Edit: THE BUTT BOOK SOLD FOR $3850 LMAOOOO PAP SMEARS FOR EVERYONE If you wanna check out my cursed book auction...it is here: www.ebay.ca/itm/384673546348
The number of warrior queens I've read about that basically went into battle fully pregnant or had labor in battle is crazy. What's crazy is they often go into labor , hide their kid, and go right back into battle. It makes me feel like I'm underachieving.
This reminds me of the Japanese Onna Bugeisha, female warriors that fought side by side with Samurai. Those women were absolutely fascinating and tough as nails!
There’s something so sad about following the life and death of Fu Hao through the worried questions her husband asked. It’s so intimate and personal, like reading his diary
@@janetestherina7169 I know what you mean, but honestly you probably don't. Wu Ding had MANY concubines. He only treated Fu Hao this way. If you had a guy like that, you might not be his Fu Hao. Just think of all the girls he ignored for Fu Hao who were nevertheless unable to leave him to find their own happiness
The Shang idea of employing your wives/concubines as state ministers makes perfect sense. The whole point of a royal class in an aristocratic monarchy is that you get to identify potential leaders early and have all the resources needed to offer them the best possible education and experience in state affairs before they become formally appointed. If I'm going to all the trouble of having political marriages or concubinages, I would want this collection of education and experience from across my entire sphere of influence to be put to good use. At the very least they ought to be good ambassadors and advisors, since they have the inside perspective on their homeland. Stuffing them into a room until it's time to generate heirs seems absurdly wasteful.
True. This was before patriarchy took place. China was still semi-matriarchal during the Shang, I suppose. You can tell because the character for family/clan name 姓 is written with the radical for WOMAN 女, & a lot of the ancient clan names had WOMAN as a radical (姬 ; 姜 ; 好) so members of the clan descended from a common Matriarch, not a common father.
" If I'm going to all the trouble of having political marriages or concubinages," You go through all that trouble so that other aristocratic clan does not help to cut your throat. It is always worth it. There is also a fuzzy indication that a lot of societies were more egalitarian early on than later on. The assumption is that it turned as large scale warfare for resources and land became an existential thing. It heavily depended on the societies. E.g. ancient Egypt also saw pretty big power assigned to queens and female ladies because overall Egypt is its own self contained land where until late in antiquity there were only few external threats ever invading the kingdoms.
This is why it always annoys me when people say things like “we can’t have women doing things in this piece of media cause it’s set in the historical past and it wouldn’t be realistic”. Bull! Women were doing all kinds of cool stuff but they keep getting erased from history! Great vid as always!
I mean it depends on the when, like you are not gonna see something like a female roman legionary outside of Centuri's fanarts. But I do agree that women historically where underrepresented.
Bro, see how they are responding to Galadriel wearing amour and fighting. Some tradcon mofos are losing their mind over a fictional magical elf woman wearing amour and fighting.🤣🤣🤣
It's so frustrating that oracle bones were only decoded as historical sources in 20th century and up to that time treated as medicine to be ground and eaten. How much precious information about the Shang has been literally pissed away over the years!
I mean in a way it's pretty interesting how unique this historical source is and it would be really cool to go down the rabbit hole to find out who first classified it as such
Also I'm just translating Michael Wood's "The Story of China" for domestic market and I'm happy to report that he does mention Fu Hao! Not in such detail, but then the book encompasses the whole of China's history, so... He also took a lot of pains to introduce a lot of female characters, which is great (ironically, he doesn't even mention Wu Zetian. But it's more of a broad reflection on the ideas underpinning Chinese civilisation than an actual history of China, so broad themes take precedence over specific details, haha).
@@kinrateia Apparently it was a scholar named Wang Yirong. In 1899 he fell ill with malaria and was given some of the bones as a remedy. He noticed the markings and recognised them as ancient characters, because he had seen some before on ancient bronzes. They started researching them and publishing the findings and around 1915 they traced their source to Anyang, where the capital city of the Shang was.
A brilliant tactician, a warrior, a priestess, an earnest lover, and (if that one theory is correct) a slave personally freed by the emperor due to her intellect; what an incredible woman. It makes me wonder how many other incredible people have been lost or deliberately erased from history. Thank you for sharing her story!
It's more likely that they changed Fu Hao into an enslaved man while she herself was free born and likely an aristocrat or even a noble from a neighboring kingdom. Later Chinese historians just really didn't like women in positions of power.
I love the fact he married Fu Hao to not one, but three of his own ancestors in death. Perhaps he felt they could keep up in a chariot race with her. Very well done on turning the weird thirst energy of the internet into something meaningful. 👏👏👏👏
Around 11:00 to 11:20, the way the oracle bones described the fretting and eventual mourning of a man gone for 3000 years.. Man It's stuff like that that makes me so very, sad for them, yet happy that we can still learn their stories Humans have always been humans
It brought tears to my eyes. It's just so sad and personal. He really loved her and it shows even through questions about her on 3000 year old bones :(
The whole "woman being mistaken for a man thing" has happened on occasion - Queen Tamar of Georgia was mistaken for a man. Usually, a queen was referred to as "wife of king", which obviously didn't apply to her, and so she got the same title as the male rulers. When these old texts were translated, people automatically assumed that Tamar had been a man.
Fu Hao would have been a "wife of king", of course, but I could TOTALLY see later scholars just assuming that someone with that much power must have been a dude. And the "male titles for female ruler" thing also applied to everyone from Hatshepsut (who some people now think was trans, which is certainly not impossible. But also probably dressing more masculine etc. helped if you wanted to be a lady pharaoh?) to Queen Elizabeth.
@@PirateQueen1720 Yeah, Maria of Poland was also referred to as "king". And I'm pretty sure Maria Theresia of Austria also referred to herself with masculine titles, probably to underline the fact that she was on equal footing with, say, Friedrich of Prussia. She did style herself as mother of the nation, after all - though that did not, in any sense, make her a feminist.
