Electress

An Electress (German: Kurfürstin, Latin: electrix) was the consort of a Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, one of the Empire's greatest princes. The Golden Bull of 1356 established by Emperor Charles IV settled the number of Electors at seven. However, three of these were Roman Catholic archbishops, and so had no consorts; while of the four secular Electors, one was King of Bohemia, and his consort was always known by the more prestigious title of "Queen of Bohemia". The consorts usually referred to as Electresses, therefore, were: The Electress of the Palatinate; The Electress of Saxony; The Electress of Brandenburg. To these were added, in 1623 and 1692 respectively: The Electress of Bavaria; The Electress of Hanover. In the final years of the Empire, several Electors were adde...