Imperial Chinese harem system


The ranks of imperial consorts have varied over the course of Chinese history but remained important throughout owing to its importance in management of the inner court and in imperial succession, which ranked heirs according to the prominence of their mothers in addition to their strict birth order. Regardless of the age, however, it is common in English translation to simplify these hierarchy into the three ranks of Empress, consorts, and concubines. It is also common to use the term "harem", an Arabic loan word used in recent times to refer to imperial women's forbidden quarters in many countries. In later Chinese dynasties these quarters were known as the hougong.
In Chinese, the system is called 後宮制度.

Early history

There exists a class of consorts called during early historical times in China. These were people who came along with brides as a form of dowry. It could be the female cousin or sister of the bride, or people from other countries.
Worth noting is the fact that during the Shang Dynasty, there were times where two Empresses reigned at the same period.
The Rites of Zhou contains great details of an imperial consort ranking system. However, as the Rites of Zhou is considered by modern scholars to be merely a fictitious constitution for a utopian society, the system listed in that work of literature cannot be taken word for word. Rather, it offers a rough glimpse into the inner harem during the time.

Ranking system for Emperors

The Rites of Zhou states that for Emperors, they are entitled to the following:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 2 Consort
  3. 3
  4. 9
  5. 27
  6. 81
A grand total of 121 women. It was suggested that a system was set up to prevent the situation of having two Empresses.

Ranking system for others

According to the Rites of Zhou, Feudal Lords are entitled to 9 consorts in total, and cannot marry again after having 9 consorts, which makes for 1 wife and 8 consorts. For other officers, they are entitled to 1 wife and 1 consort. For normal citizens, only 1 wife is allowed.

[Qin Dynasty]

From the reign of King Huiwen:
  1. 1 Queen, which became Empress from the reign of Shi Huang
  2. Consort
  3. Beauty

  8. [Han Dynasty]

Western Han

During the reign of Gaozu:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. Consort
Later:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. Consort
  3. Beauty
From the reign of Emperor Yuan:
  1. 1 Empress
  3. Handsome Fairness, created by Emperor Wu
  4. , created by Emperor Wu
  5. , created by Emperor Wu
  6. , created by Emperor Wu
  7. Beauty
  15. ,,,,,
The principal wife of the Crown Prince was called. There also exists a sub-ranking system for concubines. They were called and. For grandchildren of the Emperor, their principal wives were called. Concubines for these people have no titles, and were simple called.

Eastern Han

  1. 1 Empress
  2. Noble Lady
  3. Beauty
  5. Selected Lady
No limits were set for these consorts. This later created situations when more than 20,000 women were living in the palace during the reigns of Emperor Huan and Emperor Ling.

[Three Kingdoms]

Wei">Cao Wei">Wei

During the reign of Cao Cao :
  1. 1 Queen
  4. Handsome Fairness
  6. Beauty
During the reign of Emperor Wen:
  1. 1 Empress
  7. Handsome Fairness
  10. Beauty
During the reign of Emperor Ming:
  1. 1 Empress
  10. Handsome Fairness
  12. Beauty

  14. Jin">Jin Dynasty (265–420)">Jin

  15. 1 Empress
  16. 3
  17. #
  18. #
  19. #
  20. 9
  21. #
  22. #
  23. #
  24. #
  25. #
  26. #
  27. # Handsome Fairness
  28. #
  29. #
  30. Beauty

  32. [Southern and Northern Dynasties]

Song">Liu Song">Song

  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. # Handsome Fairness
  14. #
  15. #
  16. Beauty
From 456, during the reign of Emperor Xiaowu:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. # Handsome Fairness
  14. #
  15. #
  16. Beauty
From the reign of Emperor Ming:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. 5
  17. # Handsome Fairness
  18. #
  19. #
  20. #
  21. #
  22. Beauty

  26. Qi">Southern Qi">Qi

In 479, at the ascension of Emperor Gao, the Minister for Ceremonies successfully petitioned the Emperor to establish the following system:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. # Handsome Fairness
  14. #
  15. #
  16. Beauty
In 481, for the Crown Prince:
In 483, when Emperor Wu ascended to the throne, the Minister for Ceremonies successfully petitioned the Emperor to expand the system. This involved elevating the position of to a category all unto itself, with the following ranks:
The new category was just underneath the Empress. In 489, the position of was created to fill the gap created when was elevated to an independent category.

