Empress Shen Miaorong

Shen Miaorong (沈妙容) was an empress of the Chinese Chen Dynasty. Her husband was Emperor Wen (Chen Qian), a nephew of the founding Emperor Wu (Chen Baxian).

Shen Miaorong was from Wuxing Commandery (吳興, roughly modern Huzhou, Zhejiang) as was her husband's clan. Her father Shen Fashen (沈法深) was an army officer during Liang Dynasty. Her mother's name was Gao (高), but Lady Gao's surname is lost to history. Shen Miaorong married Chen Qian when she was teenaged, and while the exact year is not known, the marriage took place during Emperor Wu of Liang's Datong (大同) era (535-546).

Chen Baxian was a Liang general, and after the Liang capital Jiankang fell to the rebel general Hou Jing in 549, he participated in the campaigns against Hou. In response, Hou arrested not only Chen Baxian's wife Zhang Yao'er and son Chen Chang, but also arrested Chen Qian and Lady Shen. They were only released after Emperor Yuan of Liang's army, commanded by Wang Sengbian and with Chen Baxian as Wang's lieutenant, defeated Hou in 552 and recaptured Jiankang.

In 557, Chen Baxian, then effectively in control of Liang's imperial government after Emperor Yuan's execution by Western Wei forces in 555 and his own coup against Wang later that year, had Emperor Jing of Liang yield the throne to him, establishing Chen Dynasty as Emperor Wu. Emperor Wu created Chen Qian the Prince of Linchuan and, particularly because Chen Qian was then his only close relative in Chen territory (Chen Chang and Chen Qian's brother Chen Xu having been taken captive to Chang'an, the capital of Western Wei and its successor state Northern Zhou), relied on him heavily. Lady Shen became the Princess of Linchuan. When Emperor Wu died in 559 with Chen Chang still under Northern Zhou control and unable to return, Chen Qian took the throne as Emperor Wen. He created Princess Shen empress and her son Chen Bozong crown prince. Her other son, Chen Bomao (陳伯茂), who was created the Prince of Shixing to inherit the title that Chen Baxian had posthumously created Chen Qian's father Chen Daotan (陳道譚). It is not known whether she bore Emperor Wen any daughters. Emperor Wen posthumously created Empress Shen's father Shen Fashen the Marquess of Jiancheng and her mother Lady Gao the Marchioness of Sui'an.

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