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141-606: The name Wenxi , which means "hearing the glad news", was used as the county name in 111 BC when Emperor Wu of Han , who on his royal progress at this place, heard Han's decisive victory in the Han–Nanyue War . In June 2022, archaeologists announced a discovery of a 2.8 centimetres (1.1 in) long, 5,200-year-old stone carving chrysalis in a semi-crypt house at the Shangguo Site in the city of Yuncheng , Wenxi County. Archaeologists theorised that this house may have belonged to

282-468: A 2,000-man force led by Han Qianqiu (韩千秋) and Queen Dowager Jiu's brother Jiu Le (樛乐) to try to assist the king and the queen dowager, Lü staged a coup d'état and had the king and the queen dowager killed. Lü then made another son of Zhao Yingqi, Zhao Jiande , king and went on to annihilate the Han forces under Han and Jiu. Several months later, Emperor Wu commissioned a five-pronged attack against Nanyue. In 111 BC,

423-468: A Chinese woman whom Zhao Xing's father Zhao Yingqi had married while he served as an ambassador to Han – were both in favor of becoming incorporated into Han. This was opposed by the senior prime minister, Lü Jia (吕嘉), who wanted to maintain the kingdom's independence. Queen Dowager Jiu tried to goad the Chinese ambassadors into killing Lü, but the Chinese ambassadors were hesitant to do so. When Emperor Wu sent

564-523: A banquet and invited all his old friends and townsfolk to join him. After some drinks, Liu Bang played the guqin and sang the Song of the Great Wind ( 大風歌 ). 大風起兮 雲飛揚 威加海內兮 歸故鄉， 安得猛士兮 守四方！ A great wind came forth the clouds rose on high Now that my might rules all within the seas, I have returned to my old village Where will I find brave men to guard the four corners of my land? Liu Bang

705-578: A better arrangement on Liu's behalf after bribing Xiang Yu through Xiang Bo. To Liu, Xiang Yu added Nanzheng , the surrounding rift valley region around the (then) middle Han River , and the title of "King of Han". Liu's army was escorted across the Qinling Mountains by a detachment of Xiang Yu's army. On Zhang Liang's advice, Liu burned the gallery roads behind him to prevent attack by Xiang Yu, and to reassure Xiang Yu that he would not return. From 206 to 202 BC, Liu Bang engaged Xiang Yu in

846-545: A ceasefire at the Treaty of Hong Canal (鴻溝和約), which divided China into east and west under their respective domains. In 203, while Xiang Yu was retreating eastward, Liu Bang, acting on the advice of Zhang Liang and Chen Ping , renounced the Treaty of Hong Canal and ordered an attack on Western Chu. He also requested assistance from Han Xin and Peng Yue to attack Xiang Yu simultaneously from three directions. However, Han Xin and Peng Yue did not mobilise their troops and Liu Bang

987-443: A century earlier, a Chinese General named Wiman had taken the throne of Gojoseon and had established Wiman Joseon at Wanggeom-seong , (modern Pyongyang ), which became a nominal Han vassal. When Wiman's grandson King Ugeo refused to permit Jin 's ambassadors to reach China through his territories, Emperor Wei sent an ambassador She He (涉何) to Wanggeom to negotiate a right of passage with King Ugeo, but King Ugeo refused and had

1128-407: A circle of young loyal supporters from ordinary backgrounds and promoted them to middle-level positions in order to infiltrate executive ranks in the government. These newly established officials, known as the "insider court" (内朝), took orders and reported directly to Emperor Wu. They had real influence over the operation of government affairs though lower in rank. They became a powerful counter against

1269-522: A crucial political alliance with Princess Guantao. Princess Guantao's daughter Chen Jiao , also known by the milk name A'Jiao (阿嬌), was of marriageable age (which was legally marked at the time by menarche ), making her at least eight years older than the young prince. Due to this age difference, Emperor Jing initially did not approve of this union. According to the Wei-Jin era fable Hanwu Stories (漢武故事 / 汉武故事 also called Stories of Han Wudi ), during

1410-532: A daughter from that marriage. However, her mother Zang Er (臧儿) (a granddaughter of the one-time Prince of Yan, Zang Tu , under Emperor Gao ) was told by a soothsayer that both Wang Zhi and her younger sister would one day become extremely honoured. She then got the idea to offer her daughters to the then crown prince Liu Qi, and forcibly divorced Wang Zhi from her husband at the time. After being offered to Liu Qi, Wang Zhi bore him three daughters – Princess Yangxin , Princess Nangong (南宫公主), and Princess Longlü. On

1551-537: A desperate attempt to escape Xiang Yu's men, and it is only the repeated intervention of Xiahou Ying that secures the children's escape. After the disastrous defeat at Pengcheng, the strength of the Han forces decreased drastically. Many of the kings who had surrendered to Liu Bang earlier had also defected to Xiang Yu's side. Moreover, the states of Qi and Zhao , which were previously at war with Chu, also requested to make peace. Upon reaching Xiayi ( 下邑 ; east of present-day Dangshan County , Suzhou, Anhui ), which

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1692-528: A failed plan to trick a force of 30,000 Xiongnu into an ambush of 300,000 Han soldiers. While neither side suffered any casualties, the Xiongnu retaliated by increasing their border attacks, leading many in the Han court to abandon the hope for peace with the Xiongnu. The failure of the Mayi operation prompted Emperor Wu to switch the Han army's doctrine from the traditionally more defensive chariot – infantry warfare to

1833-453: A general escort She back to Han territory. When they got close to Han borders, She assassinated the general and claimed to Emperor Wu that he had defeated Joseon in battle. Emperor Wu, unaware of his deception, made him the military commander of the Commandery of Liaodong (modern central Liaoning ). King Ugeo, offended, made a raid on Liaodong and killed She. In response, Emperor Wu commissioned

1974-547: A great strain on the national treasury and caused difficulties on the locales that he visited, twice causing the governors of commanderies to commit suicide after they were unable to supply the emperor's entire train. In 112 BC, a crisis in the Kingdom of Nanyue (modern Guangdong , Guangxi, and northern Vietnam ) erupted, leading to military intervention. At that time, the King Zhao Xing and his mother Queen Dowager Jiu (樛太后) –

2115-466: A highly mobile and offensive cavalry-against-cavalry warfare. At the same time, he expanded and trained officers from his royal guards. After a series of defeats by Wei Qing (the half-brother of Emperor Wu's favourite concubine) and Wei's nephew, Huo Qubing between 127 and 119 BC, the Xiongnu were expelled from the Ordos Desert and Qilian Mountains . As a result of these territorial acquisitions,

2256-494: A hybrid Legalist – Confucian doctrine. In the field of historical social and cultural studies, Emperor Wu is known for his religious innovations and patronage of the poetic and musical arts, including development of the Imperial Music Bureau into a prestigious entity. It was also during his reign that cultural contact with western Eurasia was greatly increased, directly and indirectly. During his reign as Emperor, he led

2397-750: A length of fortified wall along the border of the Hexi Corridor, colonizing the area with 700,000 Chinese soldier-settlers. The Battle of Mobei (119 BC) saw Han forces invade the northern regions of the Gobi Desert . The two generals led the campaign to the Khangai Mountains where they forced the Chanyu to flee north of the Gobi Desert, and then out of the Gobi Desert. The Xiongnu, destabilized and worried about further Han attacks, retreated further north into

