Politics
 
-Biographical Database-
 

Imperial China- (?- 1644)

The Imperial China part of the Biographical Database provides biographies of individuals involved in the progress of Chinese and relative East Asian history during the Imperial Era.

Chinese names will be alphabetically sorted according to Pinyin romanization of the Chinese name (they will appear without the pinyin accent marks). Older pronunciations, former romanizations, other translations and variations will be present next to the pinyin translation. There may be more than a few exceptions to this general rule, depending on the names most commonly associated with the person, independent of romanization issues, such as Chiang Kai-shek.

Where possible, names will include Chinese character references in either traditional (BIG5) or simplified (GB) characters or both.

Please follow this primer which defines the transliteration type and/or name type for entries:

Western names will be alphabetically sorted according to western biographical standards, or by surname.  If there is a Chinese equivalent, it will be present next to the western name.

Dates reflecting a time period before the year '0' in western terms, are categorized as BCE (Before the Common Era). This is equivalent to the widely used BC (Before Christ) and a.C.n. (Ante Christum Natum "before the birth of Christ"). Dates reflecting a time period after the year '0' are categorized as CE (in the Common Era). This is equivalent to the widely used AD (Anno Domini "In the Year of the Lord"). As the Chinese culture in the majority do not subscribe to the practice of Christianity as a religion, it seemed appropriate to signify these dates in a neutral manner.

Dates before October 1582 are given in the Julian calendar, not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar. Dates after October 1582 are given in the Gregorian calendar, not in the Julian calendar that remained in use in England until 1752.

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An index to all terms in this database is located after the database entries.

Contents
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · X · Y · Z
 INDEX

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Bell, Johann Adam Schall von
B5: 湯若望; GB: 汤若望; PY: Tāng Rùowàng (c.1591 Köln- 15 August 1666 Beijing)-
German Jesuit missionary to China.
Born of noble parents in Cologne, Germany, he joined the Society of Jesus in Rome in 1611. In 1618 he left for China, reaching Macao in 1619.
Apart from successful missionary work, he became the trusted counselor of the Shunzhi emperor of the Qing dynasty, was created a mandarin, and held an important post in connection with the mathematical school. His position enabled him to procure from the emperor permission for the Jesuits to build churches and to preach throughout the country.
Proselytes to the number of 500,000 are said to have been obtained within fourteen years. The Shunzhi emperor, however, died in 1661, and Schall's circumstances at once changed. He was imprisoned and condemned to death. The sentence was not carried out, but he died after his release owing to the privations he had endured. A collection of his manuscripts remains was deposited in the Vatican Library.
In 1758 was published the allegation, disputed by most Jesuits and Catholic historians, that during his final years he lived "separated from the other missionaries and removed from obedience to his superiors, in the house given him by the emperor with a woman whom he treated as his wife and who bore him two children," reported by the secretary to Monsignor Tournon. No evidence is suggested in the work. Contemporaneous witnesses and even official Chinese documents apparently contradict the allegations. It is stated that if true, the story would almost certainly have been reported by others who sought to discredit Schall and the other Jesuits, and that the Jesuit structure would most likely have reported the fact to authorities at higher levels of the order. The 1912 Catholic Encyclopedia suggests that the source most likely was the adoption by Father Schall of the son of a former Chinese servant and distorted.
He participated in compiling and modifying the Chinese calendar then known as Chongzhen Calendar, named after the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty. The modified calendar provided more accurate predictions of eclipses of the sun and the moon.

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Chen Yuanyuan
B5: 陳圓圓; GB: 陈圆圆; PY: Chén Yuányuán; WG: Ch'en Yüan-yüan; BN: Xing Yuan; C: 邢沅; PY: Xíng Yuán (1624- 1681)-
Ming Chinese Concubine of Wu Sangui, who broke into the fortress of Li Zicheng to rescue her. Her courtesy name was Wanfen (畹芬).
Chen's parents died early, and she grew up tending her maternal grandmother Chen-shi in Taiyuan, Shanxi. She was sold as a performer to Suzhou, first for Tian Wan (田畹), then to Wu.
She died in a Taoist convent in Hunan.
Her life was the inspiration for a Beijing opera named for her in 1924.

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Cheng Yang
Shang Emperor, said to have reigned 1766 BCE-
The Shang Dynasty or Yin Dynasty (1600 BCE-1046 BCE) is the first confirmed historic Chinese dynasty and ruled in the northeastern region of China proper. The Shang dynasty followed the quasi-legendary Xia Dynasty and preceded the Zhou Dynasty.
The Shang dynasty marked the beginning of the development of writing. Iron casting and pottery also advanced in Shang. In astronomy, the Shang astronomers discovered Mars and various comets. Many musical instruments were also invented at that time.

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Chongzhen Emperor of Ming
B5: 崇禎; GB: 崇祯; PY: Chóngzhēn; WG: Ch'ung-chen; BN: Zhu Youjian; B5: 朱由檢; GB: 朱由检; PY: Zhū Yóujiăn (February 6, 1611- April 25, 1644)-
15th and last emperor of the Ming dynasty between 1627 and 1644. Born Zhu Youjian, he was emperor Taichang's son.

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Early Reign

Chongzhen grew up in a relatively quiet environment because as the younger son of the Taichang emperor, he was not a part of the power struggle his elder brother Tianqi had endured. He succeeded his brother to the throne at the age of 17 and eliminated the eunuch Wei Zhongxian and Madam Ke. Unlike his brother, Tianqi, Chongzhen tried to rule by himself and did his best to salvage the dynasty. However, years of internal corruptions and an empty treasury made it almost impossible to appoint capable ministers to fill important government posts. And when he does have able ministers, Chongzhen would be suspicious of them and imposed harsh penalty if he suspects them of being disloyal. In 1630 Chongzhen even executed Yuan Chonghuan, a capable general who was very successful at keeping the Manchus in the north eastern frontier at bay. This injustice caused an uproar in the public and thus created an atmosphere of distrust and fear of reprisal amongst his ministers. It also sealed the fate of the dynasty as there would not be any more capable generals to fend off the Manchus.

