History's Worst Mom | The Life & Times of Wu Zetian

Okay, so this is a bit late considering it came out on Overly Sarcastic Productions on Friday, but it's before the 22nd so I guess that counts as early if you think about it. Welcome to the life story of Wu Zetian, a cold-blooded killer queen guaranteed to blow your mind. She's killed rivals, officials, sons, step-sons, grandsons, daughters-in-law, maybe a husband? She's been heavily vilified since her death so it can be tricky to separate fact from rumor, but in any case you do not want to mess with her.
Footnotes:
1:15 This is actually the Mukden Palace in Shenyang, used by the Ming Dynasty. The Daming palace used by the Tang dynasty is unfortunately in ruins, the only reconstructions I could find were of the Tang's forbidden city as a whole, as well as the exterior of the Danfeng Gate.
5:30 You might notice from this picture that there are, in fact, words on it. These were written in the Song and Jin dynasties.
5:32 I have heard alternative explanations for the stele's lack of words. Some say it's because her accomplishments were too grand for words, some say she was so unprecedented that only future generations could begin to approach the subject of her legacy. But personally, it strikes me as akin to damnatio memoriae, though as far as I know she wasn't purged altogether. Here's a smithsonian article supporting that position: www.smithsonianmag.com/histor...
5:35 I have not read the Zizhi Tongjian and am not an authority on Sima Guang's perspective on Zhongzong and Ruizong
Music:
0:00 Fisherman's Song at Dusk
6:09 Onion Capers by Kevin Macleod

[@ahkilleuskosmos6836]

There’s a saying in China: “Good people can’t be Emperors, and good Emperors are not good people.”

[@ubermenschzarathustra862]

Yup, my experiences with Chinese novels😂😂

[@Cyhcg5uhgb]

Which is funny because taoism is like: A good emperor is one who follows the people (or something like that. I dont remember the exact quote)

[@etel_unraed]

so... every great leader out there?

[@plsfeedmeimhungray9865]

ស្នេហាលាក់ខ្លួន ក្នុងសៀវភៅ Oh a fellow Cambodian! Hello!

[@chokichocat3083]

No shit. You want things done you gotta be a dick. All leaders are dicks to people. Takes a lotta balls to tell people to STFU and do what you tell them

[@RomeoWhiskey692]

“But MOOOOMMM ... I don’t wanna ....” “ Shut up and drink your poison ...”

[@0614Rei]

😂😂😂 children complaining about eating vegetables should read this

[@niccolehoody7317]

😂😂😂😂

[@totallyaddictive9093]

dude that actually is exactly what happens with antibiotics nowadays ;D

[@mekorita21]

@@totallyaddictive9093 then pls dont drink your antibiotics we will see how long you will live

[@totallyaddictive9093]

@@mekorita21 lol , the fact that you can use poison in certain quantities to help yourself heal, when its absolutely necessary doesnt change the fact that its poison... there is absolutely no need to get personal about it :D

[@GlassesnMouthplates]

For a moment at the beginning, I thought "worst mom" was referring to Wu Zetian's mother...

[@MaliaMelton]

Same! Especially since it started off talking about how she had a father that loved her so I was like "awwwww I know where this is going!" and it never got there

[@garylefevers]

I thought the same as well. I was totally prepared to feel more than bad for her.

[@q345ify]

@@garylefevers Actually by all accounts both her parents were incredibly loving, in fact according to legend her mother was beside herself with grief on the day Wu was to leave for the palace and Wu said to her "How do you know it is not my fortune to meet the Son of Heaven?" and upon realizing her daughter's ambitions she stopped crying and wished her luck on her journey

[@screenactorsguilable]

@@q345ify wu zetian is 1 incredible woman

[@manisyaya3199]

Well same here lol

[@halesvitkona9841]

Honestly, as a chinese person who grew up reading about our ancient history, I’m wary of the reliability of ancient scholars. They do not like Wu Zetian, and a big part of that is misogyny and patriarchal prejudice. Some of the most famous 圣君 (benevolent emperors) scholars loved were genocidal murderers. ie, Qianlong is one of the most respected emperors in history; every chinese kid knows about him, every chinese person have watched period dramas about his life. But he was - for the lack of a better comparison - basically Hitler. He mass exterminated 800,000 buddhists in the Dzungar genocide. Yet he is celebrated as a benevolent king. By most accounts, Wu Zetian was a competent ruler who displayed a capacity for remorse and repentance toward the end of her life. She was intelligent, beautiful, gifted in the arts and highly educated in politics and government (very rare, for a woman). Had she died in power, historians would be singing a vastly different tune. Thanks for the well-animated video, I enjoyed it very much!

[@zamonian9525]

想做好人就做不了好皇帝，我們只能盡力瞭解人事物的全貌

[@licherally212]

I was thinking about that throughout the video, actually! Wondered if perhaps her story was altered since some people really hate women.

[@yuxialiu6669]

Lucileide Ribeiro dos Passos ??????

[@yuxialiu6669]

Lucileide Ribeiro dos Passos no u

[@leopardlover8530]

@Lucileide Ribeiro dos Passos how is she a commie?

[@anxietywave8735]

European royalty is always viewed as being chaotic but I'm pretty sure that Chinese royalty takes the cake.

[@edukid1984]

It depends on which period of history that you're talking about. If you think this was chaotic, wait till you learn about "5 dynasties and 10 countries" era which was another period of fractalled powers in China, lasting some 70 years between the collapse of Tang and firm establishment of the Soong dynasty.

[@jonahhensley7779]

I mean, there was a massive war that was basically about who became the ruler of Spain. Then again, China's history is just "I'll usurp the throne and nothing will go wrong!" Then a few years later someone else says "I'll usurp the throne and nothing will go wrong!" And this went on for some time.

