Background

Di Renjie was born in Yangqu County, Bing Province in 630, during the reign of Emperor Taizong. His family, from Taiyuan, was one that had produced many officials. His grandfather Di Xiaoxu (狄孝绪) served as Shangshu Zuo Cheng (尚书左丞), a secretary general of the executive bureau of government (尚书省, Shangshu Sheng), and his father Di Zhixun (狄知逊) served as the prefect of Kui Prefecture (夔州, modern eastern Chongqing).

Di Renjie was known for being studious in his youth, and after passing the imperial examination served as a secretary at the prefectural government of Bian Prefecture (汴州, roughly modern Kaifeng, Henan). While serving there, he was falsely accused of improprieties by colleagues, and when the minister of public works, Yan Liben, was touring the Henan Circuit (河南道, the region immediately south of the Yellow River), which Bian Prefecture belonged to, he was asked to judge the case. After seeing Di, he was impressed by him, and commented, "Confucius had said, 'You can tell a man's kindness by his failure.' You are a pearl from the coast and a lost treasure of the southeast." He recommended Di to become a bailiff for the commandant at Bing Prefecture (并州, roughly modern Taiyuan, Shanxi).

While at Bing Prefecture, he was said to be caring of others. On one occasion, his colleague Zheng Chongzhi (郑崇质) was ordered to go on an official trip to a place far away. Di, noting that Zheng's mother was old and ill, went to the secretary general Lin Renji (蔺仁基) and offered to go in Zheng's stead. It was said that Lin was so touched by the concern that Di showed Zheng as a colleague that he relayed the episode to the military advisor to the prefect, Li Xiaolian (李孝廉), with whom Lin had a running dispute, and offered peaceful relations to Li.

By 676, during the reign of Emperor Taizong's son Emperor Gaozong, Di was serving as the secretary general at the supreme court (大理丞), and it was said that he was an efficient and fair judge, judging some 17,000 cases within a year without anyone complaining about the results. In 676, there was an event in which the general Quan Shancai (权善才) and the military officer Fan Huaiyi (范怀义) accidentally cut cypresses on Emperor Taizong's tomb—an offense punishable by removal from office, but Emperor Gaozong ordered that the two be executed. Di pointed out that, by law, the two should not be executed. This initially offended Emperor Gaozong, who ordered Di to leave his presence. Di continued to object, and eventually, Emperor Gaozong relented and exiled them. Several days later, he appointed Di to the imperial censorate.

Around 679, the minister of agriculture Wei Hongji (韦弘机) built three magnificent palaces around the eastern capital Luoyang—Suyu Palace (宿羽宫), Gaoshan Palace (高山宫), and Shangyang Palace (上阳宫). Di submitted an accusation against Wei, arguing that he was leading Emperor Gaozong into being wasteful, and Wei was removed from his office. Meanwhile, around the same time, the official Wang Benli was said to be favored by Emperor Gaozong and, on account of that favor, was committing many illegal deeds and intimidating other officials. Di accused Wang of crimes; initially, Emperor Gaozong was set to pardon him. At Di's insistence—pointing out that the empire did not lack people with Wang's talent—Emperor Gaozong relented and allowed Wang to be punished.

During Emperor Ruizongs first reign

As of 686, during the reign of Emperor Gaozong's son Emperor Ruizong, Di Renjie was serving as the prefect of Ning Prefecture (宁州, roughly modern Qingyang, Gansu). At that time, the censor Guo Han (郭翰) was commissioned to tour the prefectures in the area, and wherever he went, he found faults with the prefects and corrected them, but when he arrived at Ning Prefecture, it was said that the people had no complaints about Di and praised him greatly. Guo recommended Di to Emperor Ruizong's mother and regent Empress Dowager Wu (later known as Wu Zetian), and Di was recalled to Luoyang to serve as deputy minister of public works (冬官侍郎, Dongguan Shilang).