The Fall of the Ming Dynasty

In the 1630's and 40's the Ming dynasty was fading quickly and its mandate of heaven has all but expired. Constant popular uprisings broke out throughout the country and attacks from the Manchus intensified which further aggravated the situation. In April 1644, the popular army led by Li Zicheng finally broke through the Ming defenses and occupied Beijing. Chongzhen was forced to flee but before doing so gathered the entire imperial household and ordered all of them (except his sons) to commit suicide rather than surrender. Hopeless and fearful for their lives, many did as they were told and committed suicide, including the Empress who hanged herself. A daughter of Chongzhen, Princess Chang refused to commit suicide and in a fit of rage Chongzhen had Princess Chang's right arm deliberately severed. She later bled to death. Chongzhen, still wearing his imperial attire, fled to the nearby Jingshan Park, where it is believed that his finals words were "吾非亡国之君,汝皆亡国之臣。吾待士亦不薄,今日至此,群臣何无一人相从?",which roughly translates as "I am not the emperor of an ill-fated kingdom, but you, my officials, remain its servants. That during my reign I have given you decency, yet on this day, wherefore remains none at my side?" He then hanged himself on the Guilty Chinese Scholartree, putting an end to the Ming dynasty.

Legacy and Personality

Although Chongzhen's tenure as emperor effectively ended the Ming dynasty, Chongzhen has been blamed for being narrow minded, quick to judgment as well as prone to suspicion and paranoia. In spite of the fact that the Ming dynasty had been in decline for many decades prior to his reign, he would expect quick results and if they were not to his satisfaction he would quickly administer punitive actions and thus resulting in the expulsion of the remaining handful of capable and loyal ministers.

Names

Family name: Zhu (朱)
Given name: Youjian (由檢)
Dates of reign: 2 October 1627–25 April 1644
Era name: Chongzhen (崇禎)
Era dates: 5 February 1628–25 April 1644
Temple name: Sizong1 (思宗)
Posthumous name: (short)
Emperor Zhuanglie2 (莊烈帝)
Posthumous name: (full)
Emperor Zhuanglie Min (莊烈愍皇帝)

Notes

1- Temple name given in 1644 by the prince of Fu (福王), the new self-proclaimed emperor of the Southern Ming. This is the temple name most often found in history books, despite the fact that the Southern Ming soon changed the temple name into Yizong (毅宗), and later Weizong (威宗). As for the new rulers of the Qing Dynasty, they officially conferred on the late Chongzhen Emperor the temple name Huaizong (懷宗), a rare gesture for the last emperor of an overthrown dynasty. The Qing rulers were thus trying to accommodate the hard feelings of their new subjects.

2- This final version of the posthumous name (short and full) was given by Emperor Shunzhi of the Qing in 1660.

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Confucius or Kong Fuzi
B5: 孔夫子; PY: Kǒngzǐ or Kǒngfūzǐ; WG: K'ung-fu-tzu; lit. "Master Kong" (c. September 28, 551 BCE- 479 BCE)-
Famous Chinese thinker and social philosopher, whose teachings and philosophy have deeply influenced East Asian life and thought.
His philosophy emphasized personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice and sincerity. These values gained prominence in China over other doctrines, such as Legalism or Daoism during the Han Dynasty. Confucius' thoughts have been developed into a system of philosophy known as Confucianism. It was introduced to Europe by the Jesuit Matteo Ricci, who was the first to Latinise the name as "Confucius".
His teachings are known primarily through the Analects of Confucius, a short collection of his discussions with his disciples, which was compiled posthumously.

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Fei Di Emperor of Chen
B5: 廢帝; GB: 废帝; PY: Fèi dì; BN: Chen Bozong; C: 陳伯宗; GB: 陈伯宗; PY: chén bó zōng (551- 570)-
Son of Wendi Emperor of Chen, he was 16 years old when he ascended the throne. His uncle, the Xuandi Emperor of Chen deposed him two years into his reign (567- 568) and he was later murdered.

Names

Era Name: Guangda; Chinese: 光大; Pinyin: guang1 da4
Temple name: Lin Hai Wang (King of Linhai)

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Gaodi Emperor of Western Han
B5: 高帝; PY: Gāo dì; CCN: Gaozu; B5: 高祖; PY: Gāozǔ; BN: Liu Bang4; B5: 劉邦; GB: 刘邦; PY: Liú Bāng (2561 BCE or 2472 BCE- June 1, 195 BCE)-
First emperor of the Western Hàn Dynasty, ruling over China from 202 BCE until 195 BCE, and one of only 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.

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Early Life

Liú Bāng was born into a peasant family in Pei (present Pei County in Jiangsu Province). When he was young, he did not like farm work, and was evidently living a rogue's life. Not surprisingly, he was not the favorite son of his peasant father.
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 and fled himself, becoming 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 (呂雉) to him in marriage.

Insurrection Against Qín

In 209 BCE 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 Ceng (樊噌) 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 (張良), 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 BCE, the last Qín ruler Ziying surrendered to Liú Bāng and his rebel army, and in 206 BCE 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.
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 finally was defeated, he could not recover and committed suicide.
The war lasted five years (206- 202 BCE) and ended with Liú Bāng's victory. Having defeated Xiang Yu, Liú proclaimed himself emperor and established the Hàn Dynasty in 202 BCE and made Cháng'ān (present city of Xi'an) his capital city. Liú became historically known as Emperor Gāo of Hàn.

Reign as Emperor

After Liú Bāng came into power, he re-centralized 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 Gaodi's reign, Confucian thought gradually replaced Legalist thought; Confucian scholars were welcomed into his government, while the harsh Legalist laws were lessened. Emperor Gaodi'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 princehoods, 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.

Succession

Crown Prince Liú Ying, the eldest son of Liú Bāng and Empress Lü, was the heir apparent of Liú Bāng. However, Liú Bāng 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. Liú Bāng attempted to make Ruyi crown prince but failed because most of his ministers remained loyal to Ying and his mother Empress Lü.
Liú Bāng's affection for Lady Qi and Ruyi inflamed Empress Lü, and after she became empress dowager after her son's accession following Liú Bang's death, she poisoned Ruyi and tortured Qi to death.

