HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Empress Pan (died February or March 252), personal name Pan Shu,() ''Jiankang Shilu'' vol. 2. was an empress of the state of
Eastern Wu Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' < : ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...
during the
Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
period of China. She was the only empress of Wu's founding emperor,
Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime es ...
, even though he had a succession of wives before her. She was the mother of
Sun Liang Sun Liang (245–260), courtesy name Ziming, was the second emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the youngest son and heir of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Wu. He is also known as the Prince of ...
, Sun Quan's successor and the second emperor of Wu.


Life

Lady Pan was from Gouzhang County (; within present-day
Ningbo Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...
) in
Kuaiji Commandery Kuaiji Commandery (Chinese:  t , s , p ''Kuàijī Jùn''), formerly romanized as K'uai-chi Commandery, was a former commandery of China in the area of Hangzhou Bay. When first established, its capital was at Wu (present-day ...
. Her personal name was not recorded in her biography in the ''
Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...
'' (''Sanguozhi''), the authoritative source of the history of the
Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
period. However, the ''Jiankang Shilu'' mentioned that her personal name was "Shu", hence she was also known as "Pan Shu". Her father, who served as a low-ranking official, was executed for committing an offence whose details are not recorded. Both Lady Pan and her elder sister were forced to become servants and assigned to the royal textile factory. Once,
Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime es ...
encountered her and felt that she was extraordinary so he took her as his concubine. The historical treatise ''
Shi Yi Ji ''Shi Yi Ji'' () is a Chinese mythological / historical treatise compiled by the Taoist scholar Wang Jia (died 390). The title of the work has been variously translated into English as ''Record of Heretofore Lost Works'', ''Researches into Lost ...
'' mentioned that Lady Pan was known as the most beautiful woman in Jiangdong. When she was still working in the textile factory, she was alienated and called goddess by people who worked with her. After Sun Quan heard about this story, he ordered the painter to draw Lady Pan's portrait. Although Lady Pan looked glum in the portrait, Sun Quan was shocked because of her beauty and exclaimed:"She is a goddess,indeed. Her sadness is so attractive, let alone her smile." In the palace, Lady Pan was becoming increasingly favoured by Sun Quan so that he built a palace called ''Liuhuantai'' () for her, which means "the palace of pomegranate and ring". In 243, while Lady Pan was pregnant, she dreamt of receiving a dragon head and gave birth to
Sun Liang Sun Liang (245–260), courtesy name Ziming, was the second emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the youngest son and heir of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Wu. He is also known as the Prince of ...
later. In 250, in the aftermath of a succession struggle between Sun Quan's sons
Sun He Sun He (224 – November or December 253), courtesy name Zixiao, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the third son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Wu. In 242, he became the cro ...
and
Sun Ba Sun Ba (before 235 - September or October 250), courtesy name Ziwei, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the fourth son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Eastern Wu. Life Sun Ba ...
, Sun Liang was designated as the
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 ...
by his father. In 251, Sun Quan instated Lady Pan as the empress. Empress Pan was known for being charming but jealous as she never ceased slandering and harming Sun Quan's other wives until her death.


Death

When Sun Quan became seriously ill in 252, Empress Pan asked Sun Hong (), the Prefect of the Palace Writers (), about how
Empress Lü Empress (Dowager) Lü Zhi (241–18 August 180 BC), commonly known as Empress Lü () and formally Empress Gao of Han (), was the empress consort of Gaozu, the founding emperor of the Han dynasty. They had two known children, Liu Ying (later Em ...
seized power after the death of her husband ( Emperor Gao of the
Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
). However, she herself also fell sick due to the stress of continuously attending to Sun Quan. She was ultimately murdered when she was in a coma, but how she was murdered remains a controversy. Wu officials claimed that her servants, unable to stand her temper, strangled her while she was asleep and claimed her death was of natural causes; while a number of historians, including
Hu Sanxing Hu Sanxing (; 1230–1302), born Hu Mansun (胡滿孫), courtesy names Shenzhi (身之), Meijian (梅澗), and Jingcan (景參), was a Chinese historian and commentator who lived during the late Song dynasty and early Yuan dynasty. Hu was born in ...
, a commentator on
Sima Guang Sima Guang (17 November 1019 – 11 October 1086), courtesy name Junshi, was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer. He was a high-ranking Song dynasty scholar-official who authored the monumental history book ''Zizhi Tongjian''. Sima was ...
's ''
Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...
'', believed that top Wu officials were complicit, as they feared that she would seize power as
empress dowager Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother) () is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese emperor in the Chinese cultural sphere. The title was also g ...
after Sun Quan's death. Investigations into her death resulted in the execution of 6-7 people. Sun Quan died soon after in the same year. Empress Pan was buried together with Sun Quan at the Jiang Mausoleum (; at the
Purple Mountain Purple Mountain may refer to: China * Purple Mountain (Nanjing), a mountain in Nanjing, Jiangsu Ireland * Purple Mountain (Kerry), a mountain in County Kerry United States * Purple Mountain (Alaska), a mountain in Alaska * Purple Peak (Col ...
,
Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
).


Family

In 250, Lady Pan requested Sun Quan to emancipate her elder sister from slavery and arrange a marriage for her sister and he agreed. Lady Pan's sister later married Tan Shao (). When Sun Liang became the new emperor, he commissioned his uncle as a Cavalry Commandant (). After Sun Liang was demoted to a prince under
Sun Chen Sun Chen (232 – 18 January 259), courtesy name Zitong, was a military general and regent of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He ruled as regent during the reigns of the emperors Sun Liang and Sun Xiu. His confl ...
's persecution, Tan Shao lost his official position and was sent back to his home town of Luling with his family.() Sanguozhi vol. 50.


See also

* Eastern Wu family trees#Sun Quan *
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms The following are lists of people significant to the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of Chinese history. Their names in Mandarin pinyin are sorted in alphabetical order. Fictional characters in the 14th-century historical novel ''Romance of ...


References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''
Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...
'' (''Sanguozhi''). * Hu, Sanxing (13th century). Annotations to the ''Zizhi Tongjian''. * Sima, Guang (1084). ''
Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...
''. * Xu, Song ( 8th century). ''Jiankang Shilu'' (). , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pan, Empress Year of birth unknown 252 deaths Eastern Wu empresses Murdered royalty People from Ningbo Assassinated Chinese people Family of Sun Quan