empress dowager zheng achun
China

Empress Dowager Zheng Achun – The widow who became a respected Empress Dowager of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and whose name was tabooed

Empress Dowager Zheng Achun was the imperial concubine of Emperor Yuan of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. She was the mother of Emperor Jianwen and the grandmother of Emperor Xiaowu of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Before Empress Dowager Zheng Achun met Emperor Yuan, she was a widow with a young son.[1] However, he could only make her [read more]

alison weir
Book News

Book News Week 49

*contains affiliate links* Book News Week 49 – 1 December – 7 December 2025 Queens at War: England’s Medieval Queens Book Four  Hardcover – 2 December 2025 (US & UK) Women and Power at the French Court, 1483-15 Hardcover – 1 December 2025 (US) Marie-Antoinette’s Legacy: The Politics of French Garden Patronage and Picturesque Design, 1775-1867 [read more]