Han Zhao
Encyclopedia
The Han Zhao or Former Zhao, or Northern Han (北漢), was a Southern Xiongnu
state
during Sixteen Kingdoms
period coeval with the Chinese Jin Dynasty (265-420)
. In the Chinese historiography it was given two conditional state titles, the Han state (漢, pinyin
Hàn) for the state proclaimed in 304 by Liu Yuan
, and the Former Zhao state (前趙, pinyin Qiánzhào) for the state proclaimed in 319 by Liu Yao
. The reference to them as separate states should be considered clearly erroneous, given that when Liu Yao
changed the name of the state from Han to Zhao in 319, he treated the state as having been continuous from the time that Liu Yuan founded it in 304; instead, he de-established royal lineage to the Han Dynasty
and claimed ancestry directly from Yu the Great
of the Xia Dynasty
.
The reason it was also referred to as Former Zhao was that when the powerful general Shi Le
broke away and formed his own state in 319, later it was also conditionally named Zhao as well, and so in the Chinese historiography Shi Le's state was referred to as Later Zhao
.) Since they both were ruled by partially sinicized
Xiongnu
with a Chinese throne name Liu
, the Chinese scholars often conditionally combined them into a single Han Zhao state. Numerous western texts refer to the two states separately; others referred to the Han state as the Northern Han
, a confusing nomenclature as the term also refers to the Northern Han
in the Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.
All rulers of the Han Zhao were titled emperors. Han Zhao rulers were all extremely intelligent and articulate, but some lacked self-control and demonstrated excessive cruelty on the battle field. Particularly typical of this pattern of behavior was Liu Cong (Emperor Zhaowu), who was clearly able to discern good strategical plans from bad. He would sometimes indulge himself on wine and women, and his patterns of erratic behavior often resulted in deaths of honest officials. Han Zhao was considered to be a state that never fully realized its potential,it had a right mix of talent among its officials, and its armies were extremely powerful especially when utilized properly, but it would not always complete the conquests that its emperors envisioned, and eventually fell to its formal general Shi Le.
The Han Zhao armies sacked the Jin dynastic capitals of Luoyang
in 311 and Chang'an
in 316. Emperor Huai
and Emperor Min
of the Jin were captured, humiliated and executed. Remnants of the Jin court fled to Jiankang
, located east of Luoyang and Chang'an, and founded the so-called Eastern Jin Dynasty, under Sima Rui a Prince of Langye, later he adopted a title Emperor Yuan
.
In 318, Liu Can
and the state ruling family at Pingyang
were toppled and executed by the coup d'etat
of Jin Zhun
, who was in turn overthrown by Shi Le
and Liu Yao
. Liu Yao, as an imperial prince, claimed the throne and changed the dynastic name from Han to Zhao. The Han Zhao dynasty lasted until 329, when Shi Le defeated Liu Yao at the river Luo. Liu Yao was captured and executed; his sons agreed to join Shi Le forces, and Shi Le became de-facto head of the Southern Xiongnu state.
herdsmen resided in the Ordos Desert
and Bing
, a political division including modern-day areas of the whole Shanxi
province, southwestern part of Inner Mongolia
and eastern part of Shaanxi
province, after Cao Cao
moved them there and split them into "five departments" (五部, pinyin Wǔbù). The Southern Xiongnu continued their nomadic lifestyles of the steppes with horse breed
ing and to some extent agriculture. In spite of significant loss of Chinese sedentary population, the Chinese portion of the population in the state is estimated to be around 1,500,000. In addition to the Southern Xiongnu nomads, the state numbered 1,000,000 of other nomadic tribes, mainly Jie
, Xianbei
, Di
, and Qiang
, for a total of approximately 1,400,000 nomadic population, or 200 thousand yurts.
