Nursing mothers, also known as wet nurses, nurses or nurses, were mainly responsible for nursing their children, which was especially common in the upper classes of ancient times.
For the royal family, the role of nursing mothers is not limited to feeding the prince, they also bear the heavy responsibility of severing the intimate relationship between the prince and the birth mother. The biological mother could not breastfeed and raise the prince herself, especially those concubines with lower status, and it was difficult to see the prince almost all year round. Such an arrangement alienated the relationship between the concubine and the prince, thus greatly reducing the interference of the harem and relatives in politics.
When the prince finally ascended the throne and became the emperor, his nurse also ushered in the spring of life.
Although the nursing mother is not the biological mother, because of the grace of breastfeeding, in the ancient culture that paid attention to filial piety, she can often get good treatment. Emperors usually provided them with sufficient material provisions, and some nurses were even able to get involved in political affairs because of their close relationship with the emperor (or prince).
Next, we take a look at some of the most influential nurses in history.
1. The powerful nurse of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty
After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne, he respected the nursing mother very much, not only named her son the Marquis of Dongwu, but also gave her the honorific title of "Big Nursing Mother" and allowed her to enter the palace for an audience. Whenever the nursing mother visited Emperor Wu in the palace, she was always rewarded richly.
According to the "Historical Records: Funny Biography", Emperor Wu obeyed his mother's words, and as long as she asked for it, whether it was land or privileges (such as the road for the emperor to walk), Emperor Wu would not hesitate to give it.
However, this excessive favor has also led to the increasing arrogance of nurses and their families, and even openly robbed the people of their property. When the relevant authorities reported to Emperor Wu and demanded that the nursing mother's family be punished, Emperor Wu refused at first, but eventually, at the insistence of the officials, agreed to move the nursing mother's family to the frontier.
When the nurse learned about it, she immediately entered the palace to intercede. With the help of Emperor Wu's favorite retainer Guo Sheren, the nurse successfully reminded Emperor Wu of her childhood breastfeeding, and finally pardoned her.
2. The coup d'état nurse of Emperor Shun of Han
Compared with the nurses of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the nurses of Emperor Liu Bao of the Han Shun Emperor were more violent, and they directly participated in the coup d'état and made great contributions to the succession of Emperor Shun.
Emperor Shun's childhood was not happy, his biological mother Li was poisoned by the jealous Empress Yan, and he was almost raised by a nursing mother. This also led to his deep dependence on nursing mothers, allowing political opponents to start from this point.
Emperor Shun was the only son of Emperor An of the Han Dynasty, and as Emperor An's hope of giving birth to a son-in-law gradually faded, he was naturally made the crown prince. This caused panic among Empress Yan, and in order to avoid retaliation after Emperor Shun succeeded to the throne, she decided to strike first.
The year after Emperor Shun was deposed, Emperor An died during a parade. Empress Yan and her brother did not mourn and conspired to establish Liu Yi, the Marquis of Beixiang, as emperor. However, Liu Yi soon fell ill and died, the throne of the Eastern Han Dynasty was vacant, and the political situation was turbulent.
At this time, the eunuch Sun Cheng and others united with the courtiers to welcome Emperor Shun and destroy the Yan party. In this coup, the nursing mother Wang Nan played a key role. After Emperor Shun succeeded to the throne, he named her the king of Shanyang and gave her 5,000 households. Although this move was opposed by the minister Zuo Xiong, in the end, Emperor Shun insisted on his decision.
3. The queen mother of Emperor Wencheng of the Northern Wei Dynasty
The most famous of the Northern Wei Dynasty was the reform of Emperor Xiaowen, followed by their Xianbei nature and the extremely inhumane rule: to kill the mother by the son. In order to prevent the dictatorship of foreign relatives, the first emperor of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Daowu Emperor Tuoba Jue, established this rule. However, Emperor Taiwu Tuobatao's biological mother Du died early, and it was lucky that she didn't catch up with the death. Emperor Taiwu, who lost his mother since he was a child, projected the "mother-love complex" onto the nanny Dou.
After Emperor Taiwu succeeded to the throne, he honored Dou as the empress dowager and named his younger brother the king of Liaodong. Such a move was undoubtedly a violation of etiquette in the eyes of the Han emperor, but it was not uncommon in the early Northern Wei Dynasty ruled by the Xianbei people. Empress Dowager Dou has a quiet and pure personality, moody and invisible, and is good at promoting people's goodness and hiding people's faults, and is a typical good person.
Emperor Taiwu's respect for the nanny set a precedent for the empress dowager's move, but his grandson Emperor Wencheng was even better than the blue. He first respected his nursing mother, Chang's as the queen mother, and soon after, he was respected as the queen mother, and Chang's can be said to be the nurse with the highest status in history.
The emperors of many dynasties in history would show special respect and reward to their nurses. Here are some examples of emperor nurses from other dynasties:
Eastern Han Dynasty: Emperors in the Eastern Han Dynasty, such as Emperor An of the Han Dynasty and Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, would reward their nurses, such as Emperor An of the Han Dynasty as "Yewang Jun", and Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty as "Ping's Jun".
Tang Dynasty: During the Tang Dynasty, the emperor would also reward the nurse. For example, Tang Zhongzong named his nurse as "Mrs. Ping'en County", and Tang Xuanzong named his nurse "Mrs. Wu Guo".
Song Dynasty: The emperors of the Song Dynasty also had a lot of respect for nurses. According to records, Song Renzong's nurse was once named "Ankang Junjun" and enjoyed extremely high treatment.
Yuan Dynasty: Although the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty were not Han Chinese, they also followed the tradition of rewarding nurses. They often indirectly elevate the status of the nurse by rewarding the husband or son of the nurse. For example, it has been recorded that an emperor of the Yuan Dynasty made the husband of a nurse a prince of the state, and the status of a nurse was also elevated.
Ming Dynasty: The emperors of the Ming Dynasty rewarded nurses more significantly. In addition to Emperor Tianqi's nurse Keshi was named "Mrs. Fengsheng", emperors such as Ming Chengzu Zhu Di and Ming Renzong also rewarded their nurses. These nurses are often revered as ladies and enjoy extremely high status and treatment.
In general, the emperors of many dynasties in history will show respect and reward for their nurses, which is not only an affirmation of the hard work of the nurses, but also reflects the emperor's emphasis on family affection. However, there are also cases of nurses like Hakka who are too powerful to cause trouble in the court, which also reminds people to be wary of the abuse of power and the breeding of corruption.