Well the word queen literally means "wife of a king". A couple of queen regnants have been styled as king, like Jadwiga of Poland, to protect her people's sovereignty from her husband.
@@sailiealquadacil1284 Neat fact: With Maria Theresia a very important aspect is that (unlike most female rulers) it was clear early on that she would need to take the wheel. When her father Charles VI realized he wouldn't have a male heir (his only son died in infancy) he looked at his eldest daughter and basically said: "Congratulations little girl, you've just been promoted to boy." and provided her with most of the education and opportunities he would have given a male heir. Despite the fact that this was essential in keeping the Habsburg monarchy together, Maria Theresia had a very "got mine, fuck you" attitude towards the idea of making these opportunities a possibility for other women in her empire. As she herself had sons to inherit her position she didn't allow her daughters the freedom she had enjoyed as a kid and instead demoted them back to "political barganing tool that looks pretty".
For one of your shortest videos, what a rollercoaster of emotions I had - thrilled to learn about Fu Hao's life, sad to hear how her husband fretted over her death, laughing over butt books, and admiration for charity auction of said butt books!
It almost seems like Fu Hao and Wu Ding were what started the book troupe of commoner x royalty couples I consume on a regular basis. This was so interesting to watch! The more than likely romance between Fu Hao and Wu Ding seems almost picture perfect. And the fact that Fu Hao how so much power is amazing! Thank you for sharing!
Oracle bones have got to be the coolest primary source I've ever heard of. How incredibly personal, and what a puzzle trying to piece them together into something coherent.
I remember her from my history class in the first semester of college but the information about her in our main textbook was barely existing, our professor did tell us extra stuff out of the book but she was definitely treated as the less important figure and finding anything about her in spanish or even english (at least with the resources we had) on out own was almost impossible so this video is really a dream come true.
This was really nice, their isn't a lot of ancient history featuring Royalty/nobility actually being in love. At least to me it sounded like the Emperor was head over heels for her.
Haha this is funny. You should totally read about the great lengths that rulers would go to if they saw a pretty women or heard about pretty women. Also political marriages where pretty much 99% of the time, the other 1% included child marries, and the ever so slight of chance of marrying due to romance.
You should totally do a video on Shulu Ping she was both a skilled warrior and political navigator. She's pretty epic since she commanded her own armies and upon her husbands death seized power for herself ruling as an Empress. She even cut off her own hand at one point to prove a point (traditionally Khitan wives had to sacrifice themselves upon their husbands death so she cut off her hand and threw it in the tomb as a sacrafice). Though my favorite moment of her's was upon her husbands death asking the retainers if they missed him and if they answered yes she would kill them telling them to send a message to him in the after life (mainly because they where more loyal to a dead guy then her). She also single handily changed expectations for widows in Khitan society
Please make more of these videos about amazing, forgotten women. Best part was learning "Shang dynasty: jade, oracle bones & ritualistic human sacrifices" Also: butt book copy passed $400.
China's history always amazes me on how thrilling things actually are. I mean, let's say the crazy theory about Fu Yue and Fu Hao being the same person is true. The Crown Prince, who lived amoung the people, met a slave and was so amazed by her that he actually did an entire show after becoming king just to make her an important person in his court. He then proceeded to marry her and being madly in love with his war goddess even after her passing. If it was a c-drama I would say it's just too fantastic, yet there they are. Man, I love these stories.
Given that most royals across history had marriages arranged around "we need to make an alliance with X country", it is always kind of heartwarming to find one where the relationship was clearly full of love and respect.
Damn I even felt real bad for Wu Ding, they made a solid kingdom together and he really loved her yet she died quite young, what a fierce and admirable woman Fu Has was, also the oracles bones are such an unique and interesting historical source.
I wrote a college dissertation on Fu Hao and while we don't have a ton of information on her she's absolutely fascinating. The fact her tomb remained un-plundered during various periods of strife in China just seems like the stuff of legends.
I like your content on strong female historical figures. I like your sponsoring sections (especially the environmental friendly products) and they're funny. I like that you include uncertainty and sources in what you're saying. I like that you make easy to follow Chinese history content. :)
Shit, there is something... so sad about the questions on those bones. That poor man must have cared for her a great deal. Just imagine him just returning to the fire, day after day, asking those questions, realizing slowly his wife is passing away and there is nothing to be done.
Honestly, the Fu Hao-Fu Yue thing makes a lot of sense to me. Even in modern times, with all of our methods of communication and record-keeping, you can still see plenty of cases where information is misinterpreted or misrepresented, and as a result misinformation easily spreads. Looking back hundreds or thousands of years ago, they wouldn't even have the plethora of fact-checking methods that we do in modern times, so it's not hard to imagine that - when passing things down primarily through oral tradition rather than writing - it would be far easier for the facts to get switched around over the years. Look at something like Norse mythology. It's very likely that we'll *never* know the actual stories from Norse myth as they were told by their own culture. Most of the sources we have for those legends come from Christian authors who were trying to bridge the gap between their religions/cultures, and as a result pretty much everything we have is almost inevitably going to have some influences from the Christian cultures of the time. Then even further down the line, you have sources weaving even heavier Christian tones into descriptions of the stories, such as treating Loki more and more like a devil stand-in than he was in older iterations. And while some of it may have been intentional, a lot of it likely comes down more to how those stories are interpreted through the eyes a different culture just instinctively connecting dots between similar concepts, and doing so with their own preconceived notions. It's just one of the flaws that tends to come with oral traditions that aren't accompanied by written ones: It can basically turn into a centuries-long round of the telephone game that includes thousands of players across numerous different cultures.
Fu Hao sounds like a real badass. And though it's sad, it's still sweet that her husband cared and worried so much about her safety and well-being. I hope they are at peace in the afterlife. Also the thing with the books at the end made me chuckle. Sometimes fans be like that. Good on you for turning it into a chance to raise money for charity though ^~^
Same here! I'm re-reading Iron Widow for the third time in two months(? I forget when I got it. Not too long ago. Never re-read a book so much before! LOVE IT SO MUCH!).
oh... wu ding's concerns about fu hao are just??? so sweet???? its sad too, but the fact that he was asking about her that much is just really endearing. it's easy to see how much he cared about fu hao.
