The World Under Wu Zhou

In the eleventh year of the Zhenguan era (637), fourteen-year-old Wu Zetian entered the palace as a lowly maid assigned to the firewood shed. By a stroke of luck, Emperor Taizong Li Shimin summoned her and made her a Cairen. In the palace, she witnessed concubines vying for favor and power struggles among the court, and got her first taste of power. After Taizong’s death, she was sent to Ganye Temple to become a nun. There she wrote “Ruyi Niang” to plead for help from the new emperor, Li Zhi, and returned to the palace.

Back in the palace, Wu Zetian exploited the rift between Empress Wang and Consort Xiao, rising step by step to become Zhaoyi and then empress. She helped the frail and chronically ill Emperor Gaozong handle state affairs, establishing a “Two Sages” arrangement while building her own power base. After Gaozong’s death, she successively deposed Emperors Zhongzong and Ruizong, then declared herself emperor in 690 and changed the Tang dynasty’s name to Zhou.

After taking the throne, Wu Zetian demonstrated exceptional political skill, establishing palace examinations and military examinations and promoting worthy officials such as Di Renjie and Yao Chong. At the same time, she filled her emotional void with male favorites such as Xue Huaiyi, Zhang Yizhi, and Zhang Changzong, while also using them to control the court. Meanwhile, Shangguan Wan’er rose from the daughter of a disgraced minister to become a “female chancellor,” entangled in matters of love and power with Crown Prince Li Xian, Zhang Changzong, Wu Sansi, and others.

In her later years, Wu Zetian doted on the Zhang brothers, and the court fell into turmoil. Her daughter, Princess Taiping, first offered her male favorites to secure her favor, then joined Zhang Jianzhi and other ministers in launching the Shenlong Coup and forcing her mother to abdicate. When Wu Zetian died, she left behind a blank stele for posterity to judge. Princess Taiping tried to follow in her mother’s footsteps, but ultimately lost her contest with her nephew Li Longji and died by suicide, bringing the dream of the Great Zhou to a complete end.