"Reginhood": A concept for studying female power

Each time there is an increasing number of studies regarding women in all fields of History, including the so-called New Political History. The relationship between women and power within medieval institutions and those of the Ancien Régime constitutes a fruitful and complex field of research that deserves its own term to distinguish it. Currently, the proposal gaining more traction is the term "regnality," although for now it should be used with quotation marks since it has not yet been recognized by the Royal Spanish Academy.

The research on women is generally considered to have begun between the 1970s and 1990s along with the rise of feminist movements, and has grown due to the popularity of this political trend, mainly because there is a greater interest in rescuing figures that had been forgotten, with some exceptions like Isabella I of Castile. However, despite the contributions of these movements to this field, we cannot overlook previous historiography.

The position of a queen has always sparked interest, especially when a woman occupies the throne, and we can find memorials about female rulers from the past that justify or serve as examples for queens or regents during the Late Middle Ages and throughout the Modern Age. In the Contemporary Era, Isabella II of Spain (r. 1833-1869) associates her image with those of queens from the past, particularly her namesake, Isabella I of Castile, but also those of Maria de Molina and Queen Berenguela (Alba Pagán, 2009; Martínez Plaza, 2020; Carmona Ruiz, 2022: 46-50). It is worth noting that succession was disputed by the queen's uncle, Carlos María Isidro, who claimed better rights as a male heir. The cause of Isabel used historical propaganda to defend the right of a woman, or in this case, a child, to ascend to the throne.

At the end of the 18th century, Father Florez published the work Memoria de las Reinas Católicas (1760-1761), a compilation of brief biographies of ruling and consort queens from Ingunda of Austrasia, wife of Saint Hermenegildo (5th century), to the most recent queen of Spain at that time, Amalia of Saxony. Interest in rulers continued to grow until the 20th century. During the first half of the century, notable monographs on specific figures stood out, such as the biography Maria de Molina: Three Times Queen (1936) by Mercedes Gaibrois de Ballesteros, the first woman academician at the Royal Academy of History, who dedicated her discourse to this queen (Gaibrois de Ballesteros 1935; Ortega Rico 2015: 212-215).

As mentioned earlier, during the second half of the 20th century there was a significant increase in studies on what would be called "regnality." The first studies emerged that sought to address the relationship between women and power within a broader framework without focusing on specific cases and giving visibility to female reigns that had barely been noticed.

The approach towards women is particularly relevant in the English-speaking world. Theresa Earenfight, who coined the term queenship to refer to the study of queens and was one of the first interested in the figure of Maria of Castile, Queen of Aragon, stands out here. In Spain, notable historians include Isabel del Val Valdivieso, specializing in Isabella I of Castile, and Cristina Segura Graíño. The greatest influence from England is found in the term "regnality" (in Catalan "reginalitat") created by Nuria Silleras Fernández to translate queenship (Silleras Fernández 2005-2006). Diana Pelaz Flores defends the use of this term for reasons of convenience among different peninsular languages, which would use a similar term for the same issue, and to give this field of research its own vocabulary (Pelaz Flores, 2017a: 19-21).

"Regnality" or Queenship is a broad concept that covers everything related to the position or actions of the queen. Its main objectives are threefold: The first is to understand her legal status, i.e., what position she holds regarding succession and governance. The second is to recognize her power, whether formally acknowledged or exercised only factually. And the third is to understand her social standing, how contemporaries perceive her, and the construction of her own client networks.

There are all kinds of studies that can be framed within "regnality." Perhaps the most worked topic is the stereotype of a queen consort with great informal power due to personal capabilities but who does not receive corresponding recognition. These studies usually focus on diplomatic issues, where women's roles often stand out.

An economic and social perspective has also been used to study questions such as her social relationships, especially with other women, as well as her religious and artistic patronage, matters related to her dowry and personal treasure, and the administration of her household and lordship.

When studying actual female governance, regencies in the name of children are often treated due to their common occurrence compared to personal reigns, leaving much more work to be done on this aspect. The issue of a ruling queen is accompanied by the role of the king consort, which has barely been studied but has been clarified in recent years through works by Diana Pelaz Flores and Elena Woodacre (Pelaz Flores 2018; Woodacre 2012; Woodacre 2013).

As previously noted, regnality is a growing topic with much left to explore. In 2003 María Jesús Fuente pointed out the lack of regional works that surpass universal ones, where Spanish queens are overlooked from her perspective (Fuente Pérez, 2003b: 55). This issue may be in better shape today since a decade later Earenfight noted Spain, England, and France as places where this topic has been most worked on due to easy access to documentation (Earenfight 2013, 214).

In conclusion, regnality is an emerging field of research that sheds light on the political and social role played by queens. It is a complex issue as there is no absolute rule followed in all periods and kingdoms, so new questions are always being clarified and generated. This makes it an interesting and necessary area to provide a fresh perspective on an object that has been studied but not given sufficient attention for a long time.

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