I visited her tomb after i learnt about her many years ago. The experience was very touching. The tomb and artefacts may look 'humble' comparing to later periods, but knowing about her time, it was definitely a top class tomb. It's a reminder and living evidence to us that here was a time in China men were not afraid of powerful women but admired and cherished their accomplishment.
I know you blew up because of your critique of the Mulan movie but I am so happy to watch other content like this. Historical figures and history are so interesting to me and growing up in the West you so rarely ever delve deeply into the history of China, Japan, and much of Southeast Asia. Thank you for putting in the time, effort, and research to bring us all a little more knowledge❤️
My great aunt has been in remission of cervical cancer for decades now and is a huge advocate for HPV vaccination, so this issue is definitely something personal for me. Make sure you get all of your doses when you get your vaccine!
YES! My favorite historical warrior! She has such a commanding presence and I adore her style and cultural designs. The ancient Shang dynasty art style carved on the bronze artifacts is by far my favorite design pattern and style of Chinese history. Something about it is so primal and beautiful and reflects on the kind of person and society Fu Hao came from. I learned so much from you about her and I am so grateful for the education and entertainment you provide.
I'd be super interested in seeing you discuss Zheng Yi Sao. A female pirate who from the limited research I did, seems to have been one of if not the best pirates at that time
It would be amazing if you talk about 红妆时代, the era after Wu Zetian died, when Princess Taiping, Princess Anle, Empress Wei, and Shangguan Wan'er took political powers! It was such an interesting and amazing time for women!
Your channel is helping me learn more about China and my history. I grew up with a family that suppressed my Chinese blood and refused to let me learn about it, so learning from you and others is both freeing and comforting. I feel closer to myself because of you. Thank you.
The part about Wu Ding living among commoners and then having to come up with theatrics to hire his advisor against the cultural norms of the time is super interesting. I feel like royal figures from these times are often thought of as being de facto accepting of the social order they lived in, so its cool to see that assumption challenged. Makes him seem a lot more "real".
PLEASE everyone who needs one, take time to get a pap. I kept putting it off and waited too long and I ended up needing 2 surgeries last year to remove precancerous cells. This was completely preventable, even if you cannot afford it/don't have insurance (my excuse for waiting) there are free resources in every state to get a pap and breast screening. Please, please please if you are overdue or just at the age to start, go online and get yourself an appointment set up through your primary or at your local public health. I was very lucky to have caught it before it spread any further or became cancer, unfortunately that is not always the case. Please don't wait!
I'm so so grateful for your presence on the internet/in literature. Iron Widow was such a wonderful book and I always get a boost of serotonin whenever I see you upload. Thank you for sharing your art, and thank you for your labor in educating all of us!
I got your book for Christmas and read it all in one sitting. I absolutely loved it and am really looking forward to reading whatever you publish next!
I hope this is the inspiration for one of your future books because wow what a legacy Fu Hao have lived. I can't stop crying at how much her husband loved her. He married her ghost to ghost emperors so that they can protect her in the afterlife because he couldn't. *sobs* Amazing video as ever. Thank you.
When Xiran says y'all need Jesus... ROFL. I showed your videos on Wu Zetian last night to my girlfriend, and she not only was super engaged, but your delivery of various reactions is so perfect it had us laughing hard. So glad tearing the live-action horror show that was theoretically Mulan into pieces turned into an opportunity to learn more about Chinese history and culture in a super fun way with a super fun person!
that charity auction idea is great, i hope you get a good donation! my mom had ovarian cancer at a young age (she's okay now) and made me get the hpv vaccine as soon as it came out because reproductive-related cancers run in my family so it's a cause close to me
I learned about Fu Hao in a university class last year. It made me really wish we had more details about her life beyond her fantastic military exploits.
Before today, I've never thought that I would laugh so hard at something as cringe-worthy as people on the internet trying to buy books that have been sat on by a specific person 😂 Seriously, Xiran. Your TH-cam channel is one of the best I know, not only because of little things like this, but also because your way of teaching Chinese History is a huge inspiration to me, a History undergraduate: you critique your sources with levels of rigor that seem comparable to those that my professors would use, but manage to make the information stick to my ADHD/autistic brain more efficiently than they usually can. One day, I hope to teach my students as well as you do! Greetings from Brazil 🤗
In social studies in 6th grade we listened to a video that was about Ancient China/Huang He river valley, and the chorus was literally: Lady Fu Hao! Wife of the Shang king, His name was Wu Ding, Look at her tomb, She ruled her own town! (I forget the next few lines but then it went) Read these cracked lines! To make decisions, Its writing mentions Lady Fu Hao! My teacher then informed us that we would not be learning anything about Fu Hao which left me kind of disappointed as the video had gotten me curious
I recently discovered your channel and I am so thankful I did! I've done tons of studies into folklore and history but mainly 9th century Nordic, Slavic and British Isles I know nothing about Chinese history and folklore and its a new study for me and your videos have incredible in starting me out on it. This one in particular stuck a cord with me because of all the archeology and contemporary sources, it makes my nerdy heart sing. Especially since in my own area of study, because 'vikings' have become a pop culture thing recently there has been some rather desperate straw-clutching trying to prove that 'shieldmaidens' and other warrior women existed in the way they're portrayed in media, and after watching your video why be so desperate to prove that when theirs already a bad ass like Fu Hao to study?
Judging by how accomplished and powerful Fu Hao was during the Shang dynasty, it makes sense why any sort of historical record of her doesn't exist beyond archaeological evidence and oracle bones. Historians were probably trying to write her out of history because of how much power she had as a woman.
