Tsaritsa

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Tsaritsa (Bulgarian: царица; Russian: цари́ца), formerly spelled czaritsa (and in English usually rendered tsarina or czarina, which possess non-Slavic noun suffixes), is the title of a female autocratic ruler (monarch) of Bulgaria or Russia, or the title of a Tsar's wife . Since 1721, the official titles of the Russian male and female monarchs were Emperor (Russian: император, imperator) and Empress (Russian: императрица, imperatritsa), respectively.

Several Tsaritsas were the rulers of Russia including Catherine I (reigned 1725–27), Anna (1730–40), Elizabeth (1741–62) and Catherine the Great (1762–96).

Others who gained the title by marrying a Tsar were Elizabeth Alexeevna, Alexandra Fyodorovna (Charlotte of Prussia), Maria Alexandrovna, Maria Fyodorovna and Eleonore of Reuss-Köstritz, who became Tsaritsa of Bulgaria following her marriage to Tsar Ferdinand.

The last Russian Tsaritsa was Alexandra Fyodorovna (Alix of Hesse) who was married to Nicholas II of Russia. The last Bulgarian Tsaritsa was Giovanna of Italy, the wife of Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria.

For tsar's daughters see Tsarevna.