In 688, Di was touring the Jiangnan Circuit (江南道, the region south of the Yangtze River). He believed that the region had too many temples dedicated to unusual deities, and at his request, some 1,700 temples were destroyed; only four kinds of temples were allowed to remain—those dedicated to Yu the Great, Wu Taibo (吴太伯, the legendary founder of the Spring and Autumn period kingdom Wu), Wu Jizha (吴季札, a well-regarded Wu prince and son of King Shoumeng of Wu), and Wu Zixu.

Later in 688, in the aftermath of a failed rebellion by Emperor Gaozong's brother Li Zhen the Prince of Yue, then the prefect of Yu Prefecture (豫州, roughly modern Zhumadian, Henan), against Empress Dowager Wu, she made Di, who was at that time Wenchang Zuo Cheng (文昌左丞), a secretary general at the executive bureau (which by that point had been renamed Wenchang Tai (文昌台)), the prefect of Yu Prefecture to succeed Li Zhen. At that time, some 600 to 700 households were accused of being complicit in Li Zhen's rebellion and were forced to serve as servants. At Di's request, they were relieved from those obligations, but were exiled to Feng Prefecture (丰州, roughly modern Bayan Nur, Inner Mongolia).

Meanwhile, the general that Empress Dowager Wu sent to suppress Li Zhen's rebellion, the chancellor Zhang Guangfu, was still in Yu Prefecture, and his officers and soldiers were demanding various supplies from the Yu prefectural government, requests that Di mostly turned down. This led to an argument with Zhang, and Zhang accused him of showing contempt; in turn, Di angrily stated that Zhang was killing alleged coconspirators of Li Zhen excessively and that if he had the authority to do so, he would have beheaded Zhang even if it meant his own death. Zhang was greatly offended and, upon return to Luoyang, accused Di of contempt, and Empress Dowager Wu demoted Di to be the prefect of Fu Prefecture (复州, in modern Hanzhong, Shaanxi). (This was considered a demotion as, while Di remained a prefect, Fu Prefecture was smaller and less important than Yu Prefecture.)

During Wu Zetians reign

In 690, Empress Dowager Wu took the throne from Emperor Ruizong, establishing the Zhou Dynasty as its "emperor" and interrupting the Tang Dynasty. As of 691, Di was serving as the military advisor to the prefect of the capital prefecture Luo Prefecture (洛州, i.e., Luoyang), when Wu Zetian promoted him to be the deputy minister of finance (地官侍郎, Diguan Shilang) and gave him the designation Tong Fengge Luantai Pingzhangshi (同凤阁鸾台平章事), making him a 'de facto chancellor.

She commented to him, "You did a good job in Ru'nan i.e., Yu Prefecture). Do you want to know who spoke against you?" (Presumably, she was referring to Zhang Guangfu who, ironically, was executed by her in 689 on accusation that he had considered rebelling against her.) Di responded:

Wu Zetian was impressed by the response and praised him. Later that year, when the imperial university's student Wang Xunzhi (王循之) submitted a petition to Wu Zetian asking her to permit him to go on vacation, she was poised to issue an edict to approve of the request, when Di opposed the edict—not on the merits, but on the basis that university students' vacations were such minor events that she should not bother herself with them, but rather should order that such petitions be directed to the university secretaries. She agreed.

In 692, Wu Zetian's secret police official Lai Junchen falsely accused Di, along with other chancellors Ren Zhigu, and Pei Xingben, along with other officials Cui Xuanli (崔宣礼), Lu Xian (卢献), Wei Yuanzhong, and Li Sizhen (李嗣真), of treason. Lai tried to induce them to confess by citing an imperial edict that stated that those who confessed would be spared their lives, and Di confessed and was not tortured—but when Lai's subordinate Wang Deshou (王德寿) tried to induce him to implicate another chancellor, Yang Zhirou, refused. Di then wrote a petition on his blanket and hid it inside cotton clothes, and then had his family members take the clothes home to be changed into summer clothes. Wu Zetian thereafter became suspicious and inquired with Lai, who responded by forging, in the names of Di and the other officials, submissions thanking Wu Zetian for preparing to execute them.

