This is a list including all rulers who had carried the title of emperor or who ruled over an empire through history. Some titles meaning "emperor" might not have been used in the context like "padishah" under the Kingdom of Afghanistan or "tsar" under Kingdom of Bulgaria.
Empire | Duration | Title(s) | See |
---|---|---|---|
Iran | |||
Achaemenid Empire | 550 BC–330 BC | Shahanshah ("King of Kings") | List of Persian monarchs |
Seleucid Empire | 312 BC–63 BC | Basileus Megas ("Great King") | List of Seleucid rulers |
Parthian Empire | 247 BC–224 AD | Shahanshah ("King of Kings") | List of Persian monarchs |
Sasanian Empire | 224–651 | ||
Buyid Empire | 978–1062 | ||
Ilkhanate | 1295–1388 | Padishah ("Master King") | |
Timurid Empire | 1370–1507 | ||
Qara Qoyunlu | 1452–1469 | List of rulers of Qara Qoyunlu | |
Aq Qoyunlu | 1465–1508 | List of rulers of Aq Qoyunlu | |
Safavid Empire | 1501–1736 1750–1773 | Shahanshah ("King of Kings") | List of Persian monarchs |
Hotak dynasty | 1722–1738 | ||
Afsharid Empire | 1736–1796 | ||
Qajar Empire | 1789–1925 | ||
Pahlavi Iran | 1925–1979 | ||
Indian subcontinent | |||
Maurya Empire | 322 BC–184 BC | Chakravarti ("ideal universal ruler") Samrat ("proper ruler") | List of Mauryan emperors |
Chola Empire | 848–1279 | Chakravartigal [1] ("ideal universal ruler") | List of Tamil monarchs |
Mughal Empire | 1526–1857 | Padishah ("Master King") Shahenshah ("King of Kings") | List of Mughal emperors |
Indian Empire [a] | 1877–1947 | King-Emperor | Emperor of India |
East Asia | |||
Imperial China | 221 BC–1912 | 皇帝 , pronounced Huángdì ("Godly Ruler") | List of Chinese emperors |
Japan | 660 BC-Present | 天皇 , pronounced Tennō ("Heavenly Sovereign") 皇帝 , pronounced Kōtei | List of emperors of Japan |
Goguryeo | 37 BC–AD 668 | 太王, pronounced Taewang ("Greatest King") | List of monarchs of Korea |
Goryeo | 918–1270 | 성황, pronounced Seonghwang ("Holy Sovereign") | |
Korean Empire | 1897–1910 | 皇帝 , pronounced Hwangje ("Godly Ruler") | |
Nanyue | 204–125 BC | 帝 , pronounced Đế ("Ruler") | List of Vietnamese emperors |
Vietnam | 544–602 968–1945 | 皇帝 , pronounced Hoàng Đế ("Godly Ruler") | |
Other | |||
Rouran Khaganate | 330–555 | Khagan ("Great Khan") | |
Khmer Empire | 802–1431 | Devarāja ("Godly ruler") | Monarchy of Cambodia |
Ottoman Empire | 1453–1922 | Padishah ("Master King") | List of Ottoman emperors |
Mongol Empire | 1206–1634 | Khagan ("Great Khan") | List of Mongol rulers |
Durrani Empire | 1747–1823 1839–1842 | Padishah ("Master King") | List of Afghan monarchs |
Empire | Duration | Title(s) | See |
---|---|---|---|
Alexandrian Empire | 331 BC–301 BC | Basileus | Alexander the Great |
Roman Empire | 27 BC–1453 | Augustus Basileus | List of Roman emperors List of Byzantine emperors |
Empire of Nicaea | 1204–1261 | Basileus | |
Empire of Trebizond | 1204–1461 | Basileus | List of Trapezuntine emperors |
Empire of Thessalonica | 1224–1242 | Basileus | |
Latin Empire | 1204–1261 | Imperator | Latin Emperor |
Holy Roman Empire | 800–1806 | Imperator | Holy Roman Emperor |
Avar Khaganate | 567–822 | Khagan ("Great Khan") | |
Bulgarian Empire | 913–1018 1185–1396 | Tsar | List of Bulgarian monarchs |
Serbian Empire | 1346–1373 | Tsar | List of Serbian monarchs |
Russian Tsardom | 1547–1721 | Tsar | List of Russian monarchs |
Russian Empire | 1721–1917 | Imperator | |
Austrian Empire | 1804–1918 | Kaiser | List of Austrian monarchs |
German Empire | 1871–1918 | Kaiser | List of German monarchs |
French Empire | 1804–1815 1852–1870 | Empereur | List of French monarchs |
Empire | Duration | Title | See |
---|---|---|---|
Aztec Empire | 1375–1521 | Hueyi Tlatoani ("great ruler") | |
Inca Empire | 1438–1533 | Sapa Inca ("only ruler") | Pre-Conquest Sapa Incas Post-Conquest Sapa Incas |
Empire of Brazil | 1822–1889 | Imperador | List of Brazilian monarchs |
Empire | Duration | Title(s) | See |
---|---|---|---|
Ethiopian Empire | 1270–1975 | Nəgusä nägäst ("ruler of rulers") | List of Ethiopian emperors |
The word emperor can mean the male ruler of an empire. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife, mother/grandmother, or a woman who rules in her own right and name. 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".
The House of Habsburg, also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most prominent and important dynasties in European history.
A monarch is a head of state for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power in the state, or others may wield that power on behalf of the monarch. Usually, a monarch either personally inherits the lawful right to exercise the state's sovereign rights or is selected by an established process from a family or cohort eligible to provide the nation's monarch. Alternatively, an individual may proclaim oneself monarch, which may be backed and legitimated through acclamation, right of conquest or a combination of means.
