Five Dynasties & Ten Kingdoms

Five Dynasties Ten Kingdoms Period Chinese Empresses

Five Dynasties & Ten Kingdoms (907 – 960) – An era of chaotic succession saw five short dynasties in the north and a patchwork of states in the south. Even amid turmoil, empress‑dowagers such as Liu (Later Han) and Du (Later Zhou) acted as stabilizers—brokering military support, issuing amnesties, and arranging marriages to keep fragile courts intact.

Empress Zhang Hui (Later Liang)

Empress Liu (Later Tang)

Empress Li (Later Jin)

Empress Li (Later Han)

Empress Fu the Elder (Later Zhou)

Empress Zhou the Elder, Empress Zhou the Younger (Southern Tang)