Lady Fu Hao

Who Was She?

Lady Fu Hao was one of the many wives of King Wu Ding;
a king in ancient China who reigned over 3,000 years
ago during the Shang Dynasty. The Shang Dynasty was
centred around the Yellow River in north east China
and is famous for its bronze and jade artwork. Lady
Fu Hao had many roles including being a general and
a high priestess and controlling her own territory.
She was the first female military leader in known
history. Lady Fu Hao was also known as Mu Xin.

Why is She So Important?

Lady Fu Hao was a powerful woman both during
her life and after she died around 1250 BC. Her
tomb, when it was found by archaeologists in
1976, was the only royal tomb from the Shang
dynasty that was undamaged and still had
her precious things in, meaning historians
could learn a lot from it.

What Do We Know About Her Tomb?

It is in modern day Anyang outside the main
royal cemetery and was built smaller than other
royal tombs. Because she died before her husband, a
tomb was built for her which was a large pit measuring 5.6 metres by 4 metres.
The body of Lady Fu Hao was placed in a coffin within a wooden chamber. There
may have been something built over the tomb to allow people to hold memorial
ceremonies.

Did You Know...?

The Shang were the first Chinese
to develop writing. They used
pictographs, characters and other
images to express meaning.

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 Lady Fu Hao

What Did They Find in Her Tomb?

• The remains of 6 dogs and 16 humans.
• Over 450 bronze objects (including
130 weapons, 23 bells, 27 knives,
4 tigers and 4 mirrors)
• Over 750 jade objects
• 63 stone objects
• Over 550 bone objects (mainly bone
hairpins and some arrowheads) The ding (a sacrificial
container) found in the tomb
• 11 pottery objects
is named the ‘HouMuWu’. It
• Almost 7,000 cowry shells weighs a massive 875kg!
(Shang money)

Until Death Do Us Part?

Human sacrifices were also performed as part of a ritual at the burial of an
important person. This was done so that the individual would have servants
to serve them in the afterlife. Fu Hao was clearly considered important as the
skeletons of 16 human beings were buried around the perimeter of her tomb.

What Did Lady Fu Hao Achieve?

Lady Fu Hao led many military campaigns. She had important generals
serving under her, as well as 13 000 soldiers. Fu Hao’s army became famous
for defeating the Tu-Fang, fierce rivals of the Shang, in one single battle. She
went on to lead several successful military campaigns against neighbouring
kingdoms. She was not only the first known female military leader, she was
the most successful and powerful
military leader of her time, male
or female. Fu Hao was awarded
land from the territories that she
conquered and became an active
politician and spiritual leader,
both of which were unusual roles
for women at the time.

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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Questions

1. Who was Lady Fu Hao’s husband? 

2. Where in the world was the Yellow River? Tick one.

South West China

North East China
North West China
South East China

3. When was Lady Fu Hao’s tomb discovered?



4. Explain why Lady Fu Hao’s tomb was such an important discovery for archaeologists.




5. What were ‘cowry shells’?



6. What is the name of a sacrificial container from the Shang Dynasty? Tick one.

tomb
grave
ding
gong
7. Explain how archaeologists knew that Lady Fu Hao was important from their discoveries.




8. Why is Lady Fu Hao considered to be an important historical figure? Use evidence from the
text to support your answer.




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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Answers

1. Who was Lady Fu Hao’s husband?
King Wu Ding

2. Where in the world was the Yellow River? Tick one.

South West China

North East China

North West China

South East China

3. When was Lady Fu Hao’s tomb discovered?

1976

4. Explain why Lady Fu Hao’s tomb was such an important discovery for archaeologists.
Pupil’s own response, such as: Lady Fu Hao’s tomb was such an important
discovery for archaeologists because it was undamaged and contained all of her
precious things that taught historians about her and the Shang Dynasty.

5. What were ‘cowry shells’?

Shang money

6. What is the name of a sacrificial container from the Shang Dynasty? Tick one.

tomb

grave

ding

gong

7. Explain how archaeologists knew that Lady Fu Hao was important from their discoveries.
Pupil’s own response, such as: Archaeologists knew that she was an important
figure because in her tomb, they found 16 human skeletons. These would have been
human sacrifices made to ensure that she had servants in the afterlife. They also
found hundreds of bronze and jade objects as well as 7,000 cowry shells.

