Jia Nanfeng (257 – 13 May 300), nicknamed Shi (峕), was a Chinese empress consort. She was the daughter of
Jia Chong
Jia Chong (217–19 May 282), courtesy name Gonglü, was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Three Kingdoms period and early Jin dynasty of China. He started his career as an advisor to Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, the regents of the ...
and first wife of
Emperor Hui of the
Jin dynasty and also the granddaughter of
Jia Kui. She is commonly seen as a villainous figure in Chinese history, as the person who provoked the
War of the Eight Princes
The War of the Eight Princes, Rebellion of the Eight Kings, or Rebellion of the Eight Princes () was a series of civil wars among kings/princes (Chinese: ''wáng'' 王) of the Chinese Jin dynasty from 291 to 306 AD. The key point of contention in ...
, leading to the
Wu Hu rebellions and the Jin Dynasty's loss of northern and central China. Between 291 to May 300, she ruled the
Jin empire from behind the scenes by dominating her developmentally disabled husband.
Early life and marriage
Jia Nanfeng was born in 257 to the Jin official
Jia Chong
Jia Chong (217–19 May 282), courtesy name Gonglü, was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Three Kingdoms period and early Jin dynasty of China. He started his career as an advisor to Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, the regents of the ...
and his second wife
Guo Huai
Guo Huai (died 23 February 255), courtesy name Boji, was a military general of the state of Cao Wei (or Wei) during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He started his career towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty under the warlord Cao Cao ...
. She was their oldest daughter, although Jia Chong had two daughters from his previous marriage to noble lady Li Wan. The couple had another daughter, Jia Wu (賈午), in 260. They also had two sons, both of whom died young.
In 271, Jia's father desperately wanted to avoid an assignment to lead an army against the
Xianbei
The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into the ...
rebel
Tufa Shujineng
Tufa Shujineng (died 279) was a Qiang (historical people), Qiang-Xianbei chieftain who lived during the Three Kingdoms period of China. As the leader of the Tufa tribe in Hexi Corridor, Hexi, he led a rebellion against the ruling Jin dynasty (26 ...
, so he decided to have either Jia or her younger sister marry the
developmentally disabled
Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...
,
Sima Zhong
Emperor Hui of Jin (; 260 - January 8, 307), personal name Sima Zhong (司馬衷), courtesy name Zhengdu (正度), was the second emperor of the Jin dynasty (266–420). Emperor Hui was a developmentally disabled ruler, and throughout his reign, t ...
. The emperor initially rejected the idea, as he preferred
Wei Guan
Wei Guan (220 – 25 July 291Although the exact day of Wei Guan's death was not recorded, Sima Zhong's biography in ''Book of Jin'' recorded that he was killed together with Sima Liang, who died on 25 July 291. 永平元年)六月,贾后矫 ...
's daughter as a bride for the crown prince. Indeed,
Emperor Wu argued:
However, Guo Huai was on friendly terms with
Empress Yang Yan
Yang Yan (楊艷) (238 – August 25, 274), courtesy name Qiongzhi (瓊芝), formally Empress Wuyuan (武元皇后, "the martial and discerning empress") was an empress of the Jin dynasty (266–420). She was the first wife of Emperor Wu of Ji ...
, whose associates all greatly praised Jia's daughters. Eventually, Emperor Wu agreed, but selected Jia Wu to marry Crown Prince Zhong. When Wu was to wear formal dress to be examined, however, she was too young and too short for the dress, so Jia Nanfeng was chosen. They married on 2 April 272, and she was created crown princess. She was 14, and he was 12. She became quickly known for her jealousy, but she established a relationship with the crown prince where he both loved and feared her. For the rest of her life, she would have him firmly in her control. When several of his
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 ...
s became pregnant, she killed them herself in fits of jealousy; Emperor Wu was going to depose her, and only intercession by his second wife
Empress Yang Zhi
Yang Zhi (楊芷) (259– 6 March 292), courtesy name Jilan (季蘭), nickname Nanyin (男胤), formally Empress Wudao (武悼皇后, literally "the martial and fearful empress") was an empress of Jin Dynasty (266–420). She was Emperor Wu of J ...
(Empress Yang Yan's cousin, whom he married after her death) led to Crown Princess Jia being spared. When, on one occasion, Wei hinted to Emperor Wu that Crown Prince Zhong was so unintelligent as to be an inappropriate heir, it was Crown Princess Jia who thought of the solution to Emperor Wu's subsequent inquiries of Crown Prince Zhong—having someone else write simple but correct answers to the inquiries, so that Emperor Wu was impressed.
