Narrator: IN CHINA'S VALLEY OF THE KINGS,
THERE STANDS A TALL CARVED STONE.
IT HONORS THE RESTING PLACE
OF A WOMAN WHO ROSE FROM A LOWLY CONCUBINE
TO BECOME CHINA'S ONLY FEMALE EMPEROR,
LEADING THE EMPIRE FOR NEARLY HALF A CENTURY.
BUT THE STONE IS BLANK BY HER DECREE.
SHE WANTED THE FOLLOWING GENERATIONS
TO WRITE OF HER ACHIEVEMENTS.
Woman: TO HAVE A WOMAN WITH SUCH POWER
REALLY THREATENED THE ESTABLISHMENT.
Man: NOT ONLY DID WU ZETIAN ROCK THE BOAT,
IN SOME WAYS, SHE OVERTURNED IT.
Man: USURPING THE TITLE OF EMPEROR
PUT HER INTO A VERY SPECIAL CATEGORY.
Woman: IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A VERY DANGEROUS THING
TO GET IN THE WAY OF WU ZETIAN.
Narrator: LEGEND TELLS US
WU ZETIAN WAS AN EVIL, RUTHLESS, AND INCOMPETENT LEADER.
BUT NOW, IN CHINA'S GOLDEN AGE OF ARCHAEOLOGY,
INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS HAVE GATHERED
TO CRACK ONCE AND FOR ALL
THE TRUTH OF WHO CHINA'S ONLY FEMALE EMPEROR REALLY WAS.
Man: I'VE BEEN WAITING SINCE THIS WAS EXCAVATED.
I AM ECSTATIC!
Man: I HONESTLY WASN'T EXPECTING THAT.
THAT IS REALLY EXCITING.
Man: SEEING THIS WITH YOUR OWN EYES
IS AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE.
Narrator: SO, WAS WU ZETIAN A POWER-HUNGRY FAILURE
OR A BRILLIANT LEADER, SLANDERED SIMPLY BECAUSE SHE WAS A WOMAN?
♪
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[THUNDER]
♪
THE ONLY WOMAN EVER TO DARE CALL HERSELF EMPEROR
IN CHINA'S 2,000 YEARS OF IMPERIAL HISTORY
WAS NAMED WU ZETIAN, WU THE CELESTIAL.
SHE FIRST ENTERS COURT IN 637 A.D.
AS A 13-YEAR-OLD CONCUBINE.
SHE'S PART OF THE HAREM OF MISTRESSES
SERVING EMPEROR TAIZONG OF THE TANG DYNASTY.
Tonia Eckfeld: TANG TAIZONG HAD MORE THAN 100 CONCUBINES.
BY REPUTE SHE WAS BEAUTIFUL, SHE WAS CHARMING,
SHE WAS ENTERTAINING.
SHE ALSO HAD A REAL ZEST FOR LIFE.
Lu Yang: WHEN SHE ENTERED THE PALACE,
SHE QUICKLY GAINED FAVOR OF THIS EMPEROR,
AND HER RELATIONSHIP BECAME CLOSER
AND WAS THE RISER OF HER INFLUENCE AT COURT,
AND SHE PROVED TO BE POLITICALLY VERY, VERY SKILLFUL,
AND SHE WAS VERY SHREWD.
Narrator: WHEN THE OLD EMPEROR DIES,
WU ZETIAN BECOMES CONCUBINE TO HIS SON, GAOZONG.
HE MAKES WU HIS EMPRESS IN 655,
AND AT FIRST, IT'S A PARTNERSHIP OF EQUALS,
BUT GAOZONG IS A SICKLY MAN.
GRADUALLY IT'S WU ZETIAN
WHO IS THE REAL POWER BEHIND THE THRONE,
UNTIL AT LAST, IN 690, WITH HER HUSBAND DEAD,
SHE STEPS FROM THE SHADOWS
AND DECLARES HERSELF EMPEROR OF CHINA.
YET THE ANCIENT CHRONICLES OF WU'S ASCENDENCY
HAVE A VIEWPOINT ON HER REIGN.
THEY ARE RIDDLED WITH CONTROVERSY AND HEARSAY.
Jonathan Dugdale: HISTORY TELLS US
A REALLY DARK AND BLEAK PICTURE ABOUT EMPRESS WU.
[BABY CRYING]
ONE OF THE MOST BRUTAL STORIES WE HAVE
IS THAT SHE KILLED HER OWN CHILD
JUST TO FRAME THE PREVIOUS EMPRESS
AND GAIN STATION AT COURT.
Norman Harry Rothschild: WE'RE ALSO TOLD THAT WU ZHAO
HAD HER TWO RIVALS' LEGS AND ARMS CUT OFF
AND THEN DIPPED THEM IN A VAT OF WINE
AND LET THEM SLOWLY BLEED TO DEATH.
SO, THIS PAINTS A PICTURE
OF A DEVIOUS, MANIPULATING,
CALCULATING, SELF-SERVING, AND ABSOLUTELY RUTHLESS VIRAGO
HELL-BENT ON POWER.
♪
Narrator: EVEN AFTER SHE HAD CLAIMED THE THRONE,
WE ARE TOLD WU ZETIAN WAS RUTHLESS IN HER REIGN.
Eckfeld: THIS IS THE TOMB OF WU ZETIAN'S SECOND SON, LI XIAN.
HE WAS A THREAT TO HIS MOTHER.
LI XIAN WAS ACCUSED OF TREASON, AND HE WAS EXILED
TO THE MOST REMOTE CORNER OF THE CHINESE EMPIRE,
LOCKED IN A ROOM,
AND FORCED TO COMMIT SUICIDE BY POISONING,
SO THIS IS A MOTHER KILLING HER OWN SON
SO THAT SHE CAN HOLD ON TO POWER.
Narrator: THE STORIES OF EMPRESS WU,
HOW SHE SCHEMED AND MURDERED HER WAY
TO RULE THE GREATEST EMPIRE ON EARTH,
WERE WRITTEN LONG AFTER HER DEATH,
AND BY THE CONFUCIAN MALE HIERARCHY
THAT SHE SWEPT ASIDE IN HER QUEST FOR POWER.
[THUNDER]
[RAINING]
NOW, ON THE OUTSKIRTS
OF HER ANCIENT CAPITAL CITY, CHANG'AN,
ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE UNEARTHING NEW EVIDENCE FROM WU'S ERA
THAT MAY AT LAST CHALLENGE THIS VERSION OF HER STORY.
