
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


She entered the royal palace as a concubine and became the first and only female emperor of China. She was power hungry, a total operator and if you asked her enemies, a blood thirsty murderer. And her secret weapon to legitimise her rule wasn't just an unwavering belief in herself, but in Buddha.
Historian and author William Dalrymple (Empire, The Golden Road) tells Marc Fennell (Stuff the British Stole) the extraordinary story of Wu Zetian, how she rose to power and paved the way for China having the world's largest Buddhist population.
Binge all the episodes of No One Saw It Coming now on the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.
Get in touch:
Got a story for us? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
By ABC4.9
5757 ratings
She entered the royal palace as a concubine and became the first and only female emperor of China. She was power hungry, a total operator and if you asked her enemies, a blood thirsty murderer. And her secret weapon to legitimise her rule wasn't just an unwavering belief in herself, but in Buddha.
Historian and author William Dalrymple (Empire, The Golden Road) tells Marc Fennell (Stuff the British Stole) the extraordinary story of Wu Zetian, how she rose to power and paved the way for China having the world's largest Buddhist population.
Binge all the episodes of No One Saw It Coming now on the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.
Get in touch:
Got a story for us? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

101 Listeners

67 Listeners

794 Listeners

773 Listeners

129 Listeners

64 Listeners

459 Listeners

313 Listeners

863 Listeners

38 Listeners

120 Listeners

7 Listeners

268 Listeners

12 Listeners

241 Listeners

43 Listeners

1,008 Listeners

67 Listeners

8 Listeners

46 Listeners

33 Listeners

236 Listeners

2 Listeners

11 Listeners