Consort Chen (577 - 605), born Princess Ningyuan (), was a daughter of the

Emperor Xuan of Chen Emperor Xuan of Chen (陳宣帝) (530–582), personal name Chen Xu (陳頊), also called Chen Tanxu(陳曇頊),《新唐書·宰相世系表》 courtesy name Shaoshi (紹世), childhood name Shili (師利), was an emperor of the Chen dynasty o ...

and an imperial concubine to the

Emperor Wen of Sui The Emperor Wen of Sui (; 21 July 541 – 13 August 604), personal name Yang Jian (), Xianbei name Puliuru Jian (), alias Narayana () deriving from Buddhist terms, was the founder and the first emperor of the Chinese Sui dynasty. The ''Book of ...

, founder of the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...

Background

The future Consort Chen was born in 577, during the reign of her father Emperor Xuan as Princess Ningyuan of Chen. Princess Ningyuan's mother was Emperor Xuan's

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

Consort Shi () (551 - 609). A native of

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

, Consort Shi was the daughter of Shi Jifeng (), Prince of Shixing (). In addition to Princess Ningyuan, she had borne Emperor Xuan two sons: Shu'ao (Prince of Linhe) and Chen Shuxing (Prince of Ruanling). Both sons later became officials under the

Sui Dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...

. The year Princess Ningyuan was born,

Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It ruled the eastern part of northern China ...

, at whose expense Emperor Xuan had expanded Chen, fell to

Northern Zhou Zhou (), known in historiography as the Northern Zhou (), was a Xianbei-led dynasty of China that lasted from 557 to 581. One of the Northern dynasties of China's Northern and Southern dynasties period, it succeeded the Western Wei dynasty and ...

. Cornered, Chen lost many of the gains that it had made from its conquest of

territory. In 582, when Princess Ningyuan was five, Emperor Xuan died, and the throne was inherited by Princess Ningyuan's older half-brother

Chen Shubao Chen Shubao (, 10 December 553 – 16 December 604), also known as Houzhu of Chen (), posthumous name Duke Yáng of Chángchéng (), courtesy name Yuánxiù (元秀), childhood name Huángnú (黃奴), was the fifth and last emperor of the Chinese ...

, who was an incompetent ruler. On 10 February 589,

surrendered to

, ending the Chen Dynasty. Chen Shubao and his household (which presumably included Princess Ningyuan) were then escorted to the Sui capital.

As Imperial Consort

After the fall of the Chen Dynasty, Princess Ningyuan was honored as Lady Xuanhua (). She became a consort of Emperor Wen, but he never had relations with her when Empress Dugu was alive. After Empress Dugu's death, Emperor Wen favored Consort Chen and another concubine, Consort Cai. In 604, Emperor Wen resided at Renshou Palace at the advice of his officials. He was accompanied by Consort Chen and Consort Cai, and his son Yang Guang. Emperor Wen was sick and frail, and Yang Guang seized the opportunity to sleep with Consort Chen. Consort Chen reported the incident to Emperor Wen, who was angered and sought to replace Yang Guang as the crown prince with Yang Yong. Yang Guang found out and decided to kill Emperor Wen with the assistance of an official named Yang Su. After Emperor Wen's death, Yang Guang took Consort Chen as one of his concubines, along with Consort Cai.《

Book of Sui The ''Book of Sui'' (''Suí Shū'') is the official history of the Sui dynasty. It ranks among the official Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written by Yan Shigu, Kong Yingda, and Zhangsun Wuji, with Wei Zheng as the lead author. ...

卷三十六列传第一》: 及炀帝嗣位之后，出居仙都宫。寻召入，岁余而终，时年二十九。帝深悼之，为制《神伤赋》。 The Sui dynasty was short-lived and destroyed by the Tang dynasty.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Consort Chen dynasty people Sui dynasty people 577 births 605 deaths Chinese princesses Chinese imperial consorts People from Nanjing