Emperor Hui of Han ( Chinese : 漢惠帝 ; pinyin : Hàn Huìdì ; 210 BC – 26 September 188 BC), born Liu Ying ( 劉盈 ), was the second emperor of the Han dynasty . He was the second son of Emperor Gaozu , the first Han emperor, and the only son of Empress Lü from the powerful Lü clan. Emperor Hui is generally remembered as a somewhat weak character dominated and terrorized by his mother, Empress Lü, who became Empress Dowager after she encouraged her husband to command personally the war against Ying Bu , in which he died eventually from an arrow wound sustained during the war.
39-691: Empress Zhang may refer to: Empress Zhang Yan , empress of Western Han (192 BC–188 BC) Empress Zhang (Liu Shan's first wife) , empress of Shu Han (223–237) Empress Zhang (Liu Shan's second wife) , empress of Shu Han (238–263) Empress Zhang (Cao Fang) , empress of Cao Wei (252–254) Empress Zhang Huiguang , empress of Han-Zhao (313) Empress Zhang (Later Zhao) , empress of Later Zhao (349) Empress Zhang (Later Qin) , empress of Later Qin (402) Empress Zhang (Liang dynasty) , empress of Liang dynasty (551) Empress Zhang Yao'er , empress of Chen dynasty (557–559) Empress Zhang (Tang dynasty) , empress of
78-490: A eunuch lover by the name of Hong Ru , who was favored so deeply that many officials attempted to imitate his style of dress in the hope of gaining the emperor's attention. Hui died in the autumn of 188 BC of an unspecified illness. After Empress Lü's death and the massacre of the Lü clan in 180BC, Emperor Gaozu 's officials and survivors of the imperial Liu clan then chose Liu Heng as the next emperor, deliberately due to his lack of
117-729: A five-year war with Xiang Yu for supremacy over the Chinese world, his mother, his sister, and he did not initially follow his father to the Principality of Han (modern Sichuan , Chongqing , and southern Shaanxi ); rather, they stayed in his father's home territory, perhaps in his home town of Pei (沛縣, in modern Xuzhou , Jiangsu ) deep in Xiang's Principality of Western Chu , presumably with his grandfather Liu Taigong . In 205 BC, Liu Bang appeared to be near total victory, having captured Xiang's capital of Pengcheng . How his family received this news
156-565: A powerful maternal clan. In c. November 192 BC, Emperor Hui married Empress Zhang, a marriage that would not yield any children. However, whether Emperor Hui actually had children during or before his reign is a controversial question. The officials, including Chen Ping and Zhou Bo , who would later overthrow the Lü clan after the deaths of both Emperor Hui and Empress Dowager Lü, claimed that Emperor Hui had no sons—but that Empress Zhang, at Empress Dowager Lü's instigation, stole eight boys from other people, put their mothers to death, and made
195-458: Is a matter of controversy , although it appears likely that they were Emperor Hui's children by his concubines .) When Emperor Hui died in September 188 BC at the age of 22, one of the children that Empress Zhang adopted became emperor (as Emperor Qianshao), but Grand Empress Dowager Lü had effective total control of the imperial government. Empress Zhang, was not made empress dowager as this title
234-563: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Empress Zhang Yan Zhang Yan ( traditional Chinese : 張嫣 ; simplified Chinese : 张嫣 ; pinyin : Zhāng Yān ; died April or May 163 BC ), known formally as Empress Xiaohui (孝惠皇后) was an empress during the Han dynasty . She was a daughter of Princess Yuan of Lu (the only daughter of Emperor Gao (Liu Bang) and his wife Empress Lü ) and her husband Zhang Ao (張敖, son of Zhang Er),
273-459: Is known is that Liu Ying was not Liu Bang 's oldest son—that would be Liu Fei , who would later be made the Prince of Qi. However, Liu Ying was considered to be the proper heir because his mother, the later Empress Lü, was Liu Bang's wife, while Liu Fei's mother was either a concubine or a mistress who was with Liu Bang before he became King of Han. During Chu–Han Contention , while Liu Bang fought
312-530: The Han dynasty, the new emperor, Gaodi, was eager to recruit talented persons. In 196 BCE, Gao even issued a decree to the effect that any official knowing of a virtuous man must so report on penalty of being fired (unless they were too old or sick). Sometime before or after that, Gao attempted to obtain the services of the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang : Master Dongyuan, Qi Liji, Master Xiahuang and Mr. Lu Li. During