I was gifted your book after my nephew’s wife passed away. She bequeathed your book to me. I have to say that finding your TH-cam channel makes all the more precious. (BTW I’m an anthropologist)
Honestly this whole channel makes me so happy and sometimes i just put it on background despite knowing already all of the stuff Your voice is super nice And it's interesting learning more about Chinese history! Hi from Italy!
She probably died of bronze poisoning - it was recently realised that Shang Dynasty nobles and royals drank ale/beer/wine/alcoholic drinks in general from bronze cups. The drink reacts badly with bronze creating a toxic reaction which shortened the lifespan of many Shang nobles dramatically.
It was so heart warming how he cared about her so much and they seemed to be true partners in life ❤️ while she got to do amazing things and be so badass…agh my heart i need a movie!
Came to this video after finishing your videos on Wu Zetian's rise to power. I have to say that I didn't know that Chinese history can be so interesting. Oh the drama of it all! Love it! I am so hooked on your storytelling.
this was SO COOL!! It's incredible the amount of information that can be cleaned when you find artifacts like this. But seriously this is so cool! I love learning about the unknown prominent women in ancient history
Many years ago: -Chinese warrior queen passes away- The people: we must sacrifice ourselves to honor her and all she has done in battle! Today: -Author sits on book- The people: Yo can I get the one she sat on! I would die for that copy! . . . Clearly our standards and expectations in society have taken a fall lol
Most of those sacrifices would not have been willing. It would be either condemned criminals or slaves. Most places with human sacrifice were not based on willing participation.
Thanks for auctioning the book for cervical cancer. My mom had it twice, including while she was pregnant with me. She survived it, but it was close - she had her coffin and burial plot picked out. Please get your HPV shots!
When I was a teen a book came out called Lady of Ch'iao Kuo by Laurence Yep which is based on a person who lived in southern China with the Hsien in the 6th century A.D. Her brother T'ing was a bad ruler so he was replaced with her.
About auction: “If you can't beat 'em, lead 'em". Good idea. Extremely unusual story, warrior queens are rare because of obvious reasons. But it is so sweet that she and her husband were so devoted to each other.
Please don't stop these videos! I feel European history is the most and the only history I actually hear about, and I love the chinese history videos you release, i know none of my classes would teach such subjects (I live in Texas) so its really great to broaden my horizons and learn more of a wonderful different culture.
Yaaaas teach me history about amazing strong women!!! 🙌 the content on this channel is fascinating, and Xiran is such an engaging, clever teacher (not to mention the best dressed). Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us! I feel like I learn a helluva lot more here than I ever learned in school hahaha!
Edit: THE BUTT BOOK SOLD FOR $3850 LMAOOOO
PAP SMEARS FOR EVERYONE
If you wanna check out my cursed book auction...it is here: www.ebay.ca/itm/384673546348
Thank you for doing this for charity 💜
Weird people getting books that you sat on probably don't realize you have a cat and that your cat has probably also sat and farted on those books xD
Lmao 😂😂😂😂😂
People are nuts
Why are people so... weird...?
The number of warrior queens I've read about that basically went into battle fully pregnant or had labor in battle is crazy. What's crazy is they often go into labor , hide their kid, and go right back into battle. It makes me feel like I'm underachieving.
This reminds me of the Japanese Onna Bugeisha, female warriors that fought side by side with Samurai. Those women were absolutely fascinating and tough as nails!
It probably gave them even more motivation to fight honestly.
Probably a chance it is ancient propaganda, but damn if it isn't inspiring
@@sunnivaleflair3576 it would be because the hormones fluctuate so badly we do into almost a primal state of mind to protect. Just like a mother bear.
I was not ready to do anything after labor, good God. But I guess the stakes were different!
There’s something so sad about following the life and death of Fu Hao through the worried questions her husband asked. It’s so intimate and personal, like reading his diary
I thought it sounded like reading the Google searches someone makes.
same lol "Is Fu Hao dying?" "Is Fu Hao really dead" sound like he was googling that shit@@ettinakitten5047
I feel like that's such a good idea for a format for a short story
I felt like I could feel his love and concern for her.
He was obviously concerned for her so he must have cared a lot about her, but I wonder if they were friends or if they were actually in love.
Can we talk about what a dedicated husband her man was? Like damn. He literally did everything he could to take care of her even after death.
and I can't even get a text back....
@@Butterflier00 Damn then that person ain't the right one.
Wu Ding was kind of relatable: Saw a tall badass lady with a sharp political mind and went 'I have to marry her!'
Well now I know what to look for in a man
dude got her an entire ghost harem
in Shang dynasty it's not "emperor's concubines", it's "emperor's Ministers of Affairs"
Now that is a harem drama I would watch!
Friends with state benefits
@@d.n5287 YES.
Lmfaooo the DRAMA tho
@@alyssaagnew4147 Don't the concubines interfere in state affairs in EVERY harem drama though?
It's really sweet that 武丁 cared so much for 妇好. One can only imagine the anxiousness and loneliness he felt after she passed.
This woman was his wife, his dependant, the protector of his country.
This affection would have exceeded ordinary love.
I want a man like that
I know, I almost cried 😭
@@janetestherina7169 I know what you mean, but honestly you probably don't. Wu Ding had MANY concubines. He only treated Fu Hao this way. If you had a guy like that, you might not be his Fu Hao. Just think of all the girls he ignored for Fu Hao who were nevertheless unable to leave him to find their own happiness
@@Yidenia bestie hes a king i wouldnt care anyway
The Shang idea of employing your wives/concubines as state ministers makes perfect sense. The whole point of a royal class in an aristocratic monarchy is that you get to identify potential leaders early and have all the resources needed to offer them the best possible education and experience in state affairs before they become formally appointed. If I'm going to all the trouble of having political marriages or concubinages, I would want this collection of education and experience from across my entire sphere of influence to be put to good use. At the very least they ought to be good ambassadors and advisors, since they have the inside perspective on their homeland. Stuffing them into a room until it's time to generate heirs seems absurdly wasteful.
Based
To most cultures, the ability to generate heirs was the sole value of their women.
Shame really... Makes it less of a waste...
