Empress Dowager Lou Zhaojun (婁昭君) (501–562), formally Empress Ming (明皇后, literally "the understanding empress"), was an empress dowager of the Chinese dynasty Northern Qi. She was the wife of Gao Huan, the paramount general of Northern Wei and its branch successor state Eastern Wei, and during Gao Huan's lifetime was already influential on the political scene. After Gao Huan's death, she continued to exert influence through the regency of her son Gao Cheng, and then as empress dowager after another son Gao Yang seized the throne from Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei and established Northern Qi (as Emperor Wenxuan). She continued to serve as grand empress dowager through the reigns of Gao Yang's son Emperor Fei, and then again as empress dowager during the reigns of two more of her own sons, Emperor Xiaozhao and Emperor Wucheng.
Read more about Empress Dowager Lou Zhaojun: Background and Marriage To Gao Huan, During Eastern Wei, During Emperor Wenxuan's Reign, During Emperor Fei's Reign, During Emperor Xiaozhao's Reign, During Emperor Wucheng's Reign
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