Empress Wang

Who was Empress Wang?

Empress Wang, formally Empress Xiaomu was an empress during Xin Dynasty.

Lady Wang married her husband, the eventual Xin emperor Wang Mang while he was still a commoner. She was the daughter of Wang Xian, the Marquess of Yichun, who was the grandson of Han prime minister Wang Xin. She, taking Wang Mang's cue, was thrifty in her living, and on one occasion, when imperial messengers came to her house, her unassuming clothing and manner caused the imperial messengers to confuse her for a household servant, rather than the wife of a prominent marquess.

Lady Wang bore her husband at least five children—sons Wang Yu, Wang Huo, Wang An, and Wang Lin, and a daughter who later became empress to Emperor Ping of Han and was given the title of Princess Huanghuang during Xin Dynasty.

Wang Mang was publicly known for his marital faithfulness, and he put on the appearance that he had no concubines or other female liaisons in addition to his wife. However, that was not true, for Wang Mang had affairs with at least three servant women and, later, a lady-in-waiting to Empress Wang. He was also known for his thrift living, which extended to his wife, and in one incident when he was the commander of the armed forces under his cousin Emperor Cheng of Han, when his mother died, when Lady Wang came to greet the mourners, she was in such plain clothes that she was mistaken for a servant.