2538-488: A local into leading them to capture two of Liu Bang's family as hostages: his father Liu Taigong and wife Lü Zhi . One account states Liu Bang's mother was also captured. The Records of the Grand Historian recounts an event during this conflict, an event omitted from Liu Bang's own biography but present in the biography of Xiang Yu, where Liu Bang pushed his own children out of his carriage three times to lighten it in

2679-459: A long period of time and ordered his guards to deny entry to everyone who tried to visit him. After several days, Fan Kuai barged into the chambers to see the emperor and the other subjects followed behind him. They saw Emperor Gaozu lying on his bed and attended to by a eunuch . Fan Kuai said, "How glorious it was when Your Majesty first led us to conquer the empire and how weary we are now. Your subjects are worried when they learn that Your Majesty

2820-652: A mediator in seeking the Emperor's reconciliation with his powerful grandmother. Princess Guantao took every opportunity to influence the Grand Empress and also constantly made demands on behalf of her nephew / son-in-law. Emperor Wu, already unhappy with his lack of an heir and Empress Chen's spoiled behavior, was further enraged by her mother Princess Liu Piao's greed, that she took a lot from him in everything she did for him. However, Emperor Wu's mother, Empress Dowager Wang, convinced him to tolerate Empress Chen and Liu Piao for

2961-607: A minor law enforcement officer in his home town in Pei County , within the conquered state of Chu . During the political chaos following the death of Qin Shi Huang , who had been the first emperor in Chinese history , Liu renounced his civil service position and became a rebel leader, taking up arms against the Qin. He outmanoeuvred rival rebel leader Xiang Yu to invade the Qin heartland and forced

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3102-537: A number of years, as deemed auspicious or to commemorate some event. Thus, the practice for dating years during the reign of Wudi was represented by the n year of the [Reign Year Name] (where n stands for an ordinal integer) and "Reign Year Name" for the specific name of that regnal year. This practice was continued by later emperors until the Ming and Qing eras, whereby the emperors of the two dynasties used only one reign name for their entire reign (unless interrupted, as in

3243-436: A plan that many dynasties would repeat later: creating national monopolies for salt and iron . The national treasury would further purchase other consumer goods when the prices were low and sell them when the prices were high at profit, thus replenishing the treasury while at the same time making sure the price fluctuation would not be too great. In 109 BC, Emperor Wu started yet another territorial expansion campaign . Nearly

3384-509: A power struggle – historically known as the Chu–Han contention – for supremacy over China, while simultaneously attacking and subjugating the other kingdoms. Liu Bang's migration into Nanzheng was far from pleasant – his followers were mostly from the Wu and Chu flatland regions and adapted poorly in the mountainous Bashu lands, and deserters grew on a daily basis. Liu Bang also grew temperamental, as he

3525-518: A royal relative and the Prince of Huainan. Minyue nobles, fearful of the massive Chinese force, assassinated their king Luo Ying (骆郢) and sought peace. Emperor Wu then imposed a dual-monarchy system on Minyue by creating kings out of Luo Ying's brother Luo Yushan (雒余善) and nobleman Zou Chou (驺丑), thus ensuring internal discord in Minyue . Although initially launched as a punitive expedition by Emperor Wu against

3666-538: A second and shorter captivity by Xiongnu. After the Prince of Hunxie surrendered the Gansu region, the path to Xiyu became clear and regular embassies between Han and the Xiyu kingdoms commenced. Another expansion plan, this one aimed at the south-west, was aimed at the eventual conquest of Nanyue, which was viewed as an unreliable vassal. The plan was to first obtain submission of the south-western tribal kingdoms—the largest of which

3807-432: A subsequent royal gathering, Princess Guantao held the 5-year-old Liu Che in her arms and asked the nephew whether he wanted to marry his first cousin A'Jiao. The young prince boasted that he would "build a golden house for her" if they were married. Princess Guantao then used the boy's response as a divine sign to convince Emperor Jing to finally agree to the arranged marriage between Liu Che and Chen Jiao. This inspired

3948-537: A two-pronged attack (one by land and one by sea) against Joseon. Initially, Joseon offered to become a vassal, but peace negotiations broke down by the Chinese forces' refusal to let a Joseon force escort its crown prince to Chang'an to pay tribute to Emperor Wu. Han took over the Joseon lands in 108 BC and established four commanderies. Emperor Gaozu of Han Emperor Gaozu of Han (256 – 1 June 195 BC ), also known by his given name Liu Bang ,

4089-415: Is a reference to the Han dynasty of which he was a part. His family name is "Liu"; the ruling family or clan of the Han dynasty shared the family name of "Liu", the family name of Liu Bang , the founding father of the Han dynasty. The character "Di" ( 帝 ) is a title: this is the Chinese word which in imperial history of China means "emperor". The character "Wu" ( 武 ) literally means "martial" or "warlike", but

4230-427: Is also related to the concept of a particular divinity in the historical Chinese religious pantheon existing at that time. Combined, "Wu" plus "di" makes the name "Wudi", the emperor's posthumous name used for historical and religious purposes, such as offering him posthumous honours at his tomb. The emperor's temple tablet name is Shizong (世宗) One of Han Wudi's innovations was the practice of changing reign names after

4371-657: Is considered one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history due to his strong leadership and effective governance, which made the Han dynasty one of the most powerful nations in the world. Michael Loewe called the reign of Emperor Wu the "high point" of "Modernist" (classically justified Legalist) policies, looking back to "adapt ideas from the pre-Han period." Especially later in his life, some of his most trusted advisers were proponents of Shang Yang , but did not necessarily support Shang Yang's harsh punishments. Despite establishing an autocratic, centralised state, Emperor Wu adopted

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4512-419: Is ill, but Your Majesty refuses to see us and prefers the company of a eunuch instead. Has Your Majesty forgotten the incident about Zhao Gao ?" The emperor laughed and got out of bed to meet his subjects. Emperor Gaozu's health deteriorated later so Empress Lü Zhi hired a famous physician to heal him. When Emperor Gaozu enquired about his condition, the physician told him that his illness could be cured, but

4653-531: The Chinese idiom "putting Jiao in a golden house" (金屋藏嬌). Now sealed in the marriage alliance with Consort Wang, Princess Guantao began incessantly criticising Lady Li in front of Emperor Jing. Over time, Emperor Jing started to believe his sister's words, so he decided to test out Lady Li. One day he asked Lady Li whether she would happily foster-care the rest of his children if he were to pass away, only to have her rudely refuse to comply. This made Emperor Jing angry and worried that if Liu Rong were to inherit

4794-533: The Greater Yuezhi and Kangju , which resulted in further diplomatic missions to Central Asia. Although historical records do not describe him as being aware of Buddhism , emphasizing rather his interest in shamanism , the cultural exchanges that occurred as a consequence of these embassies suggest that he received Buddhist statues from Central Asia, as depicted in the murals found in the Mogao Caves . Emperor Wu

4935-629: The Han conquest of Gojoseon in what is now present-day North Korea and Manchuria . Han Chinese colonists in the Xuantu and Lelang commanderies of northern Korea would later fight against frequent raids by the Goguryeo and Buyeo kingdoms. However, they would engage in mostly peaceful trade relations with surrounding Korean peoples over the centuries, the latter of whom became gradually and significantly influenced by Chinese culture . The exploration into Xiyu

5076-573: The Han forces captured the Nanyue capital Panyu (番禺, modern Guangzhou ) and annexed the entire Nanyue territory into Han, establishing ten commanderies. That same year, one of the co-kings of Minyue (modern Fujian ), Luo Yushan, was fearful that Han would attack his kingdom next and made a pre-emptive attack against Han, capturing a number of towns in former Nanyue and in the other border commanderies. In 110 BC, under Han military pressure, Luo Yushan's co-king Luo Jugu (骆居古) assassinated him and surrendered

5217-487: The Siberian regions where they suffered starvation due to livestock loss from harsh climates. The battle was however also costly for the Han forces, which lost almost 80% of their warhorses. The cost of the war led the central Han government to introduce new levies, increasing the burden on average peasants, and the population census of the empire showed a significant drop from famines and people fleeing to avoid having to pay

5358-606: The Three Qins , which started the Chu–Han Contention , a civil war between various forces seeking to inherit the Qin's former supremacy over China. In 202 BC, Liu Bang emerged victorious following the Battle of Gaixia , unified most of China under his control, and established the Han dynasty, with himself as the emperor. During his reign, Liu Bang reduced taxes and corvée labour, promoted Confucianism , and suppressed revolts by

5499-548: The Yangshao culture period, based on the unearthed pottery pieces. According to archaeologist Tian Jianwen, discovery of stone carving chrysalises provided significant information for the study of the silkworm culture in China. This Shanxi location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87   BC), born Liu Che and courtesy name Tong ,

5640-468: The magistrate of the nearby Waihuang County and former retainer of Lord Xinling . Liu lived with Zhang Er for several months, until the latter went into hiding after the conquest of Chu by Qin . Liu returned to Pei County. His close friends at the county office, Xiao He and Cao Shen , hid his delinquent behaviour and helped him to be appointed as the local sheriff ( 亭長 ) at Sishui Pavilion ( 泗水亭 ). Liu Bang forged close relationships with most of

5781-445: The political child marriage officially became Empress Chen . The Han dynasty up to this point was run according to a Taoist wu wei ideology, championing economic freedom and government decentralization . With regard to foreign policy-wise, periodic heqin was used to maintain a de jure "peace" with the powerful Xiongnu confederacy to the north. These policies were important in stimulating economic recovery following

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5922-567: The post-Qin dynasty civil war , but had their drawbacks. The non-interventionist policies resulted in loss of monetary regulation and political control by the central government, allowing the feudal vassal states to become powerful and unruly, culminating in the Rebellion of the Seven States during Emperor Jing's reign. Nepotism among the ruling class also stagnated social mobility and encouraged nobles' rampant disregard of laws, leading to

6063-455: The "outsider court" (外朝) made up of the Three Lords and Nine Ministers that, at the time, were mostly composed of anti-reformists. Furthermore, Emperor Wu sent out nationwide edicts appealing to grassroots scholars such as Gongsun Hong to enrol in government services in an attempt to break the stranglehold that the older-generation noble class had on the nation's levers of power. In 138 BC,

6204-580: The Chu army led by Cao Jiu near the Si River . Liu Bang's forces advanced further until they reached Guangwu ( 廣武 ). Chu forces led by Zhongli Mo were trapped by the Han army at the east of Xingyang. Following Han Xin's victory in the Battle of Wei River , the Chu army's morale fell and it ran short of supplies months later. Xiang Yu had no choice but to request to make peace with Liu Bang and released Liu's family members, who were held hostage by him. Chu and Han agreed to

6345-411: The Han court. Emperor Wu dispatched an amphibious expedition force led by Wang Hui (王恢) and Han Anguo (韩安国) to address the Minyue threat. Again fearing the Han intervention, Luo Yushan (雒余善), the younger brother of Minyue's King Ying, orchestrated a coup with other Minyue nobles, killed his brother with a spear, decapitated the corpse and sent the severed head to Wang. Following the campaign, Minyue

6486-469: The Han dynasty successfully opened up the Northern Silk Road , allowing direct access to trade with Central Asia. This also provided a new supply of high-quality horse breeds from Central Asia, including the famed Ferghana horse (ancestors of the modern Akhal-Teke ), further strengthening the Han army. Emperor Wu then reinforced this strategic asset by establishing five commanderies and constructing

6627-576: The Han dynasty through its greatest territorial expansion. At its height, the Empire's borders spanned from the Fergana Valley in the west, to northern Korea in the east, and to northern Vietnam in the south. Emperor Wu successfully repelled the nomadic Xiongnu from systematically raiding northern China, and dispatched his envoy Zhang Qian into the Western Regions in 139 BC to seek an alliance with

6768-407: The Han forces. The two states of Minyue and Dongyue were then completely annexed under the Han rule. In 135 BC, when Minyue attacked Nanyue , Nanyue also sought assistance from Han even though it probably had enough strength to defend itself. Emperor Wu was greatly pleased by this gesture, and he dispatched an expedition force to attack Minyue, over the objection of one of his key advisors, Liu An ,

6909-577: The Han troops deeper in their cups. Hearing of the fall of Pengcheng, Xiang Yu ordered the bulk of his forces to maintain the attack on Qi, while he personally led 30,000 crack troops to retake the capital. He encamped about ten miles from a city in present-day Xiao County , Anhui, and launched an attack on Pengcheng at dawn, and by noon had routed the unprepared Han army, driving them into the nearby Gu and Si Rivers, where over 100,000 men drowned or were killed by Chu soldiers. The remaining Han troops fled south to high ground, but were cornered by Chu forces by

7050-536: The Han. Enraged, Emperor Wu sent a combined army led by generals Han Yue (韩说), Yang Pu, Wang Wenshu (王温舒) and two marquesses of Yue ancestry. The Han army crushed the rebellion, and the Dongyue kingdom began to fragment after King Yushan stubbornly refused to surrender. Elements of the Dongyue army defected and turned against their ruler. Eventually, the king of the other Minyue state, Zou Jugu (驺居股), conspired with other Dongyue nobles to kill King Yushan before surrendering to

7191-593: The King of Hán; Han Xin , the King of Chu; Peng Yue , the King of Liang; Ying Bu , the King of Huainan; Zhang Er, the King of Zhao; Wu Rui , the King of Changsha. However, later, the emperor became worried that the vassal kings might rebel against him because they, after all, had no blood relations with him. Han Xin and Peng Yue were (falsely) accused of treason, arrested and executed along with their families. Ying Bu and Zang Tu rebelled against him but were defeated and killed. Only Wu Rui and Zhang Er were left. The Xiongnu to

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7332-509: The Prince of Huainan (a previously trusted adviser of Emperor Wu, and closely enough related to have imperial pretensions) and his brother Liu Ci (刘赐), the Prince of Hengshan, were accused of plotting treason. They committed suicide; their families and many alleged co-conspirators were executed. Similar action was taken against the other vassal Princes, and by the end of the reign, all the vassal kingdoms had been political and militarily disabled. A famous wrongful execution happened in 117 BC, when

7473-418: The Qin regime and reducing the severity of certain penalties. In January to February 195 BC, after suppressing a rebellion by Ying Bu , he passed by Shandong , the birthplace of Confucius , and personally prepared for a ceremony to pay respect to the philosopher. In his later years, Emperor Gaozu favoured Consort Qi and neglected Empress Lü Zhi . He thought that Liu Ying , his heir apparent (born to

