Empress Ma (馬皇后, personal name unknown; late 30s – August 16, 79 ), formally Empress Mingde (明德皇后, literally, "the understanding and virtuous empress"), was an empress during the Eastern Han dynasty from 8 April 60 until 75, then empress dowager from that year till her death. Her husband was Emperor Ming of Han .
41-561: (Redirected from Empress Dowager Ma ) Empress Ma or Empress Dowager Ma may refer to: Empress Ma (Han dynasty) (40–79), empress of Emperor Ming of Han, empress dowager during Emperor Zhang's reign Empress Dowager Ma (Former Liang) (died 362), mother of Zhang Chonghua Empress Ma (Southern Han) (died 935), empress of Liu Yan (Emperor Gaozu of Southern Han) Empress Ma (Northern Han) , empress of Liu Jiyuan (Emperor Yingwudi of Northern Han ) Empress Ma (Hongwu) (1332–1382), empress of
82-464: A co-conspirator was arrested and further tortured and interrogated. The interrogators themselves used this opportunity to falsely accuse many others of conspiracy. Tens of thousands of people died, either of torture or execution, during the investigation. Only after Empress Ma's intercession and persuasive petitions by one of the interrogators, Han Lang ( 寒朗 ), did the interrogations taper off. A similar incident happened in 73, when Prince Yan of Huaiyang
123-462: A correct major decision in Han's relationship with Xiongnu . By that point, Xiongnu had a civil war and divided themselves into two side—with North Xiongnu ruled by Chanyu Punu ( 蒲奴 ) and South Xiongnu ruled by Chanyu Bi ( 比 ). Han had become allied with South Xiongnu, and in response, Chanyu Punu, also wanting peace with Han, requested a heqin marriage. Prince Zhuang suggested that Emperor Guangwu refuse
164-549: A major expedition against North Xiongnu. They only had minor successes, but it demonstrated to North Xiongnu that Han was now in a position to strike back. Dou, as part of his campaign, sent his assistant Ban Chao to visit the Xiyu (modern Xinjiang and former Soviet central Asia ) kingdom of Shanshan (on the eastern edge of the Taklamakan Desert . (Xiyu kingdoms had long submitted to North Xiongnu's authority, and unable to bear
205-578: A major military expedition against a major remaining ally of North Xiongnu, Cheshi (roughly modern Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture , Xinjiang ). Cheshi submitted, and at Dou's suggestion, the office of the Protector General of Xiyu ( 都護 ) was reinstituted. A North Xiongnu expedition in 75 to recapture Cheshi was repelled by Geng Gong ( 耿恭 ), one of the deputies of the protector general. In 75, Emperor Ming died. His will ordered that no temple be built for him, and that he only be worshipped as part of
246-523: A member of a noble family. In 49, however, things would change. Ma, while on expedition against the Wulin tribes (in modern eastern Guizhou and northwestern Hunan ), died during the campaign from a plague, which also killed a large number of his soldiers. After his death, Ma's deputy Geng Shu (耿舒), who had disagreed with Ma's strategy, and Emperor Guangwu's son-in-law Liang Song (梁松), who had prior grudges against Ma, falsely accused Ma of many crimes—most of which
287-519: A mulberry garden for silkworms, which became a fairly productive industry for the imperial household. In her spare time, she often discussed important matters of state with Emperor Zhang and taught his sons the Confucian classics – particularly the Analects of Confucius . In 79, over Empress Dowager Ma's objection, Emperor Zhang created his uncles marquesses. However, under pressure from the empress dowager,
328-665: A son in Liu Jiang ( 劉疆 ), so Emperor Guangwu made Consort Guo empress and Prince Jiang crown prince in 26. However, Prince Yang's birth in AD 28 was still considered a major event. In AD 39, Emperor Guangwu created all of his sons, other than Crown Prince Jiang, dukes, and Prince Yang was made the Duke of Donghai. He quickly became known for his intelligence even in his young age, and he often made quick judgments of situations that turned out to be correct. Emperor Guangwu became very impressed with him. At
369-673: A son of another noble family, the Dous. The Dous began to have second thoughts of the marriage, believing that Lady Ma was no longer worthy to marry their son. Ma's cousin Ma Yan (馬嚴) and mother Lady Lin were angered by the Dous' attitude, and resolved to dissolve the engagement and offer Lady Ma to Crown Prince Liu Zhuang as a consort instead. As a consort to the crown prince, Consort Ma was described to be excellent at serving her mother-in-law, Empress Yin Lihua , and she quickly became Empress Yin's favorite. She
410-488: A strong alliance with North Xiongnu. Guangde ( 廣德 ), the King of Yutian, trusted his chief warlock, who demanded Ban's horse. Ban agreed to give him the horse, and then, when the warlock arrived to pick up the horse, immediately executed him, and sent his head back to Guangde. Guangde was impressed and submitted to Han's suzerainty. With Yutian having submitted, the Xiyu kingdoms largely all submitted as well. In 74, Dou and Geng led
