1Elisabeth of Austria
19th Century Empress Elisabeth of Austria washed her hair with brandy, bathed in olive oil, and slept in a face mask lined with raw veal. She was supposedly considered one of the most beautiful women in Europe.
2Anne of England
Queen Anne of England was pregnant 17 times. The first time at the age of 18, and the last at the age of 34. She either miscarried or gave birth to stillborn babies. One child died under a year, another at a year and a half, and the oldest died at the age of 11 in 1700.
3Empress Marie
Dowager Empress Marie, the mother to the last Russian Tsar, was moved from Denmark to St. Petersberg in 2006, 77 years after her death. During the reinterment ceremony, the crowding around the coffin caused a young danish diplomat to fall into the grave.
4Kōken of Japan
Empress Kōken of Japan nearly made a Buddhist monk Dōkyō her successor on the throne. This would have broken the line of Japanese monarchs all being descendants of Amaterasu, and completely shifted the Imperial dynasty forever.
5Cleopatra
Cleopatra, while born Egyptian, traced her origins to Greece, may have been more renowned for her intellect than her appearance. She spoke as many as a dozen languages, was well educated and was later described as a ruler “who elevated the ranks of scholars and enjoyed their company.”
6Elizabeth of Russia
Elizabeth of Russia received little education, no one wanted to marry her because her mother was a peasant, and her finacé was murdered. Regardless, when she became Empress of Russia she built the University of Moscow, the Winter Palace, and would pay the dowry of future brides.
7Olga
A Russian queen named Olga buried Nobles alive, burned the royalty, slayed everyone at her husband’s funeral, and set their remaining town on fire, with birds, because they killed her king.
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8Velu Nachiyar
Velu Nachiyar was the first queen to fight against the British colonial power in India. After her husband was killed by British soldiers, she raised an army and repelled the British in 1780. She is one of the few rulers who regained her kingdom and ruled it for 10 more years.
9Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria, the matriarch of the British Empire proposed to her future husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha because according to tradition a man couldn’t propose to the queen.
10Wu Zetian
Wu Zetian is the only reigning Empress of China who was the wife of two different emperors. She eventually usurped the throne and ruled through brutal use of murder, betrayal, and secret police forces.
