Biographical Data Empress Wu is also known as Wu Hou, Wu Chao, Wu Zetian, or Wu Tsê T’ien (“Emulator of Heaven”). She was born in the year of 625 AD. She was born and raised in China during the Tang dynasty. Empress Wu was the daughter of Wu Shih-Huo, a rich and noble merchant at the time. The Tang Dynasty was a time of relative freedom for woman. Since Empress Wu lived during that period of time, she was well educated at home. Like most other rich and noble people of her time, she was taught to play music, write, and read the Chinese classics. Empress Wu started out as a low-ranking concubine of the emperor of the Tang court, T’ai Tsung. She was well known for her beauty