Monarchies and Hereditary Rule

03.19.25 02:13 PM - By Claire Baumgartner

AP World History mentions about one zillion titles for the person who is in charge of the country. It can feel like it's impossible to keep them all straight.

Okay, so it's not one zillion. I may have exaggerated. But it is a lot! I often see students struggle with vocabulary terms like these. The textbook and the teacher often assume that you already know these words.

I'll help you learn about the similarities and differences between these types of rulers. That way, you can focus on the big picture while you read. You may also be interested in my articles on elected leaders, military leaders, and religious leaders.

Royalty and Monarchy Overview

Czar and Czarina (Tsar and Tsarina)

Royalty and Monarchy Overview

Monarchies are one of the most common forms of government. In a monarchy, there is one person who has significant, formal power over the workings of the government. This person is called the monarch. The monarch and their family are considered royalty.

A monarchy has several specific characteristics. A monarch rules a country for their entire life. In many places, monarchs can step down, but they retain their royal status. A new monarch typically inherits the job from one of their parents. A monarch generally has a significant amount of political and economic power. A country typically has one monarch. That person's spouse may have significant power and status, but the monarch has more unless they are ineffective or ill.

Monarchs have varying amounts of power. An absolutist monarch may have total control over the country's laws, military, and court system. A constitutional monarch's power is limited by a set of laws and principles. Many constitutional monarchs have little power beyond symbolic jobs.

Because monarchies are so common, there are lot of variations on how they work. Let's take a look at some examples from the course!

Types of Monarchs

King and Queen

For many students, king and queen are the most familiar hereditary titles in AP World History. The government and territory controlled by a king is known as a kingdom.

European kings and queens are featured prominently in AP World History. You will first encounter them while studying the medieval period of European History. Monarchies are also discussed in Unit 5, when the course discusses the effects of the Enlightenment.

Kings and queens have also ruled outside of Europe. In most cases, these groups did not use the words "king" or "queen" to describe their rulers. Instead, we use these terms in the course as a useful shorthand. We can understand the basics of a country's political systems using these words. In Unit 1, you'll learn about the Hausa, Rajput, and Sukhothai kingdoms. You'll also learn about the Kingdom of the Kongo in Unit 4.

Emperor and Empress

An emperor or an empress is the leader of an empire. An empire is a type of government where one group of people controls other groups of people through force. The group that controls others is called a metropole. The territories controlled by an outside group are often referred to as colonies or the periphery. Most metropoles use military power to expand their power, but they may also use other forms of power to exert control.

The process of expanding or maintaining an empire is called imperialism.

Empires are one of the most common political systems covered in the course. Every time period in AP World History features several empires. Metropoles have existed on almost every continent. There are three major types of empires covered in AP World History. They are:

Land-Based Empires. Land-based empires expand when one group conquers nearby land. In this type of empire, all of the territory is physically touching other territory in the same empire. The Mongol Empire, Gunpowder Empires, Mali Empire, and Qing China are all examples of land-based empires.
Sea-Based Empires. Sea-based empires expand when one group conquers territory. Unlike land-based empires, sea-based empires are connected by water. Territories may be thousands of miles away from the metropole. Sea-based empires formed after the 1500s because of improved sailing technology and the Industrial Revolution. The British Empire, French Empire, and Trading Post Empires are all examples of sea-based empires.
Modern Empires. Many country's attitudes towards empires shifted after World War II. Old sea-based empires broke apart. New technology, including planes, atomic weapons, and the internet, allow countries to dominate areas that are not linked by land or sea. As a result, empires in the modern world often use diplomatic, economic, cultural, or technological pressure to control other countries. The United States, China, and the USSR/Russia have all used this kind of power to expand their influence.

I categorized empires with monarchies because it is common for a hereditary ruler to control a monarchy. However, there are many empires that have been controlled by democratic governments, dictators, and religious authorities. As always, history is full of exceptions.

Sultan

Sultan is an Arabic term that was used throughout the Islamic world.

Notably, sultans did not always claim to be a caliph. Caliphs were making a claim to be the rightful heir of Muhammad and leader of the Islamic world. Sultans were simply claiming to be independent, Muslim rulers. The government and territory controlled by a sultan is called a sultanate.