The position of the Chinese farmers changed drastically, the accent of economic production shifted from grain agriculture to animal husbandry, much of the arable land was converted to pastures, huge tracts of land were reserved for traditional encircling hunts, and abuse and exploitation of the nomadic "aliens" had stopped. In addition, endless wars needed vast supplies of materials and people, and the brunt of the wars fell heavily on the Chinese farmers, who had to report to the assembly points fully equipped with arms, provisions, and draft wagons, following the regulations applied to the nomadic forces. In 340, Shi Jilong set the target number of troops and materials at 500 thousand troops, 10 thousand ships, 11 million hu of grain and beans, and about half of the farm draft animals were requisitioned. Shi Jilong also promulgated a ban on keeping farm horses, over 40,000 horses were confiscated, along with over 20,000 oxen.
In accordance with Jin-shu, the Southern Xiongnu were organized into 19 pastoral rout communities, one of which was a tribe Qianqui (Qiang Qu), and another was their offshoot Jie.
Sinicization
was evident, especially among the elite; Liu Yuan
, a head of the Left Wing (左部, pinyin Zuǒbù), a hereditary position of the successor to the throne, was educated at Luoyang
, a capital of the Jin Dynasty, and was proficient in the Chinese literature, history, military strategies and tactics, he had an expertise of a perfect person in the classical sense. Speculations had recounted that Liu Yuan was once considered the post of the Jin forces commander for the conquest of the Kingdom of Wu; that consideration was later dropped because of his Xiongnu ethnicity.
Nonetheless, among the Xiongnu elite and herdsmen, including Liu Yuan himself, a keen sense of separate identity from the Chinese was retained. Most herdsmen still kept their horseback raiding and combat skills. Discontent against the Jin dynastic rule and of their subordinate position prompted them to seek an independent or self-governing Xiongnu entity. As one of the elite adequately put it, "since the fall ofHan [Dynasty]
,[Kingdom of] Wei and Jin [Dynasty] have risen one after the other. Although our [Xiongnu] king (Shanyu) had been given a nominal hereditary title, he no longer has a single foothold of sovereign territory."
Developments in the War of the Eight Princes
(also known as the Rebellion of the Eight Kings) finally favored the Xiongnu. Liu Yuan
took advantage of a commission from the desperate Prince of Chengdu (Sima Ying
), who was just being driven out of his base at Ye
(near modern-day Linzhang County
ch. 临漳县, Hebei
province
) to gather 50,000 Xiongnu warriors. Liu Yuan then proceeded to proclaim himself the "King of Han," the same title used centuries ago by Liu Bang (later Emperor Gao of Han and the founder of Han Dynasty
) - a deliberate adoption of the long fallen Han Dynasty based on the earlier intermarriages of Xiongnu shanyu and Han princesses to render the Jin and Wei usurpers. Liu fully wished that such legitimist stance would earn him substantial support from the Chinese elite. His motives also explained the extent of his adoption of the ideology and political practices from the same elite.
Nevertheless such proclamation was to remain titular - his war effort would eventually outdo his legitimist plan. His Han state attracted the support of some chieftains of other non-Chinese Xianbei
and Di
and certain bandit forces including those of an ex-slave
Shi Le
of the Jie
ethnicity. However the neighboring Tuoba
tribe, the powerful Xianbei nomads in modern-day Inner Mongolia and northern parts of Shanxi province, intruded into the Xiongnu residence of the Han State under their chieftain Tuoba Yilu
(拓拔猗盧, pinyin Tuòbá Yīlú). A powerful Xiongnu state would dash Tuoba's hope of migrating into the region.
On one hand the Tuoba would hence assist the Jin governor of Bing
to launch counteroffensive against the Han state. On the other hand Xiongnu cavalry, successful in plundering the countryside, failed to capture the fortified Jinyang (modern-day Taiyuan
city, the provincial capital of the Shanxi
province), the provincial capital of Bing even though the former governor Sima Teng had fled to the North China Plain
and left a mess. Liu Kun, the new governor, reorganized the defense and exploited the feud between the Han and the Tuoba to his advantage. His biography is in Jinshu
62. Allegiance between the Jin court and the Tuoba was sealed - five prefecture
s were rewarded in 310 to Tuoba Yilu, who was also made the Prince of Dai
. The areas around Jinyang would remain in Jin hands until the death of Tuoba Yilu in 316 when Jinyang was captured after a disastrous counteroffensive. Liu Kun fled but was later murdered by a Xianbei chieftain Duan Pidi.
