Unveiling the Legacy: The Empress of Controversy

Photo by 木莲 杨

Women's Month is a time for celebration for some of the most exceptional women throughout history. Most of the time, we often celebrate the ones who are alive today and offer very little credit to those who were hundreds or thousands of years ago.

If someone were to ask me who I admire the most in the world, I would say my Mother. I want to give her credit for raising me. Her strong and steady guidance helped me navigate my way in life she is, by default, one of the strongest women I look up to. Speaking of strong women, allow me to introduce to you another woman who served as a symbol of female empowerment and resilience. She is not just any woman --- she is a girl, a concubine, a mother, a murderer, and an Empress.

Her name is Emperor Wu. Wu Zetian.

Minor Concubine Wu's Early Life

Women in power have always caused quite a stir, especially some historical figures. An article from the Smithsonian Magazine alluded to the fact that there wasn't much balance in power thousands of years ago, especially in a society where men were thought to be the stronger sex. Much like Queen Hatshepsut of Egypt, most of the historical symbols and documents that referenced her and her time of rule were destroyed for senseless reasons.

Despite the failed attempts at censorship of Wu's existence, the controversy of her rule is still eminent to this day. Not only was she a woman but she also did "un-womanly" things like daring to wield power, murder, using her sexuality to gain support, improving the economy, and creating better opportunities for women in her era. She was a mix of everything that men used to be, and if we were to compare her with a modern woman, I would say she is just like most of us.

Concubine Wu's Origins

Photo by Ceng Ismail

There were articles chronicling her life but only very little is known about Wu. She started as a noble girl and was delivered to the palace to become one of the current emperor's many concubines. Much like the popular reference among historical figures, she was a main character. She was smart, cunning, and a driven person. She managed to gain the Emperor's favor twice in a row by using every arsenal she had at her disposal which led her to become one the most feared and powerful Emperor of China.

Unlike most favored concubines and consorts, she did not simply bore him children. She also carried a lot of favors from strong men and built even stronger connections with her inner circle. She overtook most of the court's support of the Empress until her son rose to power. Suspicious circumstances occurred which led to the current Empress losing her children which made it easier for Wu to rise to power. Such is life inside the royal court (Cartwright, 2017).

Of course, life was not all great for a woman of her position. She had to learn many skills and resort to unscrupulous means to get her way. It was said that she even murdered most of her family relatives later in life to secure her place on the throne but so did many other Emperors before her. This is not me defending her unsavory actions but politically back then, it used to be the norm. The purpose of the harem is to provide an endless number of successors but the downside of this most often leads to mass genocide every time somebody rises to power (Dash, 2012).

 

Empress Consort Wu's Rise to Power

Photo by Lana Kobayashi

Becoming the Empress Consort was only a third of her final step through her second husband, Emperor Gaozhong. The reason she got promoted to one was because the current empress back then, Empress Wang, was accused of murdering Wu's daughter which was later known that she did it herself. She murdered her daughter to overthrow Empress Wang. 

Wu bore sons who later became Kings. After that, she became a Queen Regent and, after that a Regnant. Becoming a Regent should have been enough for a woman of her position. She got to rule in place of her young sons but her thirst for power was never satiated. She wanted to be the Emperor.

Empress Wu's Reign of Controversy

This is where most of her misdeeds were slowly being unveiled. Apart from murdering her daughter, Wu also murdered most of her family members, sons, and her husband, and was also promiscuous. Her many years of training and the art of seduction and persuasion had finally paid off but they did not come with a price. After proclaiming herself as the “Holy and Divine Emperor” of the Second Zhou Dynasty (690–705), many people attempted to overthrow her.

To neutralize the threats, Emperor Wu improved her inner circle by allowing women to have positions in the government. Even her other surviving daughters Princess Taiping (her daughter) and Empress Wei (her daughter-in-law) became involved in imperial politics but no one embodied the spirit of Wu more than her daughter-in-law (Lee, 2023). Deaths stemming from poisoning, assassinations, murders, and forced suicides were occasional during her reign so it was not surprising that not many people see her in a good light. So were the other rulers that came before her.

Emperor Wu's Legacy and Impact

Photo by Maciej Cisowski

For fifteen years, Emperor Wu's official reign significantly improved China as it became a center for foreign trade thanks to the Silk Road and fostering connections with the Buddhist monks. Her relentless pursuit of women's education and granting them equal rights just as any man has enraged even some of the most powerful families in China. She served as an Empress for 35 years which totalled 50 years.

Emperor Wu's reign of terror (to some) and prosperity to the masses facilitated a shift in ancient China as women took up higher positions and the economy improved significantly (Morris, 2023). Her contributions to art and literature were also very popular with the masses due to her campaign to garner support. Her existence at the top of society allowed her to get back to the people who wronged her and help out the people who were in need despite her controversial ascension.

Emperor Wu Zetian's Epilogue

In a time when women were only meant to be seen and not heard, Wu Zetian became the loudest voice for every woman in ancient China. Despite her evil misdeeds, Wu Zetian's legacy is still present to this day. There were many attempts to erase her from history as I mentioned before but because of her relentless campaigns to assert her dominance during her rule, they were never fully able to remove her from the history texts. Artifacts and documents about her are still being uncovered and studied. Even so, there is still much debate about Wu Zetian's legacy. Due to the Streisand Effect, a phenomenon that made it impossible for her to be erased from the history books, her influence, and popularity in society are still relevant today.

Even today, people still have mixed opinions about her ruling and existence. While some may regard her as a hero for changing the tides of female fate, some cannot bear the thought of a woman committing such devious acts. But if we think about it, haven't men been the ones to start wars, treat people like property, and degrade the people they deem to be lesser than them?

I think of this as the culmination of Wu Zetian's rage from the many years of oppression at the hands of people in positions of authority. She capitalized on the very few things that she had. She did her best to cultivate her power using the same methods that a typical noble or royal would've done. They were products of their generation but Wu, a literal child who was raised to be a mere concubine, was regarded as defective for being "too powerful" in ancient China is such a power move that it often makes me feel glad I am a woman.

References:

• Cartwright, M. (2017, October 19). Women in Ancient China. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1136/women-in-ancient-china/
• Dash, M. (2012, August 10). The Demonization of Empress Wu. Smithsonian.com. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-demonization-of-empress-wu-20743091/
• Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (2024, January 16). Streisand effect. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Streisand-effect
• Hajagos, K. (2021, July 24). Wu Zetian and “Bloody Mary”: Examining history’s most demonized female leaders. Power In Place. https://powerinplaceproject.com/news/2021/7/23/wu-zetian-and-bloody-mary-examining-historys-most-demonized-female-leaders
• Lee, Y. T. (2023, June 9). Wu Zhao: Ruler of Tang Dynasty China. Association for Asian Studies. https://www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/wu-zhao-ruler-of-tang-dynasty-china/
• Morris, S. (2023, August 15). Empress Wu Zetian: The Only Woman to Rule China, and Who Would be Hated for It. HistoryExtra. https://www.historyextra.com/period/medieval/empress-wu-zetian-china-rule-life-reputation/
• YouTube. (2019, March 28). Empress Wu: Evil tyrant or misunderstood Maverick? | Wu Zetian | Timeline. Timeline: World History Documentary. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeZ7esmQcm4&pp=ygUVd3UgemV0aWFuIGRvY3VtZW50YXJ5