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The Miserable Life of the Last Empress of the Tang Dynasty Empress Jishan

Amimisu

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Tang Dynasty of Chinese History: Tang Dynasty of Chinese History
Qing Dynasty of Chinese History: Qing Dynasty of Chinese History
Chinese History with Amy: Chinese History with Amy
Chinese Imperial Harem: Chinese Imperial Harem
Historical Figures of Chinese History: Historical Figures of Chinese History

Being Empress was supposed to be the highest honor a woman could achieve in imperial China, but for Lady He, it brought only tragedy. As the last Empress of the Tang Dynasty, she was elevated to the throne after more than a century without a living empress, only to spend her reign trapped in a collapsing empire. Known later as Empress Dowager Jishan and posthumously honored as Empress Xuanmu, her life was defined by absolute powerlessness, constant misery, and profound frustration as she fought to protect her husband and children from ruthless warlords and palace intrigues. Far from enjoying imperial glory, she became one of the most unfortunate Empress in Chinese history, watching her family and her dynasty destroyed piece by piece around her.

Historical Sources:
Old Book of Tang - 舊唐書
New Book of Tang - 新唐書
Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance - 資治通鑑
Old History of the Five Dynasties - 舊五代史
Historical Records of the Five Dynasties - 新五代史
Institutional History of the Tang - 唐會要
Institutional History of the Five Dynasties - 五代會要
Imperial Edict on Creating Consort He as Empress - 冊淑妃何氏為皇后文

Footage used in this video:
Road to Empress - 盛世天下
The Princess Weiyoung - 錦綉未央
Legend of Fuyao - 扶搖
Beauties in the Closet - 櫃中美人
The Empress of China - 武媚娘傳奇
A Journey to Love - 一念關山
Swords Into Plowshares - 太平年
The Great Southern Migration - 大南遷
The Glory of Tang Dynasty - 大唐榮耀
CCTV Documentary - 玉石傳奇
The Longest Day In Chang'an - 長安十二時辰
Judge Dee's Mystery -大唐狄公案
Lady of the Dynasty - 王朝的女人

00:00 - Introduction
01:29 - The First Empress in Over a Hundred Years
07:31 - The Puppet Emperor
12:51 - The Wolf at the Gate
19:16 - How Great it is to be Empress
23:42 - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
29:01 - Final Thoughts

Disclaimer: Visuals used in this video are for reference/illustrative purposes and are not intended as accurate historical depictions.

#chinesehistory #tangdynasty #empressjishan #empress #harem #womeninhistory #lastempress

20 Comments

@cgt3704 4 weeks ago

They say nobody wants to be the last emperor. Well, nobody wants to be the last empress either.

@NymSandi 3 weeks ago

I really think that had they been born a couple generations earlier, Empress He and her husband (i can't remember his name even though it was said like 5 times) these two could have really saved the dynasty. They seemed to be incredibly intelligent.

It's really sad to hear about competent rulers who were born too late to do anything to fix their surroundings

@OysterCatcherCult 4 weeks ago

Most Empresses seem miserable.

@emilybarclay8831 4 weeks ago

Being empress seems like it wasn't worth it more often than not

@juliastrankowska 4 weeks ago

It seems to me that the recent histories on your channel became sadder than the previous ones. But I am totally no surprised why did you choose them. The stories of Empress Jishan and Empress Ruizhen need to be remembered as well and stories of Empress Zhangsun and Wu Zetian. Though they truly break my heart💔😢

@kiyoshitakeda452 4 weeks ago (edited)

It is never good to be emperor or empress during the twilight of a dynasty. The fate is dark and sad. 280 yrs was a long period. The dynasty had achieved greatness in its youth, but when its time came it was time to make way for others. Enjoyed thank you.

@Initiallyleo 3 weeks ago

Being a high ranking royal in ancient China seems exhausting, at least for those who took their endless list of legal and cultural duties seriously. And that’s not even factoring in the chance you’d be targeted by dangerous rumors or poison.

@marcbartuschka6372 4 weeks ago

That is a sad story, similar to many in last years of a great dynasty. I think even if the Emperor would be a genious, he might have only prolonged the existence of his dynasty, but hardly secured it. To reverse the fate of the Tang he would have get rid of the eunuchs AND of the military governers (and there was always the danger that the moment it seems as he would be able to do so his enemies would have flocked together). So maybe a true genious may have been able to turn things around, by balancing various factions, but the chances were very slim.

@btmillack21 4 weeks ago

I guess it was better to live during the time of a new dynasty or time period than during the end of a dynasty or time period.

@liliya_aseeva 4 weeks ago

Your directing/montage skills have grown so much! Skillfully using various c-dramas to visually augment a completely different narrative.

@k.c1126 4 weeks ago

The empress should have figured out a way to kill Zhu Wen directly... Plotting rarely goes well 😢

@ruotze-ll 7 days ago (edited)

Last empresses, like last emperors
are always unfortunate. It is due to unfortunate circumstances that they are last. Puyi's empress
died in a prison.

@lotussong1 3 weeks ago

Just goes to show that being royal and having a title doesn’t necessarily mean a happy life.

@conho4898 4 weeks ago

I think the people would love a video on another powerful Empress regent like Xiao Yanyan!

@AZ-Kelly 3 weeks ago

I love your stories and your personal narration.

@pollycipher 4 weeks ago

I would like to see the makeup looks of ancient china.

@sayurivkg 3 weeks ago

This kind of story shows again how greed and power struggle can destroy a whole country, in this case a kingdom. If there could have been harmony, wiseness among the rulers and more righteous people who would have worked in the benefit of the kingdom maybe none of this would have happen. During those times as in most of the history when such catastrophic events happen that lead to changes of history's the commoners suffer the most.
The Tang Dynasty was such a flourishing, rich period known as the Renaissance period of China. A pity it ended like a poor, beggar in the streets.
Please make more videos explaining the 5 dynasties and 10 Kingdoms period and why it has such a name. Thank you for your hard work!

@maryearly7175 3 weeks ago

i'm so glad that i'm not in politics. it seems that no matter what century you are in it's not a safe place to be.

@jammehrmann1871 4 weeks ago (edited)

Excellent video as always Amy! For me, it seems that Empress Jishan just lived through the worst time to be an empress, also being powerless to do anything to help the situation. I liked the comparison with the Han dynasty and Dong Zhuo at 13:34.

I'd like to see your takes on the, possibly fabricated, earlier stories regarding Daji and Baosi as well as a video on the infamous Empress Lü of Han someday.

May everyone who reads this have a nice day.