and she was born Freifrau von Frickenhausen, Illertiseen und Neuburg.


Tombstone of a Fürstäbtissin of Niedermünster, but the name and year of her death have disappeared from the wear of the centuries

1675-93 Princess-Abbess Maria Theresia von Muggenthal of Niedermünster in Regensburg (Germany)

Member of the noble family of Counts of the Realm (Reichsgrafen) von Muggenthal in Bavaria.


Maria Franziska I von Elten

1675-1708 Princess-Abbess Maria Franziska I von Manderscheid of Elten, Abbess of Vreden (Germany)

After she had her election approved, she had her right to appoint and dismiss the clerics of the territory confirmed by the Pope, and she managed to curb the attempts by her General Vicar, who was her assistant in her exercise of her quasi episcopal authority, to become her superior. She founded convents and schools in the Catholic enclave partly on German, partly on Dutch ground. And in 1700 she issued a law which clearly divided the secular and clerical courts.


 

1675-95 Abbess Nullius Guiseppina Cedrella of the Royal Convent of Saint Benedetto in Conversano, Temporal and Secular Ruler of Conversano (Italy)

Alternative reign 1679-80.


 

Ca. 1676-ca. 1711 Sultan Alimah II of Nzwani, Comoro Islands

Arabic-style sultanates developed in Nzwani as early as the sixteenth century with different areas of the island first ruled by chiefs known as Fani. Later, the chiefs were involved in conflicts and appealed to Europeans to intercede on their behalf. Eventually, in 1886, the island became a French protectorate and was formally annexed by France to its possessions in 1909.


 

1676-1715 Sovereign Countess Magdalena Christina von Manderscheid-Blankenheim of Sayn-Hachenburg (Germany)

Succeeded brother, who had succeeded their mother, Countess Ernestine von Sayn, who was co-ruler of the county. She was married to Burgrave Georg Ludvig von Kirchberg and in 1799 the counties were inherited by Burgravine Luise of Kirchenberg, Countess of Sayn-Hardenburg and Lady of Farnrode and trough her, by the Dukes of Nassau-Weilburg - the present ruling family of Luxembourg. She lived (1658-1715).


1676-88 Regent Dowager Duchess Ilona Zrinyi of Munkacs (Hungary)

After the death of her first husband, Francis I Rakoczy (Rákóczi Ferenc), and mother-in law, Sophia Báthory, she inherited the immense property of the family. She married Imre Tököly and helped her husband with organising the "kuruc" uprising. After her husband had been defeated she defended fortress Munkach against the Habsburgs. In 1688 she was forced to give up. She was kept imprisoned in a cloister in Vienna. Later her husband changed her for Habsburg emperor's officers. She followed her husband to his political exile. Her first husband had been designated as successor of his father, George I of Transylvania in 1652 by the Diet, but he was never recognized. The city of Munkacs is situated in Transcarpathian Ruthenia (Zakarpatskaya Oblast) and its population was a mixture of Hungarian-, Slovak-, Ukrainian-, Ruthenian-, and German-speaking elements; it also boasted one of the most culturally significant Jewish communities in Eastern Europe.  She died in Nikodemia, and lived (1645-1703)


Eleonorą Charlottą Mompelgard

1676-1702 Reigning Dowager Duchess Eleonora Charlotte zu Württemberg-Mömpelgard of Twardogóra in Oleśnica (Poland)

In Polish she is known as Elonora Karolina, and she held the territory after her marriage to her father's cousin, Prince Sylvius Friederich zu Württemberg-Oels or Sylwiusz Fryderyk of Oleśnica (1651-97)) as her dorwy. Its German name was Festenburg. Her husband was son of Duke Sylvius Nimrod von Württemberg-Juliusburg, and Elisabeth Marie von Münsterberg-Öls and she was daughter of Duke Georg II von Württemberg-Mömpelgard and Anne de Coligny (1624-80), did not have any children, and (1656-1743).


Anne von Blome

1676-88 County Sheriff Anne Ottesdatter von Blome of the Counties of Riberhus and Møgeltønderhus, Denmark

1648 Anne von Blome married Hans Schack, who had been a soldier in Danish, German and French armies. They then lived at his estates Gültzow and Rosenthal in Sachsen-Lauenborg before her husband was appointed Commander of Hamburg. He became Lieutenant General and County Sheriff of Riberhus and Møgeltønderhus, (now Schackenborg Slot) in 1658 and he played a crucial role in the Danish-Swedish war as Governor of Copenhagen which was put under siege and he was one of the most important commanders during the war. 1660 he became supreme commander and continued to hold even higher offices until he was appointed Count in 1671, 5 years before his death. She was daughter of Otto Blome zu Kaltenhof, mother of several sons, and lived (1632-1688).


 

1676-89 Princess-Abbess Maria Rosina Brümsi von Herblingen of Lindau (Germany)

The Abbess of Lindau became Princess of the Empire with the title of Princess-Abbess (Reichsäbtissin to Lindau) in the 15th Century.


