kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia

Wu Zhou

690 CE – 705 CE · capital Shendu (Luoyang)

The Zhou dynasty proclaimed by Wu Zetian, the only woman in Chinese history to rule as emperor in her own name, interrupting the Tang from 690 to 705.

Origins

Wu Zhao, a concubine of Emperor Taizong, became empress to Emperor Gaozong in 655 and gradually took over government as he fell ill. After his death in 683 she deposed her son Zhongzong, kept Ruizong as a figurehead, crushed a Tang princes' revolt and in 690 proclaimed her own Zhou dynasty, with Luoyang, renamed Shendu, as capital.

Rule and society

Wu Zetian promoted Buddhism, using the Great Cloud Sutra to support a female ruler, and favoured the Maitreya cult. She widened the examination system to recruit men from outside the old north-western aristocracy, invented new written characters and relied on informers and secret police such as Lai Junchen. The frontier wars against the Second Turkic Khaganate, Khitan and Tibetans had mixed results.

Decline and legacy

In 705 ministers led by Zhang Jianzhi killed her favourites, the Zhang brothers, and forced the aged Wu Zetian to abdicate in favour of Zhongzong, restoring the Tang Dynasty. She died later that year and was buried with Gaozong at the Qianling mausoleum.

Lineage

Tang Dynasty 618 CE – 907 CEWu ZhouTang Dynasty 618 CE – 907 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Wu Zhou. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/wu-zhou
MLA
“Wu Zhou.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/wu-zhou. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Wu Zhou.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/wu-zhou.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Wu Zhou’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/wu-zhou (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