Empress Yang (Ling)
Encyclopedia
Empress Yang (died 401), formally Empress Mu (穆皇后, literally "the solemn empress"), was an empress of the Chinese
/Di
state Later Liang
. Her husband was Lü Zuan
(Emperor Ling).
She was the daughter of the Later Liang official Yang Huan (楊桓), who was likely ethnically Han
, and was described to be very beautiful. It is not known when she married Lü Zuan. When he was assassinated by his cousin Lü Chao
(呂超) in 401, she initially tried to organize the palace guards to resist Lü Chao and his brother Lü Long
, but after the official Du Shang (杜尚) urged them to stop, they deserted her. Lü Chao's subordinate, the general Wei Yiduo (魏益多) then entered the palace and cut off the head from Lü Zuan's body. She commented, "When a man is dead, he is like dirt and stones and no longer has any feelings. Why do you wish to destroy his form as well?" Wei then cursed at her. Lü Chao demanded that she turn over the imperial seal, but she responded that she had already destroyed it. She subsequently left the palace, and as she was leaving, Lü Chao, believing that she might leave with treasures, tried to intercept her, and she told Lü Chao: "You and your brother unrighteously slaughtered your own clansman. I will soon be dead, and why would I want treasures?"
Lü Long subsequently took the throne, and Lü Chao became his prime minister. Lü Chao wanted to marry Empress Yang because of her beauty, and he warned Yang Huan, "If the empress committed suicide, great disasters will come to your household." Yang Huan told her of the threat, but she responded, "You sold me to the Di for wealth and power. It is enough to sell me once; how can you sell me twice?" She then committed suicide. Fearful that Lü Chao might carry out his threat, Yang Huan fled to Southern Liang
's prince Tufa Lilugu
.
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...
/Di
Di (ethnic group)
The Di were an ethnic group in China from the 8th century BCE to approximately the middle of the 6th century CE. Note that the character Di is used to differentiate this group from the Beidi , a generic term for "northern barbarians". They lived in areas of the present-day provinces of Gansu,...
state Later Liang
Later Liang
The Later Liang was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty in China. It was founded by the Lü family of the Di ethnicity.All rulers of the Later Liang proclaimed themselves "Heavenly Prince" ....
. Her husband was Lü Zuan
Lü Zuan
Lü Zuan , courtesy name Yongxu , formally Emperor Ling of Liang , was an emperor of the Chinese/Di state Later Liang. He was the oldest son of the founding emperor Lü Guang , but was not Lü Guang's rightful heir, as he was not born of Lü Guang's wife Princess Shi...
(Emperor Ling).
She was the daughter of the Later Liang official Yang Huan (楊桓), who was likely ethnically Han
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
, and was described to be very beautiful. It is not known when she married Lü Zuan. When he was assassinated by his cousin Lü Chao
Lu Chao
Lu Chao from China is the recognized Guinness record holder for reciting digits of Pi. He successfully recited 67,890 digits of pi in 24 hours and 4 minutes with an error at the 67,891st digit, saying it was a "5", when it was actually a "0". He stated he had 100,000 memorized, and was going to...
(呂超) in 401, she initially tried to organize the palace guards to resist Lü Chao and his brother Lü Long
Lü Long
Lü Long , courtesy name Yongji , was the last emperor of the Chinese/Di state Later Liang. He was the nephew of the founding emperor Lü Guang , and he took the throne after his brother Lü Chao assassinated the emperor Lü Zuan in 401 and offered the throne to him...
, but after the official Du Shang (杜尚) urged them to stop, they deserted her. Lü Chao's subordinate, the general Wei Yiduo (魏益多) then entered the palace and cut off the head from Lü Zuan's body. She commented, "When a man is dead, he is like dirt and stones and no longer has any feelings. Why do you wish to destroy his form as well?" Wei then cursed at her. Lü Chao demanded that she turn over the imperial seal, but she responded that she had already destroyed it. She subsequently left the palace, and as she was leaving, Lü Chao, believing that she might leave with treasures, tried to intercept her, and she told Lü Chao: "You and your brother unrighteously slaughtered your own clansman. I will soon be dead, and why would I want treasures?"
Lü Long subsequently took the throne, and Lü Chao became his prime minister. Lü Chao wanted to marry Empress Yang because of her beauty, and he warned Yang Huan, "If the empress committed suicide, great disasters will come to your household." Yang Huan told her of the threat, but she responded, "You sold me to the Di for wealth and power. It is enough to sell me once; how can you sell me twice?" She then committed suicide. Fearful that Lü Chao might carry out his threat, Yang Huan fled to Southern Liang
Southern Liang
The Southern Liang was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty in China. The founding family Tufa was of Xianbei ethnicity and distant relative of the Tuoba imperial house of Northern Wei...
's prince Tufa Lilugu
Tufa Lilugu
Tufa Lilugu , formally Prince Kang of Hexi , was a prince of the Chinese/Xianbei state Southern Liang. He was a younger brother of the founding prince Tufa Wugu . He was described as a capable ruler open to different opinions...
.