 

1677-84 Regent Sri Rani Aswathi Thriunal Umayamma Rani of Travancore (India)

As the senior Princess of the Royal House, she was already Rani of Attingal, which was given to her as her personal appanage, when she succeeded on the death of Raja Aditya Varma after defeating a rival contender to the throne, Nedumangattu Kerala Varma in battle. Around this time, the British first came to Kerala. In 1684, she facilitated the construction of god owns for the British near Attingal. She adopted Kottayam Kerala Varma, who became a famous personality. Unfortunately, his popularity came at the cost of making powerful enemies, who had him assassinated on his return from an audience with the Queen. She was mother of six sons, five of them drowned at Manakad while bathing. After the death of her last son, Raja Ravi Vama, Raja, she adopted an entire family from the House of Kolatbunad, the Koil Tampurans of Kilimanur - three men and three women. Ummayamma Rani  (d. 1684/90).


Magdalene Sibylle von Hessen-Darmstadt

1677-93 Co-Regent Dowager Duchess Magdalene Sibylle von Hessen-Darmstadt of Württemberg (Germany)
1677-1712 Reigning Dowager Lady of Leonberg

Following the death of her husband, Duke Wilhelm Ludwig, she reigned in the name of their son Eberhard Ludwig (1676-77-1733) together with some co-regents, among other her brother-in-law, Friedrich-Karl. She formed a form of alternative government against the administrator; she initiated intrigues and changed side as she saw her own advantages. When Friederich-Karl was captured by the French, Emperor Leopold outmanoeuvred her by declaring her son of prematurely of age. She held the Castle and Landscape of Leonberg as her dowry. The daughter of the Landgrave of Hessen-Darmstadt, she grew up in Sweden, and lived (1652-1712).


 

Around 1677 Queen of Wayonaoake in Virginia (USA)

Mentioned as one of the signateurs of the treaty between the Indian tribes and the British colonisers.


1677-81 Regent Dowager Duchess Eleonore Clara von Hohenlohe-Gleichen of Nassau-Saarbrücken (Germany)

After her husband, Gustav Adolf von Nassau-Saarbrücken, fell in battle at Kochersberg, she was regent for son, Ludwig Kraft von Nassau-Saarbrücken (1663-77-1713). During her reign, she abolished the serfdom in the county in a proclamation with the titulature: "Wir Eleonore Clara, Verwittibte Gräfin und Vormünderin zu Nassau Saarbrücken und Saarwehrden, Frau zu Lahr und Wiesbaden und Jdstein, geb. Gräfin von Hohenlohe u. Gleichen, Frau zu Laneenburg u. Granichfeld. She lived (1632-1709).


 

1677-1700 Burgravine Amalia von Dohna-Vianen, Sovereign Lady and Heiress of Vianen and Ameiden, Hereditary Burgravine of Utrecht (The Netherlands)

The "Souveräne Frau und Erbin von Vianden und Erbburggräfin von Uetrecht" was daughter of Christian Albrecht (1621-77) and Sophie Theodore von Brederode. Succeeded her father all of her 5 brothers and 2 sisters predeceased her. She was married to Count Simon Heinrich zur Lippe-Detmold (1649-99), mother of 16 children and lived (1644-1700).

Giovanna II Aragona Pignatelli Cortes

1677-1723 Territorial Princess Giovanna II Aragona Pignatelli Cortes of Castelvetrano, Princess of the Holy Roman Empire, Machioness of Avola, Duchess of Terranova and Countess of Borghetto, etc. (Italy)

Daughter of Andrea Fabrizio (?-1677) Duke of Monteleone. Married to Ettore Pignatelli, Marquis del Vaglio. Succeeded by son Prince Diego, Marquis of Valle Oaxaca later Duke of Terranova and Monteleone. She and her husband acquired extensive feudal properties in Southern Italy, in central and western Sicily, in Spain and Mexico. She lived (1666-1723).


1677-99 Countess Sophie Amalie Moth of the County of Samsøe (Denmark)

Official Maitresse of King Christian V, and appointed "Lensgrevinde til Samsø til Gevskabet Samsøe", and her children with the king were given the surname of Gyldenløve and they became the ancestors of the Danneskiold-Samsøe counts. She lived (1754-99).


 

1677-1701 Princess-Abbess Maria Eva Schenkin von Castell of Schänis (Switzerland)

Reached a compromise with the parish of Benken in the dispute over the right to appoint the local priest (Kollaturstreit. Her Cousin, Countess Maria Cleopha, was Princess-Abbess of Säckingen (1672-93). The daughter of Johann Erhard Schenk von Castell, Chief Steward of Delsberg and Maria Elisbeth von Rotberg, she lived (1640-1701).


 

1678-88 H.H. Paduka Sri Sultana Zaqiyat ud-din 'Inayat Shah binti al-Marhum Raja Mahmud Shah, Sultana of Aceh Dar us-Salam (Indonesia)

The mercantile oligarchs elected her as successor to sultana Naqiat - the second female ruler of the state. The rule of women was not simply a weak version of male monarchy; it also partook of some of the attributes that women were expected to show in Southeast Asian societies. Women were entrusted with the handling of money, the buying and selling of goods, the promotion of the family as a business and the making of deals. Sultan Zaqiyat was daughter of Raja Mahmud Shah bin Raja Sulaiman Shahand and married to a great-grandson of Sultan Mukmin, who reigned 1579. Succeeded by her sister-in-law, Sultana Zinat. (d. 1688).