By 309, The Xiongnu armies defeated the Jin armies on the field and pushed all the way up to the gates of Luoyang.
Note: Liu Xi was Liu Yao's crown prince
who was thrust into the leadership role when Liu Yao was captured by Later Zhao
's emperor Shi Le
, but he never took the imperial title.
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu were ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han Dynasty. Most of the information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources...
state
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
during Sixteen Kingdoms
Sixteen Kingdoms
The Sixteen Kingdoms, or less commonly the Sixteen States, were a collection of numerous short-lived sovereign states in China proper and its neighboring areas from 304 to 439 AD after the retreat of the Jin Dynasty to South China and before the establishment of the Northern Dynasties...
period coeval with the Chinese Jin Dynasty (265-420)
Jìn Dynasty (265-420)
The Jìn Dynasty , was a dynasty in Chinese history, lasting between the years 265 and 420 AD. There are two main divisions in the history of the Dynasty, the first being Western Jin and the second Eastern Jin...
. In the Chinese historiography it was given two conditional state titles, the Han state (漢, pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
Hàn) for the state proclaimed in 304 by Liu Yuan
Liu Yuan (Han Zhao)
Liu Yuan , courtesy name Yuanhai , formally Emperor Guangwen of Han was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao.-Family background:...
, and the Former Zhao state (前趙, pinyin Qiánzhào) for the state proclaimed in 319 by Liu Yao
Liu Yao
Liu Yao , courtesy name Yongming , was the final emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao. He became emperor in 318 after most other members of the imperial Liu clan were massacred by Jin Zhun in a coup. However, the empire was soon divided in half, as the general Shi Le declared...
. The reference to them as separate states should be considered clearly erroneous, given that when Liu Yao
Liu Yao
Liu Yao , courtesy name Yongming , was the final emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao. He became emperor in 318 after most other members of the imperial Liu clan were massacred by Jin Zhun in a coup. However, the empire was soon divided in half, as the general Shi Le declared...
changed the name of the state from Han to Zhao in 319, he treated the state as having been continuous from the time that Liu Yuan founded it in 304; instead, he de-established royal lineage to the Han Dynasty
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
and claimed ancestry directly from Yu the Great
Yu the Great
Yu the Great , was a legendary ruler of Ancient China famed for his introduction of flood control, inaugurating dynastic rule in China by founding the Xia Dynasty, and for his upright moral character....
of the Xia Dynasty
Xia Dynasty
The Xia Dynasty is the first dynasty in China to be described in ancient historical chronicles such as Bamboo Annals, Classic of History and Records of the Grand Historian. The Xia Dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors gave his throne to him...
.
The reason it was also referred to as Former Zhao was that when the powerful general Shi Le
Shi Le
Shi Le , courtesy name Shilong , formally Emperor Ming of Zhao , was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Jie state Later Zhao...
broke away and formed his own state in 319, later it was also conditionally named Zhao as well, and so in the Chinese historiography Shi Le's state was referred to as Later Zhao
Later Zhao
The Later Zhao was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty in China. It was founded by the Shi family of the Jie ethnicity...
.) Since they both were ruled by partially sinicized
Sinicization
Sinicization, Sinicisation or Sinification, is the linguistic assimilation or cultural assimilation of terms and concepts of the language and culture of China...
Xiongnu
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu were ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han Dynasty. Most of the information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources...
with a Chinese throne name Liu
Liu
劉 is a common Chinese family name. The transliteration Liu can represent several different surnames written in different Chinese characters:*劉 / 刘, pinyin: Liú...
