Institutional Power of Chosŏn Korea's Queen Dowagers

Power in the Chosŏn dynasty of Korea (1392–1910) was shared amongst various political actors, often including female heads of royal households, namely queen dowagers. Following a diachronic approach, several case studies are examined to illustrate the extent and limits of the queen dowagers’ authority. Evidence shows that queen dowagers grew more confident and more influential over the course of the dynasty, especially as more precedents concerning their exercise of power were added to the dynasty’s Veritable Records. While queen dowagers usually refrained from getting involved in day-to-day politics, some had the power to order the dethronement of not one, but two Korean kings and, by the nineteenth century, often ruled themselves during extensive periods of regency.