451-423: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Empress Ma (Han dynasty) In 40, the eventual Empress Ma was born to Emperor Guangwu 's General Ma Yuan , known for his expeditions against Vietnamese rebellions and his exhortations on personal living, and his wife Lady Lin (藺夫人). Ma was a marquess, and Lady Ma was therefore born into comfort and wealth, as
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#1732849005869492-451: Is such a commonly used character that the law of naming taboo would cause the people too a lot of trouble. The new name was not without its own problems, and many members of the Zhuang clan were forced to change their names. In 51, the woman who would eventually become his empress – Consort Ma , the youngest daughter of famed general Ma Yuan – would become a consort of his. At the time she
533-406: Is unknown to us. Two specific accusations that are known are that Ma, by the route he took against the Wulin tribes, was responsible for the plague, and that he had, while on campaigns, embezzled pearls and rhinoceros horns. (The later accusation was a misunderstanding in that one of Ma's favorite foods—which he considered capable of warding off plagues—was Job's tears (Chinese pearl barley), which
574-767: The Xiongnu influence there, through the conquests of his general Ban Chao . The reigns of Emperor Ming and his son Emperor Zhang were typically considered the golden age of the Eastern Han Empire and known as the Rule of Ming and Zhang . Liu Yang was born in AD 28 to Emperor Guangwu and his first love, Consort Yin Lihua . When Emperor Guangwu, was still an official under Gengshi Emperor , he had married Yin in 23. After he became emperor in 25, had wanted to make her empress, but she declined because she had no sons at that point. Instead, she endorsed Consort Guo , who already had
615-828: The Hongwu Emperor Empress Ma (Jianwen) (1378–1402), empress of the Jianwen Emperor Empress Dowager Ma (Southern Ming) (1578–1669), mother of Zhu Youlang Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Empress Ma . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Empress_Ma&oldid=1087987420 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Title and name disambiguation pages Lists of empresses by surname Hidden categories: Short description
656-592: The Prince of Guanglin but stripped his political powers. However, later Prince Jing hired warlocks to curse Emperor Ming. After he was discovered, Emperor Ming initially took no action, but in 67 forced Prince Jing to commit suicide. The next incident would not be so bloodless. In 70, Prince Ying of Chu—incidentally, the only son of Emperor Guangwu not born of either of his empresses but of Consort Xu—hired warlocks to create golden turtles and jade cranes, and carved characters calling for unusual blessings on them—a major taboo at
697-554: The Yins and the Guos (the family of Emperor Guangwu's first empress Guo Shengtong ). She further ordered the local governments not to accept improper requests from the Ma family. If there were members of Ma or other closely related families who live exuberantly, Empress Dowager Ma would remove their names from the rolls of the nobles and exile them. Empress Dowager Ma also established a textile factory and
738-410: The age of 41, Empress Guo had lost the emperor's favor, and her constant complaints angered Emperor Guangwu. In AD 41, he deposed her and made Duke Yang's mother Consort Yin empress instead. All of the imperial dukes were promoted to princes to accommodate Emperor Guangwu's new title for Empress Guo—Princess Dowager of Zhongshan (after appointing her son Liu Fu ( 劉輔 ) the Prince of Zhongshan ); Duke Yang
779-473: The conspiracy. In 72, when Emperor Ming created his sons princes, he gave them relatively small principalities. Empress Ma objected—she did not understand why these principalities were only half as large as the ones for Emperor Guangwu's sons. Emperor Ming responded that of course his sons could not be compared with his father's sons—a response that she would remember and agree with. On 5 September 75 , Emperor Ming died, and Crown Prince Da ascended
820-418: The empire. He did many things to try to stamp out corrupt officials, often putting them to death if they were discovered. One thing traditional historians praised him for was his fair treatment of his brothers by the deposed Empress Guo, treating them as if they were also born of his mother Empress Dowager Yin. In 58, when his older brother, Prince Jiang of Donghai (the former crown prince) died, he ordered that
861-498: The heavy taxes, had often requested that Han step in and reassert suzerainty that had been established during the Western Han Dynasty, starting with Emperor Wu 's reign. However, they had been constantly rebuffed by Emperors Guangwu and Ming, who judged Han to be not sufficiently strong to engage in a Xiyu campaign.) Initially, the king of Shanshan was very pleased and welcomed the Han ambassadors as honored guests, but eventually
