Lady Wu

Lady Wu (吳夫人, personal name unknown) (858 – December 18, 919 ), formally Lady Zhuangmu of Wuyue (吳越莊穆夫人), was the wife of Qian Liu (King Wusu), the first king of the Chinese state Wuyue of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

Background Lady Wu was born in 858, during the reign of Emperor Xuānzong. Her family was from Anguo (安國, in modern Hangzhou, Zhejiang). Her father was one Wu Zhongxin (吳仲忻), who had served on the staff of a governor (觀察使, Guanchashi) of Zhexi Circuit (浙西, then-headquartered in modern Zhenjiang, Jiangsu).

Through Qian Liu's career, initially as a vassal of Tang dynasty and later as a vassal of Tang's succeeding dynasty Later Liang, Lady Wu also received increasingly honorable titles — Lady of Yan, then Lady of Jin, and finally Lady Zhengde of Wuyue. She often visited Fengguo Temple (奉國寺), and Qian put aside silk for her to be able to donate to monks. However, she pointed out that this was a high expenditure that the state could not afford, and declined it on that basis. She was also accustomed to visit Qian's hometown Yijin Base (衣錦軍, in modern Hangzhou) every spring.

Lady Wu died in 919, while Qian Liu was still reigning (and serving as a vassal of the Later Liang emperor Zhu Zhen). She was given the posthumous name of Zhuangmu ("victorious and solemn").

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