Click for Author Information. Ruizong was also a disappointment to her and so she forced him to abdicate in 690 CE and proclaimed herself Emperor Zeitan, ruler of China, the first and only woman to sit on the Dragon Throne and reign in her own name and by her own authority. Naples: Institute Universitario Orientale, 1976. The other statues (still seen in the Longmen Grottoes) were also made to elevate her status as a divine ruler who knew what was best for the people and was divinely appointed to apply whatever laws or policies she saw fit. She was painted as a usurper who was both physically cruel and erotically wanton; she first came to prominence, it was hinted, because she was willing to gratify certain ofthe Taizong emperors more unusual sexual appetites. This item is in the public domain, and can be used, copied, and modified without any restrictions. 21/11/2022. She graduated from SUNY Delhi in 2018. She also organized military campaigns against Korea in 668 CE which were so effective that they reduced Korea to the status of a vassal state. She began her life at court as a concubine of the emperor Taizong. On a similar tone, she ordered that the mother of the Daoist sage Laozi (Lao Tzu, c. 600 bce) be honored. When Taizong died, Gaozong became emperor, and Wu Zetian joined a Buddhist nunnery, as required of concubines of deceased emperors. | READ MORE. The first thing she did was change the name of the state from Tang to Zhou (actually Tianzhou or Tiansou). Most online reference entries and articles do not have page numbers. Vol. As an effective woman ruler, she challenged the traditional patriarchical dominance of power, state, sovereignty, monarchy, and political ideology. Buddhists Support. License. Mutsuhito Her 50-year rule was marked by a successful foreign policy that saw only a few, victorious, wars but the considerable expansion of the influence of the Chinese state. One reason, as we have already had cause to note in this blog, is the official nature and lack of diversity among the sources that survive for early Chinese history; another is that imperial history was written to provide lessons for future rulers, and as such tended to be weighted heavily against usurpers (which Wu was) and anyone who offended the Confucian sensibilities of the scholars who labored over them (which Wu did simply by being a woman). There was a sense of trying to keep up with ones rivals by building something bigger than they had. World History Encyclopedia. Empress Wu proved to be a wise monarch, and in her reign of twenty years she continued many policies and practices of her predecessors. True, Taizongan old warrior-ruler so conscientious that he had official documents pasted onto his bedroom walls so that he would have something to work on if he woke in the nighthad lost his empress shortly before Wu entered the palace. These characters were supposed to replace between 10 and 30 of the older characters and were Wu's attempt to change the way her people thought and wrote. The empress even promoted what might loosely be termed womens rights, publishing (albeit as part of her own legitimation campaign)Biographies of Famous Women and requiring children to mourn both parents, rather than merely their father, as had been the practice hitherto. Ho-shen (1750-1799) was a high Manchu official in the government of the Ch'ing dynasty in China and a close associate of Emperor Ch'ien-lung.. Barrett. In the reign of Empress Wu, persons who entered government through the examinations were able for the first time to occupy the highest positions, even that of chief minister. Guisso, Richard W.L. When a mountain seemed to appear following the earthquake, this was also interpreted as nature itself revolting against the reign of Wu. Having been raised by her father to believe she was the equal of men, Wu saw no reason why women could not carry out the same practices and hold the same positions men could. It was Lu Zhi who, in 194 B.C., wreaked revenge on a rival by gouging out her eyes, amputating her arms and legs, and forcing her to drink acid that destroyed her vocal chords. Unknown, . Wu disposed of her enemies, first the former empress and then the high-ranking officials, who had strongly opposed her rise. Wu Zetian was born in Wenshi County, Shanxi Province, in 624 CE to a wealthy family. empress wu primary sources. In 684 Li Jingye led a revolt of those northwestern families who had been disgraced and exiled to the Yangzi Valley. Mark, Emily. This page titled 4.16: Links to Primary Sources is shared under a CC BY-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by George Israel (University System of Georgia via GALILEO Open Learning Materials) . Her usurpation marked a significant social revolution, the rise of a new class, which the empress tried to use in her struggle