Crown Princess Jia bore her husband four daughters—the Princesses Hedong, Linhai and Shiping, as well as one daughter who died early and was given the posthumous name Aixian. However, she would not bear him a son; his only son
Sima Yu
Sima or SIMA may refer to:
People
* Sima (Chinese surname)
* Sima (given name), a Persian feminine name in use in Iran and Turkey
* Sima (surname)
Places
* Sima, Comoros, on the island of Anjouan, near Madagascar
* Sima de los Huesos, a caver ...
was borne by Consort Xie Jiu, who was initially a concubine of Emperor Wu but given to Crown Prince Zhong shortly before his marriage to Crown Princess Jia, so that she could teach him how to have sexual relations. As the years went on and Crown Princess Jia bore no sons, she became jealous of Consort Xie and Prince Yu, but took no decisive actions against them at this point, because Emperor Wu greatly favored Prince Yu.
When Emperor Wu died on 16 May 290, Crown Prince Zhong ascended the throne as Emperor Hui. Empress Yang Zhi was created empress dowager and Crown Princess Jia was created empress.
As empress
Role in coups against Yang Jun and Sima Liang
Empress Dowager Yang's father
Yang Jun initially served as Emperor Hui's
regent
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
. Knowing Empress Jia to be treacherous, he set up a system where edicts signed by Emperor Hui had to be co-signed by Empress Dowager Yang as well, to prevent Empress Jia from interfering. For a while, her influence was limited to matters inside the palace—and after her stepson Prince Yu was created crown prince, she often blocked Consort Xie from having access to her son.
Empress Jia was not happy about having little input in governance, however. She therefore conspired with the
eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...
Dong Meng (董猛) and the generals Meng Guan (孟觀) and Li Zhao (李肇) against the Yangs. She tried to include Emperor Hui's granduncle
Sima Liang
Sima Liang (司馬亮) (before 227- 25 July 291), courtesy name Ziyi (子翼), formally Prince Wencheng of Ru'nan (汝南文成王), was briefly a regent during the reign of Emperor Hui during Jin Dynasty (266–420). He was the first of the ei ...
, the most respected of the imperial princes, into the conspiracy, but Sima Liang declined; instead, she persuaded Emperor Hui's brother,
Sima Wei
Sima Wei (司馬瑋) (271 – 26 July 291), courtesy name Yandu (彥度), formally Prince Yin of Chu (楚隱王), was an imperial prince during Jin Dynasty (266–420) and was the second of the eight princes commonly associated with the War of ...
the Prince of Chu, to join her plan. In 291, after Sima Wei returned to Luoyang from his defense post (Jing Province (荊州, modern
Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
and
Hunan
Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...
)) with his troops, a coup went into progress.
Empress Jia, who had her husband easily under her control, had him issue an edict declaring that Yang Jun had committed crimes and should be removed from his posts. It also ordered Sima Wei and Sima Yao (司馬繇) the Duke of Dong'an to attack Yang's forces and defend against counterattacks. Quickly, it became clear that Yang was in trouble. Empress Dowager Yang, trapped in the palace herself, wrote an edict ordering assistance for Yang Jun and put it on arrows, shooting it out of the palace. Empress Jia then made the bold declaration that Empress Dowager Yang was committing treason. Yang Jun was quickly defeated, and his clan was massacred. Empress Dowager Yang was deposed and imprisoned (and would die in 292 in imprisonment). Sima Liang was recalled to serve as regent, along with Wei Guan. After that time, Empress Jia became more free involved in the management of the empire.
Sima Liang and Wei tried to get the government on track, but Empress Jia continued to interfere with management of the governmental everyday matters. They also became concerned about the violent temper of Sima Wei and therefore tried to strip him of his military command, but Sima Wei persuaded Empress Jia to let him keep his military command. Sima Wei's assistants Qi Sheng (岐盛) and Gongsun Hong (公孫宏) thereafter falsely told Empress Jia that Sima Liang and Wei planned to depose the emperor. Empress Jia, who had already resented Wei for having, during Emperor Wu's reign, suggested that he change his heir selection, also wanted more direct control over the government, and therefore resolved to undergo a second coup.
In the summer of 291, Empress Jia had Emperor Hui personally write an edict to Sima Wei, ordering him to have Sima Liang and Wei removed from their offices. His forces thereby surrounded Sima Liang and Wei's mansions, and while both men's subordinates recommended resistance, each declined and was captured. Against what the edict said, both were killed—Sima Liang with his heir Sima Ju (司馬矩) and Wei with nine of his sons and grandsons. Qi then suggested to Sima Wei to take the chance to kill Empress Jia's relatives and take over the government, but Sima Wei hesitated—and at the same time, Empress Jia came to the realization that killing Sima Liang and Wei, if it had been realized that she intended it, could bring a political firestorm and that also Sima Wei would not be easily controlled. She therefore publicly declared that Sima Wei had falsely issued the edict. Sima Wei's troops abandoned him, and he was captured and executed. Sima Liang and Wei were posthumously honored. However, after this point on, Empress Jia became the undisputed power behind the throne for several years.
As paramount authority
Empress Jia was now control over empire in close association with several advisors that she trusted—the capable official
Zhang Hua
Zhang Hua (232–7 May 300According to Sima Zhong's biography in ''Book of Jin'', Zhang Hua was killed on the ''guisi'' day of the 4th month of the 1st year of the ''Yongkang'' era of his reign. This corresponds to 7 May 300 永康元年夏四 ...