True. This was before patriarchy took place. China was still semi-matriarchal during the Shang, I suppose. You can tell because the character for family/clan name 姓 is written with the radical for WOMAN 女, & a lot of the ancient clan names had WOMAN as a radical (姬 ; 姜 ; 好) so members of the clan descended from a common Matriarch, not a common father.
" If I'm going to all the trouble of having political marriages or concubinages,"
You go through all that trouble so that other aristocratic clan does not help to cut your throat. It is always worth it. There is also a fuzzy indication that a lot of societies were more egalitarian early on than later on. The assumption is that it turned as large scale warfare for resources and land became an existential thing. It heavily depended on the societies. E.g. ancient Egypt also saw pretty big power assigned to queens and female ladies because overall Egypt is its own self contained land where until late in antiquity there were only few external threats ever invading the kingdoms.
This is why it always annoys me when people say things like “we can’t have women doing things in this piece of media cause it’s set in the historical past and it wouldn’t be realistic”. Bull! Women were doing all kinds of cool stuff but they keep getting erased from history!
Great vid as always!
Oh hell yeah. Look up the Trung sisters if you havent already.
If want to learn more about badass Chinese queens I definitely looking up Ching Shih, the pirate queen.
I mean it depends on the when, like you are not gonna see something like a female roman legionary outside of Centuri's fanarts. But I do agree that women historically where underrepresented.
And remember kids, a ragtag group of korean women are the reason the Koreas aren't a part of China
Bro, see how they are responding to Galadriel wearing amour and fighting. Some tradcon mofos are losing their mind over a fictional magical elf woman wearing amour and fighting.🤣🤣🤣
It's so frustrating that oracle bones were only decoded as historical sources in 20th century and up to that time treated as medicine to be ground and eaten. How much precious information about the Shang has been literally pissed away over the years!
I mean in a way it's pretty interesting how unique this historical source is and it would be really cool to go down the rabbit hole to find out who first classified it as such
Also I'm just translating Michael Wood's "The Story of China" for domestic market and I'm happy to report that he does mention Fu Hao! Not in such detail, but then the book encompasses the whole of China's history, so... He also took a lot of pains to introduce a lot of female characters, which is great (ironically, he doesn't even mention Wu Zetian. But it's more of a broad reflection on the ideas underpinning Chinese civilisation than an actual history of China, so broad themes take precedence over specific details, haha).
@@kinrateia Apparently it was a scholar named Wang Yirong. In 1899 he fell ill with malaria and was given some of the bones as a remedy. He noticed the markings and recognised them as ancient characters, because he had seen some before on ancient bronzes. They started researching them and publishing the findings and around 1915 they traced their source to Anyang, where the capital city of the Shang was.
@@AW-uv3cb it sounds indeed exactly as exciting of a story as I thought it would be c:
They what
A brilliant tactician, a warrior, a priestess, an earnest lover, and (if that one theory is correct) a slave personally freed by the emperor due to her intellect; what an incredible woman. It makes me wonder how many other incredible people have been lost or deliberately erased from history. Thank you for sharing her story!
It's more likely that they changed Fu Hao into an enslaved man while she herself was free born and likely an aristocrat or even a noble from a neighboring kingdom. Later Chinese historians just really didn't like women in positions of power.
I love the fact he married Fu Hao to not one, but three of his own ancestors in death. Perhaps he felt they could keep up in a chariot race with her.
Very well done on turning the weird thirst energy of the internet into something meaningful.
👏👏👏👏
Around 11:00 to 11:20, the way the oracle bones described the fretting and eventual mourning of a man gone for 3000 years..
Man
It's stuff like that that makes me so very, sad for them, yet happy that we can still learn their stories
Humans have always been humans
That part made me cry 😭
It brought tears to my eyes. It's just so sad and personal. He really loved her and it shows even through questions about her on 3000 year old bones :(
yes, this is why i love history, at least one of the biggest reasons
"I know I talk about Wu Zetian a lot..."
It's almost like you wrote a book about her or something.
The whole "woman being mistaken for a man thing" has happened on occasion - Queen Tamar of Georgia was mistaken for a man. Usually, a queen was referred to as "wife of king", which obviously didn't apply to her, and so she got the same title as the male rulers. When these old texts were translated, people automatically assumed that Tamar had been a man.
Fu Hao would have been a "wife of king", of course, but I could TOTALLY see later scholars just assuming that someone with that much power must have been a dude. And the "male titles for female ruler" thing also applied to everyone from Hatshepsut (who some people now think was trans, which is certainly not impossible. But also probably dressing more masculine etc. helped if you wanted to be a lady pharaoh?) to Queen Elizabeth.
@@PirateQueen1720 Yeah, Maria of Poland was also referred to as "king". And I'm pretty sure Maria Theresia of Austria also referred to herself with masculine titles, probably to underline the fact that she was on equal footing with, say, Friedrich of Prussia. She did style herself as mother of the nation, after all - though that did not, in any sense, make her a feminist.
Well the word queen literally means "wife of a king". A couple of queen regnants have been styled as king, like Jadwiga of Poland, to protect her people's sovereignty from her husband.
@@sailiealquadacil1284
Neat fact: With Maria Theresia a very important aspect is that (unlike most female rulers) it was clear early on that she would need to take the wheel. When her father Charles VI realized he wouldn't have a male heir (his only son died in infancy) he looked at his eldest daughter and basically said: "Congratulations little girl, you've just been promoted to boy." and provided her with most of the education and opportunities he would have given a male heir.
Despite the fact that this was essential in keeping the Habsburg monarchy together, Maria Theresia had a very "got mine, fuck you" attitude towards the idea of making these opportunities a possibility for other women in her empire.
As she herself had sons to inherit her position she didn't allow her daughters the freedom she had enjoyed as a kid and instead demoted them back to "political barganing tool that looks pretty".
@@sherlocksmuuug6692 Oh, I know that. Maria Theresia saw herself as a "mother", not as a woman.