against the traditionalist, northwest nobility. Theodora. Her overall rule, in spite of the change of dynasty, did not result in a radical break from Tang domestic prosperity and foreign prestige. Anyone she suspected of disloyalty, for any reason, was banished or executed. Each dynasty was considered a new beginning and when Wu changed the name from Tang to Zhou she was following this tradition but went further to make it clear that she was the beginning of a completely new era by calling her reign Tianzhou ('granted by heaven'). To enhance her position as a woman, in 688 she constructed a "hall of light" in the eastern capital of Luoyang to serve as a cosmic magnet to symbolize the harmony of heaven and earth and the balance of male (yang) and female (yin) forces. It may be helpful to consider that there were in effect two empressesthe one who maintained a reign of terror over the innermost circle of government, and the one who ruled more benignly over 50 million Chinese commoners. Uploaded by Ibolya Horvath, published on 22 February 2016. Primary Sources with DBQsCHINA 4000 - 1000 BCE Ancestral Rites and Divination . Originally published/produced in China, 18th century. Your Privacy Rights (2016, February 22). Encyclopedia.com gives you the ability to cite reference entries and articles according to common styles from the Modern Language Association (MLA), The Chicago Manual of Style, and the American Psychological Association (APA). World History Encyclopedia. Princess Taiping put an end to her plans when she had Wei and her family murdered and put her brother Ruizong on the throne. For centuries she was excoriated by Chinese historians as an offender against a way of life. Unknown, . Fitzgeraldwho reminds us that Tang China emerged from 400 years of discord and civil warwrites, Without Wu there would have been no long enduring Tang dynasty and perhaps no lasting unity of China, while in a generally favorable portrayal, Guisso argues that Wu was not so different from most emperors: The empress was a woman of her times. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. She was very beautiful and was selected by emperor Taizong (r. 626 - 649 CE) as one of his concubines when she was 14 years old. Favoring the power base in the Northeast, the royal family finally moved to Luoyang in 683. Empress Wu (Zhaolie) - Wikipedia Wu was given the privileged position of first concubine even though by law she should have been left in the temple as a nun. The emperor's concubines could not be passed on to be used by others but were forced to end their time at court and start a new life of chastity in a religious order. Wu's rise to power was ruthless and her reign no less so, as she continued to eliminate rivals and opponents using tactics that were sometimes brutal. Even though many at court congratulated her on being favored by the gods, many others did not. To reinforce her legitimacy, Wu Zetian also invented about a dozen characters with a new script. Empresas ICA Sociedad Controladora, S.A. de C.V. Empresa Brasileira de Aeronutica S.A. (Embraer), Emporia State University: Narrative Description, https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/empress-wu-wu-zhao. No-one knows what secrets it holds, for like many of the tombs of the most celebrated Chinese rulers, including that of the First Emperor himself, it has never been plundered or opened by archaeologists. Historians have documented Wu Zetian's resort to slander, torture, and murders to reinforce the propaganda of omens. Historian Kelly Carlton writes: Wu had a petition box made, which originally contained four slots: one for men to recommend themselves as officials; one where citizens might openly and anonymously criticize court decisions; one to report the supernatural, strange omens, and secret plots, and one to file accusations and grievances. Wu Zetian: China's Only Female Emperor - ThoughtCo World History Encyclopedia, 22 Feb 2016. These historians claim that Wu ordered Lady Wang and Lady Xiao murdered in a terrible way: she had their hands and feet cut off and they were then thrown into a vat of wine to drown. World History Publishing is a non-profit company registered in the United Kingdom. Some Rights Reserved (2009-2023) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license unless otherwise noted. Beginning in 660 CE, Wu was effectively the emperor of China. We are told that through cruel manipulations, including strangulating her own infant daughter to falsely implicate Gaozong's then current barren empress, Wu Zetian replaced her as empress in 657 and dominated the rest of Gaozong's reign. She ordered farming manuals to be written and distributed. World History Encyclopedia. "The Reigns of the Empress Wu, Chung-tsung and Jui-tsung," in Denis Twitchett, ed., Cambridge History of China. Most nations of note have had at least one great female leader. Even though there were many important and influential women throughout China's history, only one ever became the most powerful political figure in the country. Empress Wu Zetian ruled as Chinas only female emperor. 