, her cousins
Pei Wei and Jia Mo (賈模), and her nephew
Jia Mi
Jia Mi (died 7 May 300), courtesy name Changyuan, originally named Han Mi, was a Chinese politician of the Jin dynasty (266–420). He was the grandson of the Jin minister Jia Chong and nephew of Jin's ''de facto'' ruler between 291 and 300, J ...
(originally named Han Mi but posthumously adopted into the line of Jia Chong's son Jia Limin (賈黎民)). She also closely associated with her cousin-once-removed Guo Zhang (郭彰), her sister Jia Wu (賈午), and Emperor Wu's concubine Zhao Chan (趙粲). She lacked self-control, and was violent and capricious in her ways, but Zhang, Pei, and Jia Mo were honest men who generally kept the government in order. However, as she grew increasingly unbridled in her behavior (including committing adultery with many men and later murdering them to silence them), Zhang, Pei, and Jia Mo considered deposing her and replacing her with Crown Prince Yu's mother Consort Xie, but they hesitated and never took actual action. After Jia Mo died in 299, it became even harder to control her actions.
Downfall and death
The relationship between Empress Jia and Crown Prince Yu had always been an uneasy one. Empress Jia's mother Guo Huai (郭槐) had constantly advised Empress Jia to treat Crown Prince Yu well, as her own son, and she advocated marrying Jia Mi's sister to Crown Prince Yu. However, Empress Jia and Jia Wu opposed this, and instead married a daughter of the official Wang Yan (王衍) to Crown Prince Yu. (Wang had two daughters, but Empress Jia had Crown Prince Yu marry the less beautiful one and had Jia Mi marry the more beautiful one.) After Lady Guo's death, the relationship between Empress Jia and Crown Prince Yu quickly deteriorated, as Jia Wu and Consort Zhao provoked difficulties between them. At one point, Empress Jia falsely claimed herself to be pregnant and planned to falsely claim her nephew Han Weizu (韓慰祖, Jia Wu's son with her husband Han Shou (韓壽)) to be her own, but for reasons unknown did not actually carry out that plan. Further, Crown Prince Yu and Jia Mi never liked each other, and Jia Mi, as a result, also advised Empress Jia to depose Crown Prince Yu.
In 299, Empress Jia agreed and took action. When Crown Prince Yu was in the palace to make an official petition to have his ill son Sima Bin (司馬彬) created a prince, Empress Jia forced him to drink a large amount of wine and, once he was drunk, had him write out a statement in which he declared intention to murder the emperor and the empress and to take over as emperor. Empress Jia presented the writing to the officials and initially wanted Crown Prince Yu executed—but after some resistance, she only had him deposed and reduced to status of a commoner. Crown Prince Yu's mother Consort Xie was executed, as was his favorite concubine Consort Jiang Jun (蔣俊).
On 27 April 300, under the advice of a prince she favored -
Sima Lun
Sima Lun ( sim. ch. 司马伦, trad. ch. 司馬倫, py. Sīmǎ Lún, wg. Ssu-ma Lun) (before 250 - poisoned June 5, 301), courtesy name Ziyi (子彛), was titled the Prince of Zhao (pinyin: zhào wáng, simplified Chinese: 赵王, tradition ...
the Prince of Zhao, Emperor Wu's granduncle— Empress Jia decided to eliminate Crown Prince Yu as a threat. She sent assassins and had Crown Prince Yu assassinated. Sima Lun, however, had other plans—he wanted to have Empress Jia murder the crown prince so that he could use the murder as an excuse to overthrow her. He started a coup later that year, killing Jia Mi, Zhang, Pei, and other associates of Empress Jia. Empress Jia was deposed on the same day (7 May 300
[According to Sima Zhong's biography in ''Book of Jin'', Jia Nanfeng was deposed as empress and her associates were killed on the ''guisi'' day of the 4th month of the 1st year of the ''Yongkang'' era of his reign. This corresponds to 7 May 300 in the Julian calendar. 永康元年夏四月)癸巳,梁王肜、赵王伦矫诏废贾后为庶人,司空张华、尚书仆射裴𬱟皆遇害,侍中贾谧及党与数十人皆伏诛)''Jin Shu'', vol.04]) and forced to commit suicide a few days later by drinking "jinxiaojiu" (金屑酒, "wine with gold fragments") (Needham and Ho 1970: 326)..
References
*
Fang, Xuanling (ed.) (648). ''
Book of Jin
The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...
'' (''Jin Shu'').
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jia Nanfeng, Empress
257 births
300 deaths
Jin dynasty (266–420) empresses
Jin dynasty (266–420) regents
3rd-century women rulers
3rd-century viceregal rulers
Forced suicides of Chinese people
Executed Jin dynasty (266–420) people
People executed by the Jin dynasty (266–420)
Suicides by poison
3rd-century executions
3rd-century Chinese women
3rd-century Chinese people
3rd-century Chinese monarchs
Suicides in the Jin dynasty (266–420)