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An emperor (through Old French ''empereor'' from (ラテン語:''imperator'')) is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (''empress consort''), mother (''empress dowager''), or a woman who rules in her own right (''empress regnant''). Emperors are generally recognized to be of a higher honour and rank than kings. In Europe the title of Emperor was, since the Middle Ages, considered equal or almost equal in dignity to that of Pope, due to the latter's position as visible head of the Church and spiritual leader of Western Europe. The Emperor of Japan is the only currently reigning monarch whose title is translated into English as "Emperor". Both kings and emperors are monarchs, but ''emperor'' and ''empress'' are considered the higher monarchical titles. In so far as there is a strict definition of emperor, it is that an emperor has no relations implying the superiority of any other ruler, and typically rules over more than one nation. Thus a king might be obliged to pay tribute to another ruler, or be restrained in his actions in some unequal fashion, but an emperor should in theory be completely free of such restraints. However monarchs heading empires have not always used the title—the British sovereign did not assume the title until the incorporation of India into the British Empire, and even then used it only in a limited context. For purposes of protocol, emperors were once given precedence over kings in international diplomatic relations; currently, however, precedence amongst heads of state – whether they be Kings, Queens, Emperors, or Presidents – is determined by the duration of time that each one has been continuously in office. Outside the European context, ''emperor'' was the translation given to holders of titles who were accorded the same precedence as European emperors in diplomatic terms. In reciprocity, these rulers might accredit equal titles in their native languages to their European peers. Through centuries of international convention, this has become the dominant rule to identifying an emperor in the modern era. Some empires, such as the Holy Roman Empire and the Russian Empire, derived their office from the authority of the Roman Emperors (''translatio imperii''). The title was a conscious attempt by monarchs to link themselves to the institutions and traditions of the Romans as part of state ideology. Historians have liberally used ''emperor'' and, especially so, ''empire'' anachronistically and out of its Roman and European context to describe any large state in the past and present; sometimes even to refer to non-monarchically ruled states and their spheres of influence: such examples include the "Athenian Empire" of the late 5th century BC, the "Angevin Empire" of the Plantagenets, or the Soviet and American "empires" of the Cold War era. However such "empires" did not need to be headed by an "emperor". ''Empire'' became identified with vast territorial holdings rather than the title of its ruler by the mid-18th century. ==Roman tradition== The title was first used as an honorific for a military leader in ancient Rome, meaning commander or general. In the Roman tradition a large variety in the meaning and importance of the imperial form of monarchy developed: in ''intention'' it was always the highest office, but it could as well fall down to a redundant title for nobility that had never been near to the "Empire" they were supposed to be reigning. Also the ''name'' of the position split in several branches of Western tradition, see below. The importance and meaning of coronation ceremonies and regalia also varied within the tradition: for instance Holy Roman Emperors could only be crowned emperor by the Pope, which meant the coronation ceremony usually took place in Rome, often several years after these emperors had ascended to the throne (as "king") in their home country. The first Latin Emperors of Constantinople on the other hand had to be present in the newly conquered capital of their empire, because that was the only place where they could be granted to become emperor. Early Roman Emperors avoided any type of ceremony or regalia different from what was already usual for republican offices in the Roman Republic: the most intrusive change had been changing the color of their robe to purple. Later new symbols of worldly and/or spiritual power, like the orb, became an essential part of the imperial accessories. Rules for indicating successors also varied: there was a tendency towards ''male'' ''inheritance'' of the supreme office, but as well election by noblemen, as ruling empresses (for empires not too strictly under salic law) are known. Ruling monarchs could additionally steer the succession by adoption, as often occurred in the two first centuries of Imperial Rome. Of course, intrigue, murder and military force could also mingle in for appointing successors; the Roman imperial tradition made no exception to other monarchical traditions in this respect. Probably the epoch best known for this part of the imperial tradition is Rome's third century rule. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Emperor」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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