Chinese Characters

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Chinese Characters: Li Qingzhao: Patriotic Poet

Li Qingzhao: Patriotic Poet

BBC Radio 4 - Chinese Characters, Li Qingzhao: Patriotic Poet

The woman remembered today as one of the great poets of Chinese history.

A passionate writer who destroyed her reputation by divorcing her husband, only to be recognised as one of the greatest poets in Chinese history.

Li Qingzhao, who lived (1084-1151) during the late Song dynasty, is recognised as one of China's greatest poets. She grew up within China's culture of highly regulated court bureaucracy. While her husband was a senior official, she became a brilliant and renowned poet But the Song dynasty was also a time of great political turmoil. In 1127, the dynasty fled its capital in the city of Kaifeng after an invasion. Li was forced to wander for years, trying to preserve as much as possible of her family's collection of books and precious artefacts. Eventually she settled down in the new capital of Hangzho and wrote a series of broadsides condemning the Song rulers for succumbing to the invaders. She established a reputation as a true patriot that has lasted to the present day in China.
Presenter: Rana Mitter
Producer: Ben Crighton
Researcher: Elizabeth Smith Rosser.

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