351-449: The Lü clan were exterminated in the wake of the ensuing Lü Clan disturbance , and Emperor Hui's half-brother Liu Heng was established as Emperor Wen. Liu Ying was born during the Qin dynasty . Liu Ying's childhood is not completely clear. His father Liu Bang would after Liu Ying's birth go on to found the Han dynasty , and later given the posthumous name of Han Gaodi (emperor Gao of Han). What
390-678: The Ming dynasty (1606–1644) See also [ edit ] Empress Dowager Zhang (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Empress Zhang . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Empress_Zhang&oldid=1229950650 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Title and name disambiguation pages Lists of empresses by surname Hidden categories: Short description
429-435: The Prince of Zhao and later Marquess of Xuanping. In c. November 192 BC, at the insistence of then-Empress Dowager Lü, Lady Yan married her uncle Emperor Hui , the son of Emperor Gao and Empress Dowager Lü, and she was created empress. The marriage was a childless one. At Empress Dowager Lü's instruction, Empress Zhang took several male children as her own and killed their mothers. (Whether these children were Emperor Hui's
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#1732858819406468-517: The Qin institutions, Huidi repealed some particularly harsh Qin laws, such as the Burning of books and burying of scholars law. Nevertheless, Huidi's gentle nature was at first little match against the ruthless Lü Hou and her clan. Still, the Han dynasty was set on a firm foot as the challenging Lü clan was eventually generally exterminated and Han Huidi was effectively succeeded by Emperor Wen of Han . Hui had
507-460: The Tang dynasty (758–762) Empress Zhang (Later Liang) , empress of Later Liang dynasty (912–913) Empress Zhang (Wang Yanzheng) , empress of Yin/Min (943–945) Empress Zhang (Hongxi) , empress of the Ming dynasty (1379–1442) Empress Zhang (Hongzhi) , empress of the Ming dynasty (1471–1541) Empress Zhang (Jiajing) , empress of the Ming dynasty (died 1537) Empress Zhang Baozhu , empress of
546-486: The campaign against Ying Bu, after Lü Hou had insisted on Gaodi personally leading the fight. Immediately upon Prince Ying's ascension to the throne as Emperor Hui, Empress Lü, now empress dowager , became the effective lead figure in his administration. She wanted to carry out a plot of revenge against Consort Qi and her son Ruyi. She first arrested Consort Qi and put her in prison garb (shaved head, confined by stock, and wearing red clothes). She then summoned Liu Ruyi to
585-419: The capital, Emperor Hui intercepted his young brother at Bashang (霸上, in modern Xi'an ) and received Liu Ruyi into his palace, and they dined and slept together. Empress Dowager Lü wanted to kill Liu Ruyi, but was afraid that any attempt might also harm her own son, and therefore could not carry out her plot for several months. Empress Dowager Lü got her chance in c. January 194 BC. One morning, Emperor Hui
624-416: The capital, they both attended a feast put on by Empress Dowager Lü. Emperor Hui, honoring the prince as an older brother, asked him to take a seat at the table even more honored than his own. The empress dowager was greatly offended and instructed her servants to pour two cups of poisoned wine which were set on the table between the trio. She ordered Liu Fei to toast her, while ignoring Emperor Hui. As Liu Fei
663-433: The capital—an attempt that was initially resisted by Ruyi's chief of staff Zhou Chang ( 周昌 ), whom she respected because he was one of the officials who insisted on Liu Ying being the rightful heir. Instead of directly moving against Zhou and Liu Ruyi, though, Lü circumvented Zhou by first summoning him to the capital, and then summoning Liu Ruyi. Emperor Hui tried to save Liu Ruyi's life. Before Liu Ruyi could get to
702-401: The children her own. Modern historians have split opinions on the issue, but largely believe that the boys were actually Emperor Hui's sons by concubines and that Empress Zhang did indeed put their mothers to death and make them her own children. (As, for example, Bo Yang pointed out, it would be logically incongruent, if Empress Zhang did steal these children from elsewhere, for her to put only
741-599: The country. However, they refused. If the Crown Prince could obtain the support of the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang, then His Majesty would not depose him.” Lü Hou then applied her forces of persuasion. The Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang showed up at court. The four agreed that according to the Confucian precepts of filial piety , as the elder son the future Huidi should succeed to the rulership. Furthermore, Liu Ying's nature