7614-464: The Sui River, where another 100,000 drowned, their corpses damming up the river. Liu Bang escaped the city with a handful of mounted bodyguards, heading to nearby Pei to collect his family. Xiang Yu also dispatched troops to Pei in an attempt to capture Liu Bang's family. His family had all fled, but Liu Bang encountered on the road his eldest daughter and second eldest son Liu Ying . The Chu army coerced

7755-482: The Wu River (near present-day He County , Chaohu City , Anhui ). He made a last stand and managed to slay several hundred Han soldiers before eventually committing suicide. In 202 BC, Liu Bang was enthroned as the emperor with support from his subjects even though he expressed reluctance to take the throne. He named his dynasty "Han", and was historically known as "Emperor Gaozu" (or "Emperor Gao"). He established

7896-451: The advice of General Yang Pu (杨仆), Emperor Wu rejected a military solution, and the Han forces arrived home without attacking Dongyue, though border garrisons were told to prepare for any military conflicts. After King Yushan was informed of this, he became overly confident and proud and responded by revolting against the Han, proclaiming himself emperor and assigned his "Han-devouring generals" (吞汉将军) to invade neighbouring regions controlled by

8037-472: The autonomous kingdom of Nanyue , the entire Nanyue territory (which includes modern Guangdong , Guangxi , and North Vietnam ) had been conquered by the Emperor's military forces and annexed into the Han Empire by 111 BC. Military tension had long existed between China and the northern " barbarians ", mainly because the fertile lands of the prosperous agricultural civilization presented attractive targets for

8178-459: The border again. In 201 BC, Hán Xin (King of Hán) defected to the Xiongnu leader, Modu . In the following year, Emperor Gaozu led an army to attack the Xiongnu but was besieged and trapped by the enemy at the Battle of Baideng . Acting on Chen Ping 's advice, he bribed Modu's wife with gifts and got her to ask her husband to withdraw his forces. Modu did so. After returning to the capital, Emperor Gaozu, acting on advice from Liu Jing, initiated

8319-525: The border. Peasants responded by killing the Pei County magistrate and welcoming Liu's return. Liu became known as the self-styled "Duke of Pei" ( 沛公 ). In 208, the Qin empire faced rebellions that sought to restore the states conquered during the wars of unification . In Wu County , the uprising of Xiang Liang – a commoner and son of a Chu general – installed Xiong Xin as "King Huai II" ( 楚後懷王 ) of Chu. Liu joined Xiang Liang's uprising. After Xiang Liang

8460-487: The capital in Luoyang (later moved to Chang'an ) and instated his official spouse Lü Zhi as the empress and their son Liu Ying as the crown prince . The following year, Emperor Gaozu wanted to reward his subjects who had contributed to the founding of the Han Empire, but the process dragged on for a year because they could not agree on the distribution of the rewards. The emperor thought that Xiao He 's contributions were

8601-525: The case of Emperor Yingzong of Ming ). In 104 BCE (1st year of the Tai'chu (太初) era), a new calendar was put into effect: the Tai'chu calendar (太初历). This calendar came about due to the observations of three officials (Gongsun Qing (公孙卿), Hu Sui (壶遂) and Sima Qian (author of Shiji ) that the calendar then in use was in need of reform. Among other reforms, the Taichu calendar made the zheng month (正月, also known as

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8742-430: The central government would provide for them for a year. He also granted freedom to those who had sold themselves into slavery to avoid hunger during the wars. In 195 BC, the emperor issued two decrees: the first officialised the lowering of taxes and corvée; the second set the amount of tribute to be paid by the vassal kings to the imperial court in the 10th month of every year. The land tax on agricultural production

8883-476: The city. Liu Bang heeded Chen Ping 's suggestion to bribe Xiang Yu's men with 40,000 catties of gold for them to spread rumours that Fan Zeng had the intention of betraying Xiang Yu. Xiang Yu fell for the ruse and dismissed Fan Zeng. Later that year, while Xiang Yu was away suppressing the rebellion in Qi, Li Yiji advised Liu Bang to use the opportunity to attack Western Chu. Han forces conquered Chenggao and defeated

9024-546: The commanderies, initially nearby Chang'an , but later extending to much farther places, worshipping the various gods on the way, perhaps again in search of immortality . He also had a succession of magicians whom he honoured with great things. In one case, he even made one a marquess and married his daughter, the Eldest Princess Wei, to him; that magician, Luan Da , was later exposed as a fraud and executed. Emperor Wu's expenditures on these tours and magical adventures put

9165-406: The county to support him; the invitation was transmitted by Fan Kuai , Liu's brother-in-law. However, the magistrate changed his mind and rescinded the offer; he also ordered Xiao and Cao to be killed lest they open the gates for Liu, but they escaped and joined Liu. On Xiao's advice, Liu secured the aid of commoners from the county beside Pei through written appeals delivered by arrows fired across

9306-399: The crown prince to the Prince of Linjiang (臨江王) and exiling him from the capital city Chang'an in 150 BC. Lady Li was stripped of her titles and placed under house arrest ; she died of depression not long after. Liu Rong was arrested two years later for illegal seizure of imperial shrine lands and committed suicide while in custody. As Empress Bo had been deposed one year earlier in 151 BC,

9447-411: The crown prince. The emperor was pleased to see that Liu Ying had their support so he dismissed the idea of changing his heir apparent. After establishing the Han dynasty, Emperor Gaozu appointed princes and vassal kings to help him govern the Han Empire and gave each of them a piece of land. There were seven vassal kings who were not related to the imperial clan: Zang Tu , the King of Yan; Han Xin ,

9588-474: The crown prince. Zhang Liang tried to dissuade him but was ignored, so he retired on the excuse that he was ill. Shusun Tong (the crown prince's tutor) and Zhou Chang also strongly objected to the emperor's decision to replace Liu Ying with Liu Ruyi. Zhou Chang said, "I am not good in arguing, but I know this is not right. If Your Majesty deposes the Crown Prince, I won't follow your orders any more." Zhou Chang

9729-466: The day of Liu Qi's accession to the throne as Emperor Jing of Han (upon the death of his father Emperor Wen in 156 BC), Wang Zhi gave birth to Liu Che and was promoted to a consort for giving birth to a royal prince. While she was pregnant, she claimed that she dreamed of a sun falling into her womb. Emperor Jing was ecstatic over the divine implication, and made the young Liu Che the Prince of Jiaodong (胶东王) on 16 May 153 BC. An intelligent boy, Liu Che

9870-404: The desert, but was able to escape around 129 BC and eventually made it to Yuezhi, which by then had relocated to Samarkand . While Yuezhi refused to return, it and several other kingdoms in the area, including Dayuan ( Kokand ) and Kangju , established diplomatic relations with Han. Zhang was able to deliver his report to Emperor Wu when he arrived back in the capital Chang'an in 126 BC after

10011-538: The east, Liu Bang collected a force of 560,000 troops from his subordinate lands, and marched east to attack Western Chu . En route, he encountered Peng Yue , who joined his cause upon promise of a fiefdom in Wei. As opposed to combining forces, Liu Bang sent Peng Yue's 30,000 troops to pacify the surrounding area. Liu Bang's army entered Xiang Yu's capital of Pengcheng apparently unopposed, looting its valuables and taking its women, but discipline had become lax and each day found