Liang">Liang dynasty">Liang

During the reign of Emperor Wu:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. 5
  17. #
  18. #
  19. #
  20. #
  21. #
  22. Beauty
For the Crown Prince:

  2. Chen">Chen dynasty">Chen

Initially, during the reign of Gaozu, no specific ranking system for consorts were devised, due to the Emperor's desire to live a simple life. It was only until Emperor Wen's reign did a ranking system came into being:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. 5
  17. # Handsome Fairness
  18. #
  19. #
  20. #
  21. #
  22. Beauty

  24. Wei">Northern Wei">Wei

During the reign of Taizu, the consort ranking system was very simple, and only contained the rank of. However, there existed an unwritten, subjective system of prestige rankings in between. It was during the reign of Shizu that the system of rankings listed below came into force:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. ,
During the sinification of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Emperor Xiaowen reformed the consort ranking system to the system below:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. ,
  3. 3 Consort

  7. Qi">Northern Qi">Qi

In the beginning, there were only three ranks for consorts:,, and. However, as Emperor Wucheng ascended to the throne, a system of rankings more sophisticated than any devised before was promulgated:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 1, 1
  3. 1
  4. 1, 1
  5. 3
  6. #
  7. #
  8. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. #
  17. #
  18. #
  19. #
  20. 27
  22. Selected Lady

    Zhou">Northern Zhou">Zhou

  23. 3, later 3
  24. #
  25. #
  26. #
  27. 3
  28. 6
  29. #
  31. #
  32. #
  33. #
  35. #
  36. #
  37. #
During the reign of Emperor Xuan, five Empresses were created :
  1. Yang Lihua, First Great Empress of Heaven
  2. Zhu Manyue, Great Empress of Heaven
  3. Chen Yueyi, Great Centre Empress of Heaven
  4. Yuchi Chifan, Great Left Empress of Heaven
  5. Yuan Leshang, Great Right Empress of Heaven
In addition, there were an innumerable number of consorts in the harem.

Sui">Sui dynasty">Sui

In the beginning, there existed a simple system of rankings for imperial consorts:
  1. Empress
  2. Concubine
  3. 9
  4. 38
There also existed a system of to manage ceremonial affairs in the harem. The system was based on similar systems in the past.
After the death of Empress Dugu, Emperor Wen expanded the ranks of the consorts to the following:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. 9
  4. 27
  5. 81
During the reign of Emperor Yang, the ranking system was expanded yet again, based on systems in the past, to the following:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 3
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. 9
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. 12 Handsome Fairness
  17. 15
  18. # Beauty
  19. # Regular
  20. 24
  21. 24
  22. 37 Selected Lady

    Tang">Tang dynasty">Tang

  23. 1 Empress
  24. 4 Consort
  25. #
  26. #
  27. #
  28. #
  29. 9
  30. #
  31. #
  32. #
  33. #
  34. #
  35. #
  36. #
  37. #
  38. #
  39. 9 Handsome Fairness
  40. 9 Beauty
  41. 9 Talented
  42. 27 Lady of Treasure
  43. 27 Lady of His Majesty
  44. 27 Selected Lady
During the reign of Gaozong:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 4 Consort
  3. #
  4. #
  5. #
  6. #
  7. 9
  8. #
  9. #
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #
  15. #
  16. #
  17. 9 Handsome Fairness
  18. 9 Beauty
  19. 9 Talented
During the reign of Xuanzong:
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 1, 1, 1
  3. 6
  4. #
  5. #
  6. #
  7. #
  8. #
  9. #
  10. 4
  11. 7
The principal wife of the Crown Prince is called Crown Princess, which is held by only one person at any given time. There are 5 other ranks of consorts:
  1. 2
  2. 6
  3. 10
  4. 16
  5. 24

    Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms">Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period">Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

During these times, governments were replaced frequently, and as a result, it is difficult for modern scholars to derive any solid information on ranking systems during these times.
However, it is known that the Later Tang used the following system:
Whether there were any limits to the holders of these titles are unknown.