, the Chinese scholars often conditionally combined them into a single Han Zhao state. Numerous western texts refer to the two states separately; others referred to the Han state as the Northern Han
Northern Han
The Northern Han kingdom is a state of the Ten Kingdoms in the Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. It was founded by Liu Min , formerly known as Liu Chong , and lasted from 951 – 979.-Founding of the Northern Han:...
, a confusing nomenclature as the term also refers to the Northern Han
Northern Han
The Northern Han kingdom is a state of the Ten Kingdoms in the Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. It was founded by Liu Min , formerly known as Liu Chong , and lasted from 951 – 979.-Founding of the Northern Han:...
in the Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.
All rulers of the Han Zhao were titled emperors. Han Zhao rulers were all extremely intelligent and articulate, but some lacked self-control and demonstrated excessive cruelty on the battle field. Particularly typical of this pattern of behavior was Liu Cong (Emperor Zhaowu), who was clearly able to discern good strategical plans from bad. He would sometimes indulge himself on wine and women, and his patterns of erratic behavior often resulted in deaths of honest officials. Han Zhao was considered to be a state that never fully realized its potential,it had a right mix of talent among its officials, and its armies were extremely powerful especially when utilized properly, but it would not always complete the conquests that its emperors envisioned, and eventually fell to its formal general Shi Le.
The Han Zhao armies sacked the Jin dynastic capitals of Luoyang
Luoyang
Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...
in 311 and Chang'an
Chang'an
Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...
in 316. Emperor Huai
Emperor Huai of Jin
Emperor Huai of Jin, sim. ch. 晋怀帝, trad. ch. 晉懷帝, py. Jìn Huáidì, wg. Chin Huai-ti , personal name Sima Chi , courtesy name Fengdu , was an emperor of the Jin Dynasty ....
and Emperor Min
Emperor Min of Jin
Emperor Min of Jin, Simplified Chinese character 晋愍帝, Traditional Chinese character 晉愍帝, Pinyin. Jìn Mǐndì, Wade-Giles Chin Min-ti , personal name Sima Ye , courtesy name Yanqi , was an emperor of the Jin Dynasty and the last of the Western Jin Dynasty.Emperor Min surrendered in 316 to Liu Yao, a...
of the Jin were captured, humiliated and executed. Remnants of the Jin court fled to Jiankang
Jiankang
Jiankang was the capital city of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and Southern Dynasties. Its walls are extant ruins in the modern municipal region of Nanjing.-History:...
, located east of Luoyang and Chang'an, and founded the so-called Eastern Jin Dynasty, under Sima Rui a Prince of Langye, later he adopted a title Emperor Yuan
Emperor Yuan of Jin
Emperor Yuan of Jin , personal name Sima Rui , courtesy name Jingwen , was an emperor of the Jin Dynasty and the first of the Eastern Jin Dynasty...
.
In 318, Liu Can
Liu Can
Liu Can , courtesy name Shiguang , Posthumous name Emperor Yin of Han , was an emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, who reigned briefly in 318 before being killed by his trusted father-in-law Jin Zhun.-As Prince of He'nei and then Prince of Jin:Liu Can was Liu Cong's son by his first...
and the state ruling family at Pingyang
Pingyang
Pingyang may refer to:*Linfen, formerly known as Pingyang, county-level city of Shanxi*Princess Pingyang , Chinese princess of the Tang Dynasty*Pingyang County , of Wenzhou, Zhejiang*Towns named Pingyang...
were toppled and executed by the coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
of Jin Zhun
Jin Zhun
Jin Zhun was an official of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, who in 318 staged a coup against the Han Zhao emperor and his son-in-law Liu Can and then massacred the imperial Liu family. His forces were subsequently squeezed in by the succeeding emperor Liu Yao and the general Shi Le, and,...
