9. Wu Zetian, the only ever female solo ruler of China, is believed to have ordered the deaths of at least three of her own children in an attempt to elevate and secure her position
Wu Zetian, also known as Wu Zhao, reigned as Empress Consort, Empress Dowager, and finally as Empress Regent of Imperial China from 655 CE until her removal just months before her death in 705. The concubine of Emperor Taizong, in a breach of convention, married his successor and son, Emperor Gaozong, in 655 to become the imperial consort. It has been suggested Wu orchestrated the death of her infant child, by violent strangulation, in 654. This was to discredit Gaozong’s then-wife, Empress Wang, who was consequently deposed and eventually executed on Wu’s orders in 656. Ascending to the position of court administrator after her husband suffered a stroke in 660, Wu aggressively defended her unchecked power.
In 675, Wu’s eldest son, the crown prince Li Hong, suddenly died. Once again, it has been strongly suggested he was poisoned on the orders of his mother after disobeying her. This incident was followed in 683 with the exile of her second son, Li Xian, on accusations of fermenting rebellion; Li was forced to commit suicide a year later after the death of Gaozong. Following her husband’s death, Wu elevated herself to Empress Regent under her son, Emperor Zhongzong. However, proving too independent, Wu deposed him and replaced him with another son. Eventually, in 690, Ruizong was also removed and Wu ruled as the only female solo ruler in Chinese history.