Women
Empresses, warriors, poets — the women who defied convention and made history
6 articles
The Empress Who Ruled China: Wu Zetian's Impossible Rise
She started as a concubine. She ended as the only woman in Chinese history to officially hold the title of Emperor.
The Four Great Beauties of Ancient China: History and Legend
Xi Shi, Wang Zhaojun, Diao Chan, and Yang Guifei — the women whose beauty supposedly changed the course of Chinese history.
The Real Mulan: History, Legend, and the Disney Version
From a medieval ballad to a global franchise — the true origins of China's most famous female warrior.
Wu Zetian: How China's Only Female Emperor Seized and Kept Power
Concubine, empress, regent, emperor — the extraordinary political career of the woman who ruled the Tang Dynasty.
Chinese Women Who Changed History (And Were Erased From It)
Wu Zetian became emperor. Ban Zhao wrote the definitive history of the Han Dynasty. Qiu Jin died for revolution.
Women Who Changed Chinese History: Warriors, Empresses, and Rebels
Chinese history is often told as a story of men. It should not be. Women ruled empires, led armies, wrote poetry, and changed the course of history —...