Notable people
40 peopleFigures with the most linked events, works and records.
People
Royals
Rulers who held supreme power, and the consorts, palace attendants and kin around the throne
368people
4roles
Mural guide
In a palace hall at low sun, red pillars hold up a painted ceiling above a high stepped dais with an empty carved throne; bronze burners send up smoke, rows of officials stand with their backs turned, and two palace maids stand by a yellow canopy, with lakes and pavilions beyond.
This group holds the people at the centre of the court: monarchs and emperors who held supreme power, the empresses and consorts married to them, court figures who served inside the palace, and royal kin of the ruling house. Their standing came from sovereignty, marriage, palace service or blood, and their lives are recorded chiefly in the annals, consort biographies and royal-kin chapters of the standard histories.
Monarch / Emperor
305 peopleMonarchs of the successive dynasties and of regional states who held supreme authority
Empress / Consort
69 peopleEmpresses, consorts of every rank and empress dowagers of the ruling houses