One of the most powerful champions of Buddhism in China was the Empress Wu Zetian. When she saw she would not be able to control the court as her mother did, she killed herself and Xuanzong decreed that no member of Wu's family would be allowed to hold public office because of their ruthless scheming and underhanded politics. 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. Their antagonism toward a female ruler eventually would find its way into the histories which recorded her reign and become the 'facts' which future generations would accept as truth. She first entered the imperial harem at the age of 13 as a lowly ranked concubine to Emperor Taizong (r. 626649), who has been praised as the most capable ruler of the Tang period and hailed as the "heavenly khan" by Central Asian states. Su, Tong. The odds that a girl of this low rank would ever come to an emperors attention were slim. ." One example of her clout was in 666 CE when she led a group of women to Mount Tai (an ancient ceremonial center), where they conducted rituals which traditionally were performed only by men. While Confucian historians condemned her usurpation, extravagance, and scandal, Wu Zhao has been credited for providing strong leadership and ruling during an age of relative peace and prosperity. 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). 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. Theodora. She thus arranged marriages between her children and grandchildren with her brothers' sons and their grandchildren. Her one mistake had been to marry this boy to a concubine nearly as ruthless and ambitious as herself. The Woman Who Discovered Printing. As an effective woman ruler, she challenged the traditional patriarchical dominance of power, state, sovereignty, monarchy, and political ideology. Thank you! It seems possible that the fate ascribed to Wang and the Pure Concubine was a chroniclers invention, intended to link Wu to the worst monster in Chinas history. Empress Wu Zetian. And does she deserve the harsh verdict that history has passed on her? across from her husband, the emperor. What role, if any, the undeniably ambitious concubine played in the events of the early Tang period remains a matter of controversy. It was Taizong who called her 'Mei-Niang' meaning 'beautiful girl' (one of the names commonly, and wrongly, attributed to her as her birth name). Yet Wu has had a pretty bad press. Her daunting task was convincing the Confucian establishment about the legitimate succession of a woman who was the widow of the deceased emperor and the mother of the currently legitimate ruler. She shocked the Chinese officialdom by arranging to send male grooms to the daughters and aunts of the tribal chieftains at the empire's borders, although it was customary to send female brides. Bellingham : EAS Press, 1978; Robert Van Gulik. Your Majesty may take this as 'Mount Felicity', but your subject feels there is nothing to celebrate. Whether true or not, it is what people believed. On the Korean peninsula Empress Wu supported the unification movement under the state of Silla. One explanation for Wus success is that she listened. Stroud: Sutton Publishing, 2007; Dora Shu-Fang Dien, Empress Wu Zetian in Fiction and in History: Female Defiance in Confucian China. After suppressing this revolt, the empress dowager began to purge her opponents at court. Empress Wu, or Wu Zhao, challenged the patriarchal system by advocating women's intellectual development and sexual freedom. Princess Taiping had shielded Li Longji from her mother when he was young and supported him in his efforts to take the throne. https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/empress-wu-wu-zhao, "Empress Wu (Wu Zhao) The most spectacular are the stone temples and statues chiseled into grottoes at Longmen, near her capital. Her courtiers, however, hatched a plot and afterward forced her to abdicate in 705; she died later that year. Meanwhile, the Turks invaded Gansu, and the Tibetans posed a threat to Chinese possessions in Central Asia. Wu was now raised to the position of first wife of Gaozong and empress of China. 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. There must also be some doubt as to whether Wu really was guilty of some of the most monstrous crimes that history has charged her with. Beginning in 660 CE, Wu was effectively the emperor of China. An official under the former Han dynasty, he took the Han throne and founded his own, CHARLEMAGNE Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism (625-705 C.E.) Wu Zetian was one of the longest-lived monarchs (82 years old) in Chinese history. Again, it is hard to tell what is true and what is slander being that Wu Zeitan's story is so long ago and the sources are sketchy. Thank you for your help! These monumental statues, like the one carved into the mountain at Bamiyan, Afghanistan, which was destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, alerted the populous to the dominance of Buddhism. Her social, economic and judicial views could hardly be termed advanced, and her politics differed from those of her predecessors chiefly in their greater pragmatism and ruthlessness. Even the terror of the 680s, in this view, was a logical response to entrenched bureaucratic opposition to Wus rule. The famed imperial mosaics in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna depict the sixth-century Byzantine empress. Pomacanthus imperator (emperor angelfish) See CHAETODONTIDAE. Gaozong's wife, Lady Wang, and his former first concubine, Xiao Shufei, were jealous of each other but even more envious of the attention Gaozong paid to Wu. The only woman ever to rule as emperor of China, Wu Zhao (Wu ZeTian) was born in 624 C.E. 22 Feb. 2023 . The baby was strangled in her crib