[@qtaro-7097]

Jordan Sipe ancient royalties in the nutshell

[@puritybenson5008]

European royal trash still holds the cake

[@mochi9043]

Lol Chinese emperor's had as many concubines as they want and you had to have the emperor's or else you'll fall out of favor. Just imagine the amount of kids. Not only that, 30+ women only making love to one man and only depending on that man is literally the recipe for jealousy. Secret plots, schemes, and anything of that sort was WAYYYYYY to common

[@BeeIncarnate]

“Already historians didn’t like her cause of all the murder and X chromosomes” 😂😂😂

[@lalakuma9]

That's Chinese patriarchy for you 🙃

[@UnbreakableRukawa]

It's the PaTriArChY 🙃

[@darknessml6145]

@@UnbreakableRukawa Well I mean IT was

[@kittycat5972]

Darkness ML no body cares love, you probably live in the west.

[@kos2919]

@@lalakuma9 and yet China actually had empress leaders. Now where's American female president?

[@canyounot2102]

“A lot of historian didn’t like her because of all her murders and X chromosomes” 😂 sad but true

[@Yceb0x]

Extra chromosomes ain’t good for anyone 😆

[@MaliaMelton]

@@Yceb0x it wasn't extra chromosomes they're saying they didn't like her because she was female

[@abcdef-cs1jj]

@@MaliaMelton And because of the murder and ursupation part I guess

[@MaliaMelton]

@@abcdef-cs1jj right but I was just explaining the x chromosomes part

[@Yceb0x]

Malia I thought that sounded like sarcasm when I wrote it. Reading it again it just sounds like I was either clueless or trying to be a smart alec

[@privatehudson516]

When she died, she left no words on her tombstone. Her tombstone was absolutely empty without a single word written on it because she was confident and curious about how the world in the future will view about her. At least she got balls compared to most other politicians in China and in the whole world

[@tombrown5235]

👏👏 preach

[@the_luckiest_charm]

No, they just left it blank because they hated her

[@BossALKENO]

Fierce

[@catboyuwu5361]

Yeah she's kinda a sociopath but isn't any other successful Chinese emperor the same really Edit: Chill out people this is just a joke why the hell are you arguing about US politics in the comments

[@muhammadnursyahmi9440]

The same can be said for their leader in present world.

[@catboyuwu5361]

@@muhammadnursyahmi9440 Can we enjoy something for once without bringing modern politics into it please

[@juliemcneely-kirwan9314]

The same is true of any leader or politician anywhere. The pursuit of power is pretty much a game only sociopaths can play.

[@xenteko7249]

@@juliemcneely-kirwan9314 Exactly.

[@motti6569]

And the few genuinely good people who rise to power (like President Carter who is basically a Saint) get attacked/bad history written about them because they weren't sociopaths

[@loren9636]

These pictures of the women are taken from the Chinese drama Wu Zetian/The Empress of China but the woman who you used as Wu is not actually her but the Consort Xiao in Emperor Gaozong’s harem (before Wu zetian became empress)

[@freelanceart1019]

Correct yeah

[@kayland.5724]

I knew I recognized those faces!

[@NaschAzure]

ok

[@TheNoirTrap]

I'm so triggered by the girl in the qipao ITS FROM A TOTALLY LATER ERA

[@loriarcher-2024]

yeah

[@Lucy-fn9rj]

“his wet nurse. at age 30.” is the funniest line i’ve ever heard

[@chiangchengkooi9791]

Lucy, for the Chinese the wet nurse are being treated as a mother, chinese call their wet nurse milk mother, and have respect for her too.

[@Lucy-fn9rj]

Al Debaran it’s a woman rich people would hire to breastfeed their babies

[@oliviamarcus5362]

There is actually a lot of history that suggests Wu was actually an amazing leader. That she gave her people freedom of religion, prosperity and gave equal rights. She was also believed to be an amazing tactician and helped keep her dynasty fed even during drought, by building amazing resins and built amazing architecture during her reign, that still stands during modern times. It's believed that because the men of that time hated that a woman was leader, that women and men had equal rights, commoners were welcomed into the magistrate to work for Wu and all religions were welcome, that here nay sayers in the court and royalty of the time worked very hard to sabotage her legacy. She left her tomb blank so people could write of her reign and it was left blank. There is a lot of anthropological evidence that suggests that many people tried to sabotage her and spread lies because they hated that she crushed the patriarchy, which at the time was even more hated then now, lol. Boss babe.

[@chas9196]

She was a great leader but still a bad person

[@minhkhangtran6948]

@@chas9196 Though so is every single Chinese emperor back then that worth the salt, so per the context of the time she's a typical emperor that end up being great. She is bad, but so is everyone in the court there, and it's more of a symptoms of just how cutt-throat and corrupt it political intrigue were.

[@spicyluci6247]

@@chas9196 It depends on your definition or standard for being a "bad person".

[@unbeknownstsoul9240]

Yeah the patriarchy is sooo bad NOW 😢😢😢😢, I can't even imagine what it was like up to a thousand years ago....

[@condorX2]

@@chas9196 she rule for 50 or 80 years.. I forgot. Dornsome reason, I'm glad she killed all her rivals or kins. Its better to killed a few hundred over a millions from never ending civil wars from incompetence Emperors.

[@LisaBowers]

Wu Zetian had *two paramours* while she was in her seventies? That alone should have been a _monument-worthy_ accomplishment! 🥳

[@aleksandarvil5718]

Wu Zetian was *DIRTY OLD COUGAR*

[@kahlilg9824]

Aleksandar Vil Empress: speaking of dirty… *moments later* 🍆🍑🍆

[@ValensBellator]

Seriously, someone go carve that onto her monument.

[@yusuffulat6954]

I mean, I doubt they had much choice in the matter.