For one of your shortest videos, what a rollercoaster of emotions I had - thrilled to learn about Fu Hao's life, sad to hear how her husband fretted over her death, laughing over butt books, and admiration for charity auction of said butt books!
I agree! She's such a great story teller. I'm hanging on her every word.
It almost seems like Fu Hao and Wu Ding were what started the book troupe of commoner x royalty couples I consume on a regular basis. This was so interesting to watch! The more than likely romance between Fu Hao and Wu Ding seems almost picture perfect. And the fact that Fu Hao how so much power is amazing! Thank you for sharing!
I feel so bad for Wu Ding when he saw his queen pass away. Shows how much he and her loved each other.
@@Specters0rd Right!? To ask that much for a persons health and to bury them like he did after her passing.........*sobbing*
Oracle bones have got to be the coolest primary source I've ever heard of. How incredibly personal, and what a puzzle trying to piece them together into something coherent.
I remember her from my history class in the first semester of college but the information about her in our main textbook was barely existing, our professor did tell us extra stuff out of the book but she was definitely treated as the less important figure and finding anything about her in spanish or even english (at least with the resources we had) on out own was almost impossible so this video is really a dream come true.
If you still have a way to contact this professor, maybe they'd appreciate the video? Assuming you're down to contact them?
This was really nice, their isn't a lot of ancient history featuring Royalty/nobility actually being in love. At least to me it sounded like the Emperor was head over heels for her.
Haha this is funny. You should totally read about the great lengths that rulers would go to if they saw a pretty women or heard about pretty women. Also political marriages where pretty much 99% of the time, the other 1% included child marries, and the ever so slight of chance of marrying due to romance.
You should totally do a video on Shulu Ping she was both a skilled warrior and political navigator. She's pretty epic since she commanded her own armies and upon her husbands death seized power for herself ruling as an Empress. She even cut off her own hand at one point to prove a point (traditionally Khitan wives had to sacrifice themselves upon their husbands death so she cut off her hand and threw it in the tomb as a sacrafice). Though my favorite moment of her's was upon her husbands death asking the retainers if they missed him and if they answered yes she would kill them telling them to send a message to him in the after life (mainly because they where more loyal to a dead guy then her). She also single handily changed expectations for widows in Khitan society
That last sentence was clever!
@@anamazing2297 thanks for the compliment!
i REALLY want a video after reading this comment
Please make more of these videos about amazing, forgotten women.
Best part was learning "Shang dynasty: jade, oracle bones & ritualistic human sacrifices"
Also: butt book copy passed $400.
butt book copy is up to $2,450 USD
I don't need a butt book... All I need is just second-hand copy of her book... I'm sh*t poor, sue me...
China's history always amazes me on how thrilling things actually are.
I mean, let's say the crazy theory about Fu Yue and Fu Hao being the same person is true. The Crown Prince, who lived amoung the people, met a slave and was so amazed by her that he actually did an entire show after becoming king just to make her an important person in his court. He then proceeded to marry her and being madly in love with his war goddess even after her passing. If it was a c-drama I would say it's just too fantastic, yet there they are.
Man, I love these stories.
God their relationship is actually kinda cute, like it seems like he really cared
Given that most royals across history had marriages arranged around "we need to make an alliance with X country", it is always kind of heartwarming to find one where the relationship was clearly full of love and respect.
Fu Hao sounds so cool! She did so much! Its so sad that her achievements were forgotten
Apparently nor forgotten, as we today can hear her life story, her grave is known and she has a monument....
Ok but they really were a power couple, they clearly cared a lot for the other and both slayed 💅
Damn I even felt real bad for Wu Ding, they made a solid kingdom together and he really loved her yet she died quite young, what a fierce and admirable woman Fu Has was, also the oracles bones are such an unique and interesting historical source.
I wrote a college dissertation on Fu Hao and while we don't have a ton of information on her she's absolutely fascinating. The fact her tomb remained un-plundered during various periods of strife in China just seems like the stuff of legends.
I like your content on strong female historical figures. I like your sponsoring sections (especially the environmental friendly products) and they're funny. I like that you include uncertainty and sources in what you're saying. I like that you make easy to follow Chinese history content. :)
We stan a wifeguy king and his badass tall warrior queen😭
That was so sweet of him to care so much about her.
Shit, there is something... so sad about the questions on those bones. That poor man must have cared for her a great deal. Just imagine him just returning to the fire, day after day, asking those questions, realizing slowly his wife is passing away and there is nothing to be done.
Honestly, the Fu Hao-Fu Yue thing makes a lot of sense to me. Even in modern times, with all of our methods of communication and record-keeping, you can still see plenty of cases where information is misinterpreted or misrepresented, and as a result misinformation easily spreads. Looking back hundreds or thousands of years ago, they wouldn't even have the plethora of fact-checking methods that we do in modern times, so it's not hard to imagine that - when passing things down primarily through oral tradition rather than writing - it would be far easier for the facts to get switched around over the years.
Look at something like Norse mythology. It's very likely that we'll *never* know the actual stories from Norse myth as they were told by their own culture. Most of the sources we have for those legends come from Christian authors who were trying to bridge the gap between their religions/cultures, and as a result pretty much everything we have is almost inevitably going to have some influences from the Christian cultures of the time. Then even further down the line, you have sources weaving even heavier Christian tones into descriptions of the stories, such as treating Loki more and more like a devil stand-in than he was in older iterations. And while some of it may have been intentional, a lot of it likely comes down more to how those stories are interpreted through the eyes a different culture just instinctively connecting dots between similar concepts, and doing so with their own preconceived notions.
It's just one of the flaws that tends to come with oral traditions that aren't accompanied by written ones: It can basically turn into a centuries-long round of the telephone game that includes thousands of players across numerous different cultures.
Fu Hao sounds like a real badass. And though it's sad, it's still sweet that her husband cared and worried so much about her safety and well-being. I hope they are at peace in the afterlife.