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#1732849005869902-403: The new marquesses, after their requests to decline the fiefs were denied by Emperor Zhang, resigned their government posts. In August that year, Empress Dowager Ma died; she was in her 40s. She was buried with her husband. Emperor Ming of Han Emperor Ming of Han (15 June 28 – 5 September 75 AD ), born Liu Yang and also known as Liu Zhuang and as Han Mingdi ,
943-632: The northern boundaries and South Xiongnu, and also to prevent the people of South Xiongnu from defecting to North Xiongnu. In 66, in what would eventually evolve into one of the first imperial university in Chinese history, Emperor Ming built a Confucian school at the capital Luoyang , for the children of high officials and marquesses. South Xiongnu nobles' children also attended. Emperor Ming was, early in his reign, known for his generosity and affection for his brothers. This, however, apparently caused some of them to engage in behavior that were considered taboo at
984-420: The princes and major officials to attend Prince Jiang's funeral at Lucheng ( 魯城 , in modern Jining , Shandong ), a highly unusual honor. In 59, at the suggestion of his brother Liu Cang ( 劉蒼 ) the Prince of Dongping, Emperor Ming instituted a number of Confucian rituals, in which the emperor personally honored the officials who had helped him, to show humility. In 60, he created his favorite Consort Ma (who
1025-430: The proposal, reasoning that North Xiongnu had only made the proposal to alienate South Xiongnu from Han. Emperor Guangwu agreed. In 57, Emperor Guangwu died, and Crown Prince Zhuang succeeded to the throne as Emperor Ming. Due to a naming taboo , people with the surname Zhuang ( 莊 ) were forced to change their surname to Yan ( 嚴 ). Emperor Ming quickly established himself as a diligent and capable administrator of
1066-924: The throne as Emperor Zhang. Empress Ma became empress dowager on the same day. Empress Dowager Ma continued to be known for her humility and good judgment as empress dowager. Emperor Zhang, like his father, turned to her when he was in a dilemma about important government issues, to decide the issue with her advice or her approval in the decision he wanted to make. Emperor Zhang, who was close to his uncles—Empress Dowager Ma's brothers Ma Liao (馬廖), Ma Fang (馬防), and Ma Guang (馬光)—wanted to promote them quickly, but Empress Dowager Ma did not urge it. They did all become important court officials, however. In 77, when Emperor Zhang wanted to further create his uncles marquesses, Empress Ma refused, and issued an edict stating that—just as how Emperor Ming had told her that his sons could not be compared with his father's sons—the Mas could not be compared with
1107-430: The time and caused them to be severely punished by Emperor Ming, leading also to two major mass executions that blotted Emperor Ming's reign. The first of these incidents happened in 66–67 and was relatively bloodless. The ambitious Prince Jing of Guanglin wanted to be emperor, and he plotted with people under him to rebel. When he was informed, he confessed, and Emperor Ming initially spared him and permitted him to remain
1148-462: The time. Further, he was discovered to have written revolutionary writings. Emperor Ming did not put him to death, but deposed him from his principality, exiled him, and made him a commoner (but with a small fief of 500 households). In 71, Prince Ying committed suicide in exile. However, the investigation did not end. By Emperor Ming's orders, Prince Ying's associates (but not his family) were harshly tortured and interrogated, and anyone that they named as
1189-537: The welcome faded. Ban realized that North Xiongnu ambassadors must have arrived. He found out where the North Xiongnu ambassadors were, and, in a night raid, massacred the Xiongnu ambassadors. The king of Shanshan was shocked but somewhat pleased, and submitted to Han suzerainty once again. Emperor Ming promoted Ban and commissioned him to next visit Yutian ("Khotan"), then the strongest kingdom in southern Xiyu, which had
1230-521: The worship of his mother Empress Dowager Yin. (This became a systematic reform that the rest of the Eastern Han Dynasty emperors largely followed; they did not have separate temples built for themselves, but instead were worshipped along with Emperor Guangwu. This was a major saving compared to the Western Han system of building a separate temple for each emperor.) His son Crown Prince Da succeeded to
1271-420: Was 12, and he was 23. She would become a favorite of his, but never bore him a son. Her niece (the daughter of her older sister), Consort Jia , also a consort of Crown Prince Zhuang, did give birth to a child—Liu Da ( 劉炟 ). So consort Ma adopted Consort Jia's son as her own. As crown prince, Zhuang was often requested by Emperor Guangwu to render opinions in important matters. In AD 51, he was involved in making