and Wu claimed that Lady Wang had killed her because she was jealous. The system of Neo-Confucianism of which Chu Hsi is regarded as the spo, Mutsuhito World History Foundation is a non-profit organization registered in Canada. June 2, 2022 by by But several years later, she returned to the palace as Gaozong's concubine and gave birth to sons. On the question of succession after her death, Wu Zetian entertained notions of an heir from a Wu and Li marriage. Empress Wu Zetian and the Spread of Buddhism (625-705 C.E.) She worked against the Confucian dictum that women must restrict their activities to the home and in the wildest imagination could not become emperors. The earliest sources on Wu Zetian already contained rumors of sex scandals in her court. . Therefore, be sure to refer to those guidelines when editing your bibliography or works cited list. Buddhists Support. Wills, John E., Jr. "Empress Wu," in Mountain of Fame: Portraits in Chinese History. Appears In Although these characters were removed after her reign they still exist as a Chinese dialect in written form. emperor angelfish (Pomecanthus imperator) See CHAETODONTIDAE. She was the daughter of Wu Shihuo, a chancellor of the Tang Dynasty. Although modern historians, both east and west, have revised the ancient depiction of Wu Zetian as a scheming usurper, that view of her reign still persists in much that is written about her. Mark, E. (2016, March 17). When Gaozong died in 683, she became empress dowager and ruled on behalf of two adult sons, emperors Zhongzong (r. 684, 705710) and Ruizong (r. 685689, 710712). To justify her rule, Wu used selected Buddhist scriptures and led the way in the creation of numerous visual representations of the Buddha. 23 Feb. 2023 . 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. 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. Related Content 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. Historians have documented Wu Zetian's resort to slander, torture, and murders to reinforce the propaganda of omens. Anyone she suspected of disloyalty, for any reason, was banished or executed. Her overall rule, in spite of the change of dynasty, did not result in a radical break from Tang domestic prosperity and foreign prestige. Historical Significance: Empress Wu was very significant in the Tang Dynasty. Taizong was surprised that his latest concubine could read and write and became fascinated by her beauty and wit in conversation. Wu also took back lands which had been invaded by the Goturks under the reign of Taizong and distributed them so that they were not all held by the aristocrats. In her seventies, Wu showered special favor on two smooth-cheeked brothers, the Zhang brothers, former boy singers, the nature of whose private relationship with their imperial mistress has never been precisely determined. ." When she died, she was laid to rest in an elaborate tomb in the countryside about 50 miles north of the then capital, Xian. 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. Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Wu Zhao embarked on religious life as a nun in a convent after Li Shimins death in 649. When Wu could no longer tolerate her daughter-in-law's antics and disrespect, and her son's refusal to discipline her and obey Wu's dictates, she had him charged with treason and banished along with his wife. Political Propaganda and Ideology in China at the End of the Seventh Century. In her last years Wu lost influence, although she remained energetic and cruel. . Bellingham, WA: Center for Asian Studies, Western Washington University, 1978. If so, their hopes were in vain; Empress Wu Zetian is remembered today as one of the greatest rulers in China's history. Overall Wu Zetian was a decisive, capable ruler in the roles of empress, empress dowager, and emperor. Her paranoia resulted in a purge of her administration. 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. Although Wu's account claims that Lady Wang murdered her daughter, later Chinese historians all agree that Wu was the murderer and she killed her child to frame Lady Wang. Wu began an affair with Li Zhi, who was married at the time, while still attached to Taizong as concubine. Mutsuhito (also known as Meiji Tenno; 1852-1912) was a Japanese emperor, who became the symbol for, and encouraged, the dramatic, Quin Shi Huang-Di 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. World History Encyclopedia. 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. 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. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Hauppauge : Nova Science Publishers, 2003; Richard Guisso, Wu Tse-Tien and the Politics of Legitimation in Tang China. Based on Wikipedia content that has been reviewed, edited, and republished. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Empress Wu, the first and only female emperor of Imperial China. Therefore, its best to use Encyclopedia.com citations as a starting point before checking the style against your school or publications requirements and the most-recent information available at these sites: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. She ruled for 15 years during the Tang Dynasty and was one of China's most impactful and divisive emperors. In defiance of convention Emperor Gaozong started an affair with her, and she bore him a son in 652. She carefully eliminated any potential enemies from the court and had Lady Wang and Lady Xiao killed after they had gone into exile. 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. Empress Wu Zetian ruled as Chinas only female emperor. