Why was Queen Esther childless?

I don't understand why you say she was childless. By Jewish tradition, her son King Darius was the one who allowed the Jews to return to Israel and build the Second Temple.

What Jessica said

Daryavesh. Right. Forgot about him.
But then again - 'Jewish tradition' also holds that she was 75/80 when the story took place so maybe she was childless after all.
(although if you believe she was 75/80 and couldn't have children, the point of the article is somewhat negated....).

Are you really suggesting that the king assembled all the most beautiful virgins in his kingdom, dipped all of them in oils and perfumes for a year, and then selected a 75/80 year old women to be his wife?

What a waste of good oil and perfume! (Not to mention the virgins ..)

And he sure makes Oedipus look like a mere parvenu ... :-)

Maybe she had personality?

As George Gershwin wrote:
It ain't necessarily so
The t'ings dat yo' li'ble
To read in de Bible,
It ain't necessarily so.