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Emperor Gaozu of Han

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Emperor Gao of Han
Birth and death: 256 BC¹/247 BC²– June 1, 195 BC
Family name: Liu (劉)
Given name: Ji ³ (季), later Bang4 (邦)
Courtesy name (字): Ji5 (季)
Dates of reign: Feb. 28, 202 BC6–Jun. 1, 195 BC
Temple name: Taizu7 (太祖), later Gaozu8 (高祖)
Posthumous name:
(short)
Emperor Gao (高帝)
Posthumous name:
(full)
Emperor Gao (高皇帝)
General note: Dates given are in the proleptic Julian calendar.
They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.
———
1. This is the birth year reported by Huangfu Mi (皇甫謐) (215-282),
the famous author of acupuncture books.
2. This is the birth year reported by Chen Zan (臣瓚) around AD 270
in his comments of the Book of Han (漢書) .
3. Name meaning "the youngest one". Liu Bang was the third son of his
father, his oldest brother was called Bo (伯) , i.e. the "First one", and his
second older brother was called Zhong (仲) , i.e. the "Middle one".''
4. Had his name changed into Bang, meaning "country", either when he
was made Prince of Han, or when he ascended the imperial throne.
5. Ji was the courtesy name according to Sima Qian in his
Records of the Grand Historian. It may be that Liu Bang, after he
changed his name into Bang, kept his original name Ji as his courtesy
name. However, some authors do not think that "Ji" was ever used as
the courtesy name of Liu Bang.
6. Was already Prince of Han (漢王) since March 206 BC, having been
enfeoffed by the rebelled leader Xiang Yu. Liu Bang was proclaimed
emperor on February 28, 202 BC after defeating Xiang Yu.
7. Meaning "supreme ancestor". Was apparently the original temple name
of Emperor Gao. Taizu, in the most ancient Chinese tradition, going back
to the Shang Dynasty, was the temple name of the founder of a dynasty.
8. Sima Qian in his Records of the Grand Historian referred to Emperor
Gao as "Gaozu", meaning "high ancestor", perhaps a combination of the
temple name and posthumous name of the emperor (doubts still remain
about why Sima Qian used "Gaozu" instead of "Taizu", and what the exact
nature of this name is). Following Sima Qian, later historians most often
used "Han Gaozu" (漢高祖), and this is the name under which he is still
known inside China. Furthermore, it seems that in the Later Hàn Dynasty
"Gaozu" had replaced "Taizu" as the temple name of Emperor Gāo.

Emperor Gao (256 BC or 247 BC–June 1, 195 BC), commonly known inside China by his Temple Name, Gaozu (Wade-Giles: Kao Tsu), personal name Liu Bang (Wade-Giles: Liu Pang), was the first emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty, ruling over China from 202 BC until 195 BC, and one of only a few dynasty founders who emerged from the peasant class (the other major example being Zhu Yuanzhang founder of the Míng Dynasty). Before becoming an emperor, he was also called Duke of Pei (沛公) after his birthplace. He was also created as the Prince of Hàn by Xiang Yu, the Grand Prince of Western Chu following the collapse of Qín Dynasty, and was called so before becoming emperor.

Early life

Liú Bāng was born into a peasant family in Pei (present Pei County in Jiangsu Province). He relied on his brother's family for food. There is a story that tells of him bringing many friends home to eat with the family one day. Though there was more than enough food to feed everyone, his sister-in-law went to the kitchen to scrape the pots, thus causing all his friends to leave, as they thought that the family was too poor to feed them. His sister-in-law's contempt for his roguish ways was what made Liú Bāng think about actually studying and serving his country.

