Northern Zhou
Initially, Northern Zhou only had a system that allows for five madames. However, during the reign of Emperor Xuan, five Empresses were created - unprecedented by Chinese standards:
- Yang Lihua, The Great Empress of Tianyuan (天元大皇后楊麗華)
- Zhu Manyue, The Great Empress of the Heaven (天大皇后朱滿月)
- Chen Yueyi, The Great Center Empress of the Heaven (天中大皇后陳月儀)
- Yuchi Chifan, The Great Left Empress of the Heaven (天左大皇后尉遲熾繁)
- Yuan Leshang, The Great Right Empress of the Heaven (天右大皇后元樂尚)
In addition, there were an innumerable number of consorts in the harem.
Read more about this topic: Ranks Of Imperial Consorts In China
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