Also the thing with the books at the end made me chuckle. Sometimes fans be like that. Good on you for turning it into a chance to raise money for charity though ^~^
Fascinating as always. Also, eagerly awaiting the Iron Widow sequel.
Same here! I'm re-reading Iron Widow for the third time in two months(? I forget when I got it. Not too long ago. Never re-read a book so much before! LOVE IT SO MUCH!).
oh... wu ding's concerns about fu hao are just??? so sweet???? its sad too, but the fact that he was asking about her that much is just really endearing. it's easy to see how much he cared about fu hao.
I visited her tomb after i learnt about her many years ago. The experience was very touching. The tomb and artefacts may look 'humble' comparing to later periods, but knowing about her time, it was definitely a top class tomb. It's a reminder and living evidence to us that here was a time in China men were not afraid of powerful women but admired and cherished their accomplishment.
I know you blew up because of your critique of the Mulan movie but I am so happy to watch other content like this. Historical figures and history are so interesting to me and growing up in the West you so rarely ever delve deeply into the history of China, Japan, and much of Southeast Asia. Thank you for putting in the time, effort, and research to bring us all a little more knowledge❤️
My great aunt has been in remission of cervical cancer for decades now and is a huge advocate for HPV vaccination, so this issue is definitely something personal for me.
Make sure you get all of your doses when you get your vaccine!
YES! My favorite historical warrior! She has such a commanding presence and I adore her style and cultural designs. The ancient Shang dynasty art style carved on the bronze artifacts is by far my favorite design pattern and style of Chinese history. Something about it is so primal and beautiful and reflects on the kind of person and society Fu Hao came from. I learned so much from you about her and I am so grateful for the education and entertainment you provide.
I love Xiran's reaction to the fact that people want those throne books so much 🤣
"You ever hear about 武则天"????....
from your very own fantastic 2 part series on her! What a badass!
Wha-... Is that a dab emoji?
@@anikab8419 seems so!
I'd be super interested in seeing you discuss Zheng Yi Sao. A female pirate who from the limited research I did, seems to have been one of if not the best pirates at that time
Anyone who earns the title of a pirate queen truly deserves it 💟💟💟
It would be amazing if you talk about 红妆时代, the era after Wu Zetian died, when Princess Taiping, Princess Anle, Empress Wei, and Shangguan Wan'er took political powers! It was such an interesting and amazing time for women!
Ohh I’d love that! She did mention Shangguan Wan’er in passing in her Wu Zetian videos.
Your channel is helping me learn more about China and my history. I grew up with a family that suppressed my Chinese blood and refused to let me learn about it, so learning from you and others is both freeing and comforting. I feel closer to myself because of you. Thank you.
The part about Wu Ding living among commoners and then having to come up with theatrics to hire his advisor against the cultural norms of the time is super interesting. I feel like royal figures from these times are often thought of as being de facto accepting of the social order they lived in, so its cool to see that assumption challenged. Makes him seem a lot more "real".
PLEASE everyone who needs one, take time to get a pap. I kept putting it off and waited too long and I ended up needing 2 surgeries last year to remove precancerous cells. This was completely preventable, even if you cannot afford it/don't have insurance (my excuse for waiting) there are free resources in every state to get a pap and breast screening. Please, please please if you are overdue or just at the age to start, go online and get yourself an appointment set up through your primary or at your local public health. I was very lucky to have caught it before it spread any further or became cancer, unfortunately that is not always the case. Please don't wait!
I'm so so grateful for your presence on the internet/in literature. Iron Widow was such a wonderful book and I always get a boost of serotonin whenever I see you upload. Thank you for sharing your art, and thank you for your labor in educating all of us!
Hearing his words as Fu Hao was dying is heartbreaking, he was so incredibly worried and it seemed so intimate and personal.
Fu Hao and her husband are 100% going to be that balanced match that went unnamed in Iron Widow. Can't wait to meet them in Heavenly Tyrant!
the stuff about how much her husband cared for her made me emotional, thats so sweet :c
“Yas queen slay” suddenly gained new meaning
It’s honestly so sweet that the reason we have so much knowlege of Fu Hao is because her husband loved and respected her so much.
This is going on my "underrated warriors list" with those amazing warriors in history who are forgotten
Yes
I got your book for Christmas and read it all in one sitting. I absolutely loved it and am really looking forward to reading whatever you publish next!
I hope this is the inspiration for one of your future books because wow what a legacy Fu Hao have lived. I can't stop crying at how much her husband loved her. He married her ghost to ghost emperors so that they can protect her in the afterlife because he couldn't. *sobs*
Amazing video as ever. Thank you.
When Xiran says y'all need Jesus... ROFL. I showed your videos on Wu Zetian last night to my girlfriend, and she not only was super engaged, but your delivery of various reactions is so perfect it had us laughing hard. So glad tearing the live-action horror show that was theoretically Mulan into pieces turned into an opportunity to learn more about Chinese history and culture in a super fun way with a super fun person!
Awww... I feel so bad for Wu Ding since he really loved his queen.
Honestly their story is couple goals
that charity auction idea is great, i hope you get a good donation! my mom had ovarian cancer at a young age (she's okay now) and made me get the hpv vaccine as soon as it came out because reproductive-related cancers run in my family so it's a cause close to me
I'm crying he cared for her so much, what a beautiful and tragic love
My aunt has stage 4 cervical cancer and it really means a lot that you are doing that and sharing information about it.
The dedication of her husband is so cute and admirable, even being loyal after shes gone.
"Is Fu Hao really dead?" Aww, that about broke my heart. :'(
As the Grand Archpriest of the Church of the Algorithm, I comment you to engage with this video.
I am compelled!
Wow a video about Fu Hao, she's underrated and should be talked about more :D (also great video love them!)
I learned about Fu Hao in a university class last year. It made me really wish we had more details about her life beyond her fantastic military exploits.
We need to start appreciating Fu Hao more
That sponsor transition was seamless. Well done.
I have never seen a smoother sponsor transition. That alone gets a thumbs up.
