After Liu Bang's death she ruled through her son Emperor Hui and then through two infant puppet emperors. Notorious for purging Liu Bang's favored concubine
戚夫人 - whom she mutilated into the 'human pig' (
人彘) - and for placing her Lü clansmen in key positions. After her death the Han aristocracy wiped out the Lü family and restored the Liu line under Emperor Wen (
汉文帝). Sima Qian in the
史记 controversially gave her her own 'Basic Annals' (
本纪), a format usually reserved for reigning emperors.