After he grew up, Liú Bāng served as a patrol officer in his county. Once he was responsible for transporting a group of prisoners to Mount Li in present Shaanxi province. During the trip many prisoners fled. Fearful that he would be punished for the prisoners' flight, Liú Bāng released the remaining prisoners. The prisoners, running for their lives, met up with a cobra snake and went back the way they came, running into Liú Bāng. Hearing their story, he went and killed the cobra himself. Legend says that the cobra was a representation from the gods indicating that he was the natural born leader. The cobra was supposedly larger then a full grown tree. The cobras breath was poisonous killing many prisoners. Liu Bang was brave enough to kill the snake at dawn. From then on, the prisoners respected him and made him their leader, hence Liú Bāng became the leader of a band of brigands. On one of his raids, he met a county magistrate who became impressed with his leadership skills and gave his daughter Lü Zhi to him in marriage.

Insurrection against Qín

In 209 BC Chen Sheng led an uprising against Qin Dynasty and assumed the title "King of Great Chu." Pei was in old Chu territory. At the time that Liú Bāng released the prisoners he was to escort to Mount Li and then became a fugitive himself, Xiao He was serving as a secretary to the county magistrate of Pei County. When Chen Sheng started his rebellion, the county magistrate considered joining the rebellion, and at the advice of Xiao and Cao Can (曹參) (who was then a county police official), he sent Liú Bāng's brother-in-law Fan Kuai to invite Liú and his company of bandits back to Pei County to support the rebellion. Fan found Liú, but on their way back, the magistrate changed his mind and closed the city gates against them, and also, afraid that Xiao and Cao would open the gates themselves, wanted to execute them. They jumped off the city wall and joined Liú. Liú Bāng, apparently at Xiao's suggestion, then sent letters to city elders urging surrender into the city by shooting them in on arrows. The elders agreed, and they assassinated the county magistrate and opened the gates to let Liú in, offering him the title the Duke of Pei.

Liú Bāng served first as a subordinate of Xiang Liang and then, after Xiang Liang was killed in action, became a subordinate of Mi Xin, Prince Huai of Chu, who was also the nominal leader of the coalition of the rebel states. Prince Xin named Liú Marquess of Wu'an. It was about this time that he met Zhang Liang, who would become a chief strategist of his.

Prince Xin made a promise that whoever occupied Guanzhong first, which was the plain of Central Shaanxi, the Qín homeland, and the core of Qín Dynasty, should be awarded Guanzhong as his kingdom. He then sent Liú Bāng for this mission, partly because he considered Liú a kind and merciful man, and partly because he did not like Xiang Yu, whom he considered cruel and impetuous. When Xiang Yu was busy fighting the main force of the Qin Dynasty, Liú invaded Guanzhong with relative ease.

In December 207 BC, the last Qín ruler Ziying surrendered to Liú Bāng and his rebel army, and in 206 BC Liú entered the Qín capital Xianyang. However, as now Xiang Yu was the most powerful rebel at that time both Ziying and Xianyang were instead forced to be handed to Xiang Yu. Xiang Yu even considered killing Liú in one dinner party that would be later known as the Feast at Hong Gate, but decided otherwise.

Chu-Han Contention

Now considering the whole former Qín Empire under his domination, Xiang Yu realigned the territories of not only the remaining parts of Qín but also the rebel states, dividing the territories into 19 principalities. Xiang Yu did not honor the promise by Xin, Prince Huai of Chu, who would soon himself be assassinated by Xiang's orders. Instead, he gave Guanzhong to the princes of three Qins. Liú Bāng was only awarded the Principality of Hàn (modern Sichuan, Chongqing, and southern Shaanxi).

In Hanzhong, Liú Bāng focused his efforts on developing agriculture methods and training an army, through which he reinforced his resource accumulation and military power. Before long, Liú broke out of his principality, deposed the kings of three Qins and occupied Guanzhong, where he launched a war now known as the Chu-Han War, against Xiang Yu. He quoted in his biography,"Establishment of the great," that "Those who earn their status by war are the most honorable of all."

Although Xiang Yu was far superior in military ability to Liú Bāng, he was at a political disadvantage. Xiang Yu kept defeating Liú in the battlefield, but each of his victories drove more people to support Liú. When Xiang Yu was finally defeated in the Battle of Gaixia, he could not recover and committed suicide.