Before today, I've never thought that I would laugh so hard at something as cringe-worthy as people on the internet trying to buy books that have been sat on by a specific person 😂
Seriously, Xiran. Your TH-cam channel is one of the best I know, not only because of little things like this, but also because your way of teaching Chinese History is a huge inspiration to me, a History undergraduate: you critique your sources with levels of rigor that seem comparable to those that my professors would use, but manage to make the information stick to my ADHD/autistic brain more efficiently than they usually can. One day, I hope to teach my students as well as you do! Greetings from Brazil 🤗
im still watching your videos and learning things i didn't catch before
Honestly? I appreciate this marriage. They liked each other!
I love that you took the internet's weird thirsty energy and channelled it into a force for good.
Get you a man who sacrifices his enemies to your ghost and sends his ancestors to protect you in the afterlife while ur still alive 😭
YOU!! YOU'RE THE IRON WIDOW AUTHOR!!! I REMEMBER YOU MARKETING IN NOVEMBER!! YOU WERE AWESOME, I WAS SO HAPPY FOR YOUR SUCCESS!!!! CONGRATS!!!
In social studies in 6th grade we listened to a video that was about Ancient China/Huang He river valley, and the chorus was literally:
Lady Fu Hao!
Wife of the Shang king,
His name was Wu Ding,
Look at her tomb,
She ruled her own town!
(I forget the next few lines but then it went)
Read these cracked lines!
To make decisions,
Its writing mentions
Lady Fu Hao!
My teacher then informed us that we would not be learning anything about Fu Hao which left me kind of disappointed as the video had gotten me curious
I'm so obsessed with your channel and Chinese history now
I recently discovered your channel and I am so thankful I did! I've done tons of studies into folklore and history but mainly 9th century Nordic, Slavic and British Isles I know nothing about Chinese history and folklore and its a new study for me and your videos have incredible in starting me out on it. This one in particular stuck a cord with me because of all the archeology and contemporary sources, it makes my nerdy heart sing. Especially since in my own area of study, because 'vikings' have become a pop culture thing recently there has been some rather desperate straw-clutching trying to prove that 'shieldmaidens' and other warrior women existed in the way they're portrayed in media, and after watching your video why be so desperate to prove that when theirs already a bad ass like Fu Hao to study?
His love for her ESP through the end of her life is really getting me
Judging by how accomplished and powerful Fu Hao was during the Shang dynasty, it makes sense why any sort of historical record of her doesn't exist beyond archaeological evidence and oracle bones. Historians were probably trying to write her out of history because of how much power she had as a woman.
Zhou dynasty propaganda was also powerful. Women who had too much political power (de facto & de jure) after the king himself are not to be trusted.
I love her, I read about her during college and have been unofficially obsessed ever since.
Wu Ding and Fu Hao a true power couple
I was gifted your book after my nephew’s wife passed away. She bequeathed your book to me. I have to say that finding your TH-cam channel makes all the more precious.
(BTW I’m an anthropologist)
Honestly this whole channel makes me so happy and sometimes i just put it on background despite knowing already all of the stuff
Your voice is super nice
And it's interesting learning more about Chinese history!
Hi from Italy!
LMFAO the fact that people REALLY want that book you sat on really is amazing
She probably died of bronze poisoning - it was recently realised that Shang Dynasty nobles and royals drank ale/beer/wine/alcoholic drinks in general from bronze cups. The drink reacts badly with bronze creating a toxic reaction which shortened the lifespan of many Shang nobles dramatically.
Definitely of note!
It was so heart warming how he cared about her so much and they seemed to be true partners in life ❤️ while she got to do amazing things and be so badass…agh my heart i need a movie!
The last section about the book throne and the auction had me dying 😂
And as always, your videos are dope, I'm learning so much stuff thanks to you !
Came to this video after finishing your videos on Wu Zetian's rise to power. I have to say that I didn't know that Chinese history can be so interesting. Oh the drama of it all! Love it! I am so hooked on your storytelling.
this was SO COOL!! It's
incredible the amount of information that can be cleaned when you find artifacts like this. But seriously this is so cool! I love learning about the unknown prominent women in ancient history
I wasn't expecting such a touching love story! So sweet.
Many years ago:
-Chinese warrior queen passes away-
The people: we must sacrifice ourselves to honor her and all she has done in battle!
Today:
-Author sits on book-
The people: Yo can I get the one she sat on! I would die for that copy!
.
.
.
Clearly our standards and expectations in society have taken a fall lol
Most of those sacrifices would not have been willing. It would be either condemned criminals or slaves. Most places with human sacrifice were not based on willing participation.
Thanks for auctioning the book for cervical cancer. My mom had it twice, including while she was pregnant with me. She survived it, but it was close - she had her coffin and burial plot picked out. Please get your HPV shots!
"Y'all need Jesus"
Also, I love that you're turning "the cursed thirsty energy" into something good and donating to a charity
There's not enough discussion on TH-cam about ancient Chinese history. It never fails to be interesting. Thank you! ✨
When I was a teen a book came out called Lady of Ch'iao Kuo by Laurence Yep which is based on a person who lived in southern China with the Hsien in the 6th century A.D. Her brother T'ing was a bad ruler so he was replaced with her.
About auction: “If you can't beat 'em, lead 'em". Good idea.
Extremely unusual story, warrior queens are rare because of obvious reasons. But it is so sweet that she and her husband were so devoted to each other.
Yesssss, finally something about Fu Hao! I immediately liked!
Please don't stop these videos! I feel European history is the most and the only history I actually hear about, and I love the chinese history videos you release, i know none of my classes would teach such subjects (I live in Texas) so its really great to broaden my horizons and learn more of a wonderful different culture.
This is why it's important to document everything, people!
Yaaaas teach me history about amazing strong women!!! 🙌 the content on this channel is fascinating, and Xiran is such an engaging, clever teacher (not to mention the best dressed).
Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us! I feel like I learn a helluva lot more here than I ever learned in school hahaha!