PROFESSOR ZHANG JIANLIN IS THE WORLD'S
LEADING ARCHAEOLOGIST OF THE TANG ERA.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Zhang Jianlin, translated: THE FINDINGS THAT COME
FROM OUR EXCAVATION SITES
ENRICH OUR KNOWLEDGE OF WU ZETIAN.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
ALL OF THESE PROVIDE NEW CLUES
TO THE TRUE HISTORY OF THE TANG ERA.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
♪
Narrator: TODAY THE CITY OF XI'AN HAS GROWN
TO ENCOMPASS OLD CHANG'AN, WU'S CAPITAL.
♪
WITH A POPULATION OF 12 MILLION, XI'AN IS RAPIDLY EXPANDING,
A MIXTURE OF OLD AND NEW CHINA.
IT'S ALSO HOME TO PROFESSOR ZHANG'S CONSERVATION FACILITY,
FIRST STOP FOR THE THOUSANDS OF OBJECTS
HIS TEAM UNCOVER EVERY YEAR
BURIED ALONGSIDE ROYALTY FROM THE TANG DYNASTY.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
HISTORIAN DR. HARRY ROTHSCHILD
HAS HEARD ABOUT SOME INTRIGUING TOMB FIGURINES OF WOMEN
FOUND RECENTLY THAT DATE TO WU'S REIGN.
Rothschild: WHOA!
IT'S AMAZING, SEEING ALL THESE TANG ARTIFACTS.
I'VE BEEN STUDYING WU ZHAO, WU ZETIAN, FOR 17 YEARS,
AND FINALLY HERE WE ARE AT GROUND ZERO, YOU KNOW?
YOU CAN SENSE HER EVERYWHERE HERE IN CHANG'AN.
Narrator: THE FIGURINES DEPICT
CHANG'AN'S MUSICIANS, TRADERS, AND NOBILITY.
THEY ARE BURIED ALONGSIDE THE DEAD
TO ENSURE A WEALTHY AFTERLIFE, AND THEY GIVE CLUES
TO WHAT CHANGED IN SOCIETY DURING WU ZETIAN'S ERA.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Zhang: HERE WE CAN SEE A LADY RIDING ON A RED HORSE
GOING ON A TRIP SOMEWHERE.
THAT SHOWS WOMEN ARE FREE TO DO THINGS
IN THAT SOCIETY AT THAT TIME.
HERE WE CAN SEE THAT THERE IS ANOTHER FASHION,
WHICH IS A LADY WEARING MEN'S CLOTHES.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
IT IS BECAUSE AT THAT TIME WOMEN CAN DO EVERYTHING THAT MEN DO,
LIKE RIDING, HUNTING, OR TRAVELLING.
DURING WU ZETIAN'S PERIOD,
WOMEN'S STANDING BECAME HIGHER THAN EVER BEFORE.
THEY WERE MUCH FREER TO DO THINGS AND TO TALK MORE OPENLY.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Rothschild: SO, WE'RE LOOKING AT AN UNPRECEDENTED BOOST
FOR THE POSITION OF WOMEN.
YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT A FEMALE EMPEROR HERE AFTER ALL,
AND SO THAT TRANSLATED DIRECTLY INTO SORT OF GREATER OPPORTUNITY
AND GREATER FREEDOM FOR WOMEN
IN THE LATE SEVENTH AND EARLY EIGHTH CENTURY.
♪
Narrator: THROUGHOUT HER NEAR 50-YEAR REIGN,
WU ZETIAN WOULD PROMOTE HUGE CHANGES WITHIN CHINESE SOCIETY.
ANCIENT CONFUCIAN HISTORIANS BELITTLED HER EFFORTS,
BUT RECENT TOMB DISCOVERIES REVEAL A RATHER DIFFERENT STORY.
♪
TONIA ECKFELD IS AN EXPERT ON TANG-ERA TOMBS.
SHE'S ON HER WAY TO SEE ONE OF THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY FINDS,
NOT JUST IN THE 21st CENTURY,
BUT IN ALL CHINESE ARCHAEOLOGICAL HISTORY.
♪
Eckfeld: IT'S AMAZING.
IT'S EVEN MORE FANTASTIC THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE.
Narrator: THIS IS THE PHOENIX CROWN OF THE TANG DYNASTY,
ONE OF THE MOST PRECIOUS ARTIFACTS FROM THE TANG ERA
THAT, UNTIL NOW, HAD BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT IN ANCIENT TEXTS
BUT NEVER SEEN.
THIS PRICELESS HEADDRESS IS HELD UNDER LOCK AND KEY
AND CAN ONLY BE VIEWED BY SPECIAL APPOINTMENT.
TONIA BELIEVES IT'S A VITAL CLUE
TO THE TRUTH ABOUT WU ZETIAN'S CHINA.
Eckfeld: THERE'S AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT TO INVESTIGATE
IN THIS PIECE.
LOOKING CLOSELY, THE METALWORK IS FILIGREE,
AND THERE'S A LOT OF GRANULATION.
GRANULATION CONSISTS OF TINY LITTLE BEADS OF GOLD.
♪
THE WHOLE CROWN IS LIKE A PEACOCK DISPLAYING ITS TAIL.
THERE ARE VERY, VERY FINE FLOWERS
MADE OF MOTHER-OF-PEARL AND PEARL.
THERE ARE EVEN FINE BUNCHES OF GRAPES MADE OF CHINESE GLASS.
SO, REALLY WHAT WE SEE HERE
IS SOMETHING COSMOPOLITAN AND SOMETHING RICH,
SOMETHING FASHIONABLE, FULL OF LUXURY ITEMS,
NOT ONLY IN THE MAKING OF IT,
BUT ALSO IN THE IMAGERY INVOLVED.
Narrator: PROFESSOR ZHANG'S TEAM FOUND THE PHOENIX CROWN
IN A GRAVE THAT WAS ALREADY AN EXCEPTIONAL FIND,
A TOMB THAT HAD NEVER BEEN RAIDED.
INSIDE WAS A SKELETON,
AND ON THE SKULL A BEEHIVE HAIRSTYLE STUDDED WITH JEWELS.
IT BELONGED TO A YOUNG WOMAN NAMED LI CHUI,
A MINOR MEMBER OF THE IMPERIAL COURT.
