Genepil (1905 – May 1938) was the last queen consort of

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

, married to

Bogd Khan Bogd Khan (13 October 1869 – 20 May 1924) was the khan of the Bogd Khanate of Mongolia from 1911 to 1924, following the state's ''de facto'' independence from the Qing dynasty of China after the Xinhai Revolution. Born in Tibet, he was the ...

. She was queen consort for less than a year in 1924. Genepil was executed in May 1938 as part of the

Stalinist repressions in Mongolia The Stalinist repressions in Mongolia () was an 18-month period of heightened political violence and persecution in the Mongolian People's Republic between 1937 and 1939. The repressions were an extension of the Stalinist purges (also known as ...

Queen consort

Genepil was born Tseyenpil in 1905 to a family in

Northern Mongolia Outer Mongolia was the name of a territory in the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China from 1691 to 1911. It corresponds to the modern-day independent state of Mongolia and the Russian republic of Tuva. The historical region gained ''de facto'' ...

, around the

Baldan Bereeven Monastery Baldan Bereeven Monastery () is a Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) Buddhist monastery located in the Baruun Jargalant River valley Ömnödelger, Khentii, Ömnödelger district, Khentii Province, Mongolia. First established in 1654, the monastery grew to be ...

. After the death of Dondogdulam Khatun in 1923, Genepil was chosen as her successor among a group of women between the ages of 18 and 20 years old who were selected by the king's counsellors. Genepil was already married to a man named Luvsandamba. She lived with

until his death on 20 May 1924, when the monarchy was abolished. Genepil returned to her family after leaving the Mongolian court. In 1937, the government of the

Mongolian People's Republic The Mongolian People's Republic (MPR) was a socialist state that existed from 1924 to 1992, located in the historical region of Outer Mongolia. Its independence was officially recognized by the Nationalist government of Republic of China (1912� ...

accused Genepil of gathering

materiel Materiel or matériel (; ) is supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commerce, commercial supply chain management, supply chain context. Military In a military context, ...

in order to stage an uprising with the help of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. She was subsequently arrested and executed in 1938. She was pregnant at the time of her execution.

In popular culture

The

costume design Costume design is the process of selecting or creating clothing for a performers. A costume may be designed from scratch or may be designed by combining existing garments. "Costume" may also refer to the style of dress particular to a nation, a ...

for the ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'' character

Padmé Amidala Padmé Amidala (, ) is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. She first appeared in the 1999 film ''The Phantom Menace'' as the teenage queen of the fictional planet Naboo. In the following two films of the prequel trilogy, Padm ...

took inspiration from a 1921 image of a Mongolian lady that is commonly, though incorrectly, identified as Genepil.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Genepil, Queen 1905 births 1938 deaths Women in Mongolia Great Purge victims from Mongolia Executed Mongolian people 20th-century Mongolian women 20th-century Mongolian people Queens consort Executed royalty