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Although this beauty was an empress, under someone standing above countless others, her life was incredibly tragic as she repeatedly ascended the throne only to be dethroned.
6 times crowned as empress
After the Three Kingdoms period, the Jin Dynasty was officially established. However, those who came before endured war and did not enjoy the days of peace for long, as they had to face the period of 'the Eight Princes' upheaval.' Their lives entered a time even more chaotic than the Three Kingdoms era.
To understand this period better, let's discuss how the Jin Dynasty was established. The founding of the Jin Dynasty stemmed from Sima Yi (Emperor Wu of Jin), the nephew of Sima Yi who overthrew Emperor Cao Huan. However, the Jin Dynasty was divided into Eastern Jin and Western Jin. The Jin Dynasty had a total of 15 emperors, existing for 155 years. The Western Jin Dynasty, established by Sima Yi, was based in Luoyang and fully unified in 280.
Sima Yi, after ascending the throne, made Yang Zhi empress and appointed her father as the grand minister. After Sima Yi's death, the throne was passed to his mentally handicapped son, Sima Zhong (Emperor Huai of Jin). Sima Zhong had an ugly wife named Gao Nan Feng. Gao Nan Feng, desiring to manipulate the court, conspired with her birth family to murder Empress Yang Zhi and her father. Additionally, she killed the crown prince Sima Du (son of Sima Zhong and palace maid Ta Shi) in an attempt to seize the throne.
Seeing the situation, King Trieu's uncle, Tu Ma Luan, immediately mobilized troops to punish Gao Nan Feng. At this time, the 'the Eight Princes' upheaval' broke out. Gao Nan Feng was poisoned to death, and Tu Ma Luan sought a new empress for his nephew. She was Duong Hien Dung (Empress Duong).
Duong Hien Dung became empress at just over ten years old. Although beautiful and intelligent, she was married to a foolish emperor, which seemed to foreshadow her tragic fate.
Duong Hien Dung hailed from a noble family during the early days of the Jin Dynasty, with relatives including Empress Duong Diem (wife of King Tu Vien). Her grandfather, Duong Can, held the position of Minister of Ceremonies under King Tu Vien, while her father, Duong Huyen Chi, served as a courtier. Despite being empress, Duong Hien Dung held no real power because Tu Ma Trung was merely a puppet emperor manipulated by the eunuchs.
In 301, King Trieu Tu Ma Luan deposed Emperor Tu Ma Huệ and declared himself emperor, imprisoning Tu Ma Viêm and Duong Hien Dung. This was the first time Duong Hien Dung was dethroned.
Three months later, fueled by resentment towards Tu Ma Luan, regional lords including Lord Thanh Đô Tu Ma Dĩnh, Lord Tề Tu Ma Quýnh, and Tu Ma Nghệ rebelled and attacked the capital, Lac Duong. Tu Ma Luan was defeated and killed. Lord Tề welcomed Emperor Huệ and Empress Duong back to the palace.
Subsequently, Lord Tề Quýnh seized power, and the regional lords, led by Tu Ma Nghệ, sent troops to punish and eliminate Lord Tề Quýnh.
In 303, Lord Thanh Đô Tu Ma Dĩnh killed Tu Ma Nghệ and seized power. Dĩnh marched into the capital, claiming that Empress Duong was forced to make Emperor Huệ depose her and Crown Prince Đàm, appointing Dĩnh as Crown Prince. Duong Hien Dung was demoted to a commoner. Her parents were both killed.
Since becoming Crown Prince, Tu Ma Dĩnh became arrogant. Lord Đông Hải Tu Ma Việt, enraged, led his troops to attack Dĩnh. Dĩnh lost and fled to Nghiệp Thành. Duong Hien Dung was restored as empress by Tu Ma Việt.
In November 304, Emperor Huệ arrived in Trường An. Tu Ma Ngung restored Empress Duong's position, then deposed Dĩnh as Crown Prince. By January 305, Trương Phương once again deposed Duong Hien Dung for reasons unknown. In November of the same year, General Chu Quyền, falsely claiming to have received an imperial edict, declared the restoration of Duong Hien Dung's position. Subsequently, Trương Phương's subordinate, General Lạc Dương Lệnh Hà Kiều, led troops to fight Chu Quyền.
Chu Quyền was defeated, and Hà Kiều once again deposed Empress Duong. Seeing this, Tu Ma Ngung also wanted to poison and kill Duong Hien Dung. However, General Lưu Thôn, stationed at Lạc Dương, firmly opposed this. Upon reading the letter, Tu Ma Ngung flew into a rage and ordered troops to Lạc Dương to eliminate Lưu Thôn. With no other choice, Lưu Thôn fled to the territory of Lord Cao Mật Tu Ma Lược to seek refuge, taking Duong Hien Dung with him.
By the end of 305, Lord Đông Hải Tu Ma Việt emerged victorious in a confrontation with Tu Ma Ngung, capturing Emperor Huệ and decreeing the capital be moved to Trường An. By June 306, Việt ordered the restoration of Empress Duong Hien Dung's position.
Empress of Two Nations
It can be said that within just 5 years, Duong Hien Dung was imprisoned and deposed multiple times, yet reinstated as empress on numerous occasions. Her life remained ironic, with the Western Jin Dynasty experiencing several military upheavals. In 311, the Xiongnu army, now establishing the Han Zhao empire, invaded Luoyang. In June of that year, the Han Zhao general, Liu Dieu, seized the capital and took Duong Hien Dung captive. Unexpectedly, Liu Dieu showed great favor towards her, not only showing affection but also pampering her, and they had three sons together: Liu Hi, Liu Tap, and Liu Xien.
By 318, Emperor Liu Thong of the Han Zhao dynasty passed away. As Liu Dieu was a prominent general, he led the army to quell the chaos and subsequently declared himself emperor, appointing Duong Hien Dung as empress.
This marked the seventh time she ascended to the throne, becoming the mother of the nation once again. Simultaneously, she became the only beauty in Chinese feudal history to be empress of two different nations. However, the blissful time did not last long. A few years later, in 322, she fell ill and passed away at the age of 42.
*This article compiled information from Sohu, 163, QQ.
