Cover Image
QR Code

The Entanglements of the Empress: A Re-Examination of the Generation of the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents and Its Political Implications.

The stele erected on the peak of Goushan Mountain in Yanshi, on the reverse of which Empress Wu wrote and calligraphed the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents, possesses an unusual history, with rich political implications underlying each stage in its development, which reflects the inner...

Full description

Published in:Frontiers of History in China Vol. 21; no. 2; pp. 122 - 157
Main Author: TANG, Wen
Format: Article
Published: Higher Education Press Limited Company Jun2026
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hlh&AN=195121585&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: hlh
    uiTerm: 195121585
    longDbName: Humanities International Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        16733401
        3CPF
      jtl: Frontiers of History in China
      issn: 16733401
      maglogo: N
    pubinfo:
      dt: Jun2026
      vid: 21
      iid: 2
      pid: 68417
      pub: Higher Education Press Limited Company
    artinfo:
      ui:
        195121585
        10.3868/s020-021-026-0005-8
      ppf: 122
      ppct: 35
      formats:
        fmt:
          @attributes:
            type: P
            size: 16.5MB
      tig:
        atl: The Entanglements of the Empress: A Re-Examination of the Generation of the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents and Its Political Implications.
      aug:
        au: TANG, Wen
        affil: Department of Chinese Language and Literature, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
      sug:
      keyword:
        Li Hong
        political implication
        stele inscription generation
        Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents
        Wu Zetian
      ab: The stele erected on the peak of Goushan Mountain in Yanshi, on the reverse of which Empress Wu wrote and calligraphed the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents, possesses an unusual history, with rich political implications underlying each stage in its development, which reflects the inner entanglements of Empress Wu during her later reign. This long process can be divided into three parts. First, it was erected in 699, and most of the contents on its front and reverse were completed at that time. Second, in 700, Empress Wu returned from Songshan Mountain to Luoyang. At this time, the "Miscellaneous Verses on Wandering Transcendents" was inscribed on the reverse and top of the stele. Third, in 706, when Prince Xiang and his officials signed their names. Empress Wu copied down the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents during the second lunar month of 699 when visiting the newly completed Temple of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents. Within two months, she had this stele erected. On the reverse, she recorded her reminiscences of her eldest son, Li Hong, her establishing Li Xian as the Heir Apparent, and the speed at which she subsequently proclaimed her strong support for the Heir Apparent to the court and the entire state. Despite this, the Wu clan, led by Wu Sansi, through forging a connection between Zhang Changzong, Zhang Yizhi, and the Stele of Heir Apparent's Making Transcendents, was thus able to successfully eradicate the political implications of this majestic monument. Empress Wu's "Miscellaneous Verses on Wandering Transcendents" was a product of these machinations. The point in time in which Prince Xiang signed his name was thus exactly when Wu Sansi was framing the five princes. Whether or not Prince Xiang leaving the political center and going to Songshan Mountain is related to this requires further investigation.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
    refInfo:
    copyright:
      @attributes:
        flag: Y
      custom: Copyright of Frontiers of History in China is the property of Higher Education Press Limited Company and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
      item: Frontiers of History in China
      holder: Higher Education Press Limited Company
      dt:
        @attributes:
          year: 2026
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N