The Astonishing Life Of China's Tyrant Empress | Wu Zetian | Absolute History 

Women in power from the past: *_exist_* Men making records: _"is this a tyrant?"_ Yeesh the fact that some of you can’t see this for the joke it is…

The most absurd part about her defamation is that they criticized her for sleeping with younger men (particularly the Zhang brothers, as mentioned in the video) when she was like 60-70 but like... every male ruler in history has done that with younger women and no one batted an eye

She was a literal concubine at 14 to a guy 25+ years older than her but the ~men~ talked shit about her sleeping with younger men...

"In a man's world, you don't need a man to lead it." Moved me.

"She brought disaster to the empire. She rained for 50 years." Dude if she brought disaster the empire wouldn't have lasted 5 let alone 50. Something ain't right about that statement.

She left it blank. Awesome . She did not felt the need to explain anything to anyone. She took life as it came. Bravely.

Listen, if I was exploited as concubine at the age of 14 I would be ruthless too.

I think she kept her tomb blank because she knew that the men that came after her would try to erase her history so by leaving it blank she took that power away from them.

pretty much every male emperor before and after wu zetian: *killed people who got in their way or opposed them* wu zetian: *did the same thing* male historians and politicians: sHe wAs A tErRiBlE pErSoN bEcAuSe sHe KiLlEd pEoPlE

So she basically learned how to gain power, how to keep that power, how to rule a country and put those who were against her in their place. And was basically told in a horrible light because the men of the time didn't like that a woman had power over them and was able to keep it. She was clever and she knew how to use her intelligence.

While I appreciate the archeological information presented here, this documentary keep stressing how the Empress was portrayed as evil. As a Chinese I grew up to learn that, yes, she was a very controversial person, and that she was ruthless toward her enemies, but historically she was also extremely beautiful (such that the son emperor would marry his father’s woman against all Chinese traditions), and highly intelligent and capable. During her rule, the Tang Dynasty was at its peak of power and prosperity, that she was very capable at governing the empire. A well-known story was: an official wanted to overthrow her reign and listed a dozen of her “major crimes” in beautifully and powerfully composed prose. When the Empress read his writing, she asked her ministers: “Such talent! How come he is not in my court?” So, I would say if ask an average Chinese who cares about history, their view toward Empress Wu is not so one-sided and negative. She has always fascinated the Chinese historians.

If I remember correctly, it said she reigned 50 years? To some people that might not sound like a lot, but that’s a CRAZY number. With the amount of royalty that was killed off (either by their own family or officials), it’s insane to me that a WOMAN leader was able to survive and rule that long. All props to her👏🏻

'She was a woman who did what she had to do to stay in power. She was a great leader. She had a lot of political acumen but most of all she was a woman that proved that in a man's world you didn't need a man to lead it.' - Jonathan Dugdale. Welll said, Jonathan... especially the last part.

it was the same for Hatshepsut in ancient Egypt they tried to cancel her from history or depict her as bad while in reality her real fault was to be a woman.

I love how she did the same exact thing as any male king/lord/etc. yet is noted in history for being the most devious. Love it lol.

the fact that she let foreigners in just says something about confidence in her empire to me and I love it.

Kinda funny how historians used to paint her in a bad light because she's a women, cuz I'm Chinese and always grew up hearing about how powerful and inteligent she was from my dad.

"When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground." and she won and kept winning for 50 years when other emperors can't even do 5

History is fascinating when it's told like this. In school: History sounds like a bunch of numbers and names.

How on earth is it possible that i have never heard a person as influential as her in history classes?

Myths, made up by her opposition: the empress was terrible, cruel, vain and incompetent! wOmEN cAnT rULe! Experts and archeologists: Actually, turns out she was brilliant, progressive and made China prosper under her rule. Men just hated on her because she was amazing. Women, everywhere, in general: You don't fucking say????? Who would have guessed?!

"For most of the history, anonymous was a woman" - Virginia Wolf

Wu Zetian's title is Emperor, not Empress. The video even opens with labelling Wu Zetian correctly as a "female Emperor", I think the title of the video should accurately reflect this.

The title: “female empress” Ah yes, the floor is made out of floor.

I'm not even Chinese but damn do I feel so proud of her...

Chinese historians just hate her X chromosomes. Some don't even acknowledge her & calling her a myth. Tbh i still wonder how many powerful women had been wiped out from Chinese history.

I'm not a Chinese but I admire how empress Wu Zitian came out and show to the world how powerful a woman is.

