Liang Lanbi Explained

Liang Lanbi (梁蘭璧;^[1] 300–311) was an empress during the Jin dynasty (266–420). Her husband was the ill-fated Sima Chi.

Very little is known about her, and she was not even listed in the biographies of the empresses in the Book of Jin, the official history of the dynasty.^[2] She had married Sima Chi long before he became emperor (most probably during his tenure as Prince of Yuzhang, although the date is not known).^[3] When he was crown prince, she carried the title of crown princess. When he became emperor on 11 January 307,^[4] she was created empress. Nothing further is known about her, including her fate when both she and her husband were captured by Han-Zhao forces in 311. However, it appeared that at least by later that year, when the Han-Zhao emperor Liu Cong created him the Duke of Kuaiji, she had either died or had been taken elsewhere, for Liu Cong gave a concubine of his, Consort Liu, to be the former Jin emperor's duchess.

Qing dynasty scholar Xue Fucheng said Empress Liang committed suicide in defence of her virtue.

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Notes and References

1. As noted below, the official history (known as the Book of Jin, with the Tang dynasty chancellor Fang Xuanling as its lead editor) for Jin did not include a biography for her. Her name was, however, noted as Lanbi in another Book of Jin, authored by Zang Rongxu (臧榮緒). See Book of Jin by Zang Rongxu, Web site: 九家舊晉書輯本 臧榮緒晉書 . 2010-08-08 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102183459/http://www.chinapage.com/big5/history/9j1.htm . 2010-01-02 ., vol. 4.
2. See Book of Jin, vols. 31, 32.
3. The Book of Jin by Zang Rongxu indicated that Lady Liang was the Princess Consort of Yuzhang at one point. Sima Chi was created the Prince of Yuzhang on 22 December 289 (jiashen day of the 11th month of the 10th year of the Tai'kang era, per Emperor Wu's biography in Book of Jin).
4. guiyou day of the 11th month of the 1st year of the Guang'xi era, per Emperor Huai's biography in Book of Jin