1678 Sovereign Duchess Isabella I Gonzaga of Gaustalla (Italy)

When she married Ferdinando Carlo IV Gonzaga, Duke of Mantova in 1670, they were promised the succession to the Duchy after her father, Ferrante III, but when he died in 1678, the Duchy was placed under administration and in 1692, Emperor Leopold declared the arrangement illegitimate and granted the feud to her father's cousin, Vincenzo I Gonzaga, who married her younger sister Maria-Vittoria (1659-1707) in 1679. Anna Isabella had no children, and lived (1655-1703).


Dowager Duchess Eliabeth-Dorothea of Hessen-Darmstadt

1678-88 Regent Dowager Landgravine Elisabeth Dorothea von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg of Hessen-Darmstadt (Germany)
1688-1709 Reigning Dowager Lady of the Castle and Administrative Unit of Butzback

Took over as regent for son, Ernst Ludwig (1667-78-1739) after the death of her stepson Ludwig V, who died 18 weeks and 4 days after succeeding her husband, Ludwig IV (1630-61-78). The Imperial Court (Reichskammergericht) demanded that she should reign jointly with a College of Councillors, but she prevented that they could take their oath and they therefore remained subordinate "advisors" to her. During her term in office she only called the Estates (Landtag) 2 times. She worked hard on consolidating the economic and industrial situation of the Landgrave and after she took over the government in her dowry, she advised her son to do the same, but he refused her interference. She also promoted music and culture, and lived (1640-1709).      


 

1678-93 Regent Countess Dowager Ernestine Barbara Dorothea Sibylle zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort of Salm-Reifferscheid-Bedbur (Germany)

After the death of her husband, Altgraf Erich Adolf, she was in charge of the government in the name of her son Altgraf Franz Wilhelm I von Salm Reifferscheid zu Bedbur (1672-78-1734). She lived (1654-98).


 

1678-98 Guardian Dowager Countess Anna Dorothea von Ruppa of Reuss zu Untergreiz  (Germany)

After the death of her husband, Heinrich IV, she was guardian for son, Heinrich XIII (1672-1733), who was under the regency of a male relative. She lived (1651-98).


 

1678-81 Princess-Abbess Christine Sofie zu Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel of Gandersheim (Germany)

Resigned in order to marry her cousin Duke August Wilhelm of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1662-1731), who did not have any children with his two next wifes Sophie Amalie von Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf (1670–1710) and Elisabeth Sophie Marie von Schleswig-Holstein-Norburg (1683–1767) as he preferred men. She was daughter of Duke Rudolf August of Christiane Elisabeth, Gräfin von Barby, and lived (1654-95).


 

1679-96 Feudal Marchioness Beatrice Acquaviva d'Aragona of Sant Emiliano, Melpignano Botrugno, Trepuzzi and Vaste (Italy)

Daughter of Francesco, she died without heirs, and the Marchese di Trepuzzi don Geronimo Acquaviva inherited the feudal lands.


Unnamed Burmese Lady

1680-83 Queen of Lai Kha (Myanmar-Burma)

Succeeded her husband, King Saw ne Ya, who reigned the Shan Kingdom (1650-80).


 

Ca. 1680-ca. 85 Sultan Nur al-Azam of Sulu (Philippines)

Also known as Pangian Ampay II, she was originally named Siti Cabil or Sittie Kabira, and chosen as the successor by her maternal grandfather, Sultan Muawil Wasit. Not much is known about her reign, Kabira’s name remains in an extended prayer for the Prophets and their descendants and followers in a traditional mosque in Maimbung. Her name is included in the Dalrymple's list of sultans but is not included in the Sulu genealogy, probably because she was a woman.


Charlotte Amélie de la Trémoïlle

1680-1701 Regent Dowager Countess Charlotte Amélie de la Trémoïlle of Aldenburg and the Barony of Kniphausen (Germany)
1680-1732 Lady of Doorwerth (The Netherlands)

After her father, Henri Charles, Duke de La Tremoille, demanded that they converted to Catholism, she fled together with her mother, Emilie von Hessen-Kassel. She ended up in Denmark, where her cousin, Charlotte-Amalie, was married to King Christian V. Here she married Count Anton I von Aldenburg und Kniphausen, the illegitimate son of Count Anton Günther von Oldenburg-Delmenhorst and Elisabeth von Ungnad, who had been created Reichsgraf. He had six daughters by his first wife, Auguste Johanna von Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein (1638-66). When he died after five months of marriage, she became regent for her unborn child. Her son, Anton II, was born at 26th of June 1681, and was Baron of the semi-independent Reichsfreie Herrlichkeit Kniphausen until his death in 1738, when he was succeeded by his daughter, Charlotte-Sophie von Aldenburg. After he came of age, she spent the rest of her life in the castle of Doorwerth in the Netherlands, and lived (1652-1732).


 

1680 Governor Lady Elizabeth de Carteret of Alderney (A Dependency of the English Crown)