If I was made a concubine at 14, I’d be ruthless too🤦🏾‍♀️

If you have ever been to the Emperor Palace in China, you would understand how concubines lived. It was quite a miserable life from what I saw cause a concubine had a lonely living in a limited space with limited activities. Concubines were so numerous that the Emperor might never visited many of them, even at least once in a lifetime. So, it was like a prison with no hope. Therefore, that woman must have been really extraordinary and clever to rise up from just a concubine to a ruler of China for so many years. And of course it wouldn't have come without sacrifices even awful ones.

I find it adorable how the blue shirt guy was so excited while he was explaining 😂 you can tell that he’s very passionate

I thought "Female Emperor" is more suitable for the title than the Empress. She is the ruler, not the consort, wife, or anything

I've been studying Asian history for a quite while now, I can tell you Wu Zetian was something else, the way she went on gaining power, defeat males in their own game in an absolute men's world, it's just glorious. And she did killed a lot of people and I can't blame her a bit, she was literally everyone's target at some point just because she's a woman, including her lovers, even some of her family members all wanted her dead. Any wrong step would lead her to her own grave. When you really think about it, a woman ruled one of the biggest kingdom ever existed on this planet for 50 years! It couldn't be done in most people's wildest dreams. It was nothing short of a miracle.

This is a perfect exemple of how history is distorted depending on who worte/told it, which in this case, male aristocrats. This was very interesting.

MAYBE just MAYBE if we were taught about fascinating people like this in school we would actually be interested

This is the second time I watched this documentary. Wu Zetian, was revolutionary, intelligent, capable, inspirational, I cry for Wu Zetian. This woman was amazing and it's such shame that for centuries her story had been distorted because men could not accept she was a greater ruler than any one of them could have ever been. She is a figure that girls should grow up with, to aspire to be as smart and beautiful as she was. Wu Zetian, along with the legend of Mulan are and the Mongolian princess who would only marry a man who could defeat her in battle are so inspirational, and breath taking. The courage these women, true or myth, had have me at my knees.

Everyone makes her seem like a tyran bc she was smarter than most men and she wasn't born in a rich family, an emperor for the people, really

The video has a good message but some of the statements such as she killed her children can be misleading. The actual history of how she came into power was a very complicated political process- after her husband died he did pass the throne to his son Li Xian. Li Xian was described in history texts as someone who was very meek and indecisive and as a result his wife Wei ruled the kingdom. Wei considered Wu a threat and wanted to persecute her, but Wu found out in time and won. She later abolished both Wei and Xian (Xian was a softboy who just wanted to follow wherever Wei goes) and sent them away. They came back again for a coup later but was killed by a pro-establishment force led by Wu’s daughter. Her other son Dan, who also ruled for some time simply couldn’t handle it, and stepped back and issued a note to give the throne to Wu Zetian. He later quit the royal family and allegedly lived a long life as a commonor. She did not really kill her sons- although you could argue that she did stuff to make sure they are not a threat to her power. And that she killed her other child daughter to frame someone else was a rumor which was never proven. Another fact was, her second daughter (Princess Taiping) actually grew very powerful as well later and was considered a heir to her throne after she dies, but her grandson(Xuanzong), who used to be in the same political camp with the princess turned against her after Wu died and persecuted the princess. He eventually became the next emperor , led a massive persecution of all women in power, and the society eventually became more conservative again. That whole part of the history was very chaotic yet interesting.

If she was a man, she would've probably been titled "____ the Great"

Consider how much better than her male counterparts she actually was to rise *above* them in a time when all things were created for their favor alone. Amazing

To be honest. I think she was probably ruthless and calculative. That’s the only way a female could become the emperor and make people respect your throne. That’s not necessarily a bad thing tho. She was also incredibly intelligent and ambitious. She had done the things no other person in history had done or even imagined possible. Her legacy is definitely one of the most incredible parts of Chinese history.

Okay but this would be such a GREAT historical drama though.

Well... As a Chinese, i can tell that Wu Zetian actually has a very position picture in modern history book, at least in the part about her governing. She is considered to be as good as Emperor Taizong in term of governing, and has been described as one of the most important figure to bring the Tang Empire to its peak. To be honest, cruel and brutal is not directly related to if a person is a good governor.

haven’t been this fascinated by a monarch since learning of anne boleyn from my childhood to now. yet another noble woman to look up to.

I got teary eyed at 33:50 when she appointed a female prime minister. What a powerful and important move on her part. The music helped elevate the grandeur.

Her story would make a fascinating movie

To be Clear: Wu Zetian's MAIN tomb has NEVER been unearthed - yet. They know where it is but they don't want to unearth it yet because the technicians do not think that they can preserve the artifacts without damaging them.