[@seneca983]

@@yusuffulat6954: Based on this video it seems they did have a choice and rather were gold diggers, though ones that wanted power rather than (just) wealth.

[@sparklethefarkle]

Wu zetain in Chinese means “comes from the gods” and is the name given to her by the people. Her preferred name was zhao meaning sun and moon. So basically her preferred name meant “I am the moon and the starts and I am everything”

[@ValensBellator]

Lol I like this woman. I mean, killing your kids and seemingly hundreds of others isn’t great, but DIFFERENT TIMES MAN :D

[@ahripark2593]

ValensBellator she killed people who were against her. No different from any emperor or conqueror. People are much more harsh on her because she’s a woman.

[@ValensBellator]

Ahri Park I think people are harsh on her because of how cruel she was with her kids. Such cruelty was so commonplace among fathers in royal/noble circles across the globe that people hardly blink an eye when they hear of it, but that sort of behavior from a mother is less common and seems to be far more taboo. Really, both should be super taboo, but one is so prevalent historically that it hardly warrants a footnote. Not saying that’s fair heh

[@paulfu6475]

Ahri Park yah think those emperors who kill their opponents for funzies are any more popular with historians??

[@clod8]

Funny how places where women had the least power they resort to the craziest shit

[@makinapacal]

Actually you are absolutely right. Traditional Chinese Historians really, really hated Wu Zetain because she was a woman and that violated their Confucian precepts about how the World "should" operate. The result is that a great deal of the stuff written about her came out of malice and black washing. For example you mention her murdering or forcing to suicide her own children. Well I should point out all of that is very, very dubious although it is very, very juicy melodrama. It is likely she did not kill directly or indirectly any of her own children or grandchildren.It is also possible that Wu Zetain's reign of terror was also exaggerated. although I should point out that a Woman becoming "Emperor" was unprecedented, (And not repeated in Chinese Imperial History.), so Wu Zetain ruthlessly supressing enemies, real or not, makes sense in context.As for her relation with Gao-Tzu, it seems likely that traditional Chinese historians exaggerated Wu Zetain's dominance of him. As it is Wu Zetain because she was a woman, triggered among traditional Confucian Chinese Historians a wave of hysteria and rage that led to a outpouring of malicious hate.

[@davidtay787]

Bravo. We shared same sentiments and frankly speaking I don't believe she had killed her own sons. It's just unbelievable if a mum of that level of ruthless could run a vast country so efficiently and benevolence to her people. This is paradox

[@s.m.2523]

Being (somewhat) anti confussian and pro bhudist didn't do her any favor with ancient scholars either. That said, while we'll never know for sure, I wouldn't be that surprised if she had sent a few one get killed. Dealing with overly ambitious familly meebers was pretty standard pratcice for emperors. It is good to recognize she was likely discrimnated upon for being a woman, then a budhist and genraly shaking things around but let's not fall into the opposite extreme of angelifying her either. She certainely did something right for sure (and likely had a bit of a ruthless streak too) to last this long but separating fact from fictions when it come to her is hard, heavily romanticized or demonized as she's been.

[@indahf.freztiyana824]

TV Series: Just One More Episode... Book: Just One More Page... Chocolate: Just One More Piece... ... Wu Zetian: *Just One More Royal Killings...*

[@wooby4104]

@Tricia Pan you clearly don't know what sexism is

[@wooby4104]

@Tricia Pan explain how this post was sexist then. I can't wait to hear what bs argument you devise.

[@wooby4104]

@Tricia Pan so let me get this straight. you're angry _because_ a woman was notable in history and her actions were considered to be more worthy of being recorded and remembered, rather than dozens of men who did similar things? you're the definition of backwards. if you're angry about a _terrible_ woman being "singled out" from men to be remembered in history over them, I bet you were _pissed_ when amazing women like Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks were "singled out" over the black men that also suffered, protested, and advocated for civil rights like they did, but were lesser known and celebrated also, of course historians hated Wu Zetian. she did what she did to survive at first, but then she did terrible things to gain power. are you trying to say we should praise her for being a psychopathic megalomaniac? and also, no, I'm not even a dude. also, that thing about your mom made zero sense lol and you still didn't explain how this person's specific joke comment, that you commented on, was sexist, you just talked about the video.

[@wooby4104]

@Tricia Pan also, your statement about Wu Zetian is, by definition, an opinion. you don't know the difference between facts and opinions either.

[@wooby4104]

@Tricia Pan the only person saying things like "women and commoners can't have a better life" and "we should bow down and lick men's boots" is you. no one else is saying or implying things like that except you. it's like you _want_ to be a victim. what evidence do you have that she _didn't_ do all of the terrible things historians claimed she did? if your only argument is that "it was written by men, so it's lies" then you're also sexist. sexism goes both ways. you're part of the problem. sexism is, by definition, discrimination and/or oppression against a specific sex. telling a woman "you're a woman so that means you're lying" is sexist and wrong, and telling a man "you're a man so that means you're lying" is also sexist and wrong. the goal should be equality, treating both sexes as equals, not having one be superior over the other. also, about that example with your mom, don't pretend you know me. if a girl's brother does something wrong and he's the only one at fault, the brother should be the only one punished. if you see your mother in every comment that has a different opinion than you, you should see a therapist about that. maybe some things were made up by historians, fine, I'll give you that. even the video itself stated that there's no trustworthy accounts of Wu Zetian because too many of them had false information. and she did try to do good things for commoners by making things available to them, like a higher education, but they couldn't afford a higher education anyway because they had to provide for their families by doing manual labor and they were barely paid enough to afford food. it would've been more helpful if she changed the economy so that commoners had better wages, so they'd have better odds against the upper-class. why do you think the dynasties in China had to deal with so many rebellions? because poor people were sick of being treated unfairly. if a vendor says "I'll start offering this thing to poor people, even though they can't afford it, I won't lower my prices, and I won't do anything to help them be able to afford it", that doesn't help poor people and that makes the vendor look naive, if not downright stupid. also, lower-class men were also treated like garbage by the upper class and didn't receive any benefits, not just lower-class women. sexism absolutely existed at the time and women in particular were absolutely abused and treated unfairly, but that doesn't mean that they're the _only_ ones who suffered _in general_ and that everyone else was living the high life. in those times, if you weren't absurdly rich, you were struggling to feed your family by the day. and before you say it, yes, I'm aware that many women also did backbreaking manual labor to take care of their families, I'm talking about them too. a corrupt economy doesn't care what's in your pants, it will still be corrupt because it's controlled by corrupt people.