8. Why is Lady Fu Hao considered to be an important historical figure? Use evidence from the text to support
your answer.
Pupil’s own response, such as: Lady Fu Hao is considered one of history’s greatest women because she
was an extremely successful military leader who defeated the Shang Dynasty enemy. This was not a
role that women would usually have had at this time. She was also an active politician and spiritual
leader which means that many people, including men, would have listened to her and taken her advice.

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 Lady Fu Hao
Who Was She?
Lady Fu Hao was one of the many wives of King Wu Ding;
a king of the Shang dynasty in ancient China who reigned
between approximately 1250 and 1192 BC. The Shang
Dynasty was centred around the Yellow River in north
east China and is famous for its bronze and jade artwork.

Lady Fu Hao had many roles including being a general

and a high priestess and controlling her own territory
on the outskirts of the Empire. She was the first female
military leader in known history. Lady Fu Hao, also
known as Mu Xin, was clearly held in high regard by
the king as it was rare for women to perform ritual
ceremonies like Lady Fu Hao did. According to old
inscriptions, she once led 13,000 soldiers into battle
against the Qiang people (one of many ethnic groups in
China).

Lady Fu Hao was a powerful woman both during her life and after she died
around 1250 BC. Her tomb, when it was found by archaeologists in 1976, was
the only royal tomb from the Shang dynasty that was fully intact and still had
her precious things in, meaning historians could learn a lot from it.

Did You Know...?

The Shang were the first Chinese to develop
writing. They used pictographs, characters and
other images to express meaning.

Lady Fu Hao’s Tomb

Her tomb was discovered in modern day Anyang, the
location of the last capital city of the Shang. It was built smaller than other
royal tombs and was situated outside the main royal cemetery. Because she died
before her husband, a tomb was built for her which was a large pit measuring
5.6 metres by 4 metres The corpse of Lady Fu Hao was placed in a lacquered
coffin within a wooden chamber. There may have been something built over the
tomb to allow people to hold memorial ceremonies.

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 Lady Fu Hao

What Did They Find in Her Tomb?

In her tomb, archaeologists found:

• The remains of 6 dogs and 16 humans.

• Over 450 bronze objects (including
130 weapons, 23 bells, 27 knives,
4 tigers and 4 mirrors)
• Over 750 jade objects
• 63 stone objects
• 5 ivory objects (ivory was
a precious material)
The ding (a sacrificial
• Over 550 bone objects (mainly bone
hairpins and some arrowheads) container) found in the tomb
is named the ‘HouMuWu’. It
• 11 pottery objects
weighs a massive 875kg!
• Almost 7,000 cowry shells
(Shang currency)

Human Sacrifice
Human sacrifices were also performed as part of a ritual at the burial of an
important person. This was done because the Shang believed that it would
provide that individual with servants to serve them in the afterlife. Fu Hao was
clearly considered important as the skeletons of 16 human beings were buried
around the perimeter of her tomb.

Interesting Fact
The Shang society was divided into different classes.
The royal family were of course at the top, followed by
priests, warriors, craftsmen, traders and farmers and
at the very bottom of the class system were slaves.

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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao the Military Leader

Lady Fu Hao led many military campaigns and even defeated the rival tribe
of Tu-Fang who had remained undefeated previously, in one single battle. As
well as leading thousands of soldiers, Fu Hao had important generals serving
under her and she went on to lead several successful military campaigns
against neighbouring kingdoms. She was not only the first known female
military leader, she was the most successful and powerful military leader of
her time, male or female. Fu Hao was awarded land from the territories that
she conquered and became an active politician and spiritual leader, both of
which were unusual roles for women at the time.

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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Questions

1. Who was Lady Fu Hao married to?

2. What materials did the Shang Dynasty use in their craft work? Tick one.

diamonds and jade

silver and gold
bronze and copper
bronze and jade

3. Who was Mu Xin?



4. What was King Wu Ding’s attitude towards Lady Fu Hao and how do you know?




5. When did Lady Fu Hao die? Tick one.

around 1192 BC
around 1250 BC
around 1000 BC
around 1950 BC
6. Find and copy a word which means dead body.