Liao, Song, Jin Dynasties

Liao">Liao dynasty">Liao

  1. 1 Empress
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7

    Song">Song dynasty">Song

  8. 1 Empress
  9. 4
  10. #
  11. #
  12. #
  13. #
  14. #, created by Renzong
  16. #
  17. #
  18. #
  19. #
  20. #
  21. #
  22. #
  23. #
  24. #
  25. #
  26. #
  27. #
  28. #
  29. #
  30. #
  31. #
  32. #
  33. #
  34. Handsome Fairness
  35. Beauty
  36. Talented
  37. , created by Zhenzong

    Jin">Jin Dynasty, 1115–1234">Jin

  38. 1 Empress
  39. 2 Primary Consort
  40. 4
  41. #
  42. #
  43. #
  44. #
  45. 9
  46. #
  47. #
  48. #
  49. #
  50. #
  51. #
  52. #
  53. #
  54. #
  55. 9 Handsome Fairness
  56. 9 Beauty
  57. 9 Talented
  58. 27 Lady of Treasure
  59. 27 Lady of His Majesty
  60. 27 Selected Lady

    Yuan">Yuan dynasty">Yuan

The ranking system was at its simplest, and only consists of Empress, Consort, and Concubine. No limits were set on the number of people who could enjoy the title, but only one empress can exist.
Although the number of ranks were few, there existed a subsystem of ranking by prestige inside the Yuan harem. The tent that a consort lives in often determines their status. These tents often contain multiple Empresses, Consorts, and Concubines. In the many tents that existed, the first Empress of the first tent is considered to be the most prestigious consort.
As with all parts of the Mongol Empire, Goryeo provided palace women to the Mongols. Korean concubines were procured by the Khan. One of them was Empress Gi, who, through her political command and incorporation of Korean females and eunuchs in the court, spread Korean clothing, food, and lifestyle in the capital. It became prestigious to marry Korean women among members of the Yuan elite. Empress Gi intervened in Goryeo and her family contended with the Goryeo royal family; her family was purged by Gongmin of Goryeo, and Gi retaliated with a failed Mongol invasion of Korea in 1364. The entry of Korean women into the Mongol court was reciprocated by the entry of Mongol princesses into the Korean court, beginning with the marriage of Chungnyeol of Goryeo and a daughter of Kublai Khan; in total, 9 princesses of the Yuan court married into the Goryeo royal family.
Imperial marriages between the royal family of Mongol Yuan existed between certain states. These included the Onggirat tribe, Idug-qut's Uighur tribe, the Oirat tribe, and the Koryo royal family.
The Southern Song Han Chinese Emperor Gong of Song surrendered to the Yuan dynasty Mongols in 1276 and was married off to a Mongol princess of the royal Borjigin family of the Yuan dynasty. Zhao Xian had one son with the Borjigin Mongol woman, Zhao Wanpu. Zhao Xian's son Zhao Wanpu was kept alive by the Mongols because of his mother's royal Mongolian Borjigin ancestry even after Emperor Gong of Song was ordered to be killed by the Mongol Emperor Gegeen Khan. Zhao Wanpu was only moved and exiled. The outbreak of the Song loyalist Red Turban Rebellion in Henan led to a recommendation that Zhao Wanpu should be transferred somewhere else by an Imperial Censor in 1352. The Yuan did not want the Chinese rebels to get their hands on Zhao Wanpu so no one was permitted to see him and Zhao Wanpu's family and himself were exiled to Shazhou near the border by the Yuan Emperor. Paul Pelliot and John Andrew Boyle commented on Rashid-al-Din Hamadani's chapter The Successors of Genghis Khan in his work Jami' al-tawarikh, identified references by Rashid al-Din to Zhao Xian in his book where he mentions a Chinese ruler who was an "emir" and son-in-law to the Qan after being removed from his throne by the Mongols and he is also called "Monarch of Song", or Suju in the book.