[@adolfhitlerssingleballsack7682]

Damn ancient China was intense lol

[@tiffanyh629]

All of Europe's problems are just child's play to ancient China lmao

[@baothanquang1648]

Ancient China only? May I introduce you to June 4th, 1989

[@MishaFlower]

@@baothanquang1648 The day nothing happened.

[@supermouse73]

Bao Than Quang There was never a problem on that day, pssshhhh

[@nawtilismaelis2043]

@@tiffanyh629 Wrong. Go read about the Hundred Years War, the War of the Roses, or the machinations of the Italian city states and you will see that Chinese history is nothing special in that regard.

[@thitipongsrisombut6607]

Actually, the fourth son (the one who got dethrone) got the last laugh. He become the next emperor.

[@eleethtahgra7182]

Its the best of all the bad possible solution for the country. Him ruling means lineage legitimacy. Back then, people seldom challenge lineage legitimacy...and they probably proclaim that hes the son from both the empress and the deceased emperor. With all that...power, wealth, influence, almost-god-like-status, those two brothers would probably want the throne themselves. Thus...the officials...after experiencing the previous take over, opt for the one with least possible negative impact on the country.

[@henrywong2725]

Yeah the third son got so poisoned

[@zzzstl6371]

The fourth son is not capable and he relied on his queen Wei, his daughter Anle princess, and his son Li Longji too much, Wei wanted to be the second empress after Wu, then she killed the crown prince, wiped many forces against her, and gave power to her brother and Anle princess. Li Longji became the crown prince after Wei killed the last prince and he knew what would happen to him, so he planned carefully and finally killed Wei and her party, he became the crown prince and finally poisoned his former ally and biggest challenger Taiping princess, then he forced his father to demise the position. Li Longji was the winner and brought Tang to its peak, but also made the dynasty start to fall when he was old. So what is the fourth son's life? His mother viewed him as a placeholder, his wife killed his son, controlled the empire and he was just a puppet, his two daughters also wanted to become the next empress and didn't care what he thought. His son killed his wife and daughters and forces him to give up the power. The country was in chaos because of the chaos in the royal court. Compare to his mother and his son, he was basically a failure. The great emperors, Li Shimin, Wu Zetian, and Li Longji, in the Tang dynasty, all killed a lot of family members to gain power.

[@sherenewong3406]

“Once upon a time there was a little girl who was dearly loved by his father ... then he shoved her into a carriage to the palace and probably never saw her again in his life” Well that escalated quickly...

[@Izzzzzzzzaaa]

😂😂

[@hudajama5822]

her died before she was sent to the palace

[@angelabby2379]

This history is really really interesting Fun fact : 1. Wu ze tian actually has close connection to the imperial clan through her mother noble status 2. Her mother lady Yang ( the surname of the imperial family of sui dynasty) has an incestous relationship with her grandson 3. Wu ze tian grew up rich but when her father died, her two stepbrothers kicked her and her mother out and therefore she entered the palace as concubine ( like cinderella ) 4. Empress wu ze tian always accompany her husband everywhere when he is travelling, because gaozong likes to travel a lot 5. The pagoda that she had rebuilt, is actually built by her husband emperor gaozong in honor of his mother empress zhangsun, but its ruined by earthquake and by this time emperor gaozong had already passed away. So wu ze tian didnt just rebuilt it but also add 3 more storey to the pagoda Edit : 6. Apparently the pagoda is so expensive to build that emperor gaozong auctioned off a lot of jewelry from the previous emperor's concubine (who in that time had to become a nun once the emperor died, including wu ze tian), so yeah building this pagoda is not cheap so to rebuilt it must be really expensive

[@--Lissy]

Woah-

[@sugarmelody4264]

How dare you!! you can't just pop up in my recommendation with such a good content

[@briannixielosy9298]

.

[@Christian-rn1ur]

Ha, this is Chinese history in a nutshell. Emperor usurped power as literally every other emperor in history has ever done and actually did a pretty good job of it, bit because they weren't the right kind of emperor, they're the bad guy...Because reasons. Should have professed her loyalty to the Han.

[@UnbreakableRukawa]

I mean the fact that we did have accounts of her good works goes to show that is not entirely true. Just like all of history, there are the more popular historians that had rich sponsors vs historians that tried to keep account of truth and suffered because of that. Look at medieval history and despite the relative uniformity, most modern historians find that it is quite biased in its telling of nobility, knighthood and religion - because the monks tend to be ones that wrote the records since they could read/write.

[@TheGreatHotDogConsumer]

I’m waiting for cringe triggered Chinese people

[@cutienerdgirl]

I mean SHE KILLED HER OWN CHILDREN!! Horrible women.

[@m.h2247]

Can I get 110 subs for no reason Of course there are records of her good work, but her reputation over history until today is still terrible. People will call her a terrible mother and a cruel human being before calling her a typical emperor. In the western world this seems a little different though, but until the drama The empress of China, most series/documentaries about her depicted her under a negative light, and barely mentioned her contributions.