10152-500: The emperor even went so far as to construct a "House of Life" ( shou gong ) chapel at his Ganquan palace complex (in modern Xianyang , Shaanxi) specifically for this purpose, in 118 BC. One of the religious rituals that Emperor Wu organized was the Suburban Sacrifice, and the nineteen hymns entitled Hymns for Use in the Suburban Sacrifice were written in connection with these religious rites and published during Wu's reign. It

10293-572: The emperor was displeased and he scolded the physician, "Isn't it Heaven's will that I managed to conquer this empire in simple clothing and with nothing but a sword? My life is determined by Heaven. It is useless even if Bian Que is here!" He refused to continue with the treatment and sent the physician away. Before his death, he said that Cao Shen could succeed Xiao He as the chancellor after Xiao died, and that Wang Ling could succeed Cao Shen. He also said that Wang Ling might be too young to perform his duties so Chen Ping could assist Wang, but Chen

10434-519: The empress), was too weak to be a ruler. Thus, he had the intention of replacing Liu Ying with another son, Liu Ruyi , who was born to Consort Qi. Lü Zhi became worried, so she asked Zhang Liang to help her son maintain his position. Zhang Liang recommended four reclusive wise men, the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang , to help Liu Ying. In 195 BC as Emperor Gaozu's health started to worsen, he desired even more to replace Liu Ying with Liu Ruyi as

10575-510: The end of her life. But now with the military firmly in his control, Emperor Wu's political survival was assured, and his grandmother or anyone else could no longer threaten to dethrone him as directly, easily and quickly as before. In the same year, Emperor Wu's newly favoured concubine Wei Zifu became pregnant with his first child, effectively clearing his name and silencing any political enemies who had schemed to use his alleged infertility as an excuse to have him removed. When this news reached

10716-415: The final step to defeat Lady Li — she persuaded a minister to officially advise Emperor Jing that he make Lady Li empress, as Liu Rong was already the crown prince. Emperor Jing, already firm in his view that Lady Li must not be made empress, was enraged and believed that Lady Li had conspired with government officials. He executed the clan of the minister who had made that proposal, and deposed Liu Rong from

10857-501: The first month) the beginning of a new year, rather than the tenth month in the Zhuanxu calendar. From then on, the Chinese calendar had retained the property of having the first month as the beginning of the year. Liu Che was the 11th son of Liu Qi , the oldest living son from Emperor Wen of Han . His mother Wang Zhi (王娡) was initially married to a commoner named Jin Wangsun (金王孫) and had

10998-470: The former state of Jin (in the area of the modern province of Shanxi ) as official religious functionaries of his new empire. Emperor Wu worshiped the divinity Tai Yi (or, Dong Huang Tai Yi), a deity to whom he was introduced by his shaman advisers, who were able to provide him with the experience of having this god (and other spiritual entities, such as the Master of Fate, Si Ming ) summoned into his presence;

11139-473: The former Qin Empire into the Eighteen Kingdoms . He gave Guanzhong to three former Qin generals – Zhang Han , Sima Xin and Dong Yi – instead of to Liu. Liu received the isolated Bashu region ( Sichuan Basin and upper Han River valley), then a place used for exiling prisoners, as Xiang Yu claimed that Bashu was part of Guanzhong. Zhang Liang, who was leaving for his native state of Han , negotiated

11280-677: The future Princess Yuan of Lu . Liu was responsible for escorting a group of penal laborers to the construction site of the First Emperor's mausoleum at Mount Li . During the journey, some prisoners escaped; under Qin law, allowing prisoners to escape was punishable by death . Rather than face punishment, Liu freed the remaining prisoners and fled. Liu was joined by some of the grateful ex-prisoners, and he became their leader. They took over an abandoned stronghold on Mount Mangdang . Liu secretly remained in contact with some old friends, including Xiao He and Cao Shen in Pei County. According to

11421-455: The gods of heaven and earth to seek immortality. He then decreed that he would return to Mount Tai every five years to repeat the ceremony, but only did so once in 98 BC. Many palaces were built for him and the princes to accommodate the anticipated cycles of the ceremony. It was around this time that, in reaction to the large expenditures by Emperor Wu that had exhausted the national treasury, his agricultural minister Sang Hongyang conceived of

11562-445: The government. While his mother, Empress Dowager Wang, and his uncle Tian Fen were still heavily influential, they also benefited from the death of the old woman, especially the mother of Emperor Wu, but they lacked the ability to restrain the Emperor's actions. Emperor Wu began military campaigns focused on territorial expansion. This decision nearly destroyed his empire in its early stages. Reacting to border incursions by sending out

11703-438: The greatest, so he awarded Xiao the title "Marquis of Zan" and gave him the largest amount of food stores. Some of the others expressed objections because they thought that Xiao was not directly involved in battle so his contributions should not be considered the greatest. Emperor Gaozu replied that Xiao He should receive the highest credit because he planned their overall strategy in the war against Xiang Yu. He named Cao Shen as

11844-541: The interests of the nobles and were swiftly defeated by his powerful grandmother Grand Empress Dowager Dou , who held real political power in the Han court and supported the conservative factions. Most of the reformists were punished: Emperor Wu's two noble supporters Dou Ying (窦婴) and Tian Fen (田蚡, Empress Dowager Wang's half-brother and Emperor's uncle) lost their positions, and his two mentors Wang Zang (王臧) and Zhao Wan (赵绾) were impeached, arrested and forced to commit suicide in prison. Emperor Wu, deprived of any allies,

11985-509: The kingdom to Han. However, Emperor Wu did not establish commanderies in Minyue's former territory; instead, he moved its people to the region between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers. Later that year, Emperor Wu, at great expense, carried out the ancient ceremony of the Feng and Shan sacrifices fengshan (封禅) at Mount Tai ; this involved the worship of heaven and earth and presumably a secret petition to

12126-506: The legend of the "Uprising of the Slaying of the White Serpent" ( Chinese : 斬白蛇起義 ), Liu's ascension to rulership was prophesied after becoming an outlaw. In the legend, a gigantic white serpent killed some of the outlaws with its poisonous breath; the serpent was killed by a drunk Liu during the night. The next morning, the outlaws encountered an old woman along the road; when asked why she

12267-410: The local county bureaucrats, and earned a small reputation in the district. While performing corvée labour in the Qin capital at Xianyang , he witnessed Qin Shi Huang undertaking an inspection tour; the royal procession impressed Liu. Liu's wife, Lü Zhi , was the daughter of Lü Wen ( 呂文 ), a wealthy and influential gentry from Shanfu County . After moving to Pei County, Lü Wen held a feast for

12408-514: The local elite. Xiao He , who helped to collect gifts from the guests, declared that a seat inside the hall required gifts worth at least a thousand coins. Liu attended the feast without money, and made an offer of ten thousand coins which Xiao He realized was not serious. Nonetheless, Lü had Liu seated beside him based on appearance alone. Lü, further impressed by Liu in conversation, offered his daughter in marriage. Liu and Lü Zhi were married and had two children, Liu Ying (the future Emperor Hui ) and

12549-528: The local garrison. However the tiger tally , which was needed to authorize any use of armed forces, was in Grand Empress Dowager Dou's possession at the time. Yan Zhu, as the appointed imperial ambassador, circumvented this problem by executing a local army commander who refused to obey any order without seeing the tiger tally and coerced the governor of Kuaiji to mobilize a large naval fleet to Dong'ou's rescue . Seeing that superior Han forces were on