However, the young son of another chancellor who had been executed, Le Sihui, who was seized to be a servant at the ministry of agriculture, made a petition to Wu Zetian and told her that Lai was so skillful at manufacturing charges that even the most honest and faithful individuals would be forced into confessions by Lai. Wu Zetian thereafter summoned the seven accused officials and personally interrogated them, and after they disavowed the forged confessions, released but exiled them—in Di's case, to be the magistrate of Pengze County (彭泽, in modern Jiujiang, Jiangxi).

In 696, during the middle of an attack by the Khitan khan Sun Wanrong against Zhou prefectures north of the Yellow River, Wu Zetian promoted Di to be the prefect of Wei Prefecture (魏州, roughly modern Handan, Hebei). It was said that Di's predecessor Dugu Sizhuang (独孤思庄), in fear of a Khitan attack, had ordered the people of the prefecture to all move within the prefectural capital's walls, drawing much fear and resentment from the people. When Di arrived, he, judging the Khitan forces to be still far away, ordered that the people be allowed to return to their homes and farms, gaining much gratitude from the people. After Sun's forces collapsed in 697 after a surprise attack by the Eastern Tujue khan Ashina Mochuo against his home base, Wu Zetian had Di, the chancellor Lou Shide, and Wu Yizong (武懿宗) the Prince of Henan (a grandson of her uncle Wu Shiyi (武士逸)) to tour the region north of the Yellow River to try to pacify the people.

Later in 697, Di was serving as the commandant at You Prefecture (幽州, roughly modern Beijing), when, at Lou's recommendation, Wu Zetian recalled him to Luoyang to serve as Luantai Shilang (鸾台侍郎), the deputy head of the examination bureau of government (鸾台, Luantai), and again gave him the chancellor designation of Tong Fengge Luantai Pingzhangshi. He submitted a petition advocating that descendants of Western Tujue and Goguryeo rulers be found and be given their ancient lands, to help defend against Eastern Tujue and Tufan attacks—a petition that was not accepted but was said to be well regarded by other officials.

At that time, Wu Zetian's son Li Dan (the former Emperor Ruizong) was crown prince, but Wu Zetian's nephews Wu Chengsi the Prince of Wei and Wu Sansi the Prince of Liang both had designs on the position, and repeatedly had their associates reason with Wu Zetian that there had never been an emperor who made someone of a different family name his heir. Di, on the other hand, repeatedly argued to her that it is more proper for her to make her son her heir, and that Li Dan's brother Li Zhe the Prince of Luling, himself a former emperor that Wu Zetian removed in 684, be recalled to the capital, a suggestion echoed by fellow chancellors Wang Fangqing and Wang Jishan, and Wu Zetian began to agree. On one occasion, Wu Zetian asked him, "Last night I dreamed of a large parrot that had two broken wings. What do you think it means?" Di responded:

It was said that thereafter, Wu Zetian stopped considering Wu Chengsi or Wu Sansi as heir. Meanwhile, another close advisor of Wu Zetian's, Ji Xu, also persuaded Wu Zetian's lovers Zhang Yizhi and Zhang Changzong the merits of the proposal—pointing out that as things stood, after Wu Zetian's death, they would be hated and would suffer terrible fates. Wu Zetian finally agreed, and in spring 698 recalled Li Zhe to the capital. Li Dan subsequently offered to yield the crown prince position to Li Zhe, and Wu Zetian agreed and created Li Zhe crown prince, changing his name to Li Xian and then Wu Xian. She soon made Di Nayan (纳言), the head of the examination bureau and a post considered one for a chancellor.

Also in 698, Ashina Mochuo turned against Zhou and attacked Zhou's northern prefectures. Wu Zetian made Li Xian the nominal commanding general of the army against Eastern Tujue, but made Di the deputy commanding general and actually in charge of the army. Before Di's army could arrive, however, Ashina Mochuo completed his pillaging of the northern prefectures and withdrew; Di's army never engaged him. Wu Zetian subsequently commissioned Di to tour the prefectures to pacify the people, and he was said to have done so well, helping refugees to return to their home, transporting food supplies to places needing them, repairing the roads, and helping the poor. Fearful that other officials would trouble the people with demands for luxury items, he made a good example of eating unrefined foods and prohibiting harassment of the citizens. Meanwhile, though, he was said to have looked down on Lou, not realizing that Lou had been the one that had recommended that he be made chancellor, until Wu Zetian revealed to him that fact, causing him to be embarrassed.

