Taisi was the wife of King Wen of Zhou

King Wen of Zhou

King Wen of Zhou family name : Ji , Clan name : Zhou Personal name: Chang, known as Zhou Chang or Xibo Chang was the founder of the Zhou Dynasty and the first epic hero of Chinese history....

 and is revered as a highly respected woman of ancient China. She was a descendant of Yu the Great

Yu the Great

Yu the Great , was a legendary ruler of Ancient China famed for his introduction of flood control, inaugurating dynastic rule in China by founding the Xia Dynasty, and for his upright moral character....

 - founder of the Xia Dynasty

Xia Dynasty

The Xia Dynasty is the first dynasty in China to be described in ancient historical chronicles such as Bamboo Annals, Classic of History and Records of the Grand Historian. The Xia Dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors gave his throne to him...

 - and was the mother of ten sons, including the famed King Wu of Zhou

King Wu of Zhou

King Wu of Zhōu or King Wu of Chou was the first sovereign, or ruler of the Chinese Zhou Dynasty. The dates of his reign are 1046-1043 BCE or 1049/45-1043. Various sources quoted that he died at the age of 93, 54 or 43. He was considered a just and able leader. Zhou Gong Dan was one of his...

 - founder of the Zhou Dynasty

Zhou Dynasty

The Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...

 - and his younger brother Duke Dan of Zhou

Duke of Zhou

The Duke of Zhou played a major role in consolidating the newly-founded Zhou Dynasty . He was the brother of King Wu of Zhou, the first king of the ancient Chinese Zhou Dynasty...

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Particularly respected by Wu Zetian

Wu Zetian

Wu Zetian , personal name Wu Zhao , often referred to as Tian Hou during the Tang Dynasty and Empress Consort Wu in later times, was the only woman in the history of China to assume the title of Empress Regnant...

, China's only Empress regnant, Taisi and King Wen were posthumously given the temple name

Temple name

Temple names are commonly used when naming most Chinese, Korean , and Vietnamese royalty. They should not be confused with era names. Compared to posthumous names, the use of temple names is more exclusive...

s "Shizu" in 690 AD

690

Year 690 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 690 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* Beginning of Wu Zetian's Zhou Dynasty in China...

.

Life

Taisi is said to been born in the Si family as a member of the Youxin clan , then living in what is now Heyang County

Heyang County

Heyang County is a county of Weinan, Shaanxi, China....

, Shaanxi Province. The famed historiographer Sima Qian

Sima Qian

Sima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography for his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti"-style general history of China, covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow Emperor to...

 wrote that she was originally from the older State of Qi

Qi (Henan)

Qi was a minor feudal state that appears in Chinese history from the beginning of the Shang Dynasty until the beginning of the Warring States Period, circa 445 BCE.-History:...

 or State of Zeng, both in and around modern-day Henan Province.

The traditional story regarding Taisi's rise to queen says that the future King Wen of Zhou, born Xibo Chang , was walking along the banks of the Wei River

Wei River

The Wei River is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization....

 one day when he first met Taisi. Her beauty so captivated Chang that he initially thought she was a goddess or angel. Taisi proved a woman of benevolence, wisdom, and simple tastes, and Chang decided to take her as his wife. Because the Wei River was not bridged, Chang set out to build one by constructing a number of boats that were arranged end-to-end to form a floating path across the river. Taisi was impressed, and they were married.

After Taisi joined her husband's family, she is said to have quickly gained favor with the other women of the royal family through her diligent work ethic and demeanor. She and the king had ten sons together, and Taisi is said to have been an exceptional teacher and mother, such that all of the sons were men of upright virtue and wisdom.

In literature

Guan Ju

Guan ju

Guan ju is a poem from the ancient anthology Shi Jing , and is one of the best known poems in Chinese literature. It has been dated to the seventh century BCE, making it also one of China's oldest poems. The title of the poem comes from its first line , which evokes a scene of ospreys calling on a...

, the famous opening song of the Book of Songs, with its opening description of a beautiful maiden plucking plants along a river bank who is loved by a young prince, is said by some to be originally about Taisi and the prince's first meeting along the Wei River.