In ancient Chinese history, there was only one female emperor, that is, Wu Zetian during the Tang Dynasty. Wu Zetian, a famous politician during the Tang Dynasty, did not lose any man in the political arena and had a set of means of governing the country, so posterity often referred to her as "Lü Wu" together with Empress Lü of the Han Dynasty.
Wu Zetian's life can also be described as legendary, she was born in a middle- and lower-class official family, because of the early death of her father, she was mistreated by her brother. When she was fourteen years old, she had already entered the imperial palace and became a talented person of Tang Taizong Li Shimin. At that time, he was not favored by Emperor Taizong of Tang, but was favored by Emperor Gaozong of Tang during the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, and even abolished Empress Wang and made her empress. This Wu Zetian was originally a rather ambitious person, and when she became empress, she did not stop herself, and later became a "queen of heaven" who was shoulder to shoulder with Emperor Gaozong and officially participated in the affairs of the dynasty.
In the first year of tianzhi, Wu Zetian officially declared himself emperor, established Wu Zhou, and became the ruler of the world.
Zhai Wei once praised her in the "Treatise on the History of the Nine Qi": The Wu clan has reigned in the world as a woman for more than twenty years, and is no better than the title of the mother queen, but directly from the emperor and the king, and his wisdom is superior.
The family is well-off, and he has just entered the palace
According to historical records, Wu Zetian's father first engaged in the timber industry, so his family was relatively well-off. Later, by coincidence, because he entertained Tang Gaozu many times, he was rewarded for providing a certain amount of wealth when Tang Gaozu raised an army in Taiyuan, and finally became an official to the Ministry of Works Shangshu.
Born in such a background, Wu Zetian had a superior life since childhood, and his childhood was relatively happy, but unexpectedly in the ninth year of Zhenguan, her father died, at this time Wu Zetian was only twelve years old, but his brother treated Wu Zetian and his mother with rudeness. In desperation, Wu Zetian could only follow his mother and move back to Chang'an.
Tang Taizong once went to live in Luoyang Palace, and heard that the person under his hand, Kua Wu Zetian, was already outstanding in appearance at a young age, so he summoned her to the palace and became a talented person. There were already three thousand harem beauties, and this Wu Zetian's appearance was naturally not the best, and he was soon disliked by Tang Taizong and had to get by in the palace.
She was made empress and initially took power
After serving in the harem of Emperor Taizong of Tang for twelve years, Wu Zetian's status never improved, so she had private contacts with the crown prince Li Zhi. After Li Zhi succeeded to the throne, he took Wu Zetian back to the palace and treated her with special favor. This Wu Zetian was also a scheming woman, and she almost got the exclusive favor of Emperor Gaozong of Tang in the end.
Emperor Gaozong of Tang also began to prepare for the abolition of Empress Wang, and after establishing Wu Zetianwei, he was initially opposed by many ministers such as Changsun Wuji, but he was helpless to put imperial power first, and in the end, Tang Gaozong not only attacked the power of the elder chancellor, but also successfully fulfilled his wish and made Wu Zetian empress. Becoming empress was only a small plan of Wu Zetian, after which she naturally followed Tang Gaozong's side to help him handle the affairs of the dynasty. It just so happened that Tang Gaozong was often dizzy and dizzy when he fell ill, so that he could not handle the government, which also gave Wu Zetian an opportunity to take advantage of it. Slowly, Wu Zetian's power gradually infiltrated into all aspects of the court.
He ascended the throne as emperor and took measures to develop the country
After the death of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Xian of Tang succeeded to the throne, but the actual power of the dynasty was in the hands of Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian was originally an ambitious person, and she was not satisfied with this, and soon she ordered the abolition of Li Xian's throne, ascended the throne herself, and changed the name of the Tang Dynasty to Zhou Dynasty.
During the reign of Wu Zetian, she also made a series of contributions to the development of the Tang Dynasty. She first vigorously rectified the rule of officials and gave a strong blow to the corruption of those officials, thus making the politics of the Wuzhou Dynasty clear to a certain extent. And she also appointed talents, promoted a large number of officials who were clear-sighted and talented, and reused them to jointly develop the country.
In my opinion, this Wu Zetian still has something in common with Tang Taizong Li Shimin, Li Shimin rubbed his words and dared to face the admonitions of courtiers, and the same was true of Wu Zetian, facing officials who dared to advise the emperor, she would also seriously reflect on her own behavior, thus giving a certain change.
In the "Sorrow of the Empress Zetian Dasheng", Cui Rong once commented on Wu Zetian in this way: "Talent is far-reaching, and Hongye is great. Thunder and martial arts, sun and moon and its text. Zong Li Ming Tang, Chongru Taixue. Muhua of the four seas, Jiuyi Yushuo. Shen Bi Dahe, mud in the middle of the mountain. Majestic success, suddenly windy.
As a rare female emperor in feudal history, perhaps Wu Zetian's method of ascending to the throne has made people have some doubts. However, in my opinion, this Tang Zhongzong was originally a mediocre person, who could only abide by the ancestral inheritance but could not develop the country. However, Wu Zetian was able to develop the country while gaining a firm foothold, so that the Tang Dynasty had a long-term development in social stability, agriculture, commerce and other aspects, and also laid the foundation for Tang Xuanzong to achieve a prosperous era.
Resources
"The Lamentation of the Great Saint Empress of Zetian"
Treatise on the History of the Nine Qi