The 1820s was a decade of the Gregorian calendar that began on January 1, 1820, and ended on December 31, 1829.
A self-proclaimed monarchy is established when a person claims a monarchy without any historical ties to a previous dynasty. In many cases, this would make them a pretender to the throne. The self-proclaimed monarch may be of an established state, such as Zog I of Albania, or of a micronation, such as Leonard Casley of Hutt River, Western Australia.
Faustin-Élie Soulouque was a Haitian politician and military commander who served as President of Haiti from 1847 to 1849 and Emperor of Haiti from 1849 to 1859.
King of Italy was the title given to the ruler of the Kingdom of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The first to take the title was Odoacer, a barbarian warlord, in the late 5th century, followed by the Ostrogothic kings up to the mid-6th century. With the Frankish conquest of Italy in the 8th century, the Carolingians assumed the title, which was maintained by subsequent Holy Roman Emperors throughout the Middle Ages. The last Emperor to claim the title was Charles V in the 16th century. During this period, the holders of the title were crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy.
The flag of Haiti is a bicolour featuring two horizontal bands coloured blue and red, emblazoned by a white rectangular panel bearing the coat of arms of Haiti. The coat of arms depicts a trophy of weapons atop a green hill and a royal palm symbolizing independence. The palm is topped by the Cap of Liberty. The motto L'Union fait la Force appears on a white ribbon below the arrangement.
The emperor of Austria was the ruler of the Austrian Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The hereditary imperial title and office was proclaimed in 1804 by Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, and continually held by him and his heirs until Charles I relinquished power in 1918.
The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm, was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is also referred to as the Austrian monarchy or the Danubian monarchy.
The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, commonly called the "Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom", was a constituent land of the Austrian Empire from 1815 to 1866. It was created in 1815 by resolution of the Congress of Vienna in recognition of the Austrian House of Habsburg-Lorraine's rights to the former Duchy of Milan and the former Republic of Venice after the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed in 1805, had collapsed.
The coat of arms of Haiti is the national coat of arms of the Republic of Haiti. It was originally introduced in 1807, and it has appeared in its current form since 1986. Since this Haitian national symbol does not conform to the rules of heraldry for a traditional coat of arms, then it could be considered a national emblem instead.
The Kingdom of Haiti, or Kingdom of Hayti, was the state established by Henri Christophe on 28 March 1811 when he proclaimed himself King Henri I after having previously ruled as president of the State of Haiti, in the northern part of the country. This was Haiti's second attempt at monarchical rule, as Jean-Jacques Dessalines had previously ruled over the First Empire of Haiti as Emperor Jacques I from 1804 until his assassination in 1806.
The First Empire of Haiti, officially known as the Empire of Haiti, was an elective monarchy in North America. Haiti was controlled by France before declaring independence on 1 January 1804. The Governor-General of Haiti, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, created the empire on 22 September 1804. After being proclaimed emperor by the Generals of the Haitian Revolution Army, he held his coronation ceremony on 6 October and took the name Jacques I. The constitution of 20 May 1805 set out the way the empire was to be governed, with the country split into six military divisions. The general of each division corresponded directly with the emperor or the general in chief appointed by the emperor. The constitution also set out the succession to the throne, with the crown being elective and the reigning emperor having the power to appoint his successor. The constitution also banned white people, with the exception of naturalised Germans and Poles, from owning property inside the empire.
There are 12 monarchies in the Americas, being either sovereign states or self-governing territories that have a monarch as head of state. Each is a constitutional monarchy, wherein the monarch inherits his or her office according to law, usually keeping it until death or abdication, and is bound by laws and customs in the exercise of their powers. Ten of these monarchies are part of the global personal union known as the Commonwealth realms and share Charles III, who resides in the United Kingdom, as king. The other two are the Monarchy of the Netherlands which is used in states of the Dutch Caribbean, and the Monarchy of Denmark which is used in Greenland. As such, none of the monarchies in the Americas have a permanently residing monarch, though the Commonwealth realms each have a resident governor-general to represent King Charles III and perform most of his constitutional duties in his name; and a high commissioner represents the King of Denmark and the Danish government in Greenland. Additionally, each of Canada's 10 provinces functions as a subnational constituent monarchy, with the constitutional powers vested in the King exercised at the provincial level by a lieutenant governor.
The Second Empire of Haiti, officially known as the Empire of Haiti, was a state which existed from 1849 to 1859. It was established by the then-President, former Lieutenant General and Supreme Commander of the Presidential Guards under President Riché, Faustin Soulouque, who, inspired by Napoleon, declared himself Emperor Faustin I on 26 August 1849 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption in Port-au-Prince.
Coronations in the Americas were previously held by multiple countries on both continents, with the majority occurring in Latin America. They were held by endemic constitutional monarchies with their own resident monarch. There are no longer any endemic American monarchies.
Arms of dominion are the arms borne both by a monarch and the state in a monarchy.
The Republic of Haiti from 1820 to 1849 was effectively a continuation of the first Republic of Haiti that had been in control of the south of what is now Haiti since 1806. This period of Haitian history commenced with the fall of the Kingdom of Haiti in the north and the reunification of Haiti in 1820 under Jean-Pierre Boyer. This period also encompassed Haitian occupation of Spanish Santo Domingo from 1822 to 1844, creating a unified political entity governing the entire island of Hispaniola. Although termed a republic, this period was dominated by Boyer's authoritarian rule as president-for-life until 1843. The first Republic of Haiti ended in 1849 when President Faustin Soulouque declared himself emperor, thus beginning the Second Empire of Haiti.
The unobtrusive titles used by the early Chola kings were replaced with high-sounding ones, such as chakravartigal (emperor, the equivalent of the northern chakravartin).