, who was in turn overthrown by Shi Le
Shi Le
Shi Le , courtesy name Shilong , formally Emperor Ming of Zhao , was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Jie state Later Zhao...
and Liu Yao
Liu Yao
Liu Yao , courtesy name Yongming , was the final emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao. He became emperor in 318 after most other members of the imperial Liu clan were massacred by Jin Zhun in a coup. However, the empire was soon divided in half, as the general Shi Le declared...
. Liu Yao, as an imperial prince, claimed the throne and changed the dynastic name from Han to Zhao. The Han Zhao dynasty lasted until 329, when Shi Le defeated Liu Yao at the river Luo. Liu Yao was captured and executed; his sons agreed to join Shi Le forces, and Shi Le became de-facto head of the Southern Xiongnu state.
The Condition of the Xiongnu in Northern China and their uprising
By the 280s, a huge number (approximately 400,000) of XiongnuXiongnu
The Xiongnu were ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han Dynasty. Most of the information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources...
herdsmen resided in the Ordos Desert
Ordos Desert
The Ordos Desert is a desert and steppe region lying on a plateau in the south of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China . The soil of the Ordos is a mixture of clay and sand and, as a result, is poorly suited for agriculture. It extends over an area of...
and Bing
Bing (province)
Bing was a province of China during the Han Dynasty, in the approximate area of modern Shanxi and western Hebei. At the end of the Han Dynasty, during a succession dispute among heirs of Yuan Shao , Bing was one of the first provinces to come under control of the warlord Cao Cao...
, a political division including modern-day areas of the whole Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
province, southwestern part of Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern region of the country. Inner Mongolia shares an international border with the countries of Mongolia and the Russian Federation...
and eastern part of Shaanxi
Shaanxi
' is a province in the central part of Mainland China, and it includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in addition to the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of this province...
province, after Cao Cao
Cao Cao
Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...
moved them there and split them into "five departments" (五部, pinyin Wǔbù). The Southern Xiongnu continued their nomadic lifestyles of the steppes with horse breed
Horse breed
Horse breed is a broad term with no clear consensus as to definition, but most commonly refers to selectively bred populations of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a very broad sense to define landrace animals, or...
ing and to some extent agriculture. In spite of significant loss of Chinese sedentary population, the Chinese portion of the population in the state is estimated to be around 1,500,000. In addition to the Southern Xiongnu nomads, the state numbered 1,000,000 of other nomadic tribes, mainly Jie
Jie
Jie might refer to:* Jie of Xia, last ruler of the Xia Dynasty of China* Jie , tribe in the Xiongnu Confederation in the 4th and 5th centuries* Jie , an ethnic group of Ugandan pastoralists....
, Xianbei
Xianbei
The Xianbei were a significant Mongolic nomadic people residing in Manchuria, Inner Mongolia and eastern Mongolia. The title “Khan” was first used among the Xianbei.-Origins:...
, Di
Di
Di may refer to:* The diminutive form of the name Diana, Diane and Dianne. Dai is the Welsh diminutive form of the name David.*Diana, Princess of Wales.*Di , an ancient ethnic group in China....
, and Qiang
Qiang
The Qiang people are an ethnic group of China. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China, with a population of approximately 200,000, living mainly in northwestern part of Sichuan province....
, for a total of approximately 1,400,000 nomadic population, or 200 thousand yurts.
The position of the Chinese farmers changed drastically, the accent of economic production shifted from grain agriculture to animal husbandry, much of the arable land was converted to pastures, huge tracts of land were reserved for traditional encircling hunts, and abuse and exploitation of the nomadic "aliens" had stopped. In addition, endless wars needed vast supplies of materials and people, and the brunt of the wars fell heavily on the Chinese farmers, who had to report to the assembly points fully equipped with arms, provisions, and draft wagons, following the regulations applied to the nomadic forces. In 340, Shi Jilong set the target number of troops and materials at 500 thousand troops, 10 thousand ships, 11 million hu of grain and beans, and about half of the farm draft animals were requisitioned. Shi Jilong also promulgated a ban on keeping farm horses, over 40,000 horses were confiscated, along with over 20,000 oxen.