In 700, Wu Zetian made Di Neishi (内史), the head of the legislative bureau (凤阁, Fengge) and a post also considered one for a chancellor. By this point, she was said to have respected him so greatly that she often just referred to him as Guolao (国老, "the State Elder") without referring to him by name. It was said that, on account of his old age, he often offered to retire, and she repeatedly declined. Further, she stopped him from kneeling and bowing to her, stating, "When I see you kneeling, I feel the pain." She also ordered that he not be required to rotate with other chancellors for night duty, warning the other chancellors not to bother Di unless there was something important. Di died in fall 700, and it was said that she wept bitterly, stating, "The Southern Palace the imperial administration) is now empty."

Prior to his death, Di had recommended many capable officials, including Zhang Jianzhi, Yao Yuanchong, Huan Yanfan, and Jing Hui. As these officials were later instrumental in overthrowing Wu Zetian in 705 and returning Li Xian to the throne (as Emperor Zhongzong), Di was often credited as having restored Tang by proxy.

Di Renjie's tomb is located at the east end of the White Horse Temple in Luoyang, near the Qiyun Pagoda, on the tombstone engraved the inscription "The tomb of Lord Di Renjie, famous chancellor of the Great Tang dynasty".

In fiction

Di Renjie appears as the main character in a number of gong'an crime novels and films. The first of these stories, Di Gong An or Dee Goong An (Chinese: 狄公案), is an 18th-century Chinese detective novel written by the pseudonymous author Butizhuanren (不题撰人), loosely based on Di Renjie.

Robert van Gulik translated the novel in the 1940s as Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee. He later wrote a series of detective novels featuring Judge Dee as the main protagonist. These in turn were the basis of a 1969 TV series in the UK starring Michael Goodliffe.

Khigh Dhiegh appeared as the Judge Dee version of the character in the 1974 ABC TV movie Judge Dee and the Monastery Murders, based on Robert Van Gulik's novel The Haunted Monastery. It was directed by Jeremy Paul Kagan and the teleplay was written by Nicholas Meyer.

Frédéric Lenormand published 19 new novels using Judge Dee as detective from 2004 to present (éditions Fayard, Paris).

In 2004, CCTV-8 aired a television series based on detective stories related to Di Renjie, under the title Amazing Detective Di Renjie (神探狄仁杰), starring Liang Guanhua as the titular protagonist. It was followed by three sequels: Amazing Detective Di Renjie 2 (2006), Amazing Detective Di Renjie 3 (2008), and Mad Detective Di Renjie (2010). Some characters in the television series are fictionalised versions of historical figures, including Wu Zetian and Di Renjie himself. The plot of each season is further divided into two or three parts, each covering one case. The story usually follows a pattern of a seemingly small case gradually leading to Di Renjie uncovering a sinister plot that threatens the Chinese empire.

Kent Cheng portrayed Di Renjie in the 2009 Hong Kong television series The Greatness of a Hero produced by TVB.

Andy Lau played Di Renjie in the 2010 film Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame directed by Tsui Hark. Mark Chao took over the role in Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon (2013) and Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings (2018), both also directed by Tsui Hark. The two films are set as a prequel to the events in The Mystery of the Phantom Flame.

Bosco Wong portrayed a young Di Renjie in the 2014 Chinese television series Young Sherlock.

In 2012, Bigben Interactive released a video game based on Di Renjie named Judge Dee: The City God Case. Initially released on PC, the casual hidden-object game later made it on to other platforms including Android and iOS.

Nupixo Games released a new point-and-click adventure game featuring an original story which involves Empress Wu Zetian. Titled Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders, it was released in May 2019 for PC/Mac.