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1975. She did not hold that title but she was the power behind the office and took care of imperial business even when pregnant in 665 CE with her daughter Taiping. Edward Schafer, The Divine Women: Dragon Ladies and Rain Maidens in Tang Literature (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973). Rothschild describes a confrontation which reflects the feelings of majority of those at court. The court followed Empress Wus example by creating an enormous statue of the Vairocana Buddha in gold and copper at the Todaiji monastery in Nara, Japans capital. The Chinese Bell Murders. The Fall of Kaifeng [ edit] In 1126, Emperor Huizong abdicated in favor of his son, Emperor Qinzong, the elder brother of Gaozong. Lyn Reese is the author of all the information on this website For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. 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. One of the most powerful champions of Buddhism in China was the Empress Wu Zetian. Jiu Tangshu [Old history of the Tang]. She did not ask any man's permission to lead these women to Mount Tai; she felt she knew what was best and did it. License. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. (2016, February 22). Image taken from An 18th-century album of portraits of 86 emperors of China, with Chinese historical notes. She organized teams to survey the land and build irrigation ditches to help grow crops and redistributed the land so that everyone had an equal share to farm. In promoting Buddhism over Confucianism and Daoism as the favored state religion, the Empress countered strongly held Confucian beliefs against female rule. Numerous educational institutions recommend us, including Oxford University. Empress Wu (died September or October 245), [a] personal name Wu Xian ( Chinese: ), formally known as Empress Mu (literally "the Just Empress"), was an empress of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. had been organized in a systematic way by the year 669. In 683 CE, when Wu began manipulating events as a man would, one Confucian scholar wrote that nature had been reversed by the 'usurping woman' and "throughout the empire in every prefecture hens changed into roosters, or half changed" (Rothschild, 108). Kannon embodies compassion, and when seen as female is venerated as a patron of motherhood and fertility. A history known as the Comprehensive Mirror records that, during the 690s, 36 senior bureaucrats were executed or forced to commit suicide, and a thousand members of their families enslaved. World History Encyclopedia, 17 Mar 2016. However they rose, though, it has always been harder for a woman to rule effectively than it was for a manmore so in the earlier periods of history, when monarchs were first and foremost military leaders, and power was often seized by force. Guo, Moruo. When her mother was distressed about losing her to an uncertain life fraught with intrigues in the emperor's harem, she firmly reassured her: "Isn't it a fortune to attend the emperor! The poet Luo Binwangone of the Four Greats of Early Tang and best known for his Ode to the Gooselaunched a virulent attack on the empress. But she changed the composition of the ruling class by removing the entrenched aristocrats from the court and gradually expanding the civil service examination to recruit men of merit to serve in the government. It is easier to take seriously the suggestion that Wu arranged a series of murders within her own family. In spite of all of her reforms and the prosperity she brought to the country, Wu was remembered mainly for her crimes against friends and family members - especially the murder of her daughter - and people did not think she was worthy of an inscription. 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. 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. Empress and emperor appear at the center of each scene, larger than the other figures to show their importance, bedecked in imperial purple, and sporting . After Wu's death, Zhongzong reigned but only in name; real power was held by Lady Wei who used Wu Zetian as a role model to manipulate her husband and the court. 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. 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. Last modified February 22, 2016. Of all these female rulers, though, none has aroused so much controversy, or wielded such great power, as a monarch whose real achievements and characterremain obscured behind layers of obloquy. She was in very poor health anyway by this time and died a year later. At these pilgrimage sites, rituals were performed which established a link between the standing Buddha and the ruler. (He would camp out in the palace grounds, Clements notes, barbecuing sheep.) Cheng-qian was banished for attempted revolt, while a dissolute brother who had agreed to take part in the rebellionso long, Clements adds, as he was permitted sexual access to every musician and dancer in the palace, male or femalewas invited to commit suicide, and another of Taizongs sons was disgraced for his involvement in a different plot. Wu either read him whatever she felt like and then made her own decisions or read him the real reports and then still acted on her own. 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. Still, this did not mean the women were not jealous of the favor the emperor showed Wu now that she had given birth to two sons in a row. Sima, Guang. Guisso, Richard W.L. Even today, Wu remains infamous for the spectacularly ruthless way in which she supposedly disposed of Gaozongs first wife, the empress Wang, and a senior and more favored consort known as the Pure Concubine. 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. 181. Agricultural production under Wu's reign increased to an all-time high. 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.
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