![]() His reign brought a much needed political stability that laid the groundwork for prosperity under his grandson Emperor Wu. He and his family punish the Lü Zhi clan for their rebellion, killing every family member they can find. Emperor Wen, one of Liu Bang's surviving sons, takes the throne and reestablishes the broken lineage. Consort Bo, the mother of Liu Heng, King of Dai, was considered to possess a noble character, so her son was chosen as successor to the throne he is known posthumously as Emperor Wen of Han (r. Before the central government and Qi forces engaged each other, the Lü clan was ousted from power and destroyed by a coup led by the officials Chen Ping and Zhou Bo at Chang'an. The court under Lü Zhi was not only unable to deal with a Xiongnu invasion of Longxi Commandery (in modern Gansu) in which 2,000 Han prisoners were taken, but it also provoked a conflict with Zhao Tuo, King of Nanyue, by imposing a ban on exporting iron and other trade items to his southern kingdom.Īfter Empress Dowager Lü's death in 180 BCE, it was alleged that the Lü clan plotted to overthrow the Liu dynasty, and Liu Xiang the King of Qi (Emperor Gaozu's grandson) rose against the Lüs. When the teenage Emperor Hui discovered the cruel acts committed by his mother, Loewe says that he "did not dare disobey her." Shortly afterwards Gaozu's widow Lü Zhi, now empress dowager, had Liu Ruyi, a potential claimant to the throne, poisoned and his mother, the Consort Qi, brutally mutilated. When Ying Bu rebelled in 195 BCE, Emperor Gaozu personally led the troops against Ying and received an arrow wound which allegedly led to his death the following year. Although they were responsible for maintaining an armed force, kings were not authorized to mobilize troops without explicit permission from the capital. Due to alleged acts of rebellion and even alliances with the Xiongnu-a northern nomadic people-by 196 BCE Gaozu had replaced nine of them with members of the royal family.Īccording to Michael Loewe, the administration of each kingdom was "a small-scale replica of the central government, with its chancellor, royal counsellor, and other functionaries." The kingdoms were to transmit census information and a portion of their taxes to the central government. ![]() In the eastern portion, he established 10 semi-autonomous kingdoms (Yan, Dai, Zhao, Qi, Liang, Chu, Huai, Wu, Nan, and Changsha) that he bestowed to his most prominent followers to placate them. Despite Han statesmen's general condemnation of Qin's harsh methods and Legalist philosophy, the first Han law code compiled by Chancellor Xiao He in 200 BCE seems to have borrowed much from the structure and substance of the Qin code.įrom Chang'an, Gaozu ruled directly over 13 commanderies (increased to 16 by his death) in the western portion of the empire. Following Qin precedent, Emperor Gaozu adopted the administrative model of a tripartite cabinet (formed by the Three Excellencies) along with nine subordinate ministries (headed by the Nine Ministers). He also initiated the policy of heqin to maintain a de jure peace between the Han Empire and the Xiongnu after losing the Battle of Baideng in 200 BCE.Įmperor Gaozu initially made Luoyang his capital, but then moved it to Chang'an (near modern Xi'an, Shaanxi) due to concerns over natural defences and better access to supply routes. He won the race against fellow rebel leader Xiang Yu to invade the Qin heartland and forced the surrender of the Qin ruler Ziying in 206 BC.ĭuring his reign, Liu Bang reduced taxes and corvée, promoted Confucianism, and suppressed revolts by the lords of non-Liu vassal states, among many other actions. With the First Emperor's death and the Qin Empire's subsequent political chaos, Liu Bang renounced his civil service position and became an anti-Qin rebel leader. Prior to coming to power, Liu Bang initially served for the Qin dynasty as a minor law enforcement officer in his home town Pei County, within the conquered state of Chu. Liu Bang was one of the few dynasty founders in Chinese history who was born into a peasant family. ![]() Liu Bang establishes the Han Dynasty (further divided into the Western Han by historians) and renames himself Emperor Gaozu.
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