14 Facts About Wu Sansi

Wu Sansi, known posthumously as Prince Xuan of Liang, was a Chinese prince and politician of the Tang and Wu Zhou dynasties.

Wu Sansi served as a chancellor and imperial prince during the reign of his aunt, Empress Wu Zetian of Zhou, and was again a powerful chancellor during the second reign of Empress Wu's son, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang.

Wu Sansi was aided in navigating the fraught period that followed Emperor Zhongzong's restoration by successive affairs with the influential consort Shangguan Wan'er and the powerful Empress Wei.

In 675, at the behest of Empress Wu, Wu's family was pardoned and Wu Sansi was hailed as the empress's nephew, and he was made a commanding general of the imperial guards.

Sometime during her regency, Wu Sansi became minister of defense.

Wu Sansi created a number of her Wu clan relatives imperial princes, and Wu Sansi was created the Prince of Liang and made the minister of civil service affairs.

Wu Sansi did not appear to have as much power as Wu Chengsi, but was nevertheless honored.

In 694, Wu Sansi led a group of non-Han chieftains in requesting that a massive iron pillar be erected to commemorate Wu Zetian's reign with text on it to deprecate Tang and to praise Zhou, and Wu Zetian agreed, putting the chancellor Yao Shu in charge of the project.

In 695, Wu Sansi was made the Minister of Rites and was put in charge of editing the imperial history.

In 696, when Khitan attacked under the leadership of Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong, Wu Sansi was put in command of one of the major armies defending against the Khitan attack, assisted by Yao.

In 697, Wu Sansi was given the designation Tong Fengge Luantai Sanpin, making him a chancellor de facto, but about a month later, he was stripped of the chancellor designation.

In 698, Wu Zetian made Wu Sansi acting Neishi, the head of the legislative bureau of government ; the next year, he was made full Neishi.

Wu Sansi later changed the orders to have Li Dan in command, assisted by Wu Sansi, his cousin Wu Youning the prince of Jiancheng, and the chancellor Wei Yuanzhong.

Meanwhile, to diffuse some of the popular sentiment against the Wu clan, Emperor Zhongzong demoted their titles slightly, and Wu Sansi's title was reduced from Prince of Liang to the lesser title of Prince of Dejing.