[@m.h2247]

Brittany Bennett yes, and other world leaders got to their thrones by democratic elections I suppose? EVERYONE was like this! In Europe or in China, everywhere. In China the run for power was even more cruel and filled with schemes, as the crown prince most of the time wasn’t decided upon birth but by skills. She did exactly what other rulers did, the only reason she’s being pin pointed as the bad guy is because of her gender. NOT SAYING what she did is moral or fair. I’m just saying that either you blame their whole world and all of their leaders, or you blame none.

[@sheepniniii7418]

"History's worst mom" Me:c'mon she can't b worse than danielle Cohn's mom tho

[@aradhyachoudhury3602]

Danielle is alive.. That's the difference, 😂here you go.

[@JoshuaLo2732]

Makes sense

[@AudieHolland]

@@aradhyachoudhury3602 And what a life she is living! Not at all her mother's puppet/plaything.

[@aradhyachoudhury3602]

@@AudieHolland.. Danielle still has chances to atleast change her life, she is alive. If she wants she can..moreover, her mom is not an powerful empress who can take people's life with flick of her hands and no one can stop her .

[@sunniallwein86]

She survived and in that time, that's everything! She was literally a self mad boss! She learned how to use her only weapons and tools! I'm not mad, get them sis🙌

[@MilleniumActress]

Well that happened. At least she knew how to rule.

[@darthslackus499]

Certainly, not mother of the year, but she did get a monument instead of a trophy.

[@appreciatoor]

2 minutes in and already two mistakes: 1) Gaozong唐高宗was not bad at this job, in fact, he was one of the best emperors of Tang dynasty. The media and fictions tend to portray him as someone who is cowardly and afraid of his wife (Wu Zetian), but under his reign, Tang dynasty accumulated wealth and won a few critical battles against external enemies. Gaozong was also a great strategist, some historians speculate Gaozong knows that Wu killed the little daughter, but he pretended to not know it and punished his ex Empress (Empress Wang). Why? Because Wang came from one of the most powerful political houses(五姓七望） and Gaozong wanted to eradicate those old power clans （关陇贵族）. So Wu was just used as a tool to eliminate Gaozong's political enemies, while she gets a bad rep, Gaozong remains the benevolent ''nice guy'' emperor. 2) 2:19 No she was NOT called ''Wu Zhao （武曌）'' at that time. The name Wu Zhao was a made-up name that Wu came up with herself, muuuuch later in her life. The character 曌 is literally ''a sun and a moon over the sky'', Wu meant that she was the sun she was the moon shining over the Tang dynasty's sky. Wu had no audacity to call herself Zhao that early in her political life.

[@informitas0117]

"Who graciously killed themselves for her"

[@user-sq3ke5nz3l]

...And then she developed chu-ko-nus, sent both Washington and Bismarck back into the stone age with her superior military power, befriended the city States and won a decisive cultural victory before 2120. Oh wait, that was my Civ V campaign.

[@redhidinghood9337]

Lol for a moment i thought you were talking about real life lol. Love playing her in civ v

[@muhammadnursyahmi9440]

Damn shame she always denounced me so quickly in the game, i would love to work together with her.

[@EsotericBibleSecrets]

Took a long time, but she finally offered friendship to Alexander the great, all the while he is killing off the Buddhist Iqoquis, and other civilizations, while simultaneously buying a city state from Babylon, liberating it, going to war with Babylon, and seeing it captured over and over again, wiping his way across the map, but everyone is friendly with only "Early concerns."

[@shithappens6887]

I always play Japan, and just like in real history, I wipe the floor with the Chinese. I start as soon as I decide I have enough of a tech lead and solid economy. China has good military power and I don't wanna deal with a bunch of citadels.

[@JimboShogun0686]

Figured you was talking about a Civ game lol

[@claudeyaz]

The consorts and their fathers were closely tied. New vs old nobility. And generals sisters/daughters were essentially hostages. The emperor rarely let their kids live for fear of taking power. It was honestly smart. Like tokugawa japan. where daimyos family were essentially hostages in the capital

[@BJGvideos]

Why even have kids then? I mean, adopting heirs was a thing.

[@axelpatrickb.pingol3228]

@@BJGvideos Preserving bloodlines and the will of god and things like that...

[@peiranzhang4283]

@@BJGvideos no condoms, so what happens when you didn't pull out in time.

[@dyliscairofoon9678]

@@peiranzhang4283, There is abortion medicine that would be given ,or other concubines would do it . Miscarriages and child deaths were suuuuper common in the palace .

[@peiranzhang4283]

@@dyliscairofoon9678 Yes, but many of those abortion herbs also sometimes kill the mother. And also not aborting a child was considered bad, because in confusion values, not having an heir, even as a peasant is considered shaming your ancestors.

[@kerol5905]

5:40 They didn't like her not because of her deeds, but because she was a woman. Damn, what she did wasn't any worse than what those who came before and after her did as emperor (infact, because an emperor have many sons from different wives/concubines, it was common that the sons closer to the throne would kill each other or those who had more favors from the emperor etc. Sometimes even those with the same mother would kill each other....) And her reign was considered to be the peak of the Tang dynasty's golden age. They were afraid that her existence and memory could be a precedent that threatens their patriarchal society or as I call it the "supremacy of their balls". Men back then were so insecure of themselves seriously (though admittedly, even to this day, there are still men like that unfortunately. Especially here on youtube, all hiding behind their laptops...).

[@stephenjenkins7971]

I just find it hilarious that she fell for the same trick that she played on someone else. Still, she seemed to be an effective Empress so no complaints from me.

[@proud2bpagan]

And I thought the Celts having a law that said that the first wife could legally murder her competition within a certain time period was cold..Offing your competition in the cradle...that's O.G.