FOR 18 MONTHS, THE TEAM CAREFULLY PICKED OUT
EVERY SINGLE JEWEL AND STONE,
SLOWLY PIECING TOGETHER THE HEADDRESS,
REVEALING ITS TRUE GLORY.
Eckfeld: THE CROWN GIVES US CLUES ABOUT WU ZETIAN'S SOCIETY.
LIFE WAS RICH. THERE WAS A LOT OF LUXURY.
IT WAS A REAL HIGH POINT IN THE ARTS.
Narrator: BUT WHEN THE TEAM USED X-RAY CHROMATOGRAPHY
TO DISCOVER WHERE ALL THE DIFFERENT ELEMENTS
OF THE HEADDRESS CAME FROM, THEY WERE IN FOR A SURPRISE.
THE HEADDRESS HAS CARNELIAN FROM UZBEKISTAN,
2,900 MILES WEST FROM CHANG'AN,
GARNET FROM INDIA, 3,000 MILES SOUTHWEST,
AMBER FROM IRAN, 4,000 MILES AWAY,
AND IVORY FROM SRI LANKA, 4,500 MILES FROM WU'S CAPITAL.
Eckfeld: WHAT WE CAN SEE HERE
IS THE EMBODIMENT OF ALL OF THE WEALTH
AND ALL OF THE TREASURE THAT THE TANG COURT COULD ATTRACT.
♪
Narrator: LI CHUI WASN'T EVEN A PRINCESS.
THE FACT THAT SHE WAS BURIED
WEARING A HEADDRESS OF SUCH ASTONISHING BEAUTY AND VALUE
UNDERLINES THE EXTRAORDINARY WEALTH OF THE TIME,
BUT THE TOMB HOLDS ONE FINAL SECRET--
LI CHUI WAS BURIED WITH A JADE SILKWORM IN HER HAND,
AND THIS IS ANOTHER CLUE
THAT REVEALS WU'S AMBITIONS TO MAKE HER CHINA
THE WEALTHIEST EMPIRE IN THE WORLD.
IN SEVENTH-CENTURY CHINA,
A WOMAN NAMED WU ZETIAN ROSE FROM LOWLY CONCUBINE
TO EVENTUALLY EMPEROR--
THE ONLY WOMAN IN ALL CHINESE HISTORY
TO DARE TO TAKE THAT TITLE.
ANCIENT CHRONICLERS CONDEMNED HER AS A DISASTER FOR CHINA,
BUT TODAY'S EXPERTS THINK THE TRUTH MAY BE VERY DIFFERENT.
SINCE THE FOURTH MILLENNIUM B.C.,
CHINA HAS BOASTED THE FINEST QUALITY SILK.
ONLY HERE HAD PEOPLE DISCOVERED HOW TO EXTRACT SILK
FROM THE SILKWORM OF THE MULBERRY MOTH.
BY WU'S ERA, CHINESE SILK WAS AS VALUABLE AS GOLD.
TRADING SILK BECAME VITAL TO WU'S ECONOMY.
THE ANCIENT TRADE ROUTES OF THE SILK ROAD BEGAN IN CHANG'AN,
SPREADING EAST AND WEST, LINKING CHINA TO OTHER NATIONS,
BUT BY THE MID-SEVENTH CENTURY,
BANDITS AND ROBBERS THREATED TO STOP TRADE IN ITS TRACKS.
RECENT DISCOVERIES REVEALED
WU ZETIAN ESTABLISHED MILITARY OUTPOSTS FAR INTO CENTRAL ASIA,
AND SO SECURED SAFETY ALONG THE SILK ROUTES.
HARRY ROTHSCHILD HAS COME
TO THE VERY START OF THE SILK ROAD IN CHANG'AN
TO FIND OUT IF THE TRADE ROUTES BROUGHT MORE THAN JUST WEALTH.
Rothschild: SO, HERE WE ARE
AT THE EASTERN TERMINUS OF THE SILK ROAD.
I REALLY LIKE THIS IMAGE.
I MEAN, YOU HAVE THIS KIND OF INFINITE LOOP
OF TRADE AND COMMERCE, AND THEN YOU LOOK AT ALL THESE SITES.
YOU HAVE TEHRAN AND DAMASCUS. YOU HAVE JERUSALEM.
YOU GET THE SENSE THAT THIS SILK ROAD
MOVES IN ALL KINDS OF DIRECTIONS.
IT SHOWS THE TREMENDOUS RANGE OF THE SILK ROAD.
OF COURSE, RIGHT FRONT AND CENTER,
YOU HAVE THIS EASTERN TERMINUS OF CHANG'AN.
♪
Narrator: IN WU ZETIAN'S CHANG'AN CITY,
THERE WERE TWO MARKETS
THAT MARKED THE START OF THE SILK ROAD.
THE EAST AND WEST MARKETS WERE THRIVING
WITH FOREIGN TRADE AND STALLS SELLING GOODS FROM THE WEST.
SILK TRADED FROM THE ERA STILL EXISTS TODAY
AND CAN BE FOUND IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
IN THE SMITHSONIAN'S OWN COLLECTION.
KEITH WILSON IS CURATOR AT THE FREER SACKLER GALLERY.
Keith Wilson: IT'S CLEAR THAT SILKS LIKE THIS
WERE REACHING THE MEDITERRANEAN.
THERE WAS AN ACTIVE MARKET FOR CHINESE SILKS IN BYZANTIUM.
CHINESE SILKS OF PRECISELY THIS PERIOD ARE BEING DISCOVERED
IN CATHEDRAL COLLECTIONS IN EUROPE.
THE INCOME FROM THE SALE OF THESE COMMODITIES
WOULD HAVE CERTAINLY HELPED SUPPORT
THE COSTS OF MAINTAINING THE VAST TANG EMPIRE.
Narrator: SILK ROAD TRADE DIDN'T ONLY MAKE WU'S EMPIRE WEALTHY,
IT BROUGHT SO MANY FOREIGNERS TO CHINA THAT HER CAPITAL
BECAME ONE OF THE FIRST TRULY COSMOPOLITAN CITIES
IN THE WORLD.
PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES
WOULDN'T ONLY TRAVEL TO CHANG'AN,
THEY WOULD CHOOSE TO STAY,
AND THIS MULTICULTURAL INFLUENCE CAN STILL BE FELT
IN PRESENT-DAY XI'AN.
Rothschild: WE ARE WALKING ALONG THE HUI STREET,
THE CHINESE MUSLIM STREET
IN THE VERY HEART OF OLD TANG CHANG'AN.