Ming">Ming dynasty">Ming

The system was simple with five commonly used titles:
  1. Empress
  2. Imperial Noble Consort
  3. Noble Consort
  4. Consort
  5. Concubine
Other known titles including:
  1. Handsome Fairness
  5. Beauty
For the Crown Prince:
  1. Crown Princess
  2. Talented
Human tribute, including servants, eunuchs, and virgin girls came from: China's various ethnic tribes, Mongolia, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Central Asia, Siam, Champa, and Okinawa.
Joseon sent a total of 114 women to the Ming dynasty, consisting of 16 virgin girls, 42 cooks, and 8 musical performers. The women were sent to the Yongle and Xuande emperors in a total of 7 missions between 1408 and 1433. Xuande was the last Ming emperor to receive human tribute from Korea; with his death in 1435, 53 Korean women were repatriated. There was much speculation that the Yongle Emperor's real mother was a Korean or Mongolian concubine. Relations between Ming China and Joseon Korea improved dramatically and became much more amicable and mutually profitable during Yongle's reign. Yongle and Xuande were said to have a penchant for Korean cuisine and women.
Central Asian women were provided to the Zhengde Emperor by a Muslim guard and Sayyid Hussein from Hami. The guard was Yu Yung and the women were Uighur. It is unknown who really was behind the anti-pig slaughter edict. The speculation of him becoming a Muslim is remembered alongside his excessive and debauched behavior along with his concubines of foreign origin. Muslim Central Asian girls were favored by Zhengde like how Korean girls were favored by Xuande. A Uighur concubine was kept by Zhengde. Foreign origin Uighur and Mongol women were favored by the Zhengde emperor.

Qing">Qing dynasty">Qing

The system was one of the simplest systems in Chinese history. Officially, there were eight classes:
  1. Empress
  2. Imperial Noble Consort
  3. Noble Consort
  4. Consort
  5. Imperial Concubine
  6. Noble Lady
  7. First-Class Female Attendant
  8. Second-Class Female Attendant
  9. Chosen Maid, typically granted to female servants whom the emperor has taken to a liking and to accompany him without any official recognition while still doing regular servant work. This rank was not part of the official concubine ranking.
There were limits placed on how many consorts could hold the ranks of Imperial Concubine, and above.
  1. 1 Empress
  2. 1 Imperial Noble Consort
  3. 2 Noble Consorts
  4. 4 Consorts
  5. 6 Imperial Concubines
Consorts that attained the rank of Concubine and above would be honoured with a residence in the main section of a palace in the Forbidden City, and be able to self-title themselves as "本宫 " when addressing those below them. When being addressed by lower ranked concubines, they would have to be addressed as "娘娘 ". All people were expected to use deprecating self-titles when addressing higher ranks, and concubines were no different. They either used "嫔妾 " or "臣妾 ". If the Emperor of a consort has died, they were self-titled as "哀家 ".
For an Empress who lived well into the reigns of at least two subsequent Emperors, she would be referred to as Empress Dowager if her husband's son was the Emperor, or Grand Empress Dowager if her husband's grandson was the Emperor. If a consort was never an Empress during her husband's reign but her son became the next Emperor, she would be referred to as Holy Mother, Empress Dowager and be posthumously honoured as an Empress. On the other hand, if a consort held the rank of Empress but had no son or her son does not succeed the throne, she would be honoured as Mother Empress, Empress Dowager and is officially honoured as an Empress.
The prefix for Dowager was added to a consort's rank if she was a consort of the reigning emperor's father. All consorts of the previous emperor usually resided within one palace, with the exception of those who attained the rank of Empress Dowager, who would be honoured with their own palace.
The system was solid, but the number of consorts an emperor actually had during the Qing dynasty was subject to wild variations. The Kangxi Emperor holds the record for having the most consorts with 79, while the Guangxu Emperor holds the record for having the fewest consorts, with one empress and two consorts – a total of just three consorts.
The tradition of ranking concubines ended when the Qing dynasty was overthrown. However, the practice of giving rank to people who "unofficially" have more than one wife is still widespread. In addition, the term is still used, albeit rarely and only in very formal settings, as an honorific title towards another person's wife in China.
After the Second Manchu invasion of Korea, the Joseon kingdom was forced to give several of their royal princesses as concubines to the Qing prince-regent Dorgon. In 1650, Dorgon married the Korean Princess Uisun, a distant relative of the king, who was adopted and given the royal princess title so she can be married off to Dorgon. Joseon court revoked Princess Uisun's title and royal privileges after Dorgon died. Dorgon married two Korean princesses at Lianshan. There is no evidence of Dorgon marrying any other Joseon princess besides Princess Uisun in Joseon records and it is extremely unlikely as Dorgon died in December 1650, only few months after his marriage to Princess Uisun.

Citations