生平

为唐代并州（今山西太原）狄村人，出生于一个官宦之家。高祖狄湛，随宇文泰西走咸阳；祖父狄孝绪任贞观时期的尚书左丞；父亲狄知逊，任夔州长史。

唐高宗显庆四年（659年）中明经科考试及第，除汴州判佐。龙朔元年(661年)工部尚书阎立本为河南道黜陟使，狄仁杰被吏诬告，阎立本受理讯问，不仅弄清了事情的真相，且发现狄仁杰是一个德才兼备的难得人物，谓之「河曲之明珠，东南之遗宝」，推荐狄仁杰作了并州都督府法曹。在此任内，狄仁杰通晓吏治、兵刑等封建典章和法律制度，这对他一生的政治活动都有重大影响。

上元二年（675年）狄仁杰升任大理寺丞，于仪凤元年（676年）一年内判决了大量积压案件，涉及一万七千人，无冤诉者，一时名声大振。九月，左卫大将军权善才和监门卫中郎将范怀义误砍昭陵柏树而被下令诛杀，狄公上谏曰「臣闻逆龙鳞，忤人主，自古以为难，臣愚以为不然。居桀、纣时则难，尧、舜时则易。臣今幸逢尧、舜，不惧比干之诛。昔汉文时有盗高庙玉环，张释之廷诤，罪止弃市。魏文将徙其人，辛毗引裾而谏，亦见纳用。且明主可以理夺，忠臣不可以威惧。今陛下不纳臣言，瞑目之后，羞见释之、辛毗于地下。陛下作法，悬之象魏，徒流死罪，俱有等差。岂有犯非极刑，即令赐死？法既无常，则万姓何所措其手足？陛下必欲变法，请从今日为始。古人云：『假使盗长陵一抔土』，陛下何以加之？今陛下以昭陵一株柏杀一将军，千载之后，谓陛下为何主？此臣所以不敢奉制杀善才，陷陛下于不道。」之言使得两位将军免遭斩杀，数日后升任侍御史。任职期间恪守职责，弹劾巧媚逢迎恃宠怙权之徒。

调露元年（679年）司农卿韦弘机造宿羽、高山、上阳等宫，宽敞壮丽。狄仁杰上奏弹劾韦弘机引导皇帝追求奢泰，韦弘机因此被免职。左司郎中王本立恃恩用事，朝廷畏之。狄仁杰毫不留情的弹劾其为非作歹的罪行，请求交付法司审理。唐高宗包庇王本立，狄公曰：「国家虽乏英才，岂少本立辈！陛下何惜罪人以亏王法。必欲曲赦本立，请弃臣于无人之境，为忠贞将来之戒！」王本立遂被定罪，朝廷肃然。调露二年（680年）迁度支郎中，唐高宗巡幸汾阳宫，以其为知顿使布置中途食宿之所。并州长史李冲玄徵发数万人开御道，狄公曰：「天子之行，千乘万骑，风伯清尘，雨师洒道，何妒女之害耶？」俱令作罢，帝闻曰「真大丈夫矣！」

永淳元年（683年），狄仁杰出任宁州（今甘肃宁县、正宁一带）刺史。当时宁州为各民族杂居之地，狄仁杰注意妥善处理与外族的关系，深得人心，百姓为立生祠。垂拱二年（686年），经监察御史郭翰推荐，升任冬官侍郎。四年（688年）二月，授安抚使与司属卿王及善和司府卿欧阳通，分赴山东河南赈济灾民。六月功成升江南道巡抚大使，任内移风易俗。针对吴楚多淫祠弊俗，奏请焚毁祠庙1700馀所，唯留夏禹、吴太伯、季札、伍员四祠。不久返洛阳升文昌右丞九月转任豫州刺史。时受越王李贞株连者六、七百人在监，籍没者多达5000人。狄公知其无辜遂上奏：「此辈咸非本心，伏望哀其诖误。」天后闻奏特赦改杀为流稳定豫州，时诸军节度张光辅恃功大肆勒索，被狄公怒斥杀戮降卒以邀战功，曰「乱河南者，一越王贞耳。今一贞死而万贞生。明公董戎三十万，平一乱臣，不戢兵锋，纵兵暴横，无罪之人，肝脑涂地。但恐冤声腾沸，上彻于天。如得上方斩马剑加于君颈，虽死如归。」遂上奏告出言不逊贬为复州刺史，五年（689年）七月内史张光辅为洛阳令张嗣明、罪臣徐敬真诬告下狱，复职入为洛州司马。