780-412: The eventual fate of his grandfather and mother would be. After Liu Bang's victory and self-declaration as the emperor (later known as Emperor Gao ), thus establishing the Han dynasty , in 202 BC, he made his wife empress and Liu Ying, as his proper heir, crown prince . Thus, Liu Ying became the first crown prince in Chinese imperial history. Under the title of Ying Taizi ("Crown Prince Ying"), he
819-425: The feudal estate of Princess Yuan of Lu . Empress Dowager Lü, who greatly loved her daughter as well, was pleased and let Liu Fei return to his principality. As the second emperor of his dynasty, Huidi helped to establish the Han dynasty on a strong footing: Huidi bolstered the Han dynastic aspirations by establishing shrines venerating his father throughout the land. Although his father, Gaodi, had continued many of
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#1732858819406858-425: The mothers but not the fathers to death.) Under this theory, the officials denied the imperial ancestry of these children in fear of the fact that they were also descendants of Empress Dowager Lü and her clan, and therefore might if allowed to live eventually to seek vengeance for the slaughter of the Lü clan—a reason that they themselves admitted. Except for Liu Gong (who was deposed and executed by Empress Dowager Lü),
897-414: The ones who would rule on important matters at the capital in his father's absence during various campaigns. When Ying Bu rebelled in 196 BC, Emperor Gao was ill and considered sending Prince Ying as the commander of the forces against Ying Bu rather than campaigning himself, but at the suggestion of Empress Lü (who averred that the generals, who were generally Emperor Gao's old friends, might not fully obey
936-465: The other cup. Her resentment toward Liu Fei fully captured her attention and she did not even think of her son's presence.) Empress Dowager Lü jumped up and slapped the second cup away from Emperor Hui, spilling it. Liu Fei realized the trick and left, pretending to be already drunk. In the end, he was only able to leave the capital by offering to the Empress an entire commandery from his principality, to be
975-412: The question of who was to be imperial heir came up, two of Gaodi's women both advocated for their own son: Lü for Ying and Qi for her own son. Gao favored Qi's son, as he thought the youth embodied more of his personality. Lü Hou got the advantage: she went to the powerful official Zhang Liang , who said, “His Majesty had long heard about the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang and wanted to invite them to serve
1014-437: The time of troubles which characterized the Qin dynasty, these four had entered into a life of seclusion on Mount Shang. They were old and had white hair and beards. Thus, they were known as the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang. Liu Bang was well aware of the reputation of these four sages, and when he became emperor Gao, the four refused his ardent entreaties to assume positions of importance in his newly established government. When
1053-424: The young prince), went on the campaign himself. Prince Ying was instead put in charge of home territories around the capital Chang'an , assisted by Confucian scholar Shusun Tong (叔孫通) and strategist Zhang Liang (張良). He appeared to carry out the tasks competently but without distinction. Prince Ying succeeded to the throne of Han when his father died in 195 BC from complications of an arrow wound suffered during
1092-457: Was Empress Zhang Yan , a niece of his by his elder sister Princess Yuan of Lu ; their marriage was the result of insistence by Empress Dowager Lü and was a childless one. After Emperor Hui died without a designated heir, Empress Dowager Lü installed two of his alleged sons whom she adopted into her clan, Liu Gong and Liu Hong , sons of one or more of the Emperor's concubines . They and the rest of
1131-426: Was about to drink the poisoned wine, Emperor Hui, knowing his mother's murderously jealous temperament and remembering how his other brother had died, suddenly reached for the second cup, which the Empress did not intend. (The second cup was a decoy, placed there only to suggest to Liu Fei that she would return his toast, as ritual required, although he would die immediately on drinking his, so she would not need to drink