Evaluation

By historians' account, Liú Bang was the contrary to his rival, Xiang Yu. While Xiang Yu was normally depicted as a romantic and noble man, Liú Bāng was often mentioned as a rogue. Xiang Yu was always kind and gentle to his peer and subordinates. However, he was an inferior politician. Han Xin (韓 信) described Xiang Yu as "having the kindness of women," meaning that, in his opinion, Xiang's "kindness" was petty and did not benefit either his regime or his people.
Xiang Yu also did not know how to utilize his talented subordinates; Han Xin, for example, was a soldier under Xiang, and his later defection to Liú Bāng, for whom he served as the commander in chief, would be extremely damaging to Xiang. Other main problems with Xiang's rule was his deliberate cruelty in military campaigns, his inability to accept criticism and wise counsel, and his inability to delegate.
Liú Bāng, on the contrary, was bold and arrogant. These being said, he knew how to manipulate his peers and subordinates. He bid them glory and territories generously when he was fighting Xiang Yu, which won the hearty support of most of his peer princes and subordinates. However, once he became the emperor, Liú Bāng ruthlessly oppressed them and executed several of them, most notably Han Xin and Peng Yue. Ying Bu was driven to rebellion by fear, and was also destroyed. Liú Bāng's strong suits were his ability to make decisions based on counsel of others, having an uncanny ability to figure out what counsel is wise and what counsel is not wise; his ability to delegate; and his ability to figure out what would bring a person to follow him.
While Liú Bāng might have been deliberately derogatory of Xiang, he was not particularly off the mark when he commented on the reason why he was successful and Xiang was not:

The most important reason is that I know how to use people and Xiang Yu did not. As to being able to set out a strategy in a tent but determining success or failure in the events a thousand miles away, I am not as good as Zhang Liang. As to guarding the home base, comforting the people, and supplying the army so that it lacked neither food nor supplies, I am not as good as Xiao He. As to leading untrained large forces but always being successful whether battling or sieging, I am not as good as Han Xin. These three people are heroes among men, but I know how to use them, so I was able to conquer the lands under heaven. Xiang Yu only had one great advisor, Fan Zeng, but was unable to use him properly, and so was defeated by me.

An incident involving Ying Bu demonstrates his personality well. Ying Bu was initially a subordinate of Xiang's, and in reward for Ying's military capabilities, Xiang created him the Prince of Jiujiang. However, Xiang also clearly began to distrust Ying, and once when Ying, then ill, was unable to lead a force on Xiang's behalf, Xiang sent a delegation to rebuke him and to monitor his illness, not believing the illness to be genuine. In fear and goaded by the diplomat Sui He (隨何), whom Liú Bāng sent to Jiujiang to try to make an alliance with Ying, Ying rebelled against Xiang, but his army was defeated by Xiang and he fled to Liú Bāng's headquarters. When Liú Bāng received Ying, he was half-naked and washing his feet, and he greeted Ying in crude language. Ying, a great general in his own right and a prince, was so humiliated that he considered suicide. However, once Liú Bāng had Ying escorted to the headquarters that he had built in anticipation of Ying's arrival, Ying became impressed- Ying's headquarters had the same size, same furnishings, same level of personnel staffing, and same security as Liú Bāng's own headquarters. Ying got the impression that Liú Bāng's earlier slights were in fact endearments, treating him as an equal and a brother in arms, and he became a key figure in Liú Bāng's campaign against Xiang.
Xiang Yu was generally remembered as a fallen hero, while many considered Liú Bāng a rogue. However, Liú Bāng treated the commons much better than the former nobles. He was a true popular monarch, thus establishing one of the golden ages of China.

Personal Information

Names

Family name: Liú (劉)
Given name: Ji3 (季), later Bāng4 (邦)
Courtesy name (字): Ji5 (季)
Dates of reign: Feb. 28, 202 BCE6- Jun. 1, 195 BCE
Temple name: Taizu7 (太祖), later Gaozu8 (高祖)
Posthumous name: (short) Emperor Gaodi (高帝)
Posthumous name: (full) Emperor Gaohuangdi (高皇帝)

Notes

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 CE 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 Liú Bāng, after he changed his name into Bāng, 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 Liú Bāng.
6- Was already Prince of Hàn (漢王) since March 206 BCE, having been enfeoffed by the rebelled leader Xiang Yu. Liú Bāng was proclaimed emperor on February 28, 202 BCE 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 Tang Gaozu.

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Gaozong Emperor of Tang
B5: 高宗; PY: Gāo Zōng; BN: Li Zhi; B5: 李治; PY: Lĭ Zhì (628- 683)-
Third emperor of Tang Dynasty in China and he ruled from 649 to 683. Son of Emperor Taizong (9th) and the Empress Wende (3rd). Both his older brothers had been Crown Prince before him.
Known by Islamic sources as Yung Wei (永徽 Yǒng Huī), he is credited with building the first mosque in China, a mosque that still stands in Canton. Islam was introduced to China and Gao Zong by the visit of Sad ibn Abi Waqqas , a companion of Muhammad in the year 650. Gao Zong is said to have respected the teachings of Islam greatly, feeling the teachings were compatible with Confucianism, and offered the building of the mosque as a sign of admiration. The emperor himself did not convert as he felt Islam was too restrictive for his own preferences. This did not stop him from allowing Sad ibn Abi Waqqas and his company to spread the teachings throughout the region.
He was aided in his rule by his empress consort Wu Zetian during the later years of his reign after a series of strokes left him incapacitated. Gaozong delegated all matters of state to his wife and after he died in 683, power fell virtually into the hands of Wu Zetian.

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Gaozu Emperor of Tang
B5: 高祖; PY: Gāozŭ; BN: Li Yuan; B5: 李淵; GB: 李渊; PY: Lĭ Yuān (566- June 25, 635)-
Founder of the Tang Dynasty of China. First emperor of this dynasty from 618 to 626. Under the short-lived Sui dynasty, Li Yuan was the governor in the area of modern-day Shanxi province, and was based in Taiyuan, Shanxi.

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Establishment of the Tang Dynasty

In 615, Li Yuan was assigned to garrison Lunghsi. He gained much experience by dealing with the Gokturks of the north and was able to pacify them. Li Yuan was also able to gather support from these successes and, with the disintegration of the Sui dynasty in July of 617, Li Yuan - urged on by his second son Li Shimin (later Taizong emperor) - rose in rebellion. Using the title of "Great Chancellor" (大 丞相), Li Yuan installed a puppet child emperor, Emperor Gong, but eventually removed him altogether and established the Tang Dynasty in 618.