The war lasted five years (206–202 BC) and ended with Liú Bāng's victory. Having defeated Xiang Yu, Liú proclaimed himself emperor and established the Hàn Dynasty in 202 BC and made Cháng'ān (present city of Xi'an) his capital city. Liú became historically known as Emperor Gāo of Hàn.

Reign as the Emperor

After Liu Bāng came into power, he re-centralised China based on Qín's model. He gradually replaced the original vassals, granting their lands to his relatives. Since the economy had been devastated by the war following the demise of the Qín Dynasty, he reduced taxes and corvée, developed agriculture and restricted spending. However, in response to what he saw as the decadence of Qín merchants, he restricted commerce by levying heavy taxes and legal restrictions on merchants. He also made peace with the Xiongnu. Under Gāozǔ's reign, Confucian thought gradually replaced Legalist thought; Confucian scholars were welcomed into his government, while the harsh Legalist laws were lessened. Emperor Gāozǔ's efforts laid a solid foundation for the over four-hundred-year reign of the Hàn Dynasty.

Liú Bāng also devoted to subduing the unruly kings. He soon annexed most of the kingdoms and established principalities, with his sons and relatives as princes. By doing so he consolidated his new-born empire.

Liú Bāng tried military solutions against the Xiongnu but was beaten hard in the battlefield. He then decided to appease the Xiongnu by marrying ladies from the royal family to Chanyu, the leaders of the Xiongnu. This policy would not change for about 70 years.

In the 6th century source of the Xi Jing Za Ji, Liú Bang was said to have stumbled upon an entire musical orchestra set of mechanical puppets from the First Qin Emperor's treasury. The book stated:

There were also twelve men cast in bronze, each 3 ft. high, sitting upon a mat. Each one held either a lute, a guitar, a sheng or a yu (mouth-organs with free reeds). All were dressed in flowered silks and looked like real men. Under the mat there were two bronze tubes, the upper opening of which was several feet high and protruded behind the mat. One tube was empty and in the other there was a rope as thick as a finger. If someone blew into the empty tube, and a second person (pulled down) the rope (by means of its) knot, then all the group made music just like real musicians.

Succession

Crown Prince Liu Ying, the eldest son of Liu Bang and Empress Lü, was the heir apparent of Liu Bang. However, Liu Bang disliked him because he considered Ying to be too weak as a ruler. His favorite son was Ruyi, Prince Yin of Zhao, by Lady Qi, one of his favorite concubines. Liu Bang attempted to make Ruyi crown prince but failed because most of his ministers remained loyal to Ying and his mother Empress Lü.

Liu Bang's affection for Lady Qi and Ruyi inflamed Empress Lü, and after she became empress dowager after her son's accession following Liu Bang's death, she poisoned Ruyi and tortured Qi to death.

Personal information

  • Father:

  • Mother:

    • Wang Hanshi (王含始)
  • Wife:

  • Major Concubines:

    • Consort Cao, mother of Prince Fei -- initially Emperor Gao's mistress
    • Consort Qi, mother of Prince Ruyi
    • Consort Zhang
    • Consort Wei
    • Consort Bo, mother of Emperor Wen
    • Consort Zhao, mother of Prince Chang
  • Children

  • Grandchildren

    • Liu Xiang (劉襄), Prince Ai of Qi (齊哀王) (d. 179 BC), son to Liu Fei (劉肥), Prince Daohui of Qi by Consort Si
    • Liu Zhang (劉章), Prince Jing of Chengyang (城陽景王) (d. 177 BC), son to Liu Fei (劉肥), Prince Daohui of Qi
    • Liu Xingju (劉興居), Marquess of Dongmou (d. 177 BC), son to Liu Fei (劉肥), Prince Daohui of Qi
    • Liu Qi (劉啟), Crown Prince (created 179 BC d. 141 BC), later Emperor Jing of Han, son to Liu Heng (劉恆), Prince of Dai

See also

Notes

References

  • Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Part 2. Taipei: Caves Books, Ltd.

External links



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