1170-619: Was also adopted by Empress Zhang. It was during Emperor Qianshao's reign that Empress Zhang's brother Zhang Yan (張偃, pinyin Zhāng Yǎn—notice difference in tone) was created the Prince of Lu. After Empress Dowager Lü died in August 180 BC, and the Lü clan overthrown and slaughtered by the officials opposed to the Lüs in the Lü Clan Disturbance , Emperor Houshao was deposed and killed. Empress Zhang
1209-480: Was benevolent and compassionate. Gaodi noticed the presence of four elders with white hair and white beards at his court, and inquired as to their identity. Upon finding out who they were and what their position was, Gaodi went to Lady Qi and told her: “I cannot appoint your son as the successor because the Crown Prince has already obtained the support of such capable people. His position is firmly entrenched.” As crown prince, Prince Ying, along with his mother, would be
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1248-405: Was considered to be kind and tolerant, characteristics that Emperor Gao did not like. Rather, he favored his young son Liu Ruyi , whom he considered to be more like him and whose mother, Consort Qi , was his favorite concubine. With the support of the officials and the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang, Prince Ying's status as heir survived despite Consort Qi's machinations. Soon after establishing
1287-442: Was not killed, but she was put under house arrest in a palace to the north after being deposed from her position as empress and henceforth referred to as Empress Hui. Her brother, the Prince of Lu, was also deposed and reduced in rank to Marquess of Nangong. After this no records exist of her later life until her death. Empress Zhang died in 163 BC and was buried with her husband of merely four years. Emperor Hui of Han Huidi
1326-535: Was out hunting and wanted to take Liu Ruyi with him. The young prince was then only 14 years old and refused to get up from bed, and Emperor Hui left for the hunt on his own. Empress Dowager Lü heard this and immediately sent an assassin into the emperor's palace to force poisoned wine down the prince's throat. By the time that Emperor Hui returned, his brother was dead. She then had Consort Qi's eyes gouged out, made her ears deaf, drugged her to make her unable to speak and had her arms and legs cut off. The mutilated woman
1365-420: Was personally kind and well-intentioned, simple, hesitant, soft-hearted and generous, unable to escape the impact of his mother's viciousness. He tried to protect his younger half-brother Ruyi, Prince Yin of Zhao from being murdered by Empress Dowager Lü, but failed. After that, he indulged himself in drinking and sex, gave up government affairs to his mother, and died at a relatively young age. Emperor Hui's wife
1404-418: Was retained by Empress Dowager Lü who never claimed the title Grand Empress Dowager and did not appear to have significant influence. Nevertheless, when Emperor Qianshao found out in 184 BC that he was not actually her child, he made a careless comment that he would take vengeance on her—at which Empress Dowager Lü had him deposed and executed, and replaced him with his brother Liu Hong (as Emperor Houshao), who
1443-464: Was the son of someone like her who has done such inhuman deeds. From that point, Emperor Hui only "indulged himself with wine and women" and no longer made major and key governing decisions, leaving them to his mother, and Empress Dowager Lü had so much power that Emperor Hui was ineffective. Emperor Hui, however, continued to try to protect his siblings. In c. December 194 BC, when Liu Fei, Prince of Qi—his older half-brother—made an official visit to
1482-410: Was thrown into a latrine and then fed and kept alive in a pig's bin and was called the "人彘", meaning literally the "human swine". (She would die from the torture.) When Emperor Hui saw his father's favorite and the mother of his beloved little brother in such a condition, he cried out loud and became depressed and sick for about a year. He told his mother that he could not govern the empire, given that he
1521-486: Was unclear, but a few months later, when Xiang responded and crushed Liu's forces, Liu fled and, in his flight, attempted to pass through his hometown to take his family with him. He was able to find his children and carry them along with him, but his father and wife were captured by Xiang's forces and kept as hostages—and would not be returned to him until Liu and Xiang temporarily made peace in 203 BC. The then-very young Liu Ying must have then spent these days not knowing what
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