7. What do the objects found in Lady Fu Hao’s tomb tell us about her? Use evidence from the
text to support your answer.



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 Lady Fu Hao


8. Explain why you would not want to be a slave in the Shang Dynasty. Use evidence from the
text to support your answer.




9. Name two ways in which Lady Fu Hao was a pioneering woman.





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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Answers

1. Who was Lady Fu Hao married to?
King Wu Ding

2. What materials did the Shang Dynasty use in their craft work? Tick one.

diamonds and jade

silver and gold

bronze and copper

bronze and jade

3. Who was Mu Xin?

Lady Fu Hao

4. What was King Wu Ding’s attitude towards Lady Fu Hao and how do you know?
Pupil’s own response, such as: King Wu Ding must have respected Lady Fu Hao
because it says in the text that it was rare for women to perform ritual ceremonies
and Lady Fu Hao was a high priestess so she would have done this many times.

5. When did Lady Fu Hao die? Tick one.

around 1192 BC

around 1250 BC

around 1000 BC

around 1950 BC

6. Find and copy a word which means dead body.

corpse

7. What do the objects found in Lady Fu Hao’s tomb tell us about her? Use evidence from the text to support
your answer.
Pupil’s own response, such as: The objects in Lady Fu Hao’s tomb tell us that she was an important
figure and that she was wealthy because there were hundreds of bronze, jade and ivory objects, money
(7,000 cowry shells) and the skeletons of humans who would have most likely have been her servants.

8. Explain why you would not want to be a slave in the Shang Dynasty. Use evidence from the text to support
your answer.
Pupil’s own response, such as: You would not want to be a slave in the Shang Dynasty because you
would have been at the bottom of the class system and when your rich or important master died, you
might have been sacrificed and buried with them so that they would have servants in the afterlife.

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 Lady Fu Hao
9. Name two ways in which Lady Fu Hao was a pioneering woman.
Pupil’s own response, such as: Lady Fu Hao was a pioneering woman because she was a
successful military leader who defeated one of the Shang Dynasty’s fiercest rivals and
no other woman (or man in fact) had done this before. She was also a politician and
spiritual leader which women would not usually be allowed to be at this time.

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 Lady Fu Hao
Lady Fu Hao was one of the many wives of King Wu Ding; one
of thirty kings of the Shang dynasty in ancient China who
reigned between approximately 1250 and 1192 BC. The
Shang Dynasty was centred around the Yellow River in
north east China and is famous for its bronze and jade
artwork.

Lady Fu Hao had many roles including being a general

and a high priestess and controlling her own territory
on the outskirts of the Empire. She was the first female
military leader in known history. Lady Fu Hao, also
known as Mu Xin, was clearly held in high regard by
the king as it was rare for women to perform ritual
ceremonies like Lady Fu Hao did. According to old
inscriptions, she once led 13,000 soldiers into battle
against the Qiang people (one of many ethnic groups in
China).

She is also mentioned in relation to illness and childbirth, and inscriptions found
on the bones of animals show that she had a child named Prince Jie.

Did You Know...?

The Shang were the first Chinese to develop writing.
This was called the oracle bone script, used from
1500 to 1000 BC. This script was etched onto
animal bones and shells which were then heated
until cracks appeared. Shang priests would then
interpret the cracks and make predictions about
the future based on what they saw. These were
known as ‘oracle bones’.

Lady Fu Hao was a powerful woman during her life, but also became an important
figure in her death. Her tomb, when it was found by archaeologists, was the only
royal tomb from the Shang dynasty that hadn’t been looted, and historians have
learnt a lot about the Shang Dynasty from it.

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 Lady Fu Hao
Her tomb was discovered in modern day Anyang, the location of the last capital
city of the Shang; the Shang Dynasty regularly changed the location of their
capital city. It was built smaller than other royal tombs and was situated outside
the main royal cemetery. Because she died before her husband, a tomb was built
for her which was a large pit measuring 5 metres by 4 metres at the entrance
and was 8 metres long. The corpse of Lady Fu Hao was placed in a lacquered
coffin within a wooden chamber. There may have been something built over the
tomb to allow people to hold memorial ceremonies.

It is extremely fortunate that Lady Fu

Hao’s tomb was discovered intact as the
artefacts inside revealed a great deal
about the Shang Dynasty. In the tomb,
archaeologist’s found: over 450 bronze
objects (including 130 weapons, 23
bells, 27 knives, 4 tigers and 4 mirrors),
over 750 jade objects, 63 stone objects,
5 ivory objects (ivory was a precious
material), over 550 bone objects (mainly
This ding found in the tomb
bone hairpins and some arrowheads), 11
is named the ‘HouMuWu’.
pottery objects and almost 7,000 cowry
It weighs a massive 875kg!
shells (Shang currency).