There are three major sultanates covered in AP World History. The first one is the Sultanate of Delhi. This state controlled most of India in the medieval period. It is an example of a new Islamic state that formed as the Abbasid Caliphate's control over the Islamic world weakened. It also shows the growing influence if Islam and Persian culture on the Indian subcontinent during this period. The Mughals would further extend this influence when they conquered the Sultanate of Delhi.

The Mamluk sultanate formed around the same time. Unlike the Abbasids, the Mamluks were able to fight off the Mongols and remain an independent state. The Mamluk sultanate is notable for being ruled by military troops known as mamluks. Mamluks were formerly enslaved soldiers who were raised to be soldiers. The sultan was picked from among these soldiers, and the mamluks deposed if they didn't like him. Sultans from this period could also be classified as military leaders.

Finally, the most famous and largest sultanate is the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire formed as a sultanate. As it expanded and swallowed up competing sultanates, the Ottoman sultans also claimed to be caliphs. Like the Safavids, Mughals, and Russians, they claimed to be the rightful heirs of a former power to legitimize their rule.

The Ottoman Empire was ruled by one sultan. However, it is important to note that his mother, consorts, and wives had significant political power. They would all be styled as "sultan" with an additional word describing their relationship to the sultan. For example, the valide sultan was the ruling sultan's mother. She had significant political power. Finally, a period of Ottoman history is known as the "Sultanate of Women." This reflects that these female sultans had significant political influence despite being unable to rule in their own rights.

Shah and Shahbanu

Shah is a Persian word that means "king." Shahs could rule over empires, kingdoms, or khanates.

The term shah is rooted in Persian culture. The ancient Persian empires were long gone by 1200. However, people who identified as Persian and spoke Persian survived many successive invasions. This cultural tradition influenced many empires. Two major land-based empires associated themselves with Persian culture. Their leaders styled themselves as a "shah." This helped them legitimize their authority by associating with a previous great power.

One of these was the Safavid Empire. It was founded by Shah Ismail I. The Savafids rose to power by promoting an identity that was ethnically Persian and religiously Shi'a. The Safavid Empire itself fell apart in the 1700s. However, the term Shah was used by Iranian rulers until the Iranian Revolution in the 1970s. Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was the last ruler of Iran to be styled as a shah.

The Mughals also legitimized their rule using this method, but they claimed an association with two empires. The Mughals double-dipped by promoting Persian culture and claiming to be descended from the Mongols. It is not an accident that Mughal sounds like Mongol. That being said, Mughal rulers often styled themselves as shahs. One of the most famous Mughal rulers, Shah Jahan is a great example of this connection. Shah Jahan used the title shah, but he also promoted Persian culture, art, and architecture. The most famous example of this is the Taj Mahal. This beautiful building features a number of Persian architectural features. This includes the gardens, which are divided into four quarters separated by water. This style of garden dates back to ancient Persia.

Czar and Czarina (Tsar and Tsarina)

Czar is a Slavic word that means "caesar." It was used throughout Eastern Europe. You may see this word spelled as csar, tsar, or tzar as well. This is because most Slavic languages do not use the Latin alphabet. Therefore, the spelling of the word has to be translated. People have used different ways of capturing the first sound of this word. That's why there are multiple spellings of the same word.

In AP World History, we almost exclusively see this word in conjunction with the Russian Empire. This empire was founded by Ivan III. He cemented Russia as an independent state and began expanding it's territory. Ivan III was typically referred to as a Grand Prince, but he occasionally referred to himself as a czar. He chose a term that means "caesar" on purpose. Like the Mughals and Safavids, he chose to associate his rule with an ancient empire. Ivan III believed that the Russian Empire was the heir of the Roman Empire. By styling himself as a "caesar," he was claiming to be the legitimate ruler just like the caesars were legitimate rulers of Rome.

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Monarchies and Hereditary Rule

Table of Contents

Royalty and Monarchy Overview

Types of Monarchs ​

King and Queen

Emperor and Empress

Sultan

Shah and Shahbanu

Czar and Czarina (Tsar and Tsarina)

Types of Monarchs