IT IS BUSTLING, IT IS VIBRANT, IT IS FULL OF ENERGY,
AS YOU SEE BY THE MILLING BUSTLE GOING ON BEHIND ME NOW.
I THINK THESE ARE SUGARED FIGS OR DRIED FIGS HERE.
THESE CAME FROM ALONG THE SILK ROAD FROM PERSIA.
SO, THIS IS A KIND OF WHEAT KERNEL CANDY,
AND HE'S PULLING THIS TAFFY,
AND THEN AFTERWARDS, THEY'LL TAKE THE TAFFY,
AND THEY'LL ROLL IT OUT
WITH PUMPKIN SEEDS OR WITH SESAME SEEDS
AND THEN TURN IT INTO THIS HARD CANDY.
THE SESAME CAME FROM PERSIA AND THE MIDDLE EAST
ALONG THE SILK ROAD,
SO THIS IS SORT OF THE FRUIT OF SOMETHING
THAT WAS TRAFFICKED 1,300 YEARS AGO
DURING THE TIME OF WU ZHAO.
NOT BAD. IT IS GOOD.
I THINK IN TERMS OF THE MULTICULTURALISM,
THE VIBRANCE, THE BUSTLE, THE ENERGY,
JUST THE CONSTANT COMMERCIAL BUZZ,
YOU HAVE A GREAT SENSE OF WHAT WAS GOING ON DURING THE TANG.
Narrator: MORE EVIDENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL
CIVILIZATION WU ZETIAN NURTURED
CAN BE FOUND IN THE SMITHSONIAN'S COLLECTION.
FIGURINES FOUND IN TOMBS FROM WU'S ERA
ARE PROOF OF THE FOREIGN INFLUENCE.
Wilson: THIS FIGURE OBVIOUSLY IS NON-CHINESE,
A VERY BROAD NOSE, DARKENED SKIN, CURLY HAIR.
THE FIGURE ITSELF MAY WELL BE AFRICAN,
INDICATING THAT ETHNIC GROUPS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD
ESSENTIALLY WERE FLOWING INTO THE TANG CAPITAL AT CHANG'AN.
Narrator: TANG TOMB FIGURINES WERE MASS-PRODUCED IN MOLDS.
THIS AFRICAN GROOM WITH ALL HIS HANDMADE TOUCHES
WOULD HAVE BEEN UNUSUALLY EXPENSIVE.
Wilson: FOREIGN FIGURES, OF COURSE, WERE NOT BEING MADE
FOR THE TOMBS OF FOREIGNERS.
THEY WERE BEING MADE FOR CHINESE TOMBS,
SO THE INCLUSION OF A RANGE OF COSMOPOLITAN ETHNIC TYPES
WOULD HAVE SUGGESTED A WORLDLINESS,
NOT ONLY OF THE SOCIETY AT THE TIME
BUT THE PERSON WHO WAS ACTUALLY BURIED WITH THESE OBJECTS.
Narrator: IT'S 662 A.D.
EMPEROR GAOZONG'S GRIP ON POWER HAS WEAKENED
SINCE HE SUFFERED A STROKE.
HIS EMPRESS, WU ZETIAN, IS NOW RULING THE EMPIRE,
IN ALL BUT NAME.
WU IS USING ALL HER POLITICAL SKILLS
TO STRENGTHEN HER POSITION
AND TO MAKE HER CONTROL UNQUESTIONABLE,
SHE DECIDES TO PROVE HER WORTH
IN THE MAN'S WORLD SHE CONQUERED.
SHE PLANS THE EXPANSION OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE
ON A SCALE NEVER BEFORE SEEN IN CHINA, OR EVEN THE WORLD.
WHEN ARCHEOLOGISTS FIRST UNCOVERED THE FOUNDATIONS,
THEY WERE AMAZED AT WHAT THEY FOUND.
THIS IS ONE OF THE GATED ENTRANCES,
REBUILT TO SCALE, ON THOSE VERY FOUNDATIONS.
Rothschild: THIS IS DANFENG GATE,
THE SOUTHERN GATE OF DAMING PALACE.
JUST LOOKING UP AT IT, IT CONJURES A SENSE OF AWE.
FOR ME, UH, IT'S A STATEMENT.
IT PROVIDES A SENSE OF IMPERIAL GRANDEUR.
IT MAKES ANYONE SORT OF STANDING BEFORE THE GATE
FEEL A SENSE OF THEIR OWN SMALLNESS AND INSIGNIFICANCE.
Narrator: WU ZETIAN'S DAMING PALACE
WAS THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD.
COMPLETED IN JUST THREE YEARS, THE SCALE OF THE COMPLEX
OUTSHONE ANYTHING ANYONE HAD EVER SEEN.
Rothschild: LOOK AT THE SIZE OF DAMING PALACE.
THIS IS TWICE AS BIG AS OLD POMPEII.
IT'S FIVE TIMES BIGGER THAN THE FORBIDDEN CITY
OF THE MING AND QING DYNASTY EMPERORS.
IT'S 22 TIMES THE SIZE OF THE ACROPOLIS.
THE SCOPE, THE GRANDEUR, IT'S, IT'S ABSOLUTELY STAGGERING.
YOU CAN READ ABOUT IT,
BUT YOU DON'T REALLY APPRECIATE THAT MAGNITUDE
UNTIL YOU STEP OUT ON THIS BALCONY
AND YOU LOOK OUT AT THIS VISTA.
THERE ARE ARCHERY GROUNDS. THERE ARE POLO GROUNDS,
COCKFIGHTING ARENAS,
PLACES FOR DRAMA TROUPES TO PRACTICE,
AND THAT'S JUST THE BEGINNING.
THERE ARE THREE OR FOUR MORE PALACES BEYOND THAT.
EMISSARIES COMING FROM FOREIGN COUNTRIES WOULD COME IN
WITH THEIR JAWS DROPPING
WITH JUST A SORT OF STARRY-EYED WONDER,
AND THEY WOULD FEEL LIKE THEY WERE LOOKING
AT A CELESTIAL WORLD, A PARADISE ON EARTH.
I DO THINK IT WAS ABOUT IMPOSING HER POWER
WITH THE MAJESTY AND SIZE OF DAMING PALACE.
Narrator: IT'S CLEAR THAT WU ZETIAN
MADE CHINA A GLOBAL SUPERPOWER.