[@theren2486]

kill someone is not ''O.G.''

[@mazimadu]

"she fell from grace in the most ironic way possible" I almost thought they pushed her off that pagoda you showed earlier

[@Mr.PepeSilvia]

To be fair wet nurses give the best advice.

[@peiranzhang4283]

Wet Nurse:"Your majesty, you need to take sometime off, working hard is bad" Queen Mother: "HOW DARE YOU, TIME TO DIE"

[@SquigglyWigglyPigs]

4:38 "Ruled with the terror of Secret Police" Love this detail!!

[@zennoix9984]

I love how Avatar and Legend of Korra are actually hinting at China's governments' governance such as: *-Dai Li* (History: After the Kuomintang (KMT) regained full control of mainland China, they deployed secret police to arrest separatists and communists, sometimes even executing them without trial. After the CCP beat the KMT and took control of mainland China, they also deployed secret police to arrest or execute corrupted officials, counter-revolutionists, right-wingers and any people the CCP deemed as threats to the party's rule.) *-Kuvira's desire to unify Zaofu and Republic City with the Earth Empire as they were formerly lands that belonged to the Earth Kingdom* (Like what China wanna do with HK and Taiwan today.)

[@quadeevans6484]

@@zennoix9984 also you forgot that a smaller nation like japan(fire nation) was able to defeat china(earth kingdom) due to internal instablility

[@juanavargas7562]

1:01 "Once the emperor was counting worms" that made me laugh. I saw the title and I was all excited. In my communications class in college we were told to write a speech of someone or something interesting. And I picked to do mine on Wu Zetian. So far everything is practically the same as what I found in my research. Though there was one thing I didn't know, well two things. That one listened to his wetnurse and wife. And the last one. I loved the way you narrated the whole thing.

[@kolbyking2315]

Ah, the loli empress from Fate Grand Order, cool.

[@eliesh3833]

Ah yes, the same game/anime franchise that turns King Arthur into some Celtic blonde chick with an American accent... ...and also has far too many versions of the same characters and story to even count...

[@Sleepyhead156]

@Deserve Not Desire agreed

[@luizfelipevbf5567]

@@eliesh3833 i currently count 12 variants of Artoria (King Arthur Girl) Artoria Artoria Alter Artoria Lily Lancer Artoria Lancer Artoria Alter Archer Artoria Santa Artoria Alter Rider Artoria Alter Mysterious Heroine X Mysterious Heroine X Alter Mysterious Heroine XX Arthur There's still Mordred but she's just her clone/"son"/daughter/knight

[@eliesh3833]

@@luizfelipevbf5567 Still... it's pretty absurd how many versions of Artoria and other characters there are. Don't get me wrong, I do like some of the anime. In fact I thought Unlimited Bladeworks was pretty good. (I don't care too much about being spoiled of the other series since I'm more of a casual viewer. But I still liked it.) But let's be honest here. This franchise was blown more out of proportion than it needed to be. And of course, the portrayal of certain historical figures and legends is rather odd (and of course historically inaccurate.) Although I don't put too much judgement on that since it's fantasy fiction, and creators can do whatever they want with fiction. In fact, I did like the way Iskandar (Alexander the Great) was portrayed in Fate: Zero. I thought it was a great fictional portrayal of a fictional version of the character, even if it was obviously nothing like the real person who existed. But yeah, I guess the Fate series is something to be interpreted in many ways. There are alternate timelines and parallel universes. I doubt there is a "right way" to enjoy the storylines or the characters. As I said, it's all fiction.

[@elijakiger]

@@luizfelipevbf5567 Despite having the most amount of servants, she does not play a major role in any singularity that we've seen so far, unless you think her role in Fuyuki *was* important

[@Linfamy]

Succession by lover is underrated

[@Linfamy]

@Drakon590 oh hello. Why are you stalking me tho.. 😨

[@ericfeng8246]

The story of her childhood is pretty important, if I remember correctly, her father died early, her brothers from another mother treated her, her sister and her mother very poorly. And the history of childhood abuses created the one and only female emperor in the Chinese history.

[@d.laveyyy]

@Jennifer Diaz didnt they try to poison her when she became emperess or some shit and she tricked them lol or that mightve been a story to boost her rep idk

[@mihnma]

I'm fascinated on how Wu Zetian of China, Catherine I and Catherine II of Russia, and (probably?) Empress Theodora became monarchs, even though they had no claim to their respective thrones. Also, could you make a video on the latter 3? Their stories are so amazing.

[@hitormisslol7067]

I was talking about my mom being the worst and then suddenly this shows up Idk i think the FBI is listening to me or is it just google

[@loveislove2359]

Your mom can't be the worst mom, at least you're alive, think about Caylee Anthony.

[@dragonbutler8325]

It’s both

[@floris.927]

One school of modern historians examined the rise of Empress Wu against broader struggles between different factions of nobility - in particular the founding families of Tang (represented by Empress Wang and the Chancellor) and lesser nobility and gentry (represented by Wu whose father was a lumber merchant-made duke). In this school, Gaozong was much more politically apt than traditionally given credit for because he promoted Wu to control the power of old nobility and improve imperial power. Heavier use of Keju Exam also fit into this scheme because it allowed well-educated gentry with no noble connection and family interest to serve in the government.

[@freelanceart1019]

Keju examinations

[@floris.927]

FreelanceArt101 = Chinese imperial examinations

[@freelanceart1019]

@@floris.927 sound easier to remember.

