Empress Dowager Liu (Yang Tong)
Encyclopedia
Empress Dowager Liu briefly further honored as Empress Dowager Shenggan (聖感皇太后, literally "the empress dowager with holy emotions"), was an empress dowager
of the Chinese
dynasty Sui Dynasty
. She was a concubine of Yang Zhao
, who was crown prince
during the reign of his father Emperor Yang
, and she was the mother of Yang Tong
, the last person to claim the Sui throne.
Little is known about her background. During the time that Yang Zhao was crown prince, she carried the title of Liangdi (良娣), which appeared to be the highest of the ranks among a crown prince's concubines. She was younger than another Consort Liu, who bore Yang Zhao's oldest son Yang Tan (楊倓). It is not known when she bore Yang Tong, likely the second of his three sons. After Yang Zhao died in 606
, her activities were not clear.
In 618
, when the Sui state was already engulfed in various rebellions, Consort Liu was at the eastern capital Luoyang
, where her son Yang Tong, then the Prince of Yue, had been left in charge of Luoyang while Emperor Yang was away at Jiangdu (江都, in modern Yangzhou
, Jiangsu
). In spring 618, Emperor Yang was killed in a coup led by the general Yuwen Huaji
, and when news arrived at Luoyang, the officials at Luoyang declared Yang Tong emperor. Yang Tong posthumously honored Yang Zhao Emperor Xiaocheng, and honored Consort Liu as empress dowager.
Later in 618, the general Wang Shichong
seized control of the government in a coup. In order to placate the young emperor, he entered the palace with him to pay homage to the empress dowager, and before her, he swore that he would be loyal to the young emperor. In order to flatter her, he asked to become her adoptive son, and also honored her with the title of Empress Dowager Shenggan. However, once he had firmer grasp on power, he stopped being as respectful to her and Yang Tong. In summer 619
, he sent the officials Duan Da (段達) and Yun Dingxing (雲定興) to force Yang Tong to yield the throne to him. At that time, Yang Tong was in the presence of Empress Dowager Liu, and he shed tears before her, but eventually did yield the throne to Wang, who took the throne and established a new state of Zheng. As Wang created him the Duke of Lu, presumably she thereafter carried the title of Duchess Dowager of Lu.
Later that year, after the official Pei Renji (裴仁基) led a failed plot to overthrow Wang and restore Yang Tong, Wang sent his nephew Wang Renze (王仁則) and his servant Liang Bainian (梁百年) to force Yang Tong to commit suicide. Yang Tong asked for an opportunity to bid the former empress dowager farewell, but was not allowed to, and after he took poison but did not die from it, was strangled to death. There was no further record in history about what happened to her.
Empress Dowager
Empress Dowager was the title given to the mother of a Chinese, Korean, Japanese or Vietnamese emperor.The title was also given occasionally to another woman of the same generation, while a woman from the previous generation was sometimes given the title of Grand empress dowager. Numerous empress...
of the Chinese
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
dynasty Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....
. She was a concubine of Yang Zhao
Yang Zhao
Yang Zhao , formally Crown Prince Yuande , posthumously honored as Emperor Xiaocheng with the temple name Shizong during the brief reign of his son Yang Tong, was a crown prince of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty...
, who was crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
during the reign of his father Emperor Yang
Emperor Yang of Sui
Emperor Yang of Sui , personal name Yang Guang , alternative name Ying , nickname Amo , known as Emperor Ming during the brief reign of his grandson Yang Tong), was the second son of Emperor Wen of Sui, and the second emperor of China's Sui Dynasty.Emperor Yang's original name was Yang Ying, but...
, and she was the mother of Yang Tong
Yang Tong
Yang Tong , known in traditional histories by his princely title of Prince of Yue or by his era name as Lord Huangtai , posthumous name Emperor Gong , courtesy name Renjin , was an emperor of the Chinese Sui Dynasty...
, the last person to claim the Sui throne.
Little is known about her background. During the time that Yang Zhao was crown prince, she carried the title of Liangdi (良娣), which appeared to be the highest of the ranks among a crown prince's concubines. She was younger than another Consort Liu, who bore Yang Zhao's oldest son Yang Tan (楊倓). It is not known when she bore Yang Tong, likely the second of his three sons. After Yang Zhao died in 606
606
Year 606 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 606 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* Shashanka is the first recorded independent...
, her activities were not clear.
In 618
618
Year 618 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 618 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* The Sui Dynasty ends and the Tang Dynasty...
, when the Sui state was already engulfed in various rebellions, Consort Liu was at the eastern capital Luoyang
Luoyang
Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...
, where her son Yang Tong, then the Prince of Yue, had been left in charge of Luoyang while Emperor Yang was away at Jiangdu (江都, in modern Yangzhou
Yangzhou
Yangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China. Sitting on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou to the east, and Zhenjiang across...
, Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
). In spring 618, Emperor Yang was killed in a coup led by the general Yuwen Huaji
Yuwen Huaji
Yuwen Huaji was a general of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty who, in 618, led a coup against Emperor Yang of Sui, killing him. He subsequently declared Emperor Yang's nephew Yang Hao led Emperor Yang's elite Xiaoguo Army north, but was then repeatedly defeated by Li Mi, Li Shentong , and...
, and when news arrived at Luoyang, the officials at Luoyang declared Yang Tong emperor. Yang Tong posthumously honored Yang Zhao Emperor Xiaocheng, and honored Consort Liu as empress dowager.
Later in 618, the general Wang Shichong
Wang Shichong
Wang Shichong , courtesy name Xingman , was a general of the Chinese Sui Dynasty who deposed Sui's last emperor Yang Tong and briefly ruled as the emperor of a succeeding state of Zheng...
seized control of the government in a coup. In order to placate the young emperor, he entered the palace with him to pay homage to the empress dowager, and before her, he swore that he would be loyal to the young emperor. In order to flatter her, he asked to become her adoptive son, and also honored her with the title of Empress Dowager Shenggan. However, once he had firmer grasp on power, he stopped being as respectful to her and Yang Tong. In summer 619
619
Year 619 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 619 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* The Second Perso-Turkic War is fought and...
, he sent the officials Duan Da (段達) and Yun Dingxing (雲定興) to force Yang Tong to yield the throne to him. At that time, Yang Tong was in the presence of Empress Dowager Liu, and he shed tears before her, but eventually did yield the throne to Wang, who took the throne and established a new state of Zheng. As Wang created him the Duke of Lu, presumably she thereafter carried the title of Duchess Dowager of Lu.
Later that year, after the official Pei Renji (裴仁基) led a failed plot to overthrow Wang and restore Yang Tong, Wang sent his nephew Wang Renze (王仁則) and his servant Liang Bainian (梁百年) to force Yang Tong to commit suicide. Yang Tong asked for an opportunity to bid the former empress dowager farewell, but was not allowed to, and after he took poison but did not die from it, was strangled to death. There was no further record in history about what happened to her.