Killer Queens
We have all been taught that men are violent, warmongers and power-hungry despots. It sounds true - it even feels true. Most kings, emperors and leaders in the past were men. So it stands to reason that these men caused more death and mayhem compared to their female equivalents. If we think this is correct, then we would be wrong. Very wrong.
Academics in 2019 at Chicago University and College of William & Mary studied European kings and queens between 1480 and 1913. They covered 193 reigns across 18 countries. What they discovered shocked everyone.
The prevailing attitude of many people towards men is the ‘blame game’ and this needs an urgent review. Steven Pinker is a Canadian cognitive psychologist, he claims men planned 'almost all the world's wars and genocides'. Francis Fukuyama is an American political scientist who has stated that an increase in female rulers has led to a rise in peace around the world. Bigotry is still bigotry, even when you direct it at yourself.
The findings of this research have shown that queens were 39% more likely to declare war than kings. They were more likely to be involved in a war in the first place and more likely to gain territory throughout their reign.
The belief that women are less combative than men and more likely to sue for peace has been proven wrong. Well, at least historically.
Let us look at some of these queens who started wars. Queen Elizabeth I defeated the Spanish and began the expansion that would become The British Empire. Catherine the Great made Russia a formidable power in the 18th century. Isabella I helped Spain dominate the world in the 15th and 16th centuries, as well as expand into the New World. Finally, Queen Victoria is cited by the authors as being a major influence in Britain’s empire expansion in the 19th century. All formidable ladies, queens and leaders.
Some have speculated that the above is proof that foreign powers saw women rulers as a 'soft touch' and their countries more vulnerable. Or maybe the queens felt they had something to prove to the men around them. However, the researchers dismissed these ideas for they found that queens fought their battles at various points in their tenure. They were not concentrated at the start of a reign when they would be at their most vulnerable.
It seems that in real life, as well as on a chessboard, a queen is more dangerous than a king.
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