Reign as Emperor

Li Yuan's reign was concentrated on uniting the empire under the Tang. Aided by his son, Li Shimin, he defeated all the other contenders, including Li Gui, Dou Jiande, Wang Shichong, Xue Ju and Liu Wuzhou. By 628, the Tang Dynasty had succeeded in uniting all of China. On the homefront, Li Yuan recognized the early successes forged by the Sui dynasty and strived to emulate most of its policies, including the equal distribution of land amongst its people, and he also lowered taxes. He abandoned the harsh system of law set about during the Sui dynasty as well as reforming the judicial system. These acts of reform paved the way for the reign of Emperor Taizong, which ultimately pushed Tang China to the height of its power.
Li Yuan abdicated in 626 in favour of his son, Taizong emperor after the Xuan Wu Gate incident (玄武门之变) when Taizong had to kill his two immoral brothers who were attempting to usurp the throne. Li Yuan lived on as "Grand Emperor" (Taishang Huang) until his death in 635.

Names

Family name: Li (李)
Given name: Yuan (淵)
Courtesy name (字): Shude (叔德)
Dates of reign: Jun. 18, 6181–Sept. 4, 6262
Dynasty: Tang (唐)
Temple name: Gaozu (高祖)
Posthumous name: (short) Emperor Shenyao3 (神堯皇帝)
Posthumous name: (full) Emperor Shenyao Dasheng Daguang Xiao4 (神堯大聖大光孝皇帝)
General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.

Notes

1- Was already in control of Chang'an and de facto master of China since December 12, 617
2- Abdicated in favor of his son, and was granted the title Taishang Huang (太上皇), a title reserved for retired emperors.
3- Given in 674
4- Given in 754

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Genghis Khan
BN: Temüjin; B5: 鐵木真; GB: 铁木真; PY: Tiěmùzhēn; Variations: Chengez Khan; Chinggis Khan; Chingis Khan; Jenghis Khan; Chinggis Qan (c1162- August 18, 1227)-
Mongol political and military leader who founded the Mongol Empire, (1206- 1368), which became the largest contiguous empire in world history, after his successors expanded Genghis' original area of conquest. He united the Mongol tribes and forged a powerful army based on meritocracy, to become one of the most successful military leaders in history.
While his image in most of the world is that of a ruthless bloodthirsty conqueror, Genghis Khan is celebrated as a hero in Mongolia, where he is seen as the father of the Mongol Nation. Before becoming a Khan, Temüjin united the many Turkic-Mongol confederations of Central Asia, giving a common identity to what had previously been a territory of nomadic tribes.
Starting with the conquest of Western Xia in northern China and consolidating through numerous conquests including the Khwarezmid Empire in Persia, Genghis Khan laid the foundation for an empire that was to leave an indelible mark on world history. Several centuries of Mongol rule across the Eurasian landmass, a period that some refer to as 'Pax Mongolica', radically altered the demography and geopolitics of these areas. The Mongol Empire ended up ruling, or at least briefly conquering, large parts of modern day China, Mongolia, Russia, Ukraine, Korea, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Iraq, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Moldova, Kuwait, Poland and Hungary.

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Gongzong Emperor of Southern Song
B5: 恭宗; PY: Gōngzōng; BN: Zhou Xian; B5: 趙顯; GB: 赵显; PY: Zhào Xiǎn (c.1270- c.1323)-
Seventh emperor of the Southern Song dynasty. Son of the empress Chuan and the emperor Duzong, Gongzong was emperor for less than a year, at age 4, under the regency of the dowager empress Xie. Gongzong's pseudo- reign was marked by Song defeats to the Mongol army and loss of control of the capital Hanzhou in 1276 to the Mongol general Bayan. The regent sent Gongzong's two brothers and their uncles to Fujian province for safety before announcing Song capitulation and removing Gongzong from the throne. The entire court was brought to Shangdu (Beijing) as prisoners.
Khubilai Khan gave Gongzong an honorary title, Duke of Yingguo, and had him educated in Tibet as a Buddhist monk. In 1323, Gongzong committed suicide which led to rumors that he was the father of the future Mongol emperor Shundi, born in 1320 to a Turkish woman.
The fate of Gongzong's two brothers was to become the last gasp of the Song dynasty as the Mongols pushed further south to eradicate the remnants of Song China. The eight year old Duanzong, son of the concubine Yang and the emperor Duzong, was declared emperor by the fugitives in Fuzhou, Fujian. The entire court soon had to flee and were taken to sea by the chief minister, Chen Yizhong who kept mobile along the shore as the Mongols moved closer. When Shanghai fell, the Mongols launched a naval attack and forced the court further in the sea where the ship sank in a typhoon. Most of the court managed to berth themselves near Hong Kong and though Duanzong survived the ordeal, he later died of shock.
The six year old Bing Di was then named emperor by court officials. Once again the court was pushed out to sea amid Mongol advances and after months of regrouping, a counter attack on the Mongols was attempted.
1,000 ships were chained together in a line stretching the length of Hong Kong harbor; the ensuing battle lasted three weeks. The Mongols captured 800 Chinese ships and nearly 100,000 died in the melee.
16 ships managed to escape, including that of the dowager empress Yang. Bing Di did not survive, though it is said that a minister tried to save him by jumping off the ship with the emperor in arms. The Mongols found his body washed up on the shore. Yang was so distraught that she drowned herself and is now worshipped as a goddess of the sea along the coast. With that, the Song dynasty was at an end and the Mongols would reign as the Yuan Dynasty for 89 years.

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Guang Wudi Emperor of Eastern Han
B5: 光武皇帝; PY: Guāng Wŭ Huáng dì; BN: Liu Xiu; B5: 劉秀; GB: 刘秀; PY: Líu Xìu (January 15, 5 BCE- March 29, CE 57)-
Emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty, restorer of the dynasty in CE 25 and thus founder of the Later Han or Eastern Han. He ruled over the whole of China from 36 CE until 57 CE.

