Download Wu Zetian

WU ZETIAN
An Individual of the
Postclassical Period
By: Kimaya Padgaonkar
{A Buddha statue that Empress Wu Zetian
had carved into the 1000 Buddha Caves at
Luoyang, China, bearing resemblance to
the empress herself.}
Themes/Trends during the
Postclassical Era 500-1450 CE
•
•
•
•
•
World
Expansion/Influence
Trade
Religion
Blending of old and new
Attitudes toward Women
– Religion/Favorable
Changes
– Trade/Demeaning customs
• Thirst for Power
China
• Chinese influence on Japan, Korea,
and Vietnam which became key parts
of a network of interregional trade
• Buddhism adapted to Chinese values
• Women
– Spiritually equal to men
– Used as ornaments; practices of
footbinding and concubines
• People went to unimaginable lengths
to gain power; power = success;
emperors, cycle of dynasties
Facts about Wu Zetian
• Born in 624 CE to an influential noble
• Fluent in the arts of reading, writing, and music
• Assigned to the “Cairen” or fifth level of the concubine
at age fourteen
• Nicknamed “Charming Lady”
• Declared emperor in 690 CE during the Tang Dynasty
• Only female in Chinese history to rule as an emperor.
• Chinese Buddhism achieved its highest development
under her reign
• Gave up throne in 705 CE and died later that same year
A Story
After Emperor Taizong died, causing his concubines to
relocate to convent, Wu Zhao must have thought her future had
dwindled down to its end. But Wu was in luck as Taizong’s son
Emperor Kao Tsung was captivated by her beauty. After she was
freed from the convent and released into the clutches of the
concubines, Wu’s position was raised from the “fifth grade” to the
“second grade.”
Wu’s thirst for power was stimulated right away when she
realized that as long as her competition was eliminated, she would
have a path clear of obstacles. So she devised a plan. Wu decided to
strangle her new born baby daughter and immediately thereafter
accused the current empress of murder. The empress had even been
witnessed alone with the baby before its death. The emperor
banished the empress and the head concubine from his palace and
Wu had attained her goal. Later upon receiving title of empress,
her name changed from Wu Zhao to the Empress Wu Zetian.
Characteristics…evidence
• Intelligent…well versed in the arts of reading, writing, and music
• Beautiful…welcomed graciously into Emperors Taizong’s and
Tsung’s concubines
• Cunning…plotted an ingenious and successful plan to rise to
power
• Malicious…killed her own newborn baby daughter
• Driven…stretched beyond typical limits to quench thirst for power
• Devious…tricked Taizong into making her empress
• Unique… ignored the Confucian belief that a woman ruler would
be as unnatural as having a "hen crow like a rooster at daybreak"
• Able… ruled China during one of its peaceful and culturally diverse
periods as an emperor of the Tang dynasty
• Fair…lowered the oppressive taxes against peasants
• Productive…strengthened public works and agricultural economy
Empress Wu Zetian
• Placed Buddhism over
Daoism as the favored state
religion; Buddhism adapted
to Chinese values
• Confined to concubines;
women treated as
ornaments; never expected
to become an emperor
• Satisfied her power hunger
by killing her daughter,
thought of no other
alternative, deceived the
emperor, gained status
ultimately became a
successful emperor
Demonstrated
Theme/Trend of the
Postclassical Era
• Religion/Blending of old and
new customs
• Attitudes toward
Women/Demeaning
Customs
• Thirst for Power
Works Cited
• http://www.hyperhistory.net/apwh/bios/b3w
uempress.htm
• http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/heroi
ne6.html
• Google images