AT LAST IN 690, SHE ASCENDS THE THRONE AS EMPEROR OF CHINA.
SHE SITS AT THE CENTER
OF THE WEB OF WEALTH, TRADE, AND POLITICAL INFLUENCE
THAT STRETCHED FROM JAPAN TO THE MEDITERRANEAN
AND FROM KOREA TO INDIA,
YET THIS EMPIRE HAD ALWAYS BEEN DOMINATED
BY MEN AND THE NOBILITY,
SO HOW DID WU ZETIAN, AN OUTSIDER AND A WOMAN,
ACCOMPLISH SUCH AN EXTRAORDINARY FEAT?
IN THE SEVENTH CENTURY,
WU ZETIAN'S CAPITAL CITY, CHANG'AN,
WAS IN A CLASS OF ITS OWN.
Dugdale: SO, CHANG'AN DURING WU ZETIAN'S TIME
WOULD HAVE BEEN AN ABSOLUTELY MASSIVE CITY.
THERE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE ALMOST A MILLION PEOPLE
LIVING WITHIN THE CITY WALLS AND ANOTHER MILLION OUTSIDE,
WHICH JUST OUTCLASSES ANYTHING ELSE IN THE WORLD AT THAT TIME.
Narrator: JONATHAN DUGDALE, FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM,
THINKS HE KNOWS ONE REASON
FOR WU ZETIAN'S REMARKABLE SUCCESS.
SHE WOULD WIN THE SUPPORT OF THE COMMON PEOPLE
THROUGH THE REINVIGORATED RELIGION
THAT WAS SWEEPING CHINA-- BUDDHISM.
Dugdale: WU ZETIAN REALIZED PATRONIZING BUDDHISM
WAS A GREAT WAY TO PLEASE THE PEOPLE,
AND WHAT BETTER WAY
THAN BUILDING NEW TEMPLES AND PAGODAS,
SO ONE OF THE MAIN ONES SHE BUILT
WAS THIS ONE RIGHT BEHIND US, THE GREAT WILD GOOSE PAGODA.
♪
Narrator: THE GREAT GOOSE PAGODA WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT IN 652.
Dugdale: AS SOMEONE WHO'S STUDIED PAGODAS FOR A LONG TIME,
THIS IS PARTICULARLY AWESOME.
Narrator: THE PAGODA WAS AN IMPORTANT TEMPLE
THAT HOUSED SACRED BUDDHIST WRITINGS,
BUT JUST 50 YEARS AFTER IT WAS BUILT,
IT WAS DESTROYED IN AN EARTHQUAKE.
WU, WHO HAD BEEN BROUGHT UP IN THE BUDDHIST FAITH,
SPENDING TIME IN A NUNNERY, DECIDED TO REBUILD THE PAGODA,
BUT ON A MUCH BIGGER SCALE.
JONATHAN THINKS THIS BUILDING MAY HAVE BEEN A RECORD BREAKER
AND THAT WU SURPASSED HERSELF
IN HER DESIRE TO MAKE HER MARK IN HER PEOPLE'S FAITH,
AND HE THINKS HE CAN PROVE IT.
Dugdale: I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO FIND OUT
HOW TALL THIS BUILDING WAS WHEN WU ZETIAN REBUILT IT
BECAUSE IT'D BE REALLY INTERESTING IF SHE'S DECIDED
TO BUILD IT SIGNIFICANTLY BIGGER FOR A REASON.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Narrator: BUT FIRST, HE HAS A PROBLEM TO SOLVE.
WU ZETIAN'S PAGODA WAS PARTIALLY DAMAGED BY ANOTHER EARTHQUAKE.
Dugdale: 43, 44, 45, 46.
Narrator: THE TOP THREE FLOORS TOPPLED,
SO JONATHAN HAS TO TRY AND WORK OUT
HOW HIGH HER STRUCTURE WOULD HAVE BEEN
WITH THE MISSING FLOORS.
Dugdale: 58.
ONWARDS AND UPWARDS.
1, 2, 3.
OKAY, SO, THAT'S 40 STEPS TO THAT ONE,
AND THAT PUTS US ON THE FOURTH FLOOR NOW.
35, 36, 37, 38.
1, 2, 3...
Narrator: HE'S FOUND A PATTERN IN THE NUMBER OF STEPS.
Dugdale: ON PREVIOUS FLOORS,
WE'VE GONE FROM 43 TO 40 TO 38 TO 37,
SO IF THE NEXT FLOOR IS EITHER 37 OR 36,
WE SHOULD MAKE AN ACCURATE CALCULATION.
34, 35, 36, 37!
THIS IS GOOD.
WE'RE STILL DECREASING, SO THIS IS GOOD.
WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING.
LAST ONE. 31, 32.
LET'S DO THE MATH, PEOPLE.
Narrator: BY FIGURING OUT THE PATTERN
AND THE HEIGHT OF THE STEPS PER STORY,
JONATHAN CAN REVEAL THAT WITH THE MISSING THREE FLOORS,
THE TRUE HEIGHT OF WU'S PAGODA
WAS CLOSE TO A STAGGERING 300 FEET HIGH.
Dugdale: WHICH WOULD HAVE MADE IT
NOT ONLY THE TALLEST BRICK PAGODA IN ASIA,
BUT POSSIBLY ONE OF THE TALLEST BUILDINGS
IN THE WORLD AT THAT TIME.
♪
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE NOTHING ELSE
THAT ANYONE HAD SEEN BEFORE.
IN THE CITYSCAPE NOW, IT STILL LOOKS IMPRESSIVE,
BUT IN THOSE DAYS, IT WOULD HAVE SOARED
ABOVE ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING ELSE IN THE CITY.
Narrator: AND WU BUILT THIS MASSIVE STRUCTURE AS A STATEMENT
TARGETED DIRECTLY AT HER PEOPLE.
Dugdale: THERE'S SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS
SHE STANDS TO GAIN FROM BUILDING A MASSIVE PAGODA
IN SUCH A VISUAL SPACE LIKE THIS.
THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION OF CHANG'AN
AT THIS TIME ARE BUDDHIST,
AND THEY WILL SEE THAT SHE IS SUPPORTING BUDDHISM.
SHE'S SUPPORTING THEIR RELIGION.
♪
Narrator: WU ZETIAN ORDERED THE BUILDING OF NEW BUDDHIST TEMPLES
IN EVERY TOWN IN HER EMPIRE,
CREATING ALLIES AMONG THE COMMON PEOPLE OF CHINA,
AND SHE DIDN'T STOP THERE.
