Forget Mulan—ancient China’s most successful female military commander went undefeated in battle and earned honors for over 50 years
In ancient China, few women had their names recorded in history books for heroic deeds. Although scholars began writing biographies of women in the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), they were part of a genre called “Biographies of Exemplary Women (列女传),” which praised certain women as moral exemplars for their chastity, virtue, filial piety, and kindness.
But Qin Liangyu (秦良玉), a military general in the Ming dynasty (1368 – 1644), broke this rule. She led one of history’s most feared armies in China’s southwest, won countless battles against rivals and rebels, and inspired an emperor to pen the famous saying, “Why must a general be a man?” She was also the only female commander in ancient Chinese history to receive military honors during her lifetime, and was the only woman to be included in the biographies of generals and ministers in dynastic history books.
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