Fujiwara no Anshi (藤原安子)
FUJIWARA no Anshi (Yasuiko) (927-June 16, 964) was the eldest daughter of FUJIWARA no Morosuke, who held the title of Udaijin (Minister of the Right). Her mother was FUJIWARA no Moriko, who was the daughter of FUJIWARA no Tsunekuni. She was the Chugu (the Empress) of the Sixty-Second Emperor Murakami. She was the birth mother of the Sixty-Third Emperor Reizei, Sixty-Fourth Emperor Enyu, Imperial Prince Tamehira, and Imperial Princess Senshi (Nobuko). Her maternal siblings included, FUJIWARA no Koretada (Koremasa), FUJIWARA no Kanemichi, FUJIWARA no Kaneie, FUJIWARA no Toshi (Nariko) (imperial princess to Imperial Prince Shigeakira), and FUJIWARA no Fushi (Nyogo (imperial consort) of Emperor Reizei).
She underwent Judai (marriage to the imperial court) to the Imperial Prince Nariakira (Emperor Murakami) in 940. She held her wedding ceremony in Higyosha of the Dairi (Imperial Palace). Imperial Prince Nariakira underwent Ritsubo (investiture of the Crown Prince), and she became the crown princess in 944. She received the Jo rank (imperial court rank) of Jugoinojo (Junior Fifth Rank, Upper Grade) in 945. She was promoted to the Jushiinoge (Junior Fourth Rank, Lower Grade) rank in 946 and received the residence at Shoyosha (later at Higyosha) when she became the Nyogo with the rank of Jusanmi (Junior Third Rank) when Emperor Murakami succeeded to the throne. She gave birth to the second crown prince, Imperial Prince Norihira (Emperor Reizei) in 950, and he was promoted as imperial prince at the age of two months. She was promoted to Junii Rank (Junior Second Rank) in 956 and Chugu in 958. Just after she gave birth to Imperial Princess Senshi, she passed away in Tonomoryo (Shudenryo) (Bureau of Palace Equipment) in 964. She died at the age of thirty-eight. When the Emperor Reizei succeeded the throne, she was given the posthumous title of Empress Dowager in 967 and the Grand Empress Dowager title with the accession of Emperor Enyu in 969.
Since she was the first wife that underwent Judai before Emperor Murakami ascended the throne and gave birth to the most number of children among imperial princesses, with three sons and four daughters starting with Imperial prince Norihira, she was greatly valued by the emperor. However, she had a deeply jealous personality, and held a grudge over the beauty of FUJIWARA no Hoshi (Yoshiko) (the cousin of Anshi), who had the title of Senyoden no nyogo and later received the affection of the emperor. Such was her jealously that when she spied the emperor giving his affection to FUJIWARA no Hoshi, she threw a piece of pottery through a hole in the wall in a fit of violence. Furthermore, when she found out that the angry emperor asked her brothers to make her behave, she went up to the emperor and made him take down that order that it could be seen that she was a person with a big temper and also showed her influential power as the birth mother of the imperial prince (This pottery throwing anecdote made appearance in manga of Reiko OKANO, "Onmyoji" [diviner and shaman]). Anshi herself died early, but the accession of Emperors Reizei and Enyu, who were born from Anshi became the foundation for the development of the line of regents and advisors of the Kujo School and led to the prosperous period with the niece of Anshi, FUJIWARA no Michinaga, as head.
Her mausoleum is located in Uji no misasagi (Kobata Nakamura, Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture).