ABSTRACT
Just as there were several different levels of kingship in early Ireland, so are there instances where the title “queen” is applied to women at all levels of the royal hierarchy: the wives of petty kings, of provincial kings, of the Uí Néill kings of Tara, and of the later high kings of Ireland. The title usually bestowed is “queen of a king,” although there are some instances where the outright title of “queen” is used. Most of the latter instances involve women who fall into the rare category of wives who predeceased their husbands, a pattern that may indicate Irish queenship denoted a distinct office rather than merely being the king’s wife. Possibly, there could have been only one queen of a kingdom at any given time, so that when a king died his widow became simply “queen of a king,” with the wife of her husband’s successor becoming the queen. Alternatively, since many of the instances involving the outright title of “queen” are later than those involving “queen of a king,” it has been suggested that the switch may indicate an elevation in the status of Irish queenship over time.
