Expert Ask the

Wu biographer Dr Jonathan Clements weighs in on the legacy of China’s infamous empress

Q: How reliable do you believe the historical accounts of Wu Zetian’s reign to be?

A:

The accounts of Wu’s reign are full of lies and spin from her, her enemies and her descendants. We actually have lots of information about the period but all of it is suspect in some way, so it’s essential to compare varying sources to get a sense of what they are circling around. Q: To what extent do you believe that her reign improved or harmed China’s perception and treatment of women in the 7th century and beyond?

A:

There’s a huge deal of hypocrisy. Wu gets blamed for dragging the dynasty down but she presided over its peak of prosperity, promoted a meritocracy and pushed for greater recognition of women’s contribution to society. Women in Chinese history were traditionally neither seen nor heard — it was considered rude to address a lady by her name, so they are often anonymous when they do show up. Earlier historians tend to use stories of women in power as cautionary tales to remind everybody what a bad idea it is supposed to be.

Beneath the surface, there’s a subtly racist tinge as well. The periods in Chinese history when women had political influence tended to be those where ‘barbarians’ were in charge, like the Mongols or the Jurchen, so often you’re seeing a backlash against foreigners and not women in general. In modern times, however, Wu has become something of an icon. A lot of modern Chinese women fixate on the intrigues and the rags-to-riches storyline. Hopefully not on all the murders. Dr Jonathan Clements is the author of Wu: The Chinese Empress who Schemed, Seduced and Murdered Her Way to Become a Living God. He is currently a visiting professor at Xi’an Jiaotong University, China.