[@TheBackupUp]

I'd like to say something as an update. Recently well between 2019 and 2020 some scientists have discovered that Wu Zetian was actually a really good emperor and was the most powerful,great, and wise ruler of her time. She had built a city that was basically modern day wuhan (beside the fact that there aren't actual modern buildings) , she had opened up China's gates and political offices to commoners and foreigners gainging support from all around the world. You can learn more about her in this small docuseries about herkzbin.info/www/bejne/l5a9aJiporaWo5Y

[@chas9196]

Still evil but was a great leader

[@spicyluci6247]

@@chas9196 You can't just identify someone as "evil". Some of the things she did could've been considered "evil", but at the time, it might have been for the best. Nobody is evil. There are two sides to a story.

[@theren2486]

@@spicyluci6247 kill her own baby and kill many people is for me the perfect definition of evil :)

[@spicyluci6247]

@@theren2486 Well, that's up to you then.

[@theren2486]

@@spicyluci6247 idk what is your definition of evil...

[@tishaw.8254]

I’m so glad this was recommended! Why haven’t I seen this before, it’s right up my alley

[@renzoianm.cancer5396]

I’ve literally been on the alert since the past upload! Cheers to this and others to come!

[@LuinTathren]

I'm so glad I found this channel. Thanks!

[@124VAM]

I learned more from you than I have from 4 years of history teachers in high school! This is my first video from you, but you have earned yourself a new subscriber!

[@icw3is]

Someone should make a TV show about this, it'd be the Chinese game of thrones.

[@arhys_shana]

There is a tv drama on this

[@kamveng453]

There are already plenty of Chinese dramas that has the same plot as GoT, and most of them came first.

[@sandyl8454]

Haha there already are plenty. And there are many more about women/consorts from other dynasties/eras too. If there is one genre of drama that the Chinese excel in, it is the period and historical, game of thrones type of drama.

[@jackni2435]

There are already too much of this kind of drama TV shows

[@bowmanc.7439]

As it has been said, there is an entire genre of TV drama in china called “宫斗剧” meaning “drama about palace infighting” because apparently when you marry 3 main wives with their own palaces, 12 wives with their own yards, and 72 sex servants. Many from powerful families. These women will kill each other, each other’s babies and slander. And it’s not like it’s easy for the emperor. Most of the times, the emperor is forced to mate with his wives in certain order on certain days, with eunuchs outside the window recording every detail so that if the wife becomes pregnant, they get more data. All of these are done to ensure the bloodline continues healthily. The emperor is like a male pig in a experimental farm trying to breed more and better pigs. (Of course that’s not always the case, some emperors are more relaxed, and receive less orders, mostly due to them being the first or the more chaotic part of the bloodline)

[@HoH]

Was looking forward to this upload! (And the great farming animation)

[@NoraVonYT]

Okay but the freaking squeak toy sound effect when the dead baby hit the ground made me laugh out loud. I might be going to hell for that, but this video was well-produced and really awesome to watch! Thank you for making it and sharing it.

[@JackRackam]

You have no idea how much I appreciate knowing that people enjoy those little finishing touches. Thanks for watching!

[@abcdefoff3307]

This is probably going to be my favourite channel for a loooonnnggg time.

[@anonymous-fm9wp]

I must say that this was one of the most informative yet entertaining videos I have seen in the last seven(?) years

[@criss1461]

Good content, entertaining, educational, good humour and quality editing. Well havent seen that one in a while on yt. Here sir have a sub!

[@HistoryHouseProductions]

*Flashbacks to OSP video intensify*

[@youdontevengohere9858]

This is my first time watching a video of yours. Love the way you tell a story! SUBSCRIBED!

[@mizbuggy]

You are so much fun. I'm not sure I'm going too retain 99% of that but what the heck - it was fun. And I can always rewatch. Please keep posting videos.

[@jeromydoerksen2603]

Jack, you're a maniac. My favourite new subscription since Adam Neely. You deserve it, buddy. Well played.

[@aleksandarvil5718]

Westeros and Rest of Planetos: *"We Have Game of Thrones!"* Imperial China: LMFAO 😆😂 *"HOLD MY RICE 🍙🍚🥡AND TEA 🍵🍵🍵🍵!!!"*

[@Mokona127]

I just today stumbled across this channel and I am already done bingewatching it

[@Iamrightandyouarewrong51]

My new favorite KZbinr! I was cracking up. Love your videos!

[@christinenayshsuarez6046]

Lol I love this channel 😂 too badass "... baby daughter was sleeping...she offly quiet... yeah, and they didnt have a baby daughter anymore..." 😂

[@ididask1357]

Besides killing her own fam, she was actually a really great leader and knew how to take care of her people. She encouraged women to become entrepreneurs and divorce their husbands to marry someone they actually loved

[@justanotherhappyhumanist8832]

Just found this channel - KZbin recommendations did well this time! One video in and I've subscribed. I look forward to seeing you're other videos! You definitely deserve more subscribers than you have, so I'm going to assume that you're fairly new at this...I expect to at least 100,000 more by the end of the year!

[@mhare8024]

Ok how have I never heard of your channel? This was hilariously awesome! Instant subscription!

[@dustheap4038]

Emperor Wu Zetian's eye for talent and managerial prowess was obviously demonstrated by her use of the inimitable Judge Dee. I just noticed that two movies in the series have come out since the 'Mystery of the Phantom Flame', my god how did I miss that, what have I been doing?

[@JackRackam]

Wait, I knew Judge Dee was set in the Tang dynasty, but during Wu Zetian's reign? That's a hell of a crossover

[@dustheap4038]

@@JackRackam They had a rocky relationship. He was like, stop killing all these people and she was like, yea no. The real historical figure was apparently Di Renjie but good luck separating myth from reality.

[@JackRackam]

Oh, I actually cheated a bit and used pictures of Di Renjie to represent the guys that brought her down from power! Should've put two and two together there

[@ashleyyang8565]

In china, there’s a whole bunch of mystery dramas starring Di Renjie, and Wu is always a prominent character (cause she’s his boss). Although all those dramas had some pretty paranormal plots, and the acting is just soooo corny. It’s a fun campy time. Highly recommend.