12690-457: The lords of non-Liu vassal states, among many other actions. He also initiated the policy of heqin , a system of arranged marriages between nobles, to maintain peace between the Han and the Xiongnu following the Han defeat at the Battle of Baideng in 200 BC. He died in 195 BC and was succeeded by his son Liu Ying . According to the Han imperial mythology, Liu Bang's ancestors were

12831-507: The minister of agriculture Yan Yi (颜异), was falsely accused of committing a crime, though he was actually targeted because he had previously offended the emperor by opposing a plan to effectively extort double tributes out of princes and marquesses. Yan was executed for "internal defamation" of the emperor, and this caused the officials to be fearful and willing to flatter the emperor. Starting about 113 BC, Emperor Wu began to display further signs of abusing his power. He began to incessantly tour

12972-598: The mythical Emperor Yao and the Yellow Emperor . Many ancient Chinese noble families claimed descent from the Yellow Emperor to justify their right to rule . Liu Bang was born during the late years of the Warring States period ; his parents are only remembered as " Liu Taigong " and "Liu Ao" ( 劉媪 ; 'Old Madam Liu'). His family was from Zhongyang ( 中陽里 ) in the state of Chu . According to legend, Liu Bang

13113-438: The nation to "rest and recover" (休养生息). Despite the periodic humiliation of appeasement and providing gifts, the Han borders were still frequented by Xiongnu raids for the next seven decades. Following the death of his powerful grandmother, Emperor Wu decided that Han China had sufficiently recovered enough to support a full-scale war. He first ended the official policy of peace with the Battle of Mayi in 133 BC, which involved

13254-548: The necessity of important policy reforms, but neither Emperor Wen nor Emperor Jing was willing to risk implementing such changes. Unlike the emperors before him, the young and vigorous Emperor Wu was unwilling to put up with the status quo . Only a year into his reign in late 141 BC, Emperor Wu took the advice of Confucian scholars and launched an ambitious reform, known in history as the Jianyuan Reforms (建元新政). The reforms included: However, Emperor Wu's reforms threatened

13395-428: The newly built supply routes from Xingyang , the Han army was running short of supplies. Liu Bang negotiated for an armistice with Xiang Yu and agreed to cede the lands east of Xingyang to Western Chu. Xiang Yu wanted to accept Liu Bang's offer, but Fan Zeng advised him to reject it and use the opportunity to destroy Liu Bang. Xiang Yu changed his mind, pressed the attack on Xingyang and besieged Liu Bang's forces inside

13536-512: The north had been a threat since the Qin dynasty. Qin Shi Huang had sent the general Meng Tian to oversee the defences on the Qin Empire's northern border and the construction of the Great Wall to repel the invaders. Meng Tian achieved success in deterring the Xiongnu from advancing beyond the border. However, after the Qin dynasty collapsed, the Xiongnu seized the opportunity to move south and raid

13677-471: The opportunity for Consort Wang and the young Liu Che to gain the emperor's favour. When Emperor Jing's older sister, Eldest Princess Guantao (馆陶长公主) Liu Piao (刘嫖), offered to marry her daughter with Chen Wu  [ zh ; ko ] ( 陳午 ), the Marquess of Tangyi, to Liu Rong, Lady Li rudely rejected the proposal out of her dislike of Princess Guantao, who often procured new concubines for Emperor Jing and

13818-450: The person who made the greatest contributions in battle and rewarded him and the others accordingly. Emperor Gaozu disbanded his armies and allowed the soldiers to return home. He gave an order stating that the people who remained in Guanzhong were exempted from taxes and corvée for 12 years, while those who returned to their respective native territories were exempted for six years and that

13959-478: The policy of heqin , which involved sending noble ladies to marry the Xiongnu leaders and paying annual tribute to the Xiongnu in exchange for peace between the Han Empire and the Xiongnu. Gaozu is also recorded as having a male lover known as Jiru , who was said to have more access to the emperor than his own ministers. Emperor Gaozu was wounded by a stray arrow during the campaign against Ying Bu . He became seriously ill and remained in his inner chambers for

14100-529: The poorer but more militaristic horseback nomads . The threat posed to the Xiongnu by the northward expansion of the Qin Empire ultimately led to the consolidation of the many tribes into a confederacy. Following the end of the Chu-Han Contention , Emperor Gao of Han realized that the nation was not yet strong enough to confront the Xiongnu. He therefore resorted to the so-called "marriage alliance", or heqin , in order to ease hostility and buy time for

14241-512: The position of empress was left open and Emperor Jing made Consort Wang empress four months later. The seven-year-old Liu Che, now legally the oldest son of the Empress, was made crown prince in 149 BC. In 141 BC, Emperor Jing died and Crown Prince Liu Che ascended to the throne as Emperor Wu at the age of 15. His grandmother Empress Dowager Dou became the grand empress dowager , and his mother became Empress Dowager Wang . His cousin-wife A'Jiao from

14382-468: The previously burnt gallery roads, drawing away the attention of the Three Qins. At the same time, Han Xin used the distraction to invade Guanzhong unexpectedly via Chencang , and quickly defeated Zhang Han in a surprise attack. Following that, Sima Xin and Dong Yi both surrendered to Liu Bang, and by August or September 205 the Three Qins became part of Liu's Kingdom of Han. With Xiang Yu occupied to

14523-461: The principles of Confucianism as the state philosophy and code of ethics for his empire and started a school to teach future administrators the Confucian classics . These reforms had an enduring effect throughout the existence of imperial China and an enormous influence on neighbouring civilizations. The personal name of Emperor Wu was Liu Che (劉徹). The use of "Han" ( 漢 ) in referring to emperor Wu

14664-419: The race with Xiang to seize the Guanzhong , arriving outside Xianyang. Ziying of Qin surrendered the city without resistance. Liu's occupation policies were informed by Fan Kuai – now his bodyguard – and Zhang Liang – his strategist. Troops were forbidden from mistreating the population and looting. The harsh Qin laws were abolished; murder, robbery, and burglary remained subject to strict punishments. Order

14805-442: The rise of local despots who bullied and oppressed the population. The heqin policy also failed to protect the Han borders against nomadic raids, with Xiongnu cavalries invading as close as 300 li (100 miles, 160 km) from the capital during Emperor Wen's reign, and over 10,000 border residents abducted or enslaved during Emperor Jing's reign. Prominent politicians like Jia Yi and Chao Cuo had both previously advised on

14946-456: The sinister plot. Embarrassed by Fan Kuai's accusation, Xiang Yu ordered the sword dance to stop and rewarded Fan Kuai for his bravery. Liu Bang escaped Xiang Yu's camp after pretending to go to the latrine, and then led his army westward. Xiang Yu then sacked Xianyang and burned the Epang Palace . After occupying Xianyang, Xiang Yu proclaimed himself the "Hegemon-King of Western Chu" and split

15087-564: The southern autonomous state of Minyue (in modern-day Fujian ) invaded the weaker neighbouring state of Dong'ou (in modern-day Zhejiang ). After their king Zuo Zhenfu (驺贞复) died on the battlefield, the battered Dong'ou desperately sought help from the Han court. After a heated court debate over whether to offer military intervention for such a distant vassal state, Emperor Wu dispatched a newly promoted official Yan Zhu (严助) to Kuaiji (then still located in Suzhou , rather than Shaoxing ) to mobilize

15228-448: The state of Huainan, Liu An , who was hoping the young Emperor Wu's infertility would allow him to ascend to the throne, went into a state of denial and rewarded anyone who told him that Emperor Wu was still childless. In 135 BC, Grand Empress Dowager Dou died, removing the last major obstacle against Emperor Wu's ambition for reform. After the death of Grand Empress Dowager Dou in 135 BC, Emperor Wu had full and unrivaled control of

15369-473: The states. Impressed and convinced, Liu Bang formally assigned Han Xin as the supreme commander of his army. Meanwhile, Xiang Yu's overbearing and arbitrary handling over the enfeoffments created much anger among the rebel leaders. Merely four months after Liu Bang's departure into Bashu, a rebellion broke out in the state of Qi in late 206, and Xiang Yu left Western Chu to suppress the revolt. Under Han Xin's advice, Liu Bang sent men to pretend trying to repair

15510-433: The surrender of the Qin ruler Ziying in 206 BC. After the fall of the Qin, Xiang Yu, as the de facto chief of the rebels, divided the former Qin empire into the Eighteen Kingdoms , with Liu Bang forced to accept control of the poor and remote region of Bashu (present-day Sichuan , Chongqing , and southern Shaanxi ), and assuming the title "King of Han". Within the year, Liu Bang broke out with his army and conquered

15651-540: The taxes. Emperor Wu carried out an invasion of the northern Korean Peninsula and established the Commandery of Canghai , but abandoned it in 126 BC. Some of the military colonies established at that time survived into the 4th century, leaving behind various particularly well-preserved funerary artefacts. After the conquest of Nanyue in 111 BC, Emperor Wu launched a second invasion of the Korean peninsula and by 108 BC completed

15792-405: The throne and Lady Li to become empress dowager , many of his concubines might suffer the tragic fate of Consort Qi in the hands of Empress Lü . Princess Guantao then began to openly praise her son-in-law-to-be to her royal brother, further convincing Emperor Jing that Liu Che was a far better choice for heir apparent than Liu Rong. Taking advantage of the situation, Consort Wang put in place

15933-463: The time being, as his aging grandmother was declining physically and would soon die. He spent the next few years pretending to have given up any political ambition, playing the part of a docile hedonist , often sneaking out of the capital Chang'an to engage in hunting and sightseeing and posing as an ordinary nobleman. Knowing that the conservative noble classes occupied every level of the Han court, Emperor Wu changed his strategy. He secretly recruited

16074-419: The troops, Emperor Wu sent his armies in all directions but the sea. Following the successful manoeuvre against Minyue in 138 BC, Emperor Wu resettled the people of Dang'an into the region between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers. In 135 BC, Minyue saw an opportunity to take advantage of the new and inexperienced king of Nanyue , Zhao Mo . Minyue invaded its south-western neighbour and Zhao Mo sought help from

16215-452: The way, Minyue forces became fearful and retreated. This was a huge political victory for Emperor Wu and set the precedent of using the Emperor's decrees to bypass the tiger tally, removing the need for cooperation from his grandmother; Of course, this did not mean that Grand Empress Dowager Dou's influence and intervention would disappear, she was a serious and insurmountable obstacle and competing authority in administration for Emperor Wu until

16356-409: The western region, part of his report indicated that embassies could more easily reach Shendu (India) and Anxi ( Parthia ) by going through the south-western kingdoms. Encouraged by the report, Emperor Wu sent ambassadors in 122 BC to try to persuade Yelang and Dian (modern eastern Yunnan ) into submission again. Han Gaozu , founder of the Han dynasty, had installed shaman cultists from the area of

16497-475: Was Yelang (modern Zunyi , Guizhou)—so that a route for a potential back-stabbing attack on Nanyue could be made. The Han ambassador Tang Meng (唐蒙) was able to secure the submission of these tribal kingdoms by giving their kings gifts; Emperor Wu established the Commandery of Jianwei (犍为, headquarters in modern Yibin , Sichuan) to govern over the tribes, but eventually abandoned it after being unable to cope with local revolts. Later, after Zhang Qian returned from

16638-577: Was a serious matter. These enemies of Emperor Wu wished to replace him with his uncle Liu An , the King of Huainan , who was renowned for his expertise in Taoist ideology. Even Emperor Wu's own maternal uncle Tian Fen switched camps and sought Liu An's favor, as he predicted the young emperor would not be in power for long. Emperor Wu's political survival now relied heavily on the lobbying of his influential aunt / mother-in-law, Princess Guantao (Liu Piao), who served as

16779-608: Was also during this time that Emperor Wu began to show a fascination with immortality . He began to associate with magicians who claimed to be able to, if they could find the proper ingredients, create divine pills that would confer immortality. However, he himself punished others' use of magic severely. In 130 BC, for example, when the witch Chu Fu tried to approach Empress Chen to teach her sorcery and love spells to curse Consort Wei and regain Emperor Wu's affections, he dispatched Zhang Tang to execute Chu Fu for witchcraft, which

16920-545: Was also qualified to assume the responsibilities of a chancellor all by himself. He also named Zhou Bo as a possible candidate for the role of Grand Commandant. He died in Changle Palace ( 長樂宮 ), Chang'an , on 1 June 195 BC and was succeeded by Liu Ying, who became historically known as Emperor Hui . The Song of the Great Wind is a song composed by Liu Bang in 195 BC when he visited his hometown in Pei County after suppressing Ying Bu 's rebellion. He prepared

17061-427: Was conceived after Liu Ao encountered a jiaolong dragon during a rainstorm. According to records, the young Liu was outspoken, charismatic, generous, and forbearing, but he had little interest in education or work and frequently ran into trouble with the law; he was dependent on his brother for subsistence and his father called him "little rascal". Later, he became good friends with Zhang Er ( 張耳 ; d. 202 BC),

17202-537: Was considered to be Emperor Jing's favourite son from a very young age. Emperor Jing's formal wife, Empress Bo , was childless. As a result, Emperor Jing's oldest son Liu Rong , born to Lady Lì (栗姬, Emperor Jing's favorite concubine and mother of three of his first four sons), was made crown prince in 153 BC. Lady Li, feeling certain that her son would become the future emperor, grew arrogant and intolerant, and frequently threw tantrums at Emperor Jing out of jealousy over him bedding other women. Her lack of tact provided

17343-607: Was crying she mysteriously disappeared after replying: "My child, the White Emperor 's son, has been slain by the son of the Red Emperor ." Liu's reputation grew among his followers, who became convinced of his destiny. In 209 BC, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang started the anti-Qin Dazexiang Uprising . The magistrate of Pei County considered joining the rebellion, and – on the advice of Xiao He and Cao Shen – invited Liu's group to

17484-471: Was defeated by Xiang Yu at Guling ( 固陵 ; south of present-day Taikang County , Zhoukou , Henan), and was forced to retreat and reinforce his defences. At the same time, he sent messengers to meet Han Xin and Peng Yue again, and promised to give them land and titles if they joined him in attacking Xiang Yu, and they finally agreed. Three months later in 202, Han forces led by Liu Bang, Han Xin and Peng Yue attacked Western Chu from three directions. The Chu army

