Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother?

Question

Why was she styled the Queen Mother and not the Queen Dowager after the death of her husband, the Sovereign King George VII? I know the line of succession befell Elizabeth II, so it can't be because her daughter succeeded him and Elizabeth was only a consort. ?

Answer 1

Because she wasn't an Empress... only Empresses are styled Empress Dowager.... like Japan's late dowager empress, Nagako.... you can't just mix up titles exclusively for british royals as they are not better than any other royal family.

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ASIANOW/eas...

Answer 2

Elizabeth was styled "Elizabeth the Queen Mother" to differentiate her from her daughter Elizabeth II.The Queen Mother was a Queen Dowager and all Queen Dowagers are Queen or King Mothers.But dowagers were not "working".Elizabeth,Queen Mother,was the first active dowager queen;she remained in the public eye and by adding "Queen Mother" to her name helped people identify which Elizabeth was doing which engagement.

Answer 3

Queen mother is a title or position reserved for a widowed queen consort (a queen dowager) whose son or daughter from that marriage is the reigning monarch. A queen as bride of the king has a royal position of great importance, but does not normally have any rights to succeed him to rule as monarch after the king's death.

Therefore, the title of "queen mother" identifies the widow of the deceased former king, and mother of the currently reigning king or queen. The title distinguishes the queen mother from the current queen, who is bride of the currently reigning king.

A Queen Dowager or Dowager Queen is a title or status generally held by the widow of a deceased king. Its full meaning is clear from the two words from which it is composed: queen indicates someone who served as queen consort (i.e. wife of a king), while dowager indicates a widow who holds the title from her deceased husband.

A Queen Mother is a particular type of queen dowager who is simultaneously a former queen consort and the mother of the current monarch. Therefore, every queen mother is by definition also a queen dowager. However, not all queen dowagers are queen mothers (i.e., the mothers of the reigning monarch). For example, a queen dowager may be the widow of the older brother of the reigning monarch.

Answer 4

Rachelle is correct in indentifying a Queen Mother as a "queen who is the mother of the current monarch"; for example, Queen Noor of Jordan can use the title "Queen Mother".  The English have applied the term since 1577.  Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (1900-2002), Queen Consort of George VI and mother of the present reigning monarch, Elizabeth II,  like her predecessors was a Queen Mother, but Queen Mary, the mother of George VI, didn't like the title and consequently didn't use it.