Empress Wei (664 - July 21, 710) is the Chinese empress from the Tang Dynasty , the de facto ruler of the empire under Emperor Zhong-zong .
| Empress Wei | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 664 |
| Place of Birth | |
| Date of death | July 21, 710 |
| Place of death | Chang'an |
| Reign time | January 3 - February 26, 684 705 - 710 |
| Name Options | |
| Traditional spelling | 韋 皇后 |
| Family | |
| Father | Wei Xuancheng |
| Mother | Ms. Kui |
| Husbands | Zhong Zong |
Content
Biography
Young years
Came from a kind of provincial aristocracy. Daughter of Wei Sucheng, head of Pu Prefecture (part of modern Sichuan Province) and Kui. In her youth she moved to the capital of Chang'an, where she married Prince Li Zhe (future emperor Zhong-zong).
After the death in 683 of the emperor Gao-zong, the new ruler of the empire was declared Zhong-zong. Actual power was taken by his mother, the Dowager Empress U. Then in 684, Wei also won the title of Empress and tried to remove Wu from power, which was opposed by Chancellor Pei Yang. Trying to maintain power, Empress Wu organized a rebellion, as a result of which Zhong-zong was overthrown from the throne. Instead, Prince Yu became the new emperor, receiving the name Rui-zong . The family of the former Empress Wei was exiled to Qing Prefecture (part of the modern province of Guangxi ), and she and her husband were sent to Fang Prefecture (modern Hubei Province ).
In 690, Empress Wu overthrew Zhui Zong and declared herself the ruler of the empire, taking the name Wu Zetian. All the time of her reign, Wei remained in exile. She was able to regain her position only after Zhongzong gained power in 705.
Empress
From that moment, she became the de facto ruler of the empire, with the support of the aristocrat U Sasha and the daughter of Princess An-lo. In 706, she accused of treason and ordered the execution of five princes (Ching, Kui, Huang, Yuan and Zhang) who tried to strip her of power. In 707, she suppressed an attempted rebellion led by a representative of the dynasty, Lee Chongjun. From this moment, the power of Empress Wei became in fact absolute.
As the actual ruler of the empire, Wei pursued a policy of reconciliation with her neighbors. At the same time, it contributed to the development of Buddhism in the country, supported the construction of numerous Buddhist monasteries. At the same time, corruption increased during her rule. The obtained power did not satisfy Empress Wei, and she decided to repeat the act of Wu Zetian, that is, to become the only official monarch. On July 3, 710, she ordered her husband, the emperor Zhongzong, to be poisoned, after which she began to prepare to declare herself the new ruler of the empire. However, on July 21, 710, an uprising suddenly broke out against her, led by Li Longji (the future emperor Xuanzong) and Princess Taiping . As a result, Empress Wei and her daughter Princess An-lo were killed.
Family
Husband - Zhong-zong, emperor. Children:
- Li Chongrong (682-701), heir to the throne;
- Changlin (683-?), Princess;
- An-lo (684-710), princess;
- Yuontai (685-701), Princess.