17625-693: Was defended by his brother-in-law, Liu Bang reorganised his troops for a retreat. When he arrived at Yu (present-day Yucheng County , Shangqiu , Henan), he sent an envoy to meet Ying Bu , the King of Jiujiang, to appeal for support. Ying Bu, who held a grudge over Xiang Yu's unfair enfeoffment over the Eighteen Kingdoms , agreed to join Liu Bang and rebelled against Western Chu. Xiang Yu responded by sending Long Ju to attack Ying Bu. In 205 BC, Liu Bang named his son Liu Ying as his crown prince and ordered him to defend Yueyang . Shortly after, Han forces conquered Feiqiu ( 廢丘 ; present-day Xingping , Shaanxi), which

17766-431: Was diffusing the favor received by Lady Li. Insulted by the rejection, Princess Guantao then approached the next favorite of Emperor Jing's concubines – none other than Consort Wang, who had been observing these developments quietly from the sidelines. Guantao offered to marry her daughter to the consort's young son, Liu Che, then aged only 5. Seizing the opportunity, Consort Wang accepted the offer with open arms, securing

17907-417: Was first started in 139 BC, when Emperor Wu commissioned Zhang Qian to seek out the Kingdom of Yuezhi , which had been expelled by Xiongnu from the modern Gansu region. Zhang was to entice the kingdom to return to its ancestral lands with promises of Han military assistance, with the intention that Yuezhi forces would fight against the Xiongnu. Zhang was immediately captured by Xiongnu once he ventured into

18048-573: Was guarded by Zhang Han , who committed suicide after his defeat. On another front, Ying Bu was unable to defeat Long Ju so he gave up on Jiujiang and went to join Liu Bang. Liu Bang reorganised his army, which now included reinforcements from Guanzhong sent by Xiao He alongside Han Xin 's troops, and attacked Chu at Jing County ( 京縣 ; around present-day Xingyang , Zhengzhou , Henan) and Suoting ( 亭 ; near present-day Xingyang, Henan). He emerged victorious, and drove Xiang Yu's forces east of Xingyang. In 204 BC, after sustaining losses from Chu attacks on

18189-613: Was illegal at the time. Around the same time, perhaps as a sign of what would come to be, Emperor Wu began to trust governing officials who were harsh in their punishment, believing that such harshness would be the most effective method to maintain social order and so placing these officials in power. For example, one such official, Yi Zong (义纵), became the governor of the Commandery of Dingxiang (part of modern Hohhot , Inner Mongolia) and executed 200 prisoners, even though they had not committed capital crimes; he then executed their friends who happened to have been visiting. In 122 BC, Liu An ,

18330-519: Was killed at the Battle of Dingtao, Huai II sent Xiang Yu – Xiang Liang's nephew – and minister Song Yi to lead an army to reinforce the Zhao state against the attacking Qin. Liu Bang was made "Marquis of Wu'an" ( 武安侯 ) and ordered to lead an army against Guanzhong in the Qin heartland. Huai II promised to grant rulership of Guanzhong as "King of Guanzhong" to whoever entered the region first. In 206, Liu won

18471-409: Was now the subject of conspiracies designed to have him removed from the throne. For example, his first wife Empress Chen Jiao was unable to become pregnant. In an attempt to remain his first love, she had prohibited him from having other concubines. Emperor Wu's political enemies used his childlessness as an argument to seek to depose him, as the inability of an emperor to propagate a royal bloodline

18612-525: Was outspoken and had a stutter, which to some made his speech very amusing. The emperor laughed. After that, the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang (also known as the Four Haos of Mount Shang) showed up in the court. Emperor Gaozu was surprised to see them because they had previously declined to join the civil service when he invited them. The four men promised to help Liu Ying in the future if he were to remain as

18753-439: Was persuaded by Xiang Bo , his uncle and a close friend of Zhang Liang, not to order the assassination during the banquet. Frustrated by the indecision, Fan Zeng ordered Xiang Zhuang , Xiang Yu's cousin, to perform and kill Liu during a sword dance , but this was stymied by Xiang Bo joining the dance and protecting Liu. Zhang Liang slipped away and summoned Fan Kuai, who arrived at the banquet in full armor and scolded Xiang Yu for

18894-481: Was quickly restored in the city, and Liu won the respect of the Guanzhong population. Xiao He ordered the collection of all legal documents in the Qin palace and government facilities for preservation. Xiang Yu disliked losing the race to Guanzhong . On the advice of Fan Zeng – his advisor – and Cao Wushang ( 曹無傷 ) – an informer from Liu's camp – Xiang Yu planned to hold a banquet in which to assassinate Liu. Xiang Yu

19035-501: Was reduced to a rate of 1/15 of crop yield. He also privatised the coinage. In his early days, Emperor Gaozu disliked reading and scorned Confucianism . After becoming the emperor, he still held the same attitudes towards Confucianism as he did before until he encountered the scholar Lu Jia . Lu wrote the Xinyu ( 新語 ), a 12-volume book which espoused the benefits of governing by moral virtue as opposed to using harsh and punitive laws (as it

19176-450: Was running low on supplies and Xiang Yu was trapped in Gaixia. Han Xin ordered his troops to sing Chu folk songs to create a false impression that the Chu homeland had fallen to Han forces. The Chu army's morale plummeted and many soldiers deserted. Xiang Yu attempted to break out of the siege, and after fighting out of repeated traps was left with only 28 men when he reached the northern bank of

19317-458: Was split into a dual monarchy: Minyue was controlled by a Han proxy ruler, Zou Chou (驺丑), and Dongyue (东越) was ruled by Luo Yushan. As Han troops returned from the Han–Nanyue War in 111 BC, the Han government debated military action against Dongyue. Dongyue, under King Lou Yushan, had agreed to assist the Han campaign against Nanyue, but the Dongyue army never reached there, blaming the weather while secretly relaying intelligence to Nanyue. Against

19458-426: Was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty , reigning from 202 to 195 BC. He is considered by traditional Chinese historiography to be one of the greatest emperors in history, credited with establishing the first Pax Sinica , one of China's longest golden ages. Liu Bang was among the few dynastic founders to have been born into a peasant family. He initially entered the Qin dynasty bureaucracy as

19599-511: Was the seventh emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi Emperor more than 1,800 years later – and remains the record for ethnic Han emperors. His reign resulted in a vast expansion of geopolitical influence for the Chinese civilization , and the development of a strong centralized state via governmental policies, economical reorganization and promotion of

19740-414: Was under the Qin dynasty). Lu Gu read each volume to the emperor after he finished writing it. The emperor was deeply impressed. Under Emperor Gaozu's reign, Confucianism flourished and gradually replaced Legalism (of Qin times) as the state ideology. Confucian scholars, including Lu Gu, were recruited to serve in the government. The emperor also reformed the legal system by relaxing some laws inherited from

19881-541: Was very unhappy with his own predicament. One night, rumour arrived that Xiao He also disappeared, and Liu Bang almost had a nervous breakdown. When Xiao He returned the following morning, Liu Bang furiously confronted him and demanded an explanation. Xiao He revealed that he was in a rush chasing back an extremely talented military strategist named Han Xin , who was then merely a low-ranking officer only recently recruited into Liu Bang's army. Xiao He then introduced Liu Bang to Han Xin, who laid out his strategic plan to conquer

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