Empress Dowager Huang

Empress Dowager Huang (, personal name unknown ), referred to semi-formally as Empress Dowager Longqi after her son Wang Yanjun (Emperor Huizong)'s Longqi era name, was an empress dowager of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period state Min. She was the primary concubine of Wang Shenzhi (Prince Zhongyi), who was commonly regarded as the founder of the Min state, and the mother of Wang Yanjun, the first Min ruler to claim the title of emperor.

Background It is not known when the future Empress Dowager Huang was born, but it was known that she was from Quan Prefecture (泉州, in modern Choân-chiu, Fujian). Her father Huang Nayu was a cousin of Huang Tao , who had served as the secretary to a military governor (Jiedushi) of Weiwu Circuit , the territory of which later formed the state of Min. (As Wang Shenzhi's older brother and predecessor Wang Chao was the first military governor of Weiwu and Wang Shenzhi was the second, Huang Tao's service was likely under Wang Chao.)

When Huang Nayu himself served under Wang Shenzhi, Wang Shenzhi took Lady Huang as his primary concubine; she was the mother of his second son Wang Yanjun. Wang Yanhan claimed the title of King of Min in 926, but was killed later that year in a joint revolt by Wang Yanjun and Wang Shenzhi's adoptive son Wang Yanbing. Wang Yanjun took over the governance of the territory, initially only claiming the title of acting military governor of Weiwu. Emperor Mingzong of Later Tang (r. 926-933) commissioned him as full military governor in 927 and created him the Prince of Langye, and then as the Prince of Min in 928. As some point, Emperor Mingzong also created Lady Huang the Lady of Lu. In gratitude, Wang Yanjun submitted a tribute of platinum. (As his era name was Longqi, she became known in historical sources as "Empress Dowager Longqi.") In 936, Wang Jipeng (who had by that point changed his name to Wang Chang) honored her as grand empress dowager. That was the last historical reference to her, and it is not known when she died.

Notes and references

Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 278, 279, 280. Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms , vol. 94.