As Grand Empress Dowager and Death
In 189, Emperor Ling died without designating an heir. Despite the machinations of his trusted eunuch Jian Shuo to make Prince Xie emperor, Empress He and her brother He Jin were able to put Prince Bian on the throne. Empress He became empress dowager, and she and He Jin began to control the government. Empress Dowager Dong (now grand empress dowager) and her nephew Dong Chong (董重) formed a rival faction at court, and she often argued with Empress Dowager He, once threatening to have Dong Chong decapitate He Jin. He Jin took preemptive action and had Empress Dowager He issue an edict exiling her mother-in-law back to Hejian (in modern Baoding, Hebei), where her husband's fief was and Dong Chong arrested. Dong Chong committed suicide, and Grand Empress Dowager Dong died soon thereafter—with most historical accounts concluding that she died from fear, but some suggested that she committed suicide. Later that year, after Empress Dowager He was overthrown by Dong Zhuo (no relations to her), her wish of having Prince Xie become emperor did come true, as Dong Zhuo deposed the young emperor and placed Prince Xie on the throne (as Emperor Xian). However, that only hastened the downfall of the dynasty, as Emperor Xian, through no fault of his own, would never have any real power and would eventually be forced to yield his throne to Cao Pi in 220.
Read more about this topic: Empress Dowager Dong
Famous quotes containing the words grand, empress and/or death:
“What do you do in the Grand Hotel? Eat, sleep, loaf around, flirt a little, dance a little. A hundred doors leading to one hall. No one knows anything about the person next to them. And when you leave, someone occupies your room, lies in your bed. That’s the end.”
—William A. Drake (1900–1965)
“We never really are the adults we pretend to be. We wear the mask and perhaps the clothes and posture of grown-ups, but inside our skin we are never as wise or as sure or as strong as we want to convince ourselves and others we are. We may fool all the rest of the people all of the time, but we never fool our parents. They can see behind the mask of adulthood. To her mommy and daddy, the empress never has on any clothes—and knows it.”
—Frank Pittman (20th century)
“I do not find
The Hanged Man. Fear death by water.
I see crowds of people, walking round in a ring.
Thank you.”
—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)