Contents

Introduction

Liu Xiu was one of the many descendants of the Han imperial family. Following the usurpation of the Han throne by Wang Mang and the ensuing civil war during the disintegration of Wang's short-lived Xin Dynasty, he emerged as one of several descendants of the fallen dynasty claiming the imperial throne. After assembling forces and proclaiming himself emperor in the face of competitors, he was able to defeat his rivals, destroy the peasant army of the Chimei (Red Eyebrows, 赤眉), known for their disorganization and marauding, and finally reunify the whole of China in CE 36.
He established his capital in Luoyang, 335 kilometers (210 miles) east of the former capital Chang'an, ushering in the Later/Eastern Han Dynasty. He implemented some reforms (notably land reform, albeit not very successfully) aimed at correcting some of the structural imbalances responsible for the downfall of the Former/Western Han. His reforms gave a new 200-year lease on life to the Han Dynasty.
Emperor Guangwu's campaigns featured many able generals, but curiously, he lacked major strategists. That may very well be because he himself appeared to be a brilliant strategist; he often instructed his generals as to strategy from afar, and his predictions generally would be accurate. This was often emulated by later emperors who fancied themselves great strategists but who actually lacked Emperor Guangwu's brilliance- usually to great disastrous results.
Also fairly unique among emperors in Chinese history was Emperor Guangwu's combination of decisiveness and mercy. He often sought out peaceful means rather than bellicose means of putting areas under his control. He was, in particular, one of the rare examples of a founding emperor of a dynasty who did not kill, out of jealousy or paranoia, any of the generals or officials who contributed to his victories after his rule was secure.

Family Background

Liu Xiu was the sixth generation descendant of Emperor Jing of the Former (or Western) Han. He was the son of Liu Qin (劉 欽), magistrate (i.e., head official) of Nandun county (南頓令). Liu Qin was the son of Liu Hui (劉回), vice governor in charge of military affairs for Julu commandery (鉅鹿都尉). Liu Hui was the son of Liu Wai (劉外), governor of Yulin commandery (鬱林太守). Liu Wai was the son of Liu Mai (劉買), known posthumously as Marquess Jie of Chongling (舂陵節侯). Liu Mai was the son of Liu Fa (劉發), known posthumously as Prince Ding of Changsha (長沙定王). The prince of Changsha was a brother of Emperor Wu, a famous emperor of the Former Han, and he was the son of Emperor Jing. (This made Liu Xiu third cousin to Emperor Gengshi, who was also descended from Liu Fa.)
Liu Qin was married to the daughter of one Fan Chong (樊重), and he and his wife had three sons -- Liu Yan (劉縯), Liu Zhong (劉仲), and Liu Xiu. Liu Qin died early, and the brothers were raised by their uncle Liu Liang (劉良). Liu Yan was ambitious, and ever since Wang Mang usurped the Han throne in 8 and established Xin Dynasty, Liu Yan was constantly considering starting a rebellion to restore the Han Dynasty. Liu Xiu, in contrast, was a careful man who was content to be a farmer. However, his brother-in-law Deng Chen (鄧晨), the husband of his sister Liu Yuan (劉 元), who believed in a prophecy that a man named Liu Xiu would be emperor, constantly encouraged him to be more ambitious.

Participation in His Brother's Rebellion

In 22, with virtually the entire empire rebelling against Wang Mang's incompetent rule, Liu Yan prepared his rebellion. He planned, along with his brothers, and Li Tong (李通) and his cousin Li Yi (李軼), to kidnap the governor for Nanyang Commandery (roughly modern Nanyang, Henan) and call for the people of the commandery to join him. When the young men of their home territory of Chongling heard about the rebellion, they were all scared to join -- until they saw that Liu Xiu was part of the rebellion as well, figuring that if even a careful man like Liu Xiu was part of the rebellion, the rebellion was carefully planned.
However, the news of the plan leaked out, and Li Tong and Li Yi barely escaped with their lives (but their family was slaughtered). Liu Yan changed his plan and persuaded two branches of the Lülin -- the Xinshi Force (新市兵) and Pinglin Force (平林兵) to join forces with him, and they had some military success. Encouraged, Liu Yan made a frontal assault against Wancheng (宛城), the capital of Nanyang Commandery -- and suffered a major loss. Liu Yan and Liu Xiu, along with their sister Liu Boji (劉伯姬), survived, but their brother Liu Zhong and sister Liu Yuan died in the battle. Liu Yan's allies, seeing his defeat, considered leaving him, but Liu Yan was able to persuade them, along with another branch of the Lülin, the Xiajiang Force (下江兵), to join him. In 23, they had a major victory against Xin forces, killing Zhen Fu (甄阜), the governor of Nanyang Commandery.

As Official Under Emperor Gengshi

The Ascension of Emperor Gengshi

By this point, many other rebel leaders had become jealous of Liu Yan's capabilities, and while a good number of their men admired Liu Yan and wanted him to become the emperor of a newly declared Han Dynasty, they had other ideas. They found another local rebel leader, Liu Xuan, a third cousin of Liu Yan, who was claiming the title of General Gengshi (更始將軍) at the time and who was considered a weak personality, and requested that he be made emperor. Liu Yan initially opposed this move and instead suggested that Liu Xuan carry the title "Prince of Han" first (echoing the founder of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Gao). The other rebel leaders refused, and in early 23, Liu Xuan was proclaimed emperor. Liu Yan became prime minister. Liu Xiu, along with many other rebel leaders, carried the title "general".

The Battle of Kunyang

Liu Xiu would be instrumental in the key victory that sealed Wang Mang's fate. Wang, aware that Emperor Gengshi was becoming a major threat, sent his cousin Wang Yi (王邑) and his prime minister Wang Xun (王尋) with what he considered to be overwhelming force, some 430,000 men, intending to crush the newly constituted Han regime. The Han forces were at this point in two groups -- one led by Wang Feng (王鳳), Wang Chang (王常), and Liu Xiu, which, in response to the arrival of the Xin forces, withdrew to the small town of Kunyang (昆陽, in modern Pingdingshan, Henan) and one led by Liu Yan, which was still sieging Wancheng. The rebels in Kunyang initially wanted to scatter, but Liu Xiu opposed it; rather, he advocated that they guard Kunyang securely, while he would gather all other available troops in surrounding areas and attack the Xin forces from the outside. After initially rejecting Liu Xiu's idea, the Kunyang rebels eventually agreed.
Liu Xiu carried out his action, and when he returned to Kunyang, he began harassing the sieging Xin forces from the outside. Wang Yi and Wang Xun, annoyed, led 10,000 men to attack Liu Xiu and ordered the rest of their troops not to move from their siege locations. Once they engaged in battle, however, after minor losses, the other units were hesitant to assist them, and Liu Xiu killed Wang Xun in battle. Once that happened, the Han forces inside Kunyang burst out of the city and attacked the other Xin units, and the much larger Xin forces suffered a total collapse. The soldiers largely deserted and went home, unable to be gathered again. Wang Yi had to withdraw with only several thousand men back to Luoyang. This was a major blow to Xin, psychologically; after this point on, there would be no hope for it.