250 MILES EAST FROM HER CAPITAL CITY OF CHANG'AN,
IN HENAN PROVINCE, ARE THE LONGMEN GROTTO CAVES.
HISTORIAN LU YANG THINKS THEY MAY BE KEY
TO UNDERSTANDING WU'S POWER.
Lu: THIS IS A SCARED PLACE FOR THE BUDDHIST RELIGION,
AND PILGRIMS HAVE BEEN COMING HERE FOR CENTURIES,
BUT I'VE BEEN TOLD THERE IS A CONNECTION
THAT LINK EMPRESS WU DIRECTLY TO THAT FAITH,
SO I'M COMING HERE TO FIGURE THAT OUT.
♪
Narrator: MEMBERS OF THE ELITE IN CHINESE SOCIETY
PAID VAST SUMS OF MONEY TO BE ALLOWED
TO CARVE SMALL CAVES INTO THIS SACRED HILLSIDE.
THERE ARE OVER 1,400,
HOUSING OVER 100,000 BUDDHA FIGURES.
THE SMALLEST IS JUST AN INCH.
BUT THE TALLEST IS A STAGGERING 57 FEET HIGH,
COMMISSIONED BY WU ZETIAN HERSELF,
AND IT HAS A STORY TO TELL.
♪
♪
♪
Lu: WOW! ISN'T THIS IMPRESSIVE?
WHAT A VIEW!
IT IS GIGANTIC.
THE OFFICIAL NAME OF THIS BUDDHA IS VAIROCANA,
WHICH IS THE RADIANT BUDDHA OF A GREAT SUN.
THIS IS BASICALLY A UNIVERSAL BUDDHA,
SYMBOLIZED THE POWER AND DOMINANCE OF THIS RELIGION.
Narrator: WU ZETIAN WANTED TO EMBED HERSELF INTO BUDDHISM,
THE RELIGION OF HER EMPIRE.
TO DO THIS, IT'S POSSIBLE SHE TOOK ONE AUDACIOUS STEP.
Lu: THE LEGEND SAYS THAT THIS STATUE
ACTUALLY IS MODELED ON HER FACE.
SHE WANT TO MAKE THIS A STATEMENT OF HER POWER.
THIS WILL GIVE HER MORE CREDIBILITY
BECAUSE THIS IS THE AGE OF BUDDHISM
AND THERE IS A MASSIVE FOLLOWING OF THIS PARTICULAR RELIGION,
AND BY CREATING THIS TEMPLE,
SHE BASICALLY PUT HERSELF ON THE CENTER STAGE
OF NOT JUST RELIGIOUS ACTION BUT ALSO THE SOCIETY IN GENERAL.
YOU KNOW, SEEING THIS WITH YOUR OWN EYES
IS AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE.
THIS IS SO IMPRESSIVE TO ME,
AND I THINK SHE GOT WHAT SHE WANTED.
♪
Narrator: THE LONGMEN GROTTOS AND GREAT GOOSE PAGODA SUGGEST
THAT WU ZETIAN WAS A SKILLFUL TACTICIAN
WHO KNEW HOW TO USE RELIGION TO PROMOTE HER OWN STATUS
AND KEEP HER EMPIRE HAPPY.
SHE WAS ALSO READY TO EXPERIMENT IN HOW SHE RAN HER GOVERNMENT,
AND ONE PROVOCATIVE STEP
ENSURED THAT HER SUCCESSORS WOULD VILIFY HER NAME.
♪
AS A WOMAN
AND ONE WHOSE ORIGINS LAY OUTSIDE THE COURT,
WU ZETIAN COULD NEVER RELY ON THE ARISTOCRATIC ESTABLISHMENT.
♪
FROM THE BEGINNING, SHE NEEDED TO FIND NEW ALLIES TO LEAN ON.
WU HAD ENSURED THAT DURING HER REIGN
IT WAS A GOOD TIME TO BE A WOMAN IN CHINA,
AND THAT FREEDOM TO FLOURISH
WENT TO THE VERY TOP OF HER COURT.
SHE SURROUNDED HERSELF WITH WOMEN,
INCLUDING APPOINTING A FEMALE PRIME MINISTER,
SHANGGUAN WAN'ER.
HARRY HAS BEEN TOLD ABOUT EVIDENCE
PROFESSOR ZHANG'S TEAM HAVE FOUND
IN RECENT EXCAVATIONS OF THE PRIME MINISTER'S TOMB
THAT SUGGEST HER LIFE HAD A DARK FINAL CHAPTER.
Rothschild: THIS IS SHANGGUAN WAN'ER'S EPITAPH.
I'VE BEEN WAITING SINCE SEPTEMBER OF 2013,
WHEN THIS WAS EXCAVATED,
FOR A CHANCE TO ACTUALLY SEE THIS IN PERSON,
AND IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING TODAY, SO I AM, I AM ECSTATIC.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Zhang: HERE WE CAN LEARN HER AGE WHEN SHE DIED.
Rothschild: THIS SAYS SHE HAD 47 SPRINGS AND AUTUMNS
AT THE TIME OF HER DEATH.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Zhang: YES.
Narrator: BUT WHEN ZHANG'S TEAM FOUND THE PRIME MINISTER'S TOMB,
IT HAD BEEN PURPOSELY DESTROYED,
TANGIBLE EVIDENCE OF HOW THE MEN WHO SUCCEEDED WU
TRIED TO ERADICATE PROOF OF HER SUCCESS.
Zhang: THE TOMB WAS ALMOST COMPLETELY DESTROYED.
AS WE DUG DOWN,
WE DISCOVERED IT HAD BEEN DISMANTLED BRICK BY BRICK.
Rothschild: THIS WAS THOROUGH, KIND OF MALICIOUS,
AND INTENTIONAL DESTRUCTION THAT HAD BEEN DONE TO THE TOMB.
Zhang: NORMALLY THERE WOULD BE A COFFIN PLATFORM AND MURALS
IN THE TOMB,
BUT IT WAS ALL DESTROYED.
THE ONLY THING THAT SURVIVED WAS THIS TOMBSTONE.
[SPEAKING CHINESE]
Narrator: THE TOMB HAD BEEN DISMANTLED BY THE ORDER
OF EMPEROR XUANZONG, WU ZETIAN'S SUCCESSOR.
