Empress Taimu (太穆皇后; 569?-613?) was posthumously honored the first Empress of the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingd ...
. She was known as Duchess Dou or Lady Dou throughout her lifetime, and was the wife of
Emperor Gaozu and mother of
Emperor Taizong.
Background
Lady Dou was the daughter of Dou Yi and Princess Xiangyang. Dou Yi was the son of Dou Chi (竇熾), a high-level official for both
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 an ...
and later
Sui. Dou Yi also had a brother named
Dou Wei, a scribe for
Yang Xiu, the Prince of Shu, who later served as chancellor during the early years of the Tang dynasty. Her mother Princess Xiangyang was the fifth daughter of
Yuwen Tai
Yuwen Tai () (505 – 21 November 556According to Yuwen Tai's biography in ''Book of Zhou'', he died aged 52 (by East Asian reckoning) on the ''yihai'' day of the 10th month of the 3rd year of the reign of Emperor Gong of Western Wei. This corr ...
, Emperor Wen of Northern Zhou, and the sister of
Empress Yuwen.
As a young child, Lady Dou was raised in the palace and particularly favored by her uncle
Yuwen Yong
Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou ((北)周武帝) (543 – 21 June 578), personal name Yuwen Yong (宇文邕), Xianbei name Miluotu (禰羅突), was an emperor of the Xianbei-led Northern Zhou dynasty of China. As was the case of the reigns of his brot ...
, Emperor Wu. She once recommended Yuwen Yong to establish a relationship between Northern Zhou and
Tujue through the
Heqin system. As a result, Yuwen Yong married
Empress Ashina
Empress Ashina (阿史那皇后, personal name unknown) (551–582) was an empress of the Xianbei-led Chinese Northern Zhou dynasty. She was the daughter of Göktürk's Muqan Qaghan, and her husband was Emperor Wu.
Biography
She was born in 55 ...
, the daughter of
Muqan Qaghan
Muqan Qaghan ( Old Turkic: 𐰢𐰆𐰴𐰣𐰴𐰍𐰣 Muqan qaγan, Chinese:木桿可汗/木杆可汗, Pinyin: mùgǎn kěhàn, Wade-Giles: mu-kan k'o-han or 木汗可汗, mùhàn kěhàn, mu-han k'o-han, personal name: 阿史那燕都, āsh� ...
. Yuwen Yong didn't favor Empress Ashina at first, but agreed after Lady Dou and her father reminded him of Tujue's power and that he still had to face the rivaling neighbor kingdoms
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 ...
and
Chen Dynasty.
Lady Dou persuaded the general Zhangsun Sheng (長孫晟) to form a marriage alliance with the Tang household. Zhangsun Sheng's son
Zhangsun Wuji would later become a prominent official and daughter
Lady Zhangsun would become Lady Dou's daughter-in-law. After Yang Jian overthrew the Yuwen family and established the Sui Dynasty, Lady Dou lamented that she wasn't able to help her uncle and cousins. Her parents Dou Yi and Princess Xiangyang cautioned her to keep her mouth shut to live.
Duchess
As Lady Dou grew older, Dou Yi told Princess Xiangyang to marry their daughter to a wise and intelligent gentleman. Dou Yi placed two peacocks between an armorial screen and let the proposers shoot two arrows. The proposer who could shoot two arrows on the peacock's eye would be married to Lady Dou. Several proposers failed, except for a man named
Li Yuan. Lady Dou and Li Yuan were married, and Li Yuan would later become the founding Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.
Lady Dou and Li Yuan were deeply in love and accompanied each other everywhere. Since Lady Dou grew up in the palace, she was familiar with politics and history books. She assisted her husband in his studies and raised their children. They had four sons,
Li Jiancheng,
Li Shimin
Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...
,
Li Xuanba, and
Li Yuanji, and one daughter who would become
Princess Pingyang.
Lady Dou established a close bond with her mother-in-law,
Lady Dugu. Lady Dugu was the daughter of the prominent general
Dugu Xin
Dugu Xin ( Chinese: 獨孤信; 503 – 24 April 557), Xianbei name Qimitou (期彌頭), known as Dugu Ruyuan (獨孤如願) before 540, was a prominent general and official during the chaotic Northern and Southern dynasties period of imperial Ch ...
, and the sister of two Empresses from different dynasties,
Empress Dugu and
Dugu Qieluo. Li Yuan's father Li Bing had died early, leaving Lady Dugu in charge of the Li household. Lady Dugu suffered from poor health, and Lady Dou assisted her mother-in-law in managing household affairs. Once, Lady Dugu was extremely sick and due to her reckless personality, several of her daughter-in-laws refused to assist her. Only Lady Dou cared for Lady Dugu, and Lady Dugu recovered after a month. Lady Dugu was grateful and favored Lady Dou.
Lady Dou died at the age of 45 (by East Asian reckoning). After Li Yuan overthrew the Sui Dynasty and established the Tang Dynasty, he honored Lady Dou as Empress Mu (穆皇后). When her son Li Shimin succeeded to the throne as
Emperor Taizong, he honored Lady Dou as Empress Taimu (太穆皇后). She was further honored as Empress Taimu Shunsheng (太穆顺圣皇后).
[ Jack W. Chen, ''The Poetics of Sovereignty: On Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty'', pp.14]
Family
Parents
*Father: Dou Yi, Duke Shenwu (河南 竇毅; 519 – 3 January 583)
*Mother: Princess Xiangyang (襄陽公主),
**Maternal Grandfather:
Yuwen Tai
Yuwen Tai () (505 – 21 November 556According to Yuwen Tai's biography in ''Book of Zhou'', he died aged 52 (by East Asian reckoning) on the ''yihai'' day of the 10th month of the 3rd year of the reign of Emperor Gong of Western Wei. This corr ...
(宇文泰, 507 – 556)
Spouse and issue(s):
*
Li Yuan (李淵, 7 April 566 – 25 June 635), Emperor Gaozu of Tang
**
Li Jiancheng, Crown Prince Yin (隱皇太子 李建成; 589–626)
**
Princess Pingyangzhao (平陽昭公主; d. 623),
***Married
Chai Shao, Duke Huo (d. 638), and had issue (two sons)
**
Li Shimin
Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...
, Emperor Taizong (太宗 李世民; 598–649)
**
Li Xuanba, Prince Weihuai (衛懷王 李玄霸; 599–614)
**
Li Yuanji, Prince Chaola (巢剌王 李元吉; 603–626)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taimu, Empress
7th-century Chinese women
7th-century Chinese people
Emperor Taizong of Tang
Tang dynasty posthumous empresses
569 births
613 deaths