57. Esther 1 tells of a queen being deposed by Ahasuerus, king of Persia, when she refused to parade before a gathering of officials to show her beauty. What was the name of the deposed queen? (In the NIV, Ahasuerus is known as Xerxes.)
From Quiz A Quick Look at Queens and Women with Power
Answer:
Vashti
Vashti was deposed as queen after she refused a request of Ahasuerus, king of Persia, to parade before a gathering of officials to show her beauty. According to Esther 1:10-12, "the heart of the king was merry with wine" when he requested Vashti to appear before the officials he was entertaining. Vashti, however, refused to fulfill the king's request with Scripture stating he "was furious, and his anger burned within him." Shortly afterwards, Vashti would be deposed as queen. After this incident, there is no further mention of Vashti in Scripture.
There are different interpretations of the account pertaining to Vashti, but some scholars believe she refused the king's request because he wanted her to appear naked before the gathering, wearing only her crown.
Esther 1:11 simply states the king requested Esther to make the appearance "wearing her royal crown, in order to show her beauty to the people and the officials, for she was beautiful to behold."
One thing is certain, however. Vashti was not afraid to take a stand regardless of the consequences. According to Wikipedia, Harriet Beecher Stowe called Vashti's disobedience the "first stand for woman's rights."