"A woman of courage in a man's world" very well said. I fount his story fascinating I am sure she was as stunningly beautiful as the model in your story. RU-vid suggested this video and I am delighted. A remarkable Empress regardless of some negativity that goes along with the story of her life. Amazing!

Property developer in Xian be like: Sooo as you can see right now we're digging the groundwork for our next new estate and... ohshi- not another archaeological site!

bruh, during her reign, women’s status’ were much higher and were much freer to do things that men could do men just disliked her because she gave women freedom 🤷‍♀️

How many shots of lipstick paper application do you want? Director: Yes.

So essentially: like every other female leader in history, she was heavily criticised despite being very good at being in power

80 years is a really impressive age for that time! how did she manage that?!

Her last big power move: Leave it blank. Let them write about me. Leaves her mark of her achievements everywhere, even in the middle of the mountains.

It makes me so happy to see these historians so excited about the discoveries and history of Wu Zetian's rule. It's adorable honestly, like hell yeah I love when people love things

men have done a lot worse in history, some people just take offence because she was a women

This is a pretty fantastic documentary of a ruler that I knew nothing about. From what I can get from this documentary is that Wu Zetian was a worthy Empress who deserves a high place in history. Also, the reenactments of Wu Zetian were so beautiful, elegant and relaxing.

She may be devil in the eye of people before but she is one of the greatest ruler china ever had. She won't last that long in her throne if she is incompetent in being a ruler. She is manipulative but smart.

I dont usually watch history like this, normally i watch things about the Victorian times or Tudors but this is a nice change. I didnt know there was only one female Emperor so thats really fascinating!

Cracks me up how outrageous the legends are. What emperor isn’t a tyrant!!! 😂

Sadly similar has been done to amazing female rulers throughout history. They're erased, or (worse) often have horrific lies told about them, and have their good deeds erased. Others (like cleopatra) are reduced to just physical beauty. Cleopatra, for example, was actually an incredibly skilful ruler who significantly benefited the region.

She was called a 'tyrant' because she was able to achieve what a lot of men couldn't?????? MA'AM THE AUDACITY-

Incredible. I've known about the Queens of Egypt but had never heard about Empress Wu! Very informative and interesting, great story telling. Thank you

RIP Dr. Rothschild. You were my favorite and greatest professor in college. You were so proud of this documentary and how it was shown. You will forever teach generations of students with your legacy.

So let's see, under her rule China became a formidable and wealthy nation, the people prospered, advances in technology were made, numerous contributions to art and religion, and she not only worked to secure her place, but the future of china as a whole. But she let the commoners work for her and liberated women so all the old men who were half as great as her were salty and mad that they couldn't enslave their wives anymore. I'm seeing a LOT of similarities between how her memory was treated after death and how Queen Nefertiti was treated.

Her story has been exaggerated over and over what was the fact is already impossible to know. Only one thing for sure, she was an extremely smart woman who played a important part in the Chinese history.

I had never even heard of her before watching this. Raised in Canada I think the most interesting female monarch we read about in school was Queen Elizabeth I. And even then, details were left out. Wu Zetian sounds absolutely incredible, not only as a woman and leader but as historical figure altogether. She was exceptional at what she did and she made life better for all those people at her time. She's become my new favorite historical person. And to be honest, IF she were alive today and running for PM of Canada I'd vote for her.

I love having to read the captions, it allows me to hear the language as it is spoken and not selectively hearing English.

hoLd uP so you’re telling me that when women killed people to gain power , it was ruthless but when men killed people it was normal??? please correct me if i’m wrong but that just doesn’t add up

I watched a Chinese documentary about her when I was little. The historian said it's vicious rumors that she murdered her kids, especially the baby girl. He said according to the birth years of her other children, there's no way she could have another baby in between the other two. According to some ancient historical book, the baby girl was born in the same year as her other son but they were not twins, and the months don't add up, I don't remember the details. But he basically said that baby girl probably never existed.

She's not empress, but the Emperor. Empress usually means the wife of the emperor. Wu Zetian was the emperor.

Seems like men tried to ruin her reputation

She was respectful all over the world during her reign. She surpassed most Emperors before her and even after her. She was brilliant and intelligent. She took care of the lest fortunates during her time.

40:35 -- This blew my mind, that a THOUSAND years later, a farmer found the golden tablet that she once TOUCHED! Also the fact that it was so well preserved for so many years!! Mind blowing!

What a great episode. Thank you Absolute History.

