Gao Guiying () (died 1647) was a female Chinese rebellion leader and military commander of the short-lived

Shun dynasty The Shun dynasty (), officially the Great Shun (), was a short-lived Chinese dynasty that existed during the Ming–Qing transition. The dynasty was founded in Xi'an on 8 February 1644, the first day of the lunar year, by Li Zicheng, the leade ...

. She was the empress of the Shun founding emperor

Li Zicheng Li Zicheng (22 September 1606 – 1645), born Li Hongji, also known by the nickname, Dashing King, was a Chinese peasant rebel leader who overthrew the Ming dynasty in 1644 and ruled over northern China briefly as the emperor of the short-li ...

Life

From the beginning of the 17th century, the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

of China was decaying during a large number of rebellions, the greatest one being the rebellion of

, who gathered a very large army of followers around him and became more successful every year. It is said that Li met Gao while hiding in the house of her father, and when he left, she went with him and took an active part in the rebellion, following him side by side at the head of his army, sharing his command; while Li was the commander of the male troops, Gao educated, trained and lead the female troops of rebels. The rebellion was so successful that the armies of Li and Gao effectively controlled large parts of China and ruled them as independent entities. This caused the Ming dynasty to fall to pieces, as it was at the same time attacked by the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

. In 1644, Li Zicheng captured

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

, deposed the Ming dynasty and declared himself the emperor of a new dynasty,

Shun Shun may refer to one of the following: *To shun, which means avoiding association with an individual or group * Shun (given name), a masculine Japanese given name *Seasonality in Japanese cuisine (''shun'', 旬) Emperor Shun * Emperor Shun (舜 ...

. Accordingly, Gao became the empress and took control over the city as his regent, but soon after, the

took Beijing and extended its rule into

China proper China proper, Inner China, or the Eighteen Provinces is a term used by some Western writers in reference to the "core" regions of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China. This term is used to express a distinction between the "core" regions pop ...

. Li was killed in 1645. Gao now saw the Qing as her new enemies, and switched her allegiance to her former enemies: the remnants of the Ming ruling family had formed a new court in the southern China and ruled as the Southern Ming dynasty, and Gao, making herself known as the greatest enemy of the Qing dynasty, was called there to serve and continue the fight against the foreign intruders. She was styled "Lady of the first degree" in her own right, her position as military commander was secured and she was declared protector of the new Ming dynasty. Gao led the fight against the Qing dynasty until her death in 1647. Gao Guiying is undoubtedly one of the most unusual and interesting characters in Chinese history, especially considering the time she lived; there have been a large number of women in her position earlier on in Chinese history, but in the 12th century, women's position in China diminished severely, and the only other women of her time to have a similar position were Shen Yunying and

Qin Liangyu Qin Liangyu (1574–1648), courtesy name Zhensu, was a female general best known for defending the Ming dynasty from attacks by the Manchu-led Later Jin dynasty in the 17th century. Early life and education Qin Liangyu was born in Zhongzhou (� ...

External links

*ColorQ World
Gao Guiying - General of the Peasant Rebels
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gao, Guiying 1647 deaths 17th-century Chinese people 17th-century Chinese women 17th-century women rulers Women in 17th-century warfare Chinese empresses Ming dynasty rebels Chinese soldiers Regents of China Shun dynasty Women in war in China Year of birth unknown Female revolutionaries