Liu Yan's Death and Liu Xiu's Bare Survival

The very first major incident of infighting in Emperor Gengshi's regime would happen in this time, though. Emperor Gengshi was fearful of Liu Yan's capabilities and keenly aware that many of Liu Yan's followers were angry that he was not made emperor. One, Liu Ji (劉稷), was particularly critical of Emperor Gengshi. Emperor Gengshi arrested Liu Ji and wanted to execute him, but Liu Yan tried to intercede. Emperor Gengshi, encouraged by Li Yi (who had by that point turned against Liu Yan) and Zhu Wei (朱鮪), took this opportunity to execute Liu Yan as well.
At this time, Liu Xiu was fighting on the frontlines. When he heard about his brother's death, he quickly left his army and went back to the temporary capital Wancheng to beg forgiveness. When Liu Yan's followers greeted him, he only thanked them but did not speak of his feelings, but rather blamed himself and did not mention of his achievements at Kunyang. He did not dare to mourn his brother. Emperor Gengshi, ashamed of what he had done, spared Liu Xiu and created him the Marquess of Wuxin.

Around this time, Liu Xiu married his childhood sweetheart, the famed beauty Yin Lihua (陰麗華).

According to Hou Han Shu, while much younger, when Liu Xiu was visiting the capital Chang'an, he became impressed with the mayor of the capital (zhijinwu, 執金吾) and, already impressed by Yin's beauty, he made the remarks:

"If I were to be an official, I want to be zhijinwu; if I were to marry, I want to marry Yin Lihua."

He eventually was able to accomplish both of these things- and more.

Role in Reorganization of Emperor Gengshi's Regime

Soon, Wang Mang's Xin Dynasty and its capital Chang'an fell to Emperor Gengshi's forces, and Emperor Gengshi was acknowledged by virtually the entire empire as the emperor of the restored Han Dynasty. Emperor Gengshi initially planned to set his capital at Luoyang, and he made Liu Xiu governor of the capital region. Liu Xiu was commissioned to repair the palaces and governmental offices at Luoyang. Of all of the major Han restoration officials, Liu Xiu alone quickly showed his talent for organization, and his agency quickly resembled a past Han governmental agency at its best.
Emperor Gengshi's regime was only able to obtain nominal submission from many regions of the empire, and one of the trouble region was the region north of the Yellow River. He considered dispatching a general to try to pacify the region, and his cousin Liu Ci (劉賜), who had succeeded Liu Yan as prime minister, endorsed Liu Xiu for that task. Liu Yan's political enemies, including Li and Zhu, opposed, but after Liu Ci repeatedly endorsed Liu Xiu, Emperor Gengshi relented and, in autumn 23, he sent Liu Xiu to the region north of the Yellow River.
Liu Xiu was initially met with great gladness by the people north of the Yellow River. It was around this time that his later prime minister, Deng Yu (鄧禹), joined him; other later important figures who joined him around this time included Feng Yi (馮異) and Geng Chun (耿純). Deng, seeing that Emperor Gengshi lacked abilities to rule, persuaded Liu Xiu to keep his sights broad and consider eventual independence.
Liu Xiu would soon have a major problem on his hand, however, in winter 23, as he faced a pretender for the Han throne. A fortuneteller in Handan named Wang Lang (王郎) claimed to be actually named Liu Ziyu (劉子輿) and a son of Emperor Cheng. He claimed that his mother was a singer in Emperor Cheng's service, and that Empress Zhao Feiyan had tried to kill him after his birth, but that a substitute child was killed indeed. After he spread these rumors around the people, the people of Handan began to believe that he was a genuine son of Emperor Cheng, and the commanderies north of the Yellow River quickly pledged allegiance to him as emperor. In spring 24, Liu Xiu was forced to withdraw to the northern city of Jicheng (薊城, in modern Beijing). Soon, though, he faced rebellions right near him, and several times was nearly killed by rebels who pledged allegiance to Wang. He reached two commanderies in modern central Hebei that were still loyal to Emperor Gengshi -- Xindu (信都, roughly modern Hengshui, Hebei) and Herong (和戎, roughly part of modern Shijiajuang, Hebei). He mobilized their forces and won some major battles against Wang's generals.
Meanwhile, a follower of Liu Xiu, Geng Yan (耿弇), the son of the governor of Shanggu Commandery (上谷, roughly modern Zhangjiakou, Hebei), had fled back to his father's commandery, and persuaded both his father Geng Kuang (耿況) and the governor of the neighboring Yuyang Commandery (漁 陽, roughly modern Beijing), Peng Chong (彭寵), to support Liu Xiu. Geng Yan and Peng's deputy, Wu Han (吳漢), led the two commanderies' cavalry and infantry forces south to join Liu Xiu. The combined forces gave Liu Xiu enough strength to make a direct assault against Handan, trapping and killing Wang Lang.
After Wang's death, Emperor Gengshi created Liu Xiu the Prince of Xiao and summoned him back to the capital (then moved to Chang'an). Liu Xiu, persuaded by Geng Yan that he should be ready to set out his own course, because the people were badly shaken by Emperor Gengshi and his officials' misrule, declined and claimed that the region still needed to be pacified.