In accordance with Jin-shu, the Southern Xiongnu were organized into 19 pastoral rout communities, one of which was a tribe Qianqui (Qiang Qu), and another was their offshoot Jie.
Sinicization
Sinicization
Sinicization, Sinicisation or Sinification, is the linguistic assimilation or cultural assimilation of terms and concepts of the language and culture of China...
was evident, especially among the elite; Liu Yuan
Liu Yuan (Han Zhao)
Liu Yuan , courtesy name Yuanhai , formally Emperor Guangwen of Han was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao.-Family background:...
, a head of the Left Wing (左部, pinyin Zuǒbù), a hereditary position of the successor to the throne, was educated at Luoyang
Luoyang
Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...
, a capital of the Jin Dynasty, and was proficient in the Chinese literature, history, military strategies and tactics, he had an expertise of a perfect person in the classical sense. Speculations had recounted that Liu Yuan was once considered the post of the Jin forces commander for the conquest of the Kingdom of Wu; that consideration was later dropped because of his Xiongnu ethnicity.
Nonetheless, among the Xiongnu elite and herdsmen, including Liu Yuan himself, a keen sense of separate identity from the Chinese was retained. Most herdsmen still kept their horseback raiding and combat skills. Discontent against the Jin dynastic rule and of their subordinate position prompted them to seek an independent or self-governing Xiongnu entity. As one of the elite adequately put it, "since the fall of
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
,
Developments in the War of the Eight Princes
War of the Eight Princes
The War of the Eight Princes or Rebellion of the Eight Kings or Rebellion of the Eight Princes was a civil war for power among princes and dukes of the Chinese Jin Dynasty from AD 291 to AD 306. It was fought mostly in northern China and devastated the country, later triggering the Wu Hu ravaging...
(also known as the Rebellion of the Eight Kings) finally favored the Xiongnu. Liu Yuan
Liu Yuan
Liu Yuan is a Chinese musician. He is recognized as one of the two most prominent jazz musicians in China, the other being the saxophonist Du Yinjiao.-Biography:...
took advantage of a commission from the desperate Prince of Chengdu (Sima Ying
Sima Ying
Sima Ying , courtesy name Zhangdu , was a Jin Dynasty imperial prince who served briefly as his brother Emperor Hui's regent and crown prince. He was the sixth of eight princes commonly associated with the War of the Eight Princes...
), who was just being driven out of his base at Ye
Ye
Ye can refer to:* Ye , a form of the second-person, personal pronoun "you"* Ye , a Chinese surname* an archaic spelling of the definite article "þe" , used by early printers when the obsolescent letter "þ" was not available...
(near modern-day Linzhang County
Linzhang County
Linzhang County is a county of Hebei, China. It is under the administration of Handan City.-Administrative Divisions:Towns:*Linzhang Town , Nandongfang , Suntaoji , Liuyuan , Chenggouji Townships:...
ch. 临漳县, Hebei
Hebei
' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...
province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
) to gather 50,000 Xiongnu warriors. Liu Yuan then proceeded to proclaim himself the "King of Han," the same title used centuries ago by Liu Bang (later Emperor Gao of Han and the founder of Han Dynasty
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
) - a deliberate adoption of the long fallen Han Dynasty based on the earlier intermarriages of Xiongnu shanyu and Han princesses to render the Jin and Wei usurpers. Liu fully wished that such legitimist stance would earn him substantial support from the Chinese elite. His motives also explained the extent of his adoption of the ideology and political practices from the same elite.
