Princess Shi
Encyclopedia
Princess Shi who might have taken the title Empress Shi (石皇后) at one point, was the wife of Lü Guang
Lü Guang
Lü Guang , courtesy name Shiming , formally Emperor Yiwu of Liang , was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Di state Later Liang...

 (Emperor Yiwu), the founder 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...

/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" ....

.

Very little is known about her. What is known is that when Lü Guang, who was then a Former Qin
Former Qin
The Former Qin was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in China. Founded by the Fu family of the Di ethnicity, it completed the unification of North China in 376. Its capital had been Xi'an up to the death of the ruler Fu Jiān. Despite its name, the Former Qin was much later and less powerful than...

 general, was sent by the Former Qin emperor Fu Jiān
Fu Jian
Fu Jian may refer to:* Fú Jiàn , founding emperor of Former Qin, posthumous name Emperor Jingming* Fú Jiān , ruler of Former Qin, posthumous name Emperor Xuanzhao-See also:...

 in 383 on a mission to subdue the Xiyu (西域, modern Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...

 and former Soviet Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...

) kingdoms, she did not accompany her husband but remained in the Former Qin capital Chang'an
Chang'an
Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...

 with his son Lü Shao
Lü Shao
Lü Shao , courtesy name Yongye , formally Prince Yin of Liang , was briefly an emperor of the Chinese/Di state Later Liang. He was a son of the founding emperor Lü Guang , but not his oldest son...

, who was probably her son as well. When Chang'an fell to Western Yan
Western Yan
The Western Yan was a state of Xianbei ethnicity during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms in China. It was founded by Murong Hong in 384 in the aftermaths of Former Qin's defeat by Jin Dynasty at the Battle of Fei River, with the stated intent of permitting the Xianbei, whom Former Qin's emperor Fu...

 forces in 385, they fled to the semi-independent state Chouchi
Chouchi
Chouchi is a Chinese local regime of the Di ethnicity in modern-day Gansu Province during the Sixteen Kingdoms and Southern and Northern Dynasties.-History:...

, and after Lü Guang established Later Liang after returning from his Xiyu mission and seizing Liang Province (涼州, modern central and western Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...

), they arrived in his capital Guzang (姑臧, in modern Wuwei, Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...

) in 389. Lü Guang, who then carried the title Prince of Sanhe, created her his princess and created Lü Shao heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....

. By the time he claimed the imperial title "Heavenly Prince" (Tian Wang
Tian Wang
Tian Wang , translatable as either "heavenly prince" or "heavenly king," was a Chinese regal title that was most frequently used during the Sixteen Kingdoms era, among the kingdoms founded by members of the Wu Hu tribes, often used as an intermediate stage from claiming a prince/king title to an...

) in 396 and created Lü Shao 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....

, she was not mentioned, implying that she might have died by that point, and there was no further reference to her in history. If she had in fact survived to 396, she would have likely been created empress. The table below assumes that she survived to 400 when Lü Guang died, but that was in fact not likely.
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