Independence from Emperor Gengshi

In autumn 24, Liu Xiu, still ostensibly an official under Emperor Gengshi, successfully pacified some of the larger agrarian rebel groups and merged them into his own forces. He also started replacing officials loyal to Emperor Gengshi with those loyal to himself. He consolidated his power north of the Yellow River and, as he predicted that the powerful Chimei would destroy Emperor Gengshi's government for him, he waited by for that to happen, not intervening on either side as that conflict was developing. He put Kou Xun (寇恂) in charge of the Henei (modern northern Henan, north of the Yellow River) region and made it the base for food and manpower supplies, while commissioning Deng with an expedition force to the modern Shaanxi region, waiting for the confrontation between Emperor Gengshi and Chimei. In early 25, Deng, on his way west, seized the modern Shanxi region and put it under Liu Xiu's control, before crossing the Yellow River into modern Shaanxi.
At this point, territories that Liu Xiu controlled were already impressive, compared to any other regional power in the empire broken apart by civil war- but he still carried just the title Prince of Xiao (which Emperor Gengshi had created him) and still ostensibly was controlling those territories as Emperor Gengshi's deputy, even as he was already engaging militarily against some generals loyal to Emperor Gengshi. In summer 25, after repeated urging by his followers, he finally claimed the title of emperor and the right to succeed to the Han throne- as Emperor Guangwu.

Campaign to Unify the Empire

Victory Over the Chimei

Soon after Emperor Guangwu's ascension, his former liege Emperor Gengshi's regime was destroyed by the Chimei, who supported their own pretender to the Han throne, Emperor Liu Penzi. The Chimei leaders, while militarily powerful, were however, even less capable at ruling than Emperor Gengshi, and they soon alienated the people of the Guanzhong (關中, modern central Shaanxi) region, which they had taken over when they overthrew Emperor Gengshi. They pillaged the Guanzhong region for supplies, but as eventually the supplies ran out, they were forced to withdraw east in an attempt to return home (modern Shandong and northern Jiangsu). Emperor Guangwu, anticipating this, set up his forces to harass and tire the Chimei out, and then block them off at Yiyang (宜陽, in modern Luoyang, Henan). With their path blocked and their troops exhausted, the Chimei leaders surrendered. Emperor Guangwu spared them, including their puppet pretender Emperor Penzi.

Gradual Victories Over Other Regional Powers

Chimei was the largest of the enemy force that Emepror Guangwu had to deal with in his campaign to reunify the empire under the rule of his Eastern Han Dynasty, but there were a number of regional powers that he had to deal with. These included:

Of these powers, Gongsun Shu's Chengjia was wealthy and powerful, but Gongsun was content to maintain his regional empire and not carry out any military expeditions outside his empire. Instead, he sat by as Emperor Guangwu carried out his unification campaign. Emperor Guangwu, hesitant to carry out annihilation campaigns, largely preferred first trying to persuade the regional warlords to submit to him. Wei and Dou did in 29, and as they were assisting Eastern Han forces to the north of Chengjia, Gongsun was further discouraged from trying to expand his empire.
Also in 29, Liu Yong's son and heir Liu Yu (劉紆) was defeated by Eastern Han forces and killed. Also in 29, Peng's slaves assassinated him, leading to a collapse of his regime. Zhang, seeing the futility of resistance, surrendered and was created marquis. By 30, all of eastern China was under Emperor Guangwu's rule.
Wei, seeing that Eastern Han was gradually unifying the empire, inexplicably began considering independence. He tried to persuade Dou to enter into an alliance with him to resist Eastern Han; Dou refused. When Eastern Han started considering conquering Chengjia, Wei, apprehensive of the implications of Chengjia's fall, tried to persuade Emperor Guangwu not to carry out a campaign against Chengjia, and later refused to lead his forces south against Chengjia.
Emperor Guangwu, who in any case preferred peaceful resolution, repeatedly wrote both Wei and Gongsun with humble terms, trying to get them to submit to him, promising them titles and honors. Wei continued to nominally submit but act as an independent power, while Gongsun refused outright -- but continued to be indecisive and took no actions while Eastern Han's rule was being confirmed throughout the land.
Realizing that neither Wei nor Gongsun would voluntarily submit, Emperor Guangwu started a campaign against Wei in summer 30- assisted by Wei's friend Ma Yuan (馬援), who had served as Wei's liaison officer to Emperor Guangwu and had tried in vain to persuade him not to take the course of independence. In response, Wei formally submitted to Gongsun and accepted a princely title- Prince of Shuoning- from him, and also tried to persuade Dou to join him. Dou refused, and attacked Wei in coordination with Emperor Guangwu's forces. After some initial successes, Wei's small independent regime eventually collapsed under overwhelming force and was reduced severely. In 33, Wei died and was succeeded by his son Wei Chun (隗純). In winter 34, Shuoning's capital Luomen (落門, in modern Tianshui, Gansu) fell, and Wei Chun surrendered.
Emperor Guangwu then turned his attention to Chengjia. He commissioned his generals Wu Han, Cen Peng (岑彭), Lai She (來歙), and Gai Yan (蓋延) to go on a two-pronged attack on Chengjia -- Wu and Cen leading an army and a navy up the Yangtze river from modern Hubei, while Lai and Gai led an army south from modern Shaanxi. Instead of fighting the Eastern Han expedition on the battlefield, Gongsun tried to repel them by assassinating their generals -- and he was initially successful, assassinating Cen and Lai and temporarily causing the Eastern Han forces to halt. However, Eastern Han forces regrouped, and in 36 they had Gongsun surrounded in his capital Chengdu. However, initial attempts to siege the city was unsuccessful, and Wu, then in command of the expeditionary force, considered withdrawing. Persuaded by his lieutenant Zhang Kan (張堪) that Gongsun was in desperate straits, however, Wu tricked Gongsun into believing that the Eastern Han forces were collapsing from fatigue, drawing him out of the city and engaging in battle. Gongsun was mortally wounded in battle, and Chengdu surrendered in winter 36.
After Chengjia's fall, Dou turned over the lands under his control to Emperor Guangwu in 36, and was made prime controller. Lu, after initially submitting to Emperor Guangwu and made the Prince of Dai (as Emperor Guangwu maintained the fiction that Lu was actually from imperial lineage), eventually rebelled again, but, unable to succeed, eventually fled to Xiongnu in 42. The empire was entirely under Emperor Guangwu's rule.

