Consort Chen (577–605), born Princess Ningyuan (), was a daughter of the Emperor Xuan of Chen and an imperial concubine to the

Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Wen of Sui (; 21 July 541 – 13 August 604), personal name Yang Jian (), Xianbei name Puliuru Jian (), was the founding Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Sui dynasty. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through ...

, founder of the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...

Background

The future Consort Chen was born in 577, during the reign of her father Emperor Xuan as Princess Ningyuan of Chen. Princess Ningyuan's mother was Emperor Xuan's

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

Consort Shi (; 551–609). A native of

Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...

, Consort Shi was the daughter of Shi Jifeng (), Prince of Shixing (). In addition to Princess Ningyuan, she had borne Emperor Xuan two sons: Chen Shu'ao (陳叔敖), the Prince of Linhe, and Chen Shuxing (陳叔興), the Prince of Ruanling. Both sons later became officials under the

. The year Princess Ningyuan was born,

Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Dynasties in Chinese history, Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties during the ...

– at whose expense Emperor Xuan had expanded the Chen – fell to the

Northern Zhou Zhou (), known in historiography as the Northern Zhou (), was a Xianbei-led Dynasties in Chinese history, dynasty of China that lasted from 557 to 581. One of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties of China's ...

. Cornered, the Chen lost many of the gains that it had made from its conquest of

territory. In 582, when Princess Ningyuan was five, Emperor Xuan died, and the throne was inherited by Princess Ningyuan's older half-brother Chen Shubao, who was an incompetent ruler. On 10 February 589, Chen Shubao surrendered to

, ending the

Chen Dynasty The Chen dynasty (), alternatively known as the Southern Chen (南陳 / 南朝陳) in historiography, was a Dynasties in Chinese history, Chinese imperial dynasty and the fourth and last of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Southern dynasties, ...

. Chen Shubao and his household (which presumably included Princess Ningyuan) were then escorted to the Sui capital Chang'an.

As Imperial Consort

After the fall of the Chen dynasty, Princess Ningyuan was honored as Lady Xuanhua (). She became a consort of Emperor Wen, but he never had relations with her when Empress Dugu was alive. After Empress Dugu's death, Emperor Wen favored Consort Chen and another concubine, Consort Cai. In 604, Emperor Wen resided at Renshou Palace at the advice of his officials. He was accompanied by Consort Chen and Consort Cai, and his son Yang Guang. Emperor Wen was sick and frail, and Yang Guang seized the opportunity to sleep with Consort Chen. Consort Chen reported the rape incident to Emperor Wen, who was angered and sought to replace Yang Guang as the crown prince with formerly deposed Yang Yong. Yang Guang found out and decided to kill Emperor Wen with the assistance of an official named Yang Su. After Emperor Wen's death, Yang Guang took Consort Chen as one of his concubines, along with Consort Cai.《 Book of Sui 卷三十六列传第一》: 及炀帝嗣位之后，出居仙都宫。寻召入，岁余而终，时年二十九。帝深悼之，为制《神伤赋》。 The Sui dynasty was short-lived and destroyed by the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

In popular culture

Consort Chen is portrayed by Hong Kong actress Rebecca Chan in

TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB; zh, t=電視廣播有限公司) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong. The company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Canton ...

's 1987 series The Grand Canal (大運河)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Consort Chen dynasty people Sui dynasty people 577 births 605 deaths Chinese princesses Chinese imperial consorts People from Nanjing