天授二年（691年）九月，被任命为地官（户部）侍郎、同凤阁（中书省）鸾台（门下省）平章事（宰相），开始了短暂的第一次宰相生涯。

长寿元年（693年）正月，武承嗣勾结来俊臣等酷吏诬陷狄仁杰等谋反，将他们逮捕下狱，狄仁杰等深知酷吏严刑拷打成性，宁为陛下赐死，也不愿死于酷吏手中，为保全性命，权宜之计立刻招罪曰：「反是实！」仁杰拆下被褥帛书冤，置棉衣中，请狱吏转告家人去其棉，得其冤状。其子狄光远持书上告朝廷，来俊臣接获密报，遂伪造狄仁杰笔迹写下《谢死表》上呈女皇。女皇召狄仁杰等大臣面询：「承反何也？」狄仁杰答曰：「向若不承反，已死于鞭笞也。」又问：「何为做谢死表？」答曰：「臣无此表。」武则天弄清是伪造的，于是释放此案七人，但俱贬为地方官，狄公贬为彭泽县令。任内勤政惠民，赴任当年彭泽乾旱无雨，营佃失时，百姓无粮可食，狄公上奏疏请求赈济免除租赋，上闻从之。并劝课农桑鼓励生产，百姓立生祠纪念其功德。

万岁通天元年（696年）五月，契丹首领李尽忠和孙万荣率兵反抗武周，攻陷营州，杀都督赵文翽。三月，清边道行军总管王孝杰所部在东硖石谷（今河北唐山附近）遭遇契丹军，全军覆没，王孝杰跳崖而死。十月，契丹攻陷冀州（今河北冀州市），为了稳定局势，武则天起用狄仁杰为与冀州相邻的魏州（今河北大名县一带）刺史。狄仁杰到职后，改变了前任刺史尽趋百姓入城，缮修守具的作法，让百姓返田耕作。契丹人听闻后，退兵而去。不久，狄仁杰改任幽州都督，获赐紫袍、龟带。孙万荣兵败被杀，部将李楷固等投降了武周。朝廷大臣因为李楷固等人曾经屡胜周军，想把他们处死。狄仁杰介入，说服了武则天宽恕并重用了李楷固等人，李楷固平定了继续反周的契丹人。

神功元年（697年）六月，狄仁杰调任河北安抚使，与娄师德武懿宗分赴河北各地安抚战后灾民，招纳流亡人士，恢复生产。不久，狄仁杰升任幽州都督。

闰十月，狄仁杰召回朝中，官拜鸾台（门下省）侍郎、同凤阁鸾台平章事，加银青光禄大夫，兼纳言，恢复了宰相职务，成为辅佐女皇治理国家大政的左右手赐予紫袍、龟带，紫袍上书写「敷政木，守清勤，升显位，励相臣」十二金字。上奏撤军西域，封西突厥贵族斛瑟罗为可汗率众镇守安西。上不纳。