Nevertheless such proclamation was to remain titular - his war effort would eventually outdo his legitimist plan. His Han state attracted the support of some chieftains of other non-Chinese Xianbei
Xianbei
The Xianbei were a significant Mongolic nomadic people residing in Manchuria, Inner Mongolia and eastern Mongolia. The title “Khan” was first used among the Xianbei.-Origins:...
and Di
Di (ethnic group)
The Di were an ethnic group in China from the 8th century BCE to approximately the middle of the 6th century CE. Note that the character Di is used to differentiate this group from the Beidi , a generic term for "northern barbarians". They lived in areas of the present-day provinces of Gansu,...
and certain bandit forces including those of an ex-slave
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
Shi Le
Shi Le
Shi Le , courtesy name Shilong , formally Emperor Ming of Zhao , was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Jie state Later Zhao...
of the Jie
Jie (ethnic group)
The Jié were members of a small tribe in Northern China in the 4th century CE. They established the Later Zhao state.According to the Book of Wei, their name derives from the Jiéshì area where they reside....
ethnicity. However the neighboring Tuoba
Tuoba
Tuoba, or Tabgach, were a clan of Xianbei people of ancient China.-Xianbei Tuoba:Tuoba was a clan of the Xianbei people in the early centuries of the 1st millennium AD. They established the State of Dai from 310 to 376 AD, and the Northern Wei Dynasty from 386 to 536 AD...
tribe, the powerful Xianbei nomads in modern-day Inner Mongolia and northern parts of Shanxi province, intruded into the Xiongnu residence of the Han State under their chieftain Tuoba Yilu
Tuoba Yilu
Tuoba Yilu was the chieftain of the western Tuoba territory from 295 to 307, supreme chieftain of the Tuoba from 307 to 316, Duke of Dai from 310 to 315, first prince of the Tuoba Dai from 315 to 316...
(拓拔猗盧, pinyin Tuòbá Yīlú). A powerful Xiongnu state would dash Tuoba's hope of migrating into the region.
On one hand the Tuoba would hence assist the Jin governor of Bing
Bing (province)
Bing was a province of China during the Han Dynasty, in the approximate area of modern Shanxi and western Hebei. At the end of the Han Dynasty, during a succession dispute among heirs of Yuan Shao , Bing was one of the first provinces to come under control of the warlord Cao Cao...
to launch counteroffensive against the Han state. On the other hand Xiongnu cavalry, successful in plundering the countryside, failed to capture the fortified Jinyang (modern-day Taiyuan
Taiyuan
Taiyuan is the capital and largest city of Shanxi province in North China. At the 2010 census, it had a total population of 4,201,591 inhabitants on 6959 km² whom 3,212,500 are urban on 1,460 km². The name of the city literally means "Great Plains", referring to the location where the Fen River...
city, the provincial capital of the Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
province), the provincial capital of Bing even though the former governor Sima Teng had fled to the North China Plain
North China Plain
The North China Plain is based on the deposits of the Yellow River and is the largest alluvial plain of eastern Asia. The plain is bordered on the north by the Yanshan Mountains and on the west by the Taihang Mountains edge of the Shanxi plateau. To the south, it merges into the Yangtze Plain...
and left a mess. Liu Kun, the new governor, reorganized the defense and exploited the feud between the Han and the Tuoba to his advantage. His biography is in Jinshu
Book of Jin
The Book of Jin is one of the official Chinese historical works. It covers the history of Jin Dynasty from 265 to 420, which written by a number of officials commissioned by the court of Tang Dynasty, with the lead editor being the Prime Minister Fang Xuanling, drawing mostly from the official...
62. Allegiance between the Jin court and the Tuoba was sealed - five prefecture
Prefecture
A prefecture is an administrative jurisdiction or subdivision in any of various countries and within some international church structures, and in antiquity a Roman district governed by an appointed prefect.-Antiquity:...
s were rewarded in 310 to Tuoba Yilu, who was also made the Prince of Dai
State of Dai
Dai was a state of the Xianbei clan of Tuoba, during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms in China. It existed from 310 to 376 AD, with its capital at Shengle ....
. The areas around Jinyang would remain in Jin hands until the death of Tuoba Yilu in 316 when Jinyang was captured after a disastrous counteroffensive. Liu Kun fled but was later murdered by a Xianbei chieftain Duan Pidi.
