Empress Wu

Deposed Empress Wu (吳廢后; 15th century – 1509) was a Chinese empress consort of the Ming dynasty. She was married to Zhu Jianshen, who was known as the Chenghua Emperor. Her birth place was Beijing, the capital city of China.

In 1464, she was selected to be the first consort of the newly crowned emperor and was designated as his empress. Following her appointment, she was involved in a conflict with the emperor’s favored concubine, Consort Wan. According to historical records, she ordered Consort Wan to be whipped due to perceived impertinence. The emperor did not support her actions and instead sided with Consort Wan. As a result, Empress Wu was demoted and stripped of her titles and position. These events took place approximately one month after her wedding.

After her demotion, Empress Wu lived the remainder of her life in relative obscurity within the Garden of the Forbidden City. Despite her reduced status, she maintained some influence over palace affairs. Between 1470 and 1475, she collaborated with a group of loyal courtiers to conceal the existence of Consort Ji and her son, who would later become the Hongzhi Emperor, from Consort Wan.

Her funeral arrangements reflected her fallen status. She was honored as a consort rather than as an empress and was not given a posthumous name. Initially, her remains were to be cremated following the rites typical for an ordinary court lady.

Throughout her life, she held different titles. During the reign of the Zhengtong Emperor (r. 1435–1449), she was known as Lady Wu (吳氏). When she became empress in 1464, she retained the title of Empress (皇后), from July 20, 1464.

There are no further details about her activities or influence beyond her involvement in palace intrigue and her modest role following her demotion, and her death is recorded in 1509.