圣历元年（698年）二月，太子迟迟未立，武则天有意立侄梁王武三思为太子，狄仁杰以政治人物的深谋远虑劝说武则天顺应民心，还政于庐陵王李显，勿让权予侄。曰：「立子，则千秋万岁后配食太庙，承继无穷；立侄，则未闻侄为天子而附姑于庙者也。」武则天曰：「此朕家事，卿勿预知。」狄仁杰答曰：「王者以四海为家。四海之内，孰非臣妾？何者不为陛下家事！君为元首，臣为股肱，义同一体。况臣位备宰相，岂得不预知乎？」武则天采纳了狄仁杰的意见，为表示心意，三月亲自迎接庐陵王李显回宫，立为皇嗣，赐武姓，使李唐得以维系。八月兼纳言推荐其子光嗣担任尚书郎，而狄光嗣很称职，受到武则天的赞扬，说他堪比春秋时期的祁奚祁黄羊。秋九月突厥南下入侵河北，上命太子河北道元帅、狄公副元帅征讨。命狄仁杰知元帅事，亲自给狄仁杰送行。不久大败突厥，突厥默啜可汗尽杀所掠赵、定等州男女万馀人退还漠北追之不及而还。十月任河北道安抚大使，奏请赦免依附突厥逃窜山泽之民；上闻从之，采取减轻赋税徭役赈济，饥民恢复生产，严禁骚扰百姓措施，河北稳定。

二年（699年）二月随武则天巡幸嵩山谒王子晋庙，八月上表废去安东都护府恢复高句丽政权以不切实际未行。久视元年（700年）正月回朝任内史（中书令），四月武则天辛三阳宫避暑，狄公随侍有胡僧邀请武则天观看安葬舍利，狄公跪马前拦奏道：「佛者，夷狄之神，不足以屈天下之主。彼胡僧诡橘，直欲邀致万乘所宜临也。」遂中道而还。五月随游石淙山作奉和圣制夏日游石淙山诗，上喜赐宅一所。七月经狄公力救免死之契丹将领李楷固骆务整，率军扫平契丹献俘上欲受封狄公拒辞。

闰七月，上欲造浮屠大像预计费用多达数百万，宫不能足诏令天下僧尼日施钱以助。狄公上谏曰：「如来设教，以慈悲为主。岂欲劳人，以在虚饰？」「比来水旱不节，当今边境未宁。若费官财，又尽人力，一隅有难，将何以救之？」上从之免其役。九月辛丑日（11月11日），狄公病故于洛阳私宅，上闻震悼辍朝三日曰：「天何故夺吾国老如此早？！至此，朝堂空也！」赠文昌右相（尚书右仆射），谥文惠。唐中宗继位追赠司空，唐睿宗又追封之为梁国公。（狄仁杰去世时间有争议，见下）

卒年争议

在河南省文物研究所编辑的《千唐志斋藏志》一书中，收有一方「河北道安抚大使狄仁杰撰书」的《大周故相州刺史袁府君（公瑜）墓志铭》（文物出版社1984年1月版481页），墓主夫妇的合葬期却为「久视元年十月廿八日」，似当时狄仁杰仍在世，与史书记载已与当年九月去世矛盾。《两唐书·张柬之传》《大唐新语》又记载狄仁杰长安年间推荐张柬之，《通典》《唐会要》更将此事精确到长安二年（702年）。据此，有人考证并推算狄仁杰上疏罢建佛像事在长安四年（704年），同年九月逝世。

狄仁杰墓

狄仁杰墓在洛阳白马寺内之东侧，墓碑上有李进学（号印硕居士）书「大唐名相狄公仁杰之墓」。

子孙

• 子狄光嗣，户部郎中

　• 狄博通

　　• 狄玄范

• 子狄光远，州司马

　• 狄宗，唐杭州钱塘令

　　• 狄林，唐某县尉

• 子狄光昭，字子亮，职方员外郎，后改名狄景晖

文艺作品中的狄仁杰

小说

• 中国清代小说《狄公案》

• 荷兰现代小说 高罗佩《大唐狄公案》

• 中国现代小说 吴蔚《璇玑图》

• 香港新派武侠小说梁羽生《女帝奇英传》

• 香港现代小说 黄易盛唐三部曲第一部《日月当空》及第二部《龙战在野》

• 中国起点中文网网络小说 月关《醉枕江山》

• 中国现代小说 唐隐（安娜芳芳）《狄仁杰探案》（包括：并州迷雾、暗夜迷情、魅影危机、碧血黄沙、再见幽兰）

艺术形象

电视剧

狄仁杰系列电影

电影

动漫

游戏