By 309, The Xiongnu armies defeated the Jin armies on the field and pushed all the way up to the gates of Luoyang.
Rulers of the Han Zhao
| Temple name Temple name Temple names are commonly used when naming most Chinese, Korean , and Vietnamese royalty. They should not be confused with era names. Compared to posthumous names, the use of temple names is more exclusive... s |
Posthumous name Posthumous name A posthumous name is an honorary name given to royalty, nobles, and sometimes others, in East Asia after the person's death, and is used almost exclusively instead of one's personal name or other official titles during his life... s |
Family names and given name Chinese name Personal names in Chinese culture follow a number of conventions different from those of personal names in Western cultures. Most noticeably, a Chinese name is written with the family name first and the given name next, therefore "John-Paul Smith" as a Chinese name would be "Smith John-Paul"... |
Duration of reigns | Era names and their according range of years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese convention: use family and given names | ||||
| Han 304-319 | ||||
| Gao Zu (高祖 gaō zǔ) | Guangwen, ch. 光文, pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... guāng wén |
Liu Yuan Liu Yuan (Han Zhao) Liu Yuan , courtesy name Yuanhai , formally Emperor Guangwen of Han was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao.-Family background:... , ch. 劉淵, pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... liú yuān |
304-310 | Yuanxi (元熙 yuán xī) 304-308 Yongfeng (永鳳 yǒng fèng) 308-309 Herui (河瑞 hé ruì) 309-310 |
| None | None | Liu He Liu He Liu He , courtesy name Xuantai , was for seven days an emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao in 310.-Biography:... , ch. 劉和 py. liú hé |
7 days in 310 | None |
| Lie Zong (烈宗 liè zōng) | Zhaowu, ch. 昭武, py. zhāo wǔ | Liu Cong, ch. 劉聰 py. liú cōng | 310-318 | Guangxing (光興 guāng xīng) 310-311 Jiaping (嘉平 jiā pīng) 311-315 Jianyuan (建元 jiàn yuán) 315-316 Linjia (麟嘉 lín jiā) 316-318 |
| None | Yin, ch. 隱 py. yǐn | Liu Can Liu Can Liu Can , courtesy name Shiguang , Posthumous name Emperor Yin of Han , was an emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, who reigned briefly in 318 before being killed by his trusted father-in-law Jin Zhun.-As Prince of He'nei and then Prince of Jin:Liu Can was Liu Cong's son by his first... , ch. 劉粲 py. liú càn |
a month and days in 318 | Hanchang (漢昌 hàn chāng) 318 |
| Former Zhao 319-329 | ||||
| Did not exist | Hou Zhu (後主 hòu zhǔ) | Liu Yao Liu Yao Liu Yao , courtesy name Yongming , was the final emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao. He became emperor in 318 after most other members of the imperial Liu clan were massacred by Jin Zhun in a coup. However, the empire was soon divided in half, as the general Shi Le declared... ch. Liu Yao 劉曜 py. liú yaò |
318-329 | Guangchu (光初 guāng chū) 318-329 |
| None | None | Liu Xi Liu Xi Liu Xi , courtesy name Yiguang , was the crown prince and a son of Liu Yao, the final emperor of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, who was thrust into the leadership role after his father was captured by rival Later Zhao's forces, but was unable to resist Later Zhao and killed less than a year... ch. Liu Xi 劉熙; py. liú xī; |
329 | None |
Note: Liu Xi was Liu Yao's crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
who was thrust into the leadership role when Liu Yao was captured by Later Zhao
Later Zhao
The Later Zhao was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty in China. It was founded by the Shi family of the Jie ethnicity...
's emperor Shi Le
Shi Le
Shi Le , courtesy name Shilong , formally Emperor Ming of Zhao , was the founding emperor of the Chinese/Jie state Later Zhao...
, but he never took the imperial title.