Yang Yan (楊艷) (238 – August 25, 274),

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Qiongzhi (瓊芝), formally Empress Wuyuan (武元皇后, "the martial and discerning empress") was an

empress The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

of the

Western Jin dynasty Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia * Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that ...

. She was the first wife of Emperor Wu.

Early life and marriage to Sima Yan

Yang Yan was a daughter of Yang Wenzong (楊文宗), a marquess during the

Cao Wei Wei () was one of the major Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic states in China during the Three Kingdoms period. The state was established in 220 by Cao Pi based upon the foundations laid by his father Cao Cao during the end of the Han dy ...

era and his wife Lady Zhao; Yang Wenzong was also a descendant of the famed Eastern Han official Yang Zhen (杨震) from the Yang clan of Hongnong. Her mother died early, probably when she was still in infancy, and she was initially raised by her maternal uncle Zhao Jun (赵俊) and aunt (who breastfed her). After she grew older, she was raised by her stepmother Lady Duan. By this time, her father, who is said to have also died early, was probably dead. When she was young, she was described as intelligent, studious and beautiful. A fortune teller once foretold that she would have an extraordinary honour, and it was said that when the Cao Wei regent

Sima Zhao Sima Zhao () (; 211 – 6 September 265), courtesy name Zishang (子上), was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Sima Zhao capably maintained control of Wei, whi ...

heard this, he took her and married her to his eldest son Sima Yan. She had three sons and three daughters with her husband. After Sima Zhao's death in September 265, Sima Yan inherited his father's position and forced the Cao Wei emperor

Cao Huan Cao Huan () (246 – 302/303), courtesy name Jingming, was the fifth and last emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. On 4 February 266, he abdicated the throne in favour of regent Sima Yan (later Emperor Wu of the J ...

to abdicate in favour of him about five months later. This action ended the state of Cao Wei and Sima Yan established the Jin dynasty (as Emperor Wu). On 20 March 266, Yang Yan was made empress. After becoming empress, Lady Yang, in gratitude, arranged for Zhao Jun to be promoted; Zhao Jun's niece Zhao Can (赵粲; daughter of his elder brother Zhao Yu (赵虞)) was also made Sima Yan's concubine.

As empress

Empress Yang's oldest son, Sima Gui (司馬軌), died aged two (by East Asian reckoning), making her second son,

Sima Zhong Emperor Hui of Jin (; 259 – January 8, 307), personal name Sima Zhong (司馬衷), courtesy name Zhengdu (正度), was the second emperor of the Western Jin dynasty. Emperor Hui was a developmentally disabled ruler, and throughout his reign, the ...

the legitimate heir, by traditional succession laws. However, Emperor Wu hesitated about selecting him as

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

because he was

developmentally disabled Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

. Empress Yang was instrumental in persuading him to have her son designated crown prince anyway, arguing that tradition should not be abandoned easily. She was also instrumental in her son's selection of a wife, as Emperor Wu initially favoured

Wei Guan Wei Guan (220 – 25 July 291), courtesy name Boyu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He served under the Jin dynasty after the end of the Three Kingdoms period. E ...

's daughter, but Empress Yang, friendly with

Jia Chong Jia Chong (217 – 19 May 282), courtesy name Gonglü, was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Three Kingdoms period and early Jin dynasty of China. He started his career as an advisor to Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, the regents of the s ...

's wife Lady Guo, praised Jia's daughter

Jia Nanfeng Jia Nanfeng (257 – 13 May 300), nicknamed Shi (峕), was a Chinese empress consort. She was a daughter of Jia Chong and the first wife of Emperor Hui of the Jin dynasty and also a granddaughter of Jia Kui. She is commonly seen as a villain ...

greatly, leading to Jia Nanfeng's selection as crown princess. In 273, when Emperor Wu was seeking beautiful women to serve as his concubines, he initially put Empress Yang in charge of the selection process. She preferred those women with slender bodies and fair skin, but did not favour those with beautiful faces. She also left off the list a beauty surnamed Bian (daughter of Bian Fan), whom Emperor Wu favoured, stating that since the Bians have served as empresses for three generations of Cao Wei rulers (

Cao Cao Cao Cao (; ; ; 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord, and poet who rose to power during the end of the Han dynasty (), ultimately taking effective control of the Han central government. He laid the foundation f ...

's wife Princess Bian,

Cao Mao Cao Mao (; 241 – 2 June 260), courtesy name Yanshi, was the fourth emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a grandson of Cao Pi, the first emperor of Wei. Described as intelligent and studious, C ...

and

) that it would be too degrading for her to be a concubine. This decision displeased Emperor Wu, so he took over the selection process. Despite this and her husband's obsession with accumulating concubines, they appeared to have had a genuine and continuing affection for each other. In 274, Empress Yang grew ill. She became concerned that whoever would be empress next; she was particularly concerned about Consort Hu Fang (胡芳; daughter of Hu Fen), whom Emperor Wu greatly favoured, would not support her son. She therefore asked Emperor Wu to marry her cousin Yang Zhi. Emperor Wu, distressed over her illness, agreed. She died soon thereafter in August and was buried with honours due an empress in the tomb that her husband was eventually buried at when he died in May 290. Concubine

Zuo Fen Zuo Fen (, also written as "左棻"); 255 – 23 April 300), courtesy name Lanzhi (兰芝), was a Chinese woman poet of the Western Jin dynasty. Life Zuo Fen was born in Linzi prefecture to a family of Confucian scholars. Her mother died youn ...

wrote a long song of mourning in her honour. In December 276, based on his promise to his late wife, the emperor married Yang Zhi and created her empress.

Notes

Sources

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Yang Yan, Empress 238 births 274 deaths Jin dynasty (266–420) empresses 3rd-century Chinese women 3rd-century Chinese people People of Cao Wei Mothers of Chinese emperors