Spice Of Life: When Women Ruled

No matter if you lean left or right (or, somewhere in between), it’s hard to think of American women in politics and not think of Hillary Clinton. But, long before Hillary Clinton, there were many more women in power. Archaeological evidence now suggests there was a time in history, when woman ruled. Today’s politics, while still male-dominated, have seen a rise in more female politicians than ever before. And, throughout history, there have been females who not only yielded real political power, but sexual power, financial power and even a female pharaoh who sported a beard.

Cleopatra was known as the last pharaoh of Egypt and she was considered one of the most successful queens. Cleopatra spoke more than a dozen languages and was educated in mathematics, astronomy and philosophy. Under her rule, Egypt became more prosperous. It is well-known that she used her charm to seduce two powerful warlords of the Roman Empire—Julius Ceasar and Mark Antony. Cleopatra chose Mark Antony because he was the considered the most powerful man after the fall of Ceasar. Prior to her relationship with Antony, she engaged in a romantic relationship with Julius Ceasar (who was rumored to have a thing for royal women). Both alliances helped propel her to political power and she was viewed as a role model for women in society.

Historians disagree on whether or not Cleopatra was as physically appealing as originally thought, but everyone agrees she had powerful charm—and, a fun side! There are rumors that she started a secret drinking society with her paramour, Marc Antony, where, according to History.com, one of the pair’s favorite activities "involved wandering the streets of Alexandria in disguise and playing pranks on its residents." Augustus, the first leader of Rome, eventually censored official records of Rome, including important information on Cleopatra, and left only what information he wanted known to survive.

If Cleopatra had a counterpart, it was Pharaoh Hatshepsut, who reigned for almost 22 years in Ancient Egypt. Hatshepsut was the first and longest reigning pharaoh of Egypt, but one who isn’t widely known. Like Cleopatra, most of Hatshepsut’s history and legacy was erased by the incoming male in power. But what is recorded about Hatshepsut is that she reestablished Egypt’s trade networks, which helped to increase the country’s wealth. She also expanded Egypt’s trade routes, most notably with Punt, which was able to supply Egypt with gold, resin, wood, ivory, wild animals and the first-ever- known transplant of live myrrh trees. Under her direction, the second-tallest Egyptian obelisk was erected. In her depictions, Hatshepsut began to appear wearing a traditional pharaoh beard, king’s kilt and male body—as a way to assert her authority.

"She organized the largest-ever trade mission in her country’s history to the land of Punt," said Dr. Amanda Foreman on BBC. com. "Her legacy was peace and prosperity. But, even in Egypt, there’s a sting in the tale. We don’t know why, but after her death, the next Pharaoh literally defaced Hatshepsut from the public record. In a sense, she represents the fate of so many women, not just in the ancient world, but throughout all of history.’"

Historically, women in China have held subordinate positions. And, while little progress has been made in regards to women’s rights (at present, women have finally been allowed to own property), there was a brief time when a woman ruled the country. Though it is alleged she schemed and murdered to get her position (not unlike politicians of today, sadly) from the year 684- 705, Emperor Wu Zetian reigned—she is the only female emperor to ever rule China. Originally, the concubine of the emperor at the time, after his untimely death, Wu married his successor. Soon after that, the reigning emperor had a stroke, which left him debilitated and Wu assumed power. She stayed in power by appointing her various sons as emperors and making all the political decisions behind the scenes. During this time period, women enjoyed greater freedom than ever before.

"In order to challenge Confucian beliefs against rule by women, Wu began a campaign to elevate the position of women," states Quora. "She had scholars write biographies of famous women, and raised the position of her mother’s clan, by giving her relatives high political posts. She moved her court away from the seat of traditional male power and tried to establish a new dynasty. She said that the ideal ruler, was one who ruled like a mother does over her children." Wu Zetian eventually gave up power to one of her sons and died the same year.