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1312-496: Was also a consort to the crown prince, and Consort Jia bore a son named Liu Da (劉炟). Crown Prince Zhuang instructed Consort Ma to adopt Prince Da as her son, and she did so. She raised him so carefully and lovingly that he never regarded anyone but her as his mother. In 57, Emperor Guangwu died, and Crown Prince Zhuang ascended the throne as Emperor Ming. Consort Ma became an imperial consort. In 60, he created her empress and created Prince Da crown prince. As empress, Empress Ma
1353-468: Was also a favorite of his mother Empress Dowager Yin) empress, and created her adopted son Prince Da crown prince. The same year, to honour the generals and officials who had assisted his father Emperor Guangwu in re-establishing the Han dynasty, Emperor Ming, perhaps echoing what Emperor Xuan had done, had the portraits of 28 of them drawn on a palace tower (known as " Yuntai 28 Generals "). Later, four more portraits were added. However, Ma Yuan, because he
1394-437: Was also cordial and warm to her fellow consorts. As a result, she also became a favorite of Crown Prince Zhuang. One of her virtues was said to be her willingness, or indeed, eagerness, to find appropriate beautiful ladies in waiting for Crown Prince Zhuang to have sexual relations with, because at that point Crown Prince Zhuang had not had many sons. Consort Ma herself was childless. Her older sister's daughter, Consort Jia ,
1435-654: Was described as humble and solemn, and she loved reading. She often wore the less expensive white silk without elaborate designs. The imperial consorts and princesses were all surprised by how thrifty she was and yet impressed by her. Emperor Ming often consulted her on important matters of state when he could not make a decision quickly. She would analyze the issues carefully and come up with good suggestions. When Emperor Ming resolved dilemmas with her help, he tried to consult her even more on other important matters of governance, but she refused to more speak and make suggestions and supported Emperor Ming's own opinions. One thing she
1476-495: Was described of having never done was to request favors for her brothers and cousins. Because of this, Emperor Ming continued to respect and trust and love her. In 71, as mass tortures and executions were being carried out as a result of a conspiracy engaged in by Emperor Ming's brother Liu Ying , the Prince of Chu, Empress Ma interceded on the accused people's behalf, and as a result, Emperor Ming tapered off on his efforts to eliminate anyone who might be even remotely connected with
1517-537: Was informed to have hired warlocks to curse Emperor Ming. Several of Prince Yan's associates were executed, and there were also many others who were executed or exiled after Chu-style interrogations were carried out. Prince Yan himself was not executed, but was demoted from his commandery-level principality to be the Prince of Fulin, with only two counties in his principality. In 73, annoyed at North Xiongnu's constant incursions against Han, Emperor Ming commissioned his generals Geng Bing ( 耿秉 ) and Dou Gu ( 竇固 ) to lead
1558-530: Was made the Prince of Donghai. After Empress Guo was deposed, her son, Crown Prince Jiang, became concerned about remaining crown prince, and repeatedly made requests to be replaced. Emperor Guangwu was initially hesitant to depose of both the mother and son, but in 43, he resolved the situation by switching Princes Jiang's and Yang's positions. He made Prince Jiang the Prince of Donghai, and made Prince Yang crown prince. At this time, he also changed Prince Yang's name to Zhuang, perhaps because Yang (which means "sun")
1599-400: Was produced in southern China and northern Vietnam, which Ma had transported in large quantities back to the capital Luoyang .) Guangwu believed these false accusations and posthumously stripped Ma of his marquess title and fief, thus depriving the Ma family of its major source of income. The other noble families began to look down on the Ma family. Lady Ma had been previously engaged to marry
1640-492: Was the father of the empress, did not receive this honor. During the early part of his reign, North Xiongnu continued to be a constant threat to both Han and her ally South Xiongnu. Emperor Ming engaged in a variety of military and economic tactics to try to maintain peace with North Xiongnu and was largely successful. In 65, he established a permanent border defense force, known as the Duliao Army ( 度遼營 ), in charge of protecting
1681-515: Was the second Emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty . He was the fourth son and second crown prince of Emperor Guangwu . It was during Emperor Ming's reign that Buddhism began to spread into China. Emperor Ming was a hard-working, competent administrator of the empire who showed integrity and demanded integrity from his officials. He also extended Chinese control over the Tarim Basin and eradicated