HARRY'S RESEARCH HAS LED HIM TO BELIEVE
HE MAY HAVE HAD A POLITICAL MOTIVE.
Rothschild: NOW THAT I KNOW
THAT SHANGGUAN WAN'ER'S GRAVE WAS DISMANTLED,
THIS IS PART OF AN INTENTIONAL PROCESS,
AN INTENTIONAL DESTRUCTION OF VESTIGES OF FEMALE POWER
DURING THE LATE SEVENTH AND EARLY EIGHTH CENTURY,
THE CONFUCIAN PATRIARCHY STRIKING BACK
AND REESTABLISHING NORMATIVE POWER.
Narrator: EMPEROR WU ZETIAN IS NOW AN ELDERLY STATESMAN
IN HER SEVENTIES.
SHE'S BEEN IN POWER FOR NEARLY 45 YEARS,
AND HER OPPONENTS ARE DETERMINED TO UNSEAT HER.
Eckfeld: SHE HAD ANNIHILATED MANY, MANY OF HER ENEMIES,
BUT WHERE THERE'S POWER,
THERE ARE ALWAYS RIVALS AND THERE'S ALWAYS A CONTEST.
Narrator: SURVIVAL WAS PARAMOUNT,
AND ANCIENT WRITINGS TELL US
WU WAS MERCILESS IN HER PURSUIT OF POWER,
BUT WERE THE STORIES TRUE?
TANG TOMB EXPERT JENNY LIU HAS DISCOVERED NEW TEXTS
IN THE TOMB OF WU'S GRANDDAUGHTER,
PRINCESS YONGTAI, A RIVAL TO THE THRONE.
Jenny Liu: I'VE STUDIED OTHER PRINCESS EPITAPHS AS WELL,
AND THIS IS A PASSAGE HERE WHICH I'VE NEVER SEEN.
YOU HAVE THE CHARACTER FOR ANGER, OKAY?
AND ANGER AT THE, UH,
AT THE TWO BOYS
AND THEIR SECRET MEDICINE,
SO THIS PASSAGE TELLS YOU
WHAT HAPPENED TO PRINCESS YONGTAI.
THESE ARE CHARACTERS THAT ARE USUALLY USED
FOR THE MISCARRIAGE, FOR THE LOSS OF A CHILD.
AND IT IS THE ZHANG BROTHERS' SECRET MEDICINE OR POISON
THAT MADE HER MISCARRIAGE, LEADING TO HER DEATH.
THIS REFERS TO WU ZETIAN BECAUSE IT'S VERY POSSIBLE
THAT SHE WAS THE INSTIGATOR OF THE POISON.
THE ZHANG BROTHERS WERE VERY CLOSE TO HER,
AND THEY DID HER BIDDING, AND SHE WAS KNOWN
TO HAVE PITTED PEOPLE AGAINST EACH OTHER IN COURT,
AND SHE WOULD CAUSE ONE TO POISON OR KILL THE OTHER,
AND SHE DID THIS WITH OFFICIALS,
AND NOW IT SEEMS MAYBE SHE DID IT WITH HER RELATIONS, HER KIN.
Narrator: BUT WHY DID WU WANT HER GRANDDAUGHTER DEAD?
Liu: SHE WAS BEARING THE CHILD
OF TWO OF THE STRONGEST CLANS IN CONTENTION FOR THE THRONE,
AND IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE THAT SHE DID NOT WANT
THIS CHILD TO BE BORN, NO MATTER THE GENDER.
THIS SHOWS THAT WOMEN OCCUPY A STRONG YET VULNERABLE POSITION
IN THE POWER STRUCTURE.
THEY WERE TARGETS.
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A VERY DANGEROUS THING
TO GET IN THE WAY OF WU ZETIAN.
Narrator: AS EMPEROR OF CHINA,
WU ZETIAN SUCCESSFULLY FOUGHT OFF ALL RIVALS
TO HOLD ON TO POWER,
BUT THE FIGHT HAD BEEN BLOODY.
Eckfeld: WU ZETIAN BECAME INCREDIBLY RUTHLESS.
SHE HAD HUNDREDS OF MEMBERS OF THE RULING FAMILY EXECUTED.
THE VIOLENCE AND REIGN OF TERROR,
YOU COULD SAY, WAS EXTREME.
BUT SHE WAS NOT WITHOUT A CONSCIENCE.
SHE WAS VERY TROUBLED BY WHAT SHE'D DONE.
♪
Narrator: WITH HER MIND LOOKING FORWARD TO HER AFTERLIFE,
WU WANTED FORGIVENESS OF HER SINS.
SHE WROTE A CONFESSION
AND HAD IT ENGRAVED ONTO A GOLDEN TABLET
AND HAD THE TABLET TAKEN
TO A PLACE OF SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE
TO PERFORM A SACRED RITUAL.
♪
♪
Dugdale: SO, HERE WE ARE ON MOUNT SONG.
IT'S THE CENTRAL OF THE FIVE SACRED PEAKS
OF ANCIENT CHINA,
AND IT BECAME A VERY IMPORTANT PLACE
IN WU ZETIAN'S LATER LIFE.
IN THE YEAR 700, WU ZETIAN CAME TO THIS MOUNTAIN.
SHE HAD A GOLDEN TABLET MADE, ON WHICH SHE INSCRIBED HER SINS,
WHICH WAS THEN CAST DOWN THE MOUNTAIN
AS A FORM OF ABSOLUTION.
Narrator: AND WE KNOW WHAT THAT GOLDEN TABLET SAYS
BECAUSE AMAZINGLY ONE DAY IN 1982,
A LOCAL FARMER FOUND IT ON THE MOUNTAIN SLOPES.
ITS INSCRIPTION WAS SHORT BUT ITS MESSAGE VAST.
Dugdale: IT SAID, THE RULER, WU ZHAO, ADMIRES THE TRUE DAO,
WITH ITS LONG-LIVED IMMORTAL SPIRITS.
HER SERVANT HAS BEEN COMMISSIONED TO GO REVERENTLY
TO THE PINNACLE OF THE CENTRAL PEAK OF MOUNT SONG
AND CAST THE GOLDEN TALLY THAT MIGHT EXPIATE HER SINFUL NATURE.
WHAT YOU CAN TELL BY THE FACT
SHE'S THROWING AWAY THIS TABLET
IN SUCH A VISIBLE FASHION
IS THAT SHE'S REALLY TRYING TO DEMONSTRATE
TO OTHER PEOPLE THAT SHE WAS REPENTANT.