[@wulozhiro6009]

This explains alot about my fathers side of the family.

[@mechannel7046]

LOL!

[@LingLing-pn3us]

Wu Lo Zhiro 🤪😂🤣

[@JimboShogun0686]

Found in my recommendation, watched video, loved the content and now subbed

[@ILovHelloKitty13]

0:59 jfc I just found your channel and I’m laughing out loud already. Your articulation is impeccable

[@mhgirl01]

I really love your videos! Would love to see one on Hürrem Hatun of Ottoman Empire or maybe Kösem Hatun. They were both very interesting figures.

[@rainmeh4255]

Why have I not seen this type of video before?! It's amazing!!! Keep up the copy and paste theme! :D

[@MDZS101]

I’m so glad I stumbled on this channel this dude’s absolutely hilarious!

[@JackRackam]

I'm glad you stumbled here too!

[@richeybaumann1755]

I found your channel through OSP's history of China series. I didn't realize until just now that that video contained an entire one of yours.

[@silversweet9211]

I would love to see you do a video about Lady Murasaki, the writer of the Tale of Genji, the world's first novel.

[@freelanceart1019]

World's first Erotic novel

[@aryanakhouzani1262]

Actually she never killed any of her children because the records saying she killed her children was 400 years after her death because they didtn like that a women was in power and was successful during her reign please look it up she aint a sociopath lmao| There are many documentaries about wu zetian maybe watch one first before you make a video about allegations with allegedly no proof at all -.-

[@gloriawang5608]

Aryana Khouzani I know right I watched this video and was annoyed because he casts Wu Zetian in such a bad light but she was actually a good person and great empress

[@sabrina1380m]

No she is, She killed the previous concubines out of jealousy and hen newborn baby and the long list goes on

[@gloriawang5608]

@@sabrina1380m There is more behind the story though. Of course she killed concubines that makes sense. She never killed any of her own children unless they tried to usurp her though. This video makes it seem like she was a crazy bloodthirsty lady.

[@chas9196]

@@gloriawang5608 she one of china's greatest rulers but she was still evil like any other emperor

[@spicyluci6247]

@@chas9196 Again, it depends on your definition of "evil". To others, it could appear for the greater good, in opposite, it could be for the worst.

[@meulinlejion1774]

Yes! I love history, Im so glad I found your channel!!

[@EyeLean5280]

Wonderful!!! Thank you for this!

[@QueenNyrak]

I KNEW there was a reason why I liked her so much in Civ 5

[@WasntYourFaultYouHaveToLetMeGo]

Wu Zetian might be a bad mom, but man her Doujins are the bomb.

[@heatherdolegowski1628]

I’m new to this channel but I love it so much already! Keep it up! ❤️

[@RootcityMusic]

wow nice format, quick an snappy, i like it!

[@lacountess]

OMG I laughed more than I should have at the list of dead sons XD

[@ShiroiFunBun]

Fate/GO brought me here, and I wasnt disappointed

[@rainierjudedandoy5455]

Shiroi Kouu We shall graciously give our Empress Headpats

[@RibbonVintageGirl]

The editing is top notch!

[@sarah3796]

This is awesome! Thank you!

[@michelsand5399]

Posting a video from another video...clever jack.

[@chykim1]

😐😐

[@JackRackam]

I stole from myself... he never saw it coming

[@redhidinghood9337]

The first line of the video really says what made her the way she is. She was a poor village girl and her dad always forced to study and prepare for being a concubine, sending her off at a yong age, she probably never developed a real relationship with him which made her cold-blooded

[@redhidinghood9337]

Correction: I just read her wikipedia page and damn i was wrong. She was born into a rich family and provided education for by her father. Her father encouraged her learning about politics and government in an age when it was unheard of for women. She was raised to become great. What a boss.

[@lyzhongo5766]

Idk why this was on my recommendations but I'm here anyways without any regrets. Great video!

[@HistoryandHeadlines]

Well done on the various animations! :)

[@lisalin137]

Taking her daughter's life is actually just one of the many theories. Of course, this is the most controversial one and thus often highlighted in movies and dramas about her.

[@coltoncurlee2423]

I’ve been meaning to look her up more, thanks. An interesting character for sure.

[@perfectstudents8361]

Watch "Empress of China" drama starring the beautiful Fan Bingbing on youtube. It's a wonderful series.

[@Lilyyaa]

watch Xiran Jay Zhao videos on her its more accurate in my opinion

[@yumi-fn8ve]

the animation is *AMAZING*

[@idahagglund524]

Love storytime videos like these. You got a sub.

[@Darkshadow-ll8ge]

King : look like I got cold Her : *I'm about to end this man whole career*

[@microwave4563]

Nice Dai Li reference. Subbed

[@ahripark2593]

I’ve loved wu zeitian’s story since I was a little kid. Pretty happy there’s videos about her on KZbin.

[@ntujlubkuamuag2050]

Thank you for explaining it to the point I actually understand.

[@NihilsineDeo1866.]

congratulations to the 10 thousand subscribers!

[@prestonsmith9450]

And well-deserved at that

[@JackRackam]

Thanks! I love that each video gets so many comments these days

[@itstadiwa284]

4:04 The way you tell this story bra, I can't stop laughing🤣🤣🤣🤭🤭🤭

[@khongmaithikhog5624]

4:39 more laugh

[@danielhale1]

Ah, this was on Blue's video! I thought this seemed familiar. I think I found your channel through OSP, and I'm having a great time here!

[@Mona-sg8ec]

This is really funny 😂 I was more interested in how you are telling the story than the story itself 👌