3, no. Unlike her predecessors she was fond of the Buddhist community, which led her to build at great expense the Mingtang, or Hall of Light. Our latest articles delivered to your inbox, once a week: Our mission is to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. Moreover, Wu exhibited one important characteristic that suggests that, whatever her faults, she was no despot: She acknowledged and often acted on the criticisms of loyal ministers, one of whom dared to suggest, in 701, that it was time for her to abdicate. We care about our planet! The horrible deaths of empress Wang and the Pure Concubine, for example, are nowhere mentioned in Luo Binwangs fearless contemporary denunciation, which suggests that Wu was not blamed for them during her lifetime. On the question of succession after her death, Wu Zetian entertained notions of an heir from a Wu and Li marriage. A third problem is that the empress, who was well aware of both these biases, was not averse to tampering with the record herself; a fourth is that some other accounts of her reign were written by relatives who had good cause to loathe her. Whether true or not, it is what people believed. While functioning and surviving in the male-ruled and power-focused domain, she exhibited strengths traditionally attributed to men, including political ambition, long-range vision, skillful diplomacy, power drive, decisive resolve, shrewd observation, talented organization, hard work, and firm dispensal of cruelty. The Tang Dynasty also witnessed significant military, political, and social changes, as reflected in the transformation of an aristocracy into a meritocracy from the 7th to the 10th centuries. An active imagination produced pornographic novels in the 16th century focusing on her alleged sexual practices. "Empress Wu and the Historians: A Tyrant and Saint of Classical China," in Nancy Auer Falk and Rita M. Gross, eds., Unspoken Worlds: Religious Lives of Women. After Mount Felicity appeared, and Wu claimed it as an omen favoring her, one of her ministers wrote: Your Majesty, a female ruler improperly has occupied a male position, which has inverted and altered the hard and soft, therefore the earth's emanations are obstructed and separated. Taizong was so impressed at her intellectual abilities, he took her out of the laundry and made her his secretary. According to Wu's own account, they conspired against her but, according to other historians, Wu started and finished the problems she had with them. The Demonization of Empress Wu : r/history - reddit She reigned during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) and was one of the most effective and controversial monarchs in China's history. World History Encyclopedia. Overall Wu Zetian was a decisive, capable ruler in the roles of empress, empress dowager, and emperor. Mutsuhito You're hard-pressed to find any historical documents that don't have some sort of bias, especially when dealing with a controversial figure like Wu Zetian. After the latter died in 684, she took on four or five lovers, including a monk whom she ordered executed when weary of his greed and abuse of power. She not only created many different cultural and political policies, but she displayed what a women could do in government. C.P. 2231). When Gaozong died in 683 CE, Wu took control of the government as empress dowager, placing two of her sons on the throne and removing them almost as quickly. souls of those who died in the atomic bomb attacks, Mary Anderson. Not only do we pay for our servers, but also for related services such as our content delivery network, Google Workspace, email, and much more. Empress Wu Zetian (r. 683-704 CE) of the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. Empress Dowager. Bellingham : EAS Press, 1978; Robert Van Gulik. To entrench her biological family as the imperial house, she bestowed imperial honors to her ancestors through posthumous enthronement and constructed seven temples for imperial sacrifices. And does she deserve the harsh verdict that history has passed on her? Wu Zhao listened to her minister and considered his argument and then, Rothschild writes, "Wu Zhao, with no intention whatsoever of 'leading the quiet life of a widow', rejected this interpretation and promptly exiled the man to the swampy, disease-ridden, Southland" (109). Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism Empress Lu Zhi (241-180 B.C.) ." Nationality/Culture Seen from this perspective, Wu did in fact fulfill the fundamental duties of a ruler of imperial China; Confucian philosophy held that, while an emperor should not be condemned for acts that would be crimes in a subject, he could be judged harshly for allowing the state to fall into anarchy. Wu Zetian's first two sexual partners were emperors and related to each other as father and son. 242289. The cambridge history has a fascinating take on this period - the author of the chapter on Wu's reign keeps reminding the reader that the imperium was peaceful; the economy was booming; government was rational, efficient and effective; and a parade of highly qualified top officials presided. Sign up for our free weekly email newsletter! Wu began her life at court taking care of the royal laundry but one day dared to speak to the emperor when they were alone and talked about Chinese history. ." A 17th-century Chinese depiction of Wu, from Empress Wu of the Zhou, published c.1690. History Test 3 Inquizitive Flashcards | Quizlet In promoting Buddhism over Confucianism and Daoism as the favored state religion, the Empress countered strongly held Confucian beliefs against female rule. But 28 other consorts still stood between her and the throne. Her last name, "Wu" is associated with the words for 'weapon' and 'military force' and she chose the name 'Zeitan' which means 'Ruler of the Heavens'. . Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism - Women In World History History 100 Flashcards | Quizlet In 705, Wu Zetian's grandson, the later Emperor Xuanzong (r. 712756), slaughtered the Zhang brothers in spite of Wu Zetian's protest and forced her to return the Li-Tang imperial family to power. Sima, Guang. The spirit road causeway to Wus still-unopened tomb lies between two low rises, tipped by watchtowers, known as the nipple hills.. Wu: the Chinese Empress Who Schemed, Seduced and Murdered Her Way to Become A Living God. The baby was strangled in her crib and Wu claimed that Lady Wang had killed her because she was jealous. In 690 C.E., Zetian forced Li Dan to abdicate the throne to her, and declared herself the founding empress of the Zhou dynasty. Web. Although she was not able to control the newly unified state, relations continued to be friendly during her reign. Cite This Work The Empress Wu Zetian (690-704 CE) is the only female ruler in the history of China. Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Became concubine to Emperor Taizong (640); entered Buddhist nunnery (649); returned to the palace as concubine (654), then as empress (657) to Taizong's son Emperor Gaozong; became empress dowager and regent to her two sons (68489); founded a dynasty (Zhou, 690705) and ruled as emperor for 15 years. Van Gulik, Robert. The political success of Wu Zetian indicates that the attributes needed in diplomacy and rulership were not restricted to men. Wu Zhao: Ruler of Tang Dynasty China - Association for Asian Studies Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism (625-705 C.E.) In her last years Wu lost influence, although she remained energetic and cruel. Hauppauge : Nova Science Publishers, 2003; Richard Guisso, Wu Tse-Tien and the Politics of Legitimation in Tang China. She was also the most important early supporter of the alien religion of Buddhism, which during her rule surpassed the native Confucian and Daoist faiths in influence within the Tang realm. He refused to cooperate well with his mother and his wife, Lady Wei, assumed too much power. Wu Zhao embarked on religious life as a nun in a convent after Li Shimins death in 649. False: In fact, the Roman Empire was in decline at this time. However, when Li Zhi became emperor and took the name Gaozong, one of the first things he did was send for Wu and have her brought back to court as the first of his concubines, even though he had others and also a wife. June 2, 2022 by by By transferring the normal seat of the court from Changan to Luoyang, she was able to escape the control of the great families of the northwestern aristocracy, which played an important role in the rise of the Tang dynasty. Wu Zetian was in effect taking the unprecedented step of transforming her position from empress dowager to emperor. Empress Wu, or Wu Zhao, challenged the patriarchal system by advocating women's intellectual development and sexual freedom. Taizong was surprised that his latest concubine could read and write and became fascinated by her beauty and wit in conversation. Her success in the campaigns against Korea inspired confidence in her generals and Wu's decisions on military defense or expeditions were never challenged. After his death, she married his son, Gaozong (r. 649-683 CE) and became empress consort but actually was the power behind the emperor. When the Turkic ruler asked for a marriage arrangement, she sent her nephew's son to become the groom to the chieftain's daughter. Wu was the daughter of Wu Jin, a commoner in Kaifeng. This was considered scandalous because of her advanced age and how young the Zhang brothers were but would not have even been commented on if Wu had been a man sleeping with much younger women. When Taizong died, Wu and his other concubines had their heads shaved and were sent to Ganye Temple to begin their lives as nuns. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. She established a policy so that informants could be paid to travel by public transportation to report to the court. Before coming to power, she was presented with three petitions containing sixty thousand names and urging her to ascend to the throne, which suggested that she had some popular support. World History Foundation is a non-profit organization registered in Canada. The empress responded with both diplomacy and force, concluding a marriage alliance with the Turks and defeating the Qidan in battle. Among a raft of other allegations are the suggestions that she ordered the suicides of a grandson and granddaughter who had dared to criticize her and later poisoned her husband, whovery unusually for a Chinese emperordied unobserved and alone, even though tradition held that the entire family should assemble around the imperial death bed to attest to any last words. Wu Zetian's father was a successful merchant and military official who reached ministerial ranks. The Confucian dynastic system of government, based on the mandate of heaven, or the claim of heaven-sanctioned military conquest and benevolent rule, was first propounded by the Zhou Dynasty in 1045 bce and perpetuated by subsequent dynasties until 1911. "Wu Zetian (624705) Her Buddhist supporters interpreted the Madamegha (Great Cloud) sutra to predict a maitreya Buddha (Buddha-to-come) in female form, presumably Wu Zetian herself, who would embody the concept of the cakravartin (wheel-turner, universal emperor, or the ideal man who is king). Related Content Encyclopedias almanacs transcripts and maps, Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Empress Wu, or Wu Zhao, challenged the patriarchal system by advocating womens intellectual development and sexual freedom. Two brothers, known as the Zhang Brothers, were her favorites and she spent most of her time in closed quarters with them. But if she is observed in the context of the sexuality of male rulers, then the number of her favorites is insignificant. Patronage of Buddhism. For Wu Zetian, the rise to power and consolidation involved manipulations, murders, and support of the intellectual and religious establishments. and turned the, Wang Mang (45 B.C.-A.D. 23) was a Chinese statesman and emperor. A Japanese example: In the late 7th century, Japans Emperor Shomu and Empress Komyo both were involved in Buddhist buildings. Vol. Determining the truth about this welter of innuendo is all but impossible, and matters are complicated by the fact that little is known of Wus earliest years. Nevertheless, court intrigues still greatly influenced the recruiting of civil servants. Last modified March 17, 2016. Wuplayed here by Li Lihuawas depicted as powerful and sexually assertive in the Shaw Brothers 1963 Hong Kong movie Empress Wu Tse-Tien. Lady Wang had no children and Lady Xiao had a son and two daughters. emperor angelfish (Pomecanthus imperator) See CHAETODONTIDAE. "Empress Wu Zetian." Shortly after she took the throne there was an earthquake which was interpreted as a bad omen. Although the function of the concubine in China is almost always associated with sex, a woman in this position could have a number of non-sexual responsibilities, from daily tasks like taking care of the laundry to more specialized skills like conversation, poetry reading, and playing music. One of these served as her new personal name, Zhao, which articulates the fundamental Buddhist notion of universal emptiness. 181. Encyclopedia.com. One of the most powerful champions of Buddhism in China was the Empress Wu Zetian. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. In 710 CE Zhongzong died after being poisoned by Wei who hid his body and concealed his death until her son Chong Mao could be made emperor. Her patronage of Buddhism also expanded to other temples and sects, and much work was done on the cave temples at Longmen on her orders. "Empress Wu (Wu Zhao) Empress Wu: Part XV of the Great Patron Series - Khyentse Foundation The Woman Who Discovered Printing. Carved in limestone, the colossal statue is reputed to have been carved in Wus own likeness. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. Instead, it was left without any inscriptionthe only such example in more than 2,000 years of Chinese history. The system of Neo-Confucianism of which Chu Hsi is regarded as the spo, Mutsuhito Thank you! 145154. Hidden Power: The Palace Eunuchs of Imperial China. Books With a heart like a serpent and a nature like that of a wolf, one contemporary summed up, she favored evil sycophants and destroyed good and loyal officials. A small sampling of the empresss other crimes followed: She killed her sister, butchered her elder brothers, murdered the ruler, poisoned her mother. Empress Wu Worksheets & Facts | History, Reign, Legacy The remaining Li-Tang family who survived the murders, including Wu Zetian's own son on whose behalf she was serving as empress dowager, begged to take the surname of Wu to replace their birth surnames of Li. Most historians believe Wu became intimate with the future Gaozong emperor before his fathers deatha scandalous breach of etiquette that could have cost her her head, but which in fact saved her from life in a Buddhist nunnery. One critic, the poet Luo Binwang, portrayed Wu as little short of an enchantressAll fell before her moth brows. Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism (625-705 C.E.) Her spy network and secret police stopped rebellions before they had a chance to start and the military campaigns she sent out enlarged and secured the borders of the country. The odds that a girl of this low rank would ever come to an emperors attention were slim. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979. After Gaozongs death, in 683, she remained the power behind the throne as dowager empress, manipulating a succession of her sons before, in 690, ordering the last of them to abdicate and taking power herself. The emperor believed her story, and Wang was demoted and imprisoned in a distant part of the palace, soon to be joined by the Pure Concubine. At age 14 she became a concubine of Emperor TaiZong of the Tang Dynasty and was given the title of CaiRren (Guardian Immortal) and a new name, Wu Mei. In the last three decades, Marxist historiography on Wu Zetian in Mainland China has yielded a positive but unreliable and ideologically charged reappraisal. They came to power, mostly, by default or stealth; a king had no sons, or an intelligent queen usurped the powers of her useless husband. At the same time, another political faction formed around Wu's other son, Ruizong, who was supported by Wu's daughter, Taiping. Quin Shi Huang-Di Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1977. Wus memorial tablet, which stands near her tomb, was erected during her years as empress in the expectation that her successors would compose a magnificent epitaph for it. With her exceptional intelligence, extraordinary competence in politics, and inordinate ambition, she ruled as the "Holy and Divine Emperor" of the Second Zhou Dynasty (690-705) for fifteen years. Sources about Wu Zetian's life are a hodgepodge, which some condemning her as the devil himself and others testifying she was an absolute angel. She was the daughter of Wu Shihuo, a chancellor of the Tang Dynasty. Her last two lovers were the young and handsome Zhang brothers who put on makeup and exploited the relationship by obtaining offices, honors, and gifts for themselves and their family. Historians remain divided as to how far Wu benefited from the removal of these potential obstacles; what can be said is that her third son, who succeeded his father as Emperor Zhongzong in 684, lasted less than two months before being banished, at his mothers instigation, in favor of the more tractable fourth, Ruizong. The woman who believed she was as capable as any man to lead the country continues to be vilified, even if writers now qualify their criticisms, but there is no arguing with the fact that, under Wu Zetian, China experienced an affluence and stability it had never known before. As we know, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Stroud: Sutton Publishing, 2007; Dora Shu-Fang Dien, Empress Wu Zetian in Fiction and in History: Female Defiance in Confucian China. Territorial Expansion. Political Propaganda and Ideology in China at the End of the Seventh Century. Wu was forced to abdicate in favor of her exiled son Zhongzong and his wife Wei. This opposition was formidable; the annals of the period contain numerous examples of criticisms leveled by civil servants mortified by the empresss innovations. (108). The practice of an emperor having young women as concubines was customary but when an empress decided to entertain herself with young men it was suddenly scandalous. Mutsuhito https://www.worldhistory.org/Wu_Zetian/. She wanted to make it clear that a new kind of ruler had taken the throne of China and a new order had arrived. Twitchett, Denis, and Howard J. Wechsler. Anticipating Wu Zetian's political ambitions, 60,000 flatterersincluding Confucian officials, imperial relatives, Buddhist clergy, tribal chieftains, and commonerssupported the petition to proclaim the Zhou Dynasty with herself as the founding emperor.