IT'S A VERY VISIBLE, CEREMONIAL THING.
IT'S SAYING I HAVE SINNED,
AND I WISH TO BE ABSOLVED OF THESE SINS,
AND WHETHER SHE ACTUALLY BELIEVED
THAT WAS THE CASE OR NOT, I THINK IS LESS IMPORTANT
THAN THE IMPRESSION IT WOULD CREATE TO OTHER PEOPLE.
Narrator: THE END OF WU ZETIAN'S REIGN
WOULD BECOME FRAUGHT WITH SCHEMING AND REBELLION
FROM THE CONFUCIAN MALE NOBILITY WITHIN HER IMPERIAL COURT.
Eckfeld: THE HIGHER SHE GOES, SHE BECOMES A TALL POPPY.
SHE BECOMES A BIGGER TARGET.
♪
Narrator: JONATHAN DUGDALE HAS LEARNED OF A HIDDEN LOCATION
IN THE FOOTHILLS OF MOUNT SONG,
WHERE WU RETREATED TO IN HER LAST YEARS ALIVE.
Dugdale: IT'S AWESOME.
I'VE WANTED TO COME HERE FOR A LONG TIME.
THIS IS, THIS IS QUITE SPECIAL.
THIS IS THE SONGYUE PAGODA.
IT'S IMPORTANT IN WU ZETIAN'S LIFE
BECAUSE SHE USED TO COME HERE TO WORSHIP.
♪
IT'S 1,500 YEARS OLD, AND NOT ONLY IS IT STILL STANDING,
IT STILL LOOKS, STILL LOOKS PRETTY GOOD.
♪
♪
♪
WOW.
SO, WU ZETIAN WOULD HAVE COME PROBABLY INTO THIS VERY BUILDING
BECAUSE THIS IS THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURE FROM 1,500 YEARS AGO.
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE.
THIS IS A PHENOMENAL BUILDING!
YOU CAN FEEL WHY WU ZETIAN WOULD WANT TO COME HERE.
I MEAN, CHANG'AN AT THIS TIME IS POLITICALLY VERY DIFFICULT,
AND SHE WANTS TO COME HERE TO JUST ESCAPE ALL THAT.
IT'S A PLACE OF SAFETY AND REFUGE.
Narrator: THROUGHOUT HER LIFE,
WU ZETIAN HAD SHATTERED CONFUCIAN TRADITION,
RISING FROM A LOWLY CONCUBINE
TO BECOME THE FIRST FEMALE EMPEROR OF CHINA,
AT THE AGE OF 66.
BUT THE MALE NOBILITY WERE CLOSING RANK,
AND WU HAD NOWHERE TO RUN.
Eckfeld: WHEN WU ZETIAN'S RULE CAME TO AN END, SHE WAS 80.
IN EFFECT, SHE WASN'T USURPED.
SHE ABDICATED, SO SHE WAS STILL MAINTAINING
HER OWN SENSE OF CONTROL.
♪
SHE LIVED FOR A FEW MORE MONTHS,
AND SHE WENT QUIETLY.
HER TIME HAD COME.
Narrator: EMPEROR WU ZETIAN DIED IN 705.
SHE HAD CONTROLLED THE EMPIRE FOR NEARLY HALF A CENTURY.
♪
THIS IS QIANLING,
THE TANG DYNASTY MAUSOLEUM COMPLEX,
HER FINAL RESTING PLACE.
SHE'S BURIED IN A SECRET CHAMBER DEEP INSIDE THE MOUNTAIN,
ALONGSIDE THE EMPEROR SHE SUCCEEDED,
HER HUSBAND GAOZONG.
Eckfeld: WE'RE ON THE SPIRITUAL PATH
WALKING TOWARD WU ZETIAN'S TOMB.
IT'S IMPRESSIVE, IT'S DAUNTING, IT'S POWERFUL.
THE AREA THAT IT COVERS
IS ALMOST THE SAME AS THE DAMING PALACE,
SO IT'S A, A HUGE AREA.
Narrator: THE PATH TO WU ZETIAN'S TOMB
IS PROTECTED BY IMPERIAL BODYGUARDS
AND SCULPTURES TO WARD OFF EVIL SPIRITS.
BESIDE THE GATEWAY ENTRANCE
ARE TWO SETS OF FOREIGN EMISSARIES,
LINED UP TO PAY HOMAGE.
Eckfeld: BEING HERE IS A REALLY AWESOME EXPERIENCE.
IT'S SO IMPRESSIVE.
WU ZETIAN MAY HAVE HELD POWER FOR MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY,
BUT IN THIS PLACE, REALLY HER SPIRIT
AND HER SENSE OF MAJESTY AND AUTHORITY AND POWER
HAS LIVED ON FOR MANY CENTURIES.
♪
[THUNDER]
Narrator: STANDING ALONE AT QIANLING
REMAINS THE CARVED STELE
HONORING WU ZETIAN'S RESTING PLACE.
HER DECREE TO LEAVE IT BLANK RESULTED IN HISTORIANS
DISTORTING HER STORY FOR CENTURIES,
BUT HAVING DISCOVERED MORE ABOUT HER LIFE'S ACHIEVEMENTS,
WHAT WOULD OUR EXPERTS NOW CARVE UPON THE STONE?
Dugdale: I WOULD WRITE SOMETHING ALONG THE LINES OF,
SHE WAS A WOMAN WHO DID WHAT SHE HAD TO TO STAY IN POWER.
SHE WAS A GREAT LEADER.
SHE HAD A LOT OF POLITICAL ACUMEN,
BUT MOST OF ALL, I'D SAY SHE WAS THE WOMAN
THAT PROVED THAT IN A MAN'S WORLD,
YOU DIDN'T NEED A MAN TO LEAD IT.
Liu: THE ONE WORD THAT I WOULD PUT IS JUST "MAVERICK,"
BECAUSE OF THE WAY THAT SHE WENT ABOUT GAINING POWER.
♪
Rothschild: I'D WRITE NOTHING,
FOR HER ENTIRE IDIOSYNCRATIC, UNPRECEDENTED POLITICAL CAREER
DEFIED LABELS, AND FOR 1,300 YEARS,
SHE'S DEFIED HISTORICAL VERDICT.
I THINK THAT THE BLANKNESS OF THE STELE
IS A PERFECT MONUMENT.
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