Human sacrifices were also performed

as part of a ritual at the burial of an Interesting Fact
important person. This was done because The Shang society was divided
the Shang believed that it would provide into different classes. The royal
that individual with servants to serve family were of course at the top,
them in the afterlife. Fu Hao was clearly followed by priests, warriors,
considered important as the skeletons of craftsmen, traders and farmers
16 human beings were buried around the and at the very bottom of the
perimeter of her tomb. class system were slaves.

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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao led many military campaigns and even defeated the rival tribe
of Tu-Fang who had remained undefeated previously, in one single battle. As
well as leading thousands of soldiers, Fu Hao had important generals serving
under her and she went on to lead several successful military campaigns
against neighbouring kingdoms. She was not only the first known female
military leader, she was the most successful and powerful military leader of
her time, male or female. Fu Hao was awarded land from the territories that
she conquered and became an active politician and spiritual leader, both of
which were unusual roles for women at the time.

Following her death around 1250 BC, the Shang’s military dominance
weakened and King Wu Ding was forced to make repeated sacrifices to their
God and would pray to Fu Hao’s spirit to defend them against invasion.
Over time, Lady Fu Hao turned into a mythical figure whom historians did
not believe had ever really existed until her tomb was uncovered at Yinxu in
1976, providing a wealth of information and evidence of her existence.

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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Questions

1. How many Shang kings were there?

2. How else was Lady Fu Hao known?

3. What was the name of Lady Fu Hao’s son? Tick one.

Prince Wu Ding
Prince Jie
Prince Fu Hao
Prince Mu Xin

4. Explain in your own words how the Shang used oracle bones.





5. ‘…but [Lady Fu Hao] also became an important figure in her death’.

Explain what is meant by the extract above.




6. What was found at Anyang? Tick one.

oracle bones
King Wu Ding's tomb
Lady Fu Hao's tomb
ancient ruins
7. Find and copy a word which means enemy.

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 Lady Fu Hao
8. Why was it particularly significant that Lady Fu Hao defeated the Tu-Fang tribe?




9. How do you think the archaeologists who discovered Lady Fu Hao’s tomb would have felt?
Explain your answer using evidence from the text to support your answer.




10. What sort of person do you think Lady Fu Hao would have been? Use evidence from the text
to explain your answer.




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 Lady Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao Answers

1. How many Shang kings were there?

30

2. How else was Lady Fu Hao known?

Mu Xin

3. What was the name of Lady Fu Hao’s son? Tick one.

Prince Wu Ding
Prince Jie
Prince Fu Hao
Prince Mu Xin
4. Explain in your own words how the Shang used oracle bones.

Pupil’s own response, such as: The Shang used oracle bones to predict the future. Shang priests would

etch onto animal bones and then heat them up which would cause cracks to appear. The priests would

then read and interpret the cracks.

5. ‘…but [Lady Fu Hao] also became an important figure in her death’.

Explain what is meant by the extract above.

Pupil’s own response, such as: I think that the sentence above means that her death and the discovery

of her tomb is so important because it has taught us so much about her and the Shang Dynasty.

6. What was found at Anyang? Tick one.

oracle bones
King Wu Ding's tomb
Lady Fu Hao's tomb
ancient ruins

7. Find and copy a word which means enemy.

rival

8. Why was it particularly significant that Lady Fu Hao defeated the Tu-Fang tribe?

Pupil’s own response, such as: It is particularly significant that Lady Fu Hao defeated the

Tu-Fang tribe because they were a rival of the Shang whom no other leader had managed to

defeat and she was a woman who would not usually have the role of a military leader.

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 Lady Fu Hao
9. How do you think the archaeologists who discovered Lady Fu Hao’s tomb would have felt? Explain your

answer using evidence from the text to support your answer.

Pupil’s own response, such as: I think that the archaeologists who discovered Lady Fu Hao’s

tomb would have been excited, surprised and astounded because it says in the text that she

had become a mythical figure whom historians did not believe existed. However, this tomb

proved that she did exist and it also taught them so much more about the Shang Dynasty.

10. What sort of person do you think Lady Fu Hao would have been? Use evidence from the text to explain your

answer.

Pupil’s own response, such as: I think that Lady Fu Hao must have been a very determined

person because she managed to obtain and succeed in roles that were traditionally

only for men which must have been a very difficult thing to do at this time.

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