Elizabeth 1st, had all dissenters killed from the palace and outside of it including her sister in Scotland. It was ruthless yes and strategically the only way to protect her own life and that of the country. She spoke 5 languages and was vastly intelligent. She went on to rule what is called the Elizabethan Era, the UK's 'Golden Age' with one of the most peaceful with religiously tolerant reigns for about 45 years. She had a couple of movies made after her and it would be great to see a movie made after this female Emperor.

She may have been brutal but that's what all emporers did.

Me when l was in school learning history : sleepy And me now learn history in these video : 😮

Great job on this documentary. Very enjoyable and with great treasures of information. Thank you!

her history should me taught in school. i would love to learn about her

she is my favorite historical character to read about. she was so misunderstood.

There's a lot cruel women in history, and a lot more men. This just prove that woman and men aren't that different. In ancient time, they had to do anything to keep their power. For example Vlad the Impaler is view by many as a cruel and sadistic man, but for romanians he's actually a hero, one of the greatest Voievods (Kings) we had. It depends on the perspective, I don't think there's one ancient or medieval ruler in human history that didn't rise to power by force and violence. It's just how thinks were back then, but we can all appreciate those, who after gaining power worked for the benefit of their people.

i love how he is so excited and just so happy learning more and telling us about the tang's history

I like the blank epitaph. it says "I know what i did. I am at peace with myself. Think of me what you will, it doesn't concern me." And that's an awfully powerful message from a ruler, as most seem really insecure about being remembered.

a lot of people cause wu zetian of being ruthless and cruel, but many people forget that the emperor's harem was a warzone, either you fight to stay alive or you die at the hands of other concubines scheming, she did what she had to, to stay alive! another thing that many people like to forget about being chosen to be a concubine, once you were chosen to be the emperor woman if you displeased him or even get him angry your entire clan would be charged with a bogus crime and be killed, so girls entering the harem knew that not only was their lives in danger but also that of their entire families! that's why many people tried as hard as they could to keep their daughter away from entering the palace, another thing that many people don't know about is that in ancient times there was this law that was set by the first emperor of china that literally forced every household in the country to send at least one of their daughters to the palace during the harem selection and if they refuse they would be accused of being traitors! the people who claimed that wu zetian Braught calamity to china are macho men who don't want to accept that china had his most prosperous years when wu zetian was in power, in fact when wu zetian was in power china was seen as one of the most powerful countries in ancient times! also a lot of people are mad about the title, back then wu zetian was indeed at the center of the world, Europe was in the dark ages, the middle east was fighting among each other, china back then was at the center of the world commerce, so of course they were the most powerful in the region, were they the only powerful country in Asia? no, you had Thailand who's ancient city was second in terms of massive power in Asia, I hate it how these males so-called historians like to paint a dark curse on female rulers of their countries! always accusing the female leaders of being a calamity totally disregarding the man in their history that helps brings the country to his knees!

Some Chinese emperor's failed to rule for even 3 years! She lasted 50! She was good ruler!

This is so well made. Thank you!

History is an amazing story tale! And u guys are doing a great job in the way you r conveying it...

Why have schools never taught us about her? This is the first time I'm hearing about this🤨

One thousand fifty years ago, China was the most powerful country in the world so that's why they mentioned Wu ruled the world. Tang dynasty had the biggest population and highest civilization at that time.

Whatever she did to stay in power she must have been at least somewhat good at ruling.- otherwise, there is no way she would have stayed in power for 50 years surrounded by men.

i've been to most of the locations that this guy visited and it is every bit as fascinating as it is irl, you can literally feel the history of the place just by stepping on the land it was so beautiful

I learned something new today, that China had not only a female Empress but also many women in high places of her goverment. This lady made life better for a lot of women in China. This lady rose to power and although she did spill blood she ruled well. This is fitting to learn this on International Women s Day. So to all Women all around the world , I wish you all a Happy International Women s Day!!!!!!!!!!!!! May we all show great respect to all the hard working and loving Women of the earth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tbh u just feel she was actually ahead of her time and she did things well calculated and efficiently.

She’s so iconic, she’s my new muse now.

Absolutely fantastic, thank you 😊 🤗🤗🤗

Just from looking at her ability to rule a country at a men’s time is enough to show her high political skills. She was also able to keep her country from being invaded while opening trade with foreign countries.

Female rulers and leaders have always been, and continue to be, condemned for the things their male counterparts are praised and revered for.

"In a man's world, you didn't need a man to lead it." 👏👏👏❤

She was a good ruler and the men jealous of her.

I watched a cdrama based on her and I never knew her character was real until my sister told me that she was based on a real person. Since then, I have admired Wu Zetían and tried learning more about her. She's one of my favorites historical figure.