Reign Over Unified Empire

Although Emperor Guangwu had already created many of his generals and officials marquesses, in 37, after the conquest of the empire was largely complete, he readjusted their marches in accordance with their accomplishments. He also considered what would be the best way to preserve the relationships between him and his generals and to protect their title and position. He therefore resolved to give the generals large marches but not give them official positions in his government. He rewarded them with great wealth and often listened to their advice, but rarely put them in positions of authority. He thereby reduced friction between him and his generals, thus allowing for their relationships to be preserved. (In this, he was matched perhaps only by Emperor Taizu of Song (Zhao Kuangyin).
As the emperor of the unified empire, Emperor Guangwu's reign was marked by thriftiness, efficiency, and laxity of laws. For example, in 38, his official Liang Tong (梁統) submitted a petition to restore the criminal laws of late Western Han Dynasty- which were far more severe. After discussion with other officials, Emperor Guangwu tabled Liang's suggestion.
Emperor Guangwu, however, had to deal with two campaigns against non-Chinese peoples. In 40, a Vietnamese woman named Trưng Trắc (徵側 Zheng Ce) and her sister Trưng Nhị (徵貳 Zheng Er) rebelled. Trưng Trắc claimed the title of queen, and she ruled over an independent kingdom for several years. In 41, Emperor Guangwu sent Ma Yuan against the Trưng sisters. In 43, he defeated the Trưng sisters and killed them. According to Vietnamese historians, they committed suicide by drowning.
Emperor Guangwu also had to deal with periodic minor battles against the Xiongnu to the north. However, throughout his reign, there were no major wars with Xiongnu. Nevertheless, because of raids by Xiongnu, Wuhuan, and Xianbei, the northern commanderies became largely unpopulated, as the people suffered great casualties and fled to more southerly lands.
With these engagements, Emperor Guangwu declined yet another foreign engagement. In 46, many Xiyu (modern Xinjiang and former Soviet central Asia) kingdoms were suffering under the hegemony of one of the kingdoms, Shache (Yarkand). They petitioned Emperor Guangwu to again reestablish the Western Han post of the governor of Xiyu. Emperor Guangwu declined, stating that his empire was so lacking in strength at the time that he could not expend efforts to protect Xiyu kingdoms. In response, the Xiyu kingdoms submitted to Xiongnu.

Marital and Succession Issues

As alluded above, while still under Emperor Gengshi, Emperor Guangwu married his childhood sweetheart Yin Lihua. Later, in 24, while he was on his expedition north of the Yellow River, he entered into a political marriage with Guo Shengtong (郭聖通), the niece of a regional warlord, Liu Yang (劉楊) the Prince of Zhending. In 25, Guo bore him a son, Liu Jiang (劉疆).
In 26, Emperor Guangwu was prepared to create an empress, and he favored his first love, Yin. However, Yin had not yet had a son by that point, and she declined the empress position and endorsed Guo. Emperor Guangwu therefore created Guo empress and her son Prince Jiang crown prince.
By 41, however, Empress Guo had long lost the emperor's favor. She continuously complained about that fact, and this angered Emperor Guangwu. In 41, he deposed her and created Yin empress instead. Rather than imprisoning Guo (as is often the fate of deposed empresses), however, he created her son Liu Fu (劉輔) the Prince of Zhongshan and created her the Princess Dowager of Zhongshan. He made her brother Guo Kuang (郭況) an important official and, perhaps as a form of alimony, rewarded him with great wealth.
Not having the heart to depose mother and son, Emperor Guangwu initially left Guo's son, Crown Prince Jiang, as crown prince. Crown Prince Jiang, however, realizing that his position was precarious, repeatedly offered to step down. In 43, Emperor Guangwu agreed and created Liu Yang (劉陽), the oldest son of Empress Yin, crown prince instead. Former Crown Prince Jiang was created the Prince of Donghai. He also changed Prince Yang's name to Zhuang (莊).

Late Reign

In 47, an opportunity arose with regard to Xiongnu. Xiongnu had a succession dispute, pitting the current chanyu, Punu (蒲 奴) against his cousin Bi (比), the son of a former chanyu. In 48, Bi also claimed the title of chanyu, and submitted to Emperor Guangwu's authority. Punu also submitted, in response, and the divided Xiongnu stopped waging war against Han.
In 49, a rare blot on Emperor Guangwu's rule occurred. He had once again commissioned Ma Yuan to go on an expedition -- against the indigenous people of the Wulin Commandery (modern northwestern Hunan and eastern Guizhou), who had rebelled. While Ma was on the expedition, however, a number of Ma's political enemies made false accusations against Ma. Emperor Guangwu, believing these accusations, began investigating Ma, who happened to die of illness while on the campaign. With Ma dead and unable to defend himself, Emperor Guangwu stripped Ma of his marquis title and denounced him posthumously. Ma's reputation was not restored until his daughter later became empress to Emperor Guangwu's son Emperor Ming.
In 57, Guang Wudi died. He was succeeded by Crown Prince Zhuang, who ascended the throne as the Mindi Emperor.

Personal Information

Names

Family name: Liu (劉)
Given name: Xiu (秀)
Courtesy name: Wenshu (文叔)
Temple name: Shizu (世祖)
Posthumous name:
(short) Emperor Guangwu (光武帝), lit. "the rebuilding martial emperor"
(full) Emperor Guangwu (光武皇帝)
Era names:
Jianwu (建武 py. jìan wŭ): 25-56
Jianwuzhongyuan (建武中元 py. jìan wŭ zhōng yúan): 56-58

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H

Hongwu Emperor of Ming
B5: 洪武; PY: Hóng Wŭ; BN: Zhu Yuanzhang2; B5: 朱元璋; PY: Zhū Yuánzhāng (September 21, 1328- June 24, 1398)-
Founder and first emperor (1368- 1398) of the Ming Dynasty of China. His era name, Hongwu, means "Immensely Martial." He is also known as Emperor Tai Zu.
Due to the anti-Mongol sentiments that developed in the early 14th century, many Chinese perceived the Yuan Dynasty as being foreign and illegitimate. It was during this era that Zhu Yuanzhang led a peasant revolution that was instrumental in expelling the Yuan Dynasty and forcing the Mongolians to retreat to the Mongolian steppes. Consequently, he claimed the title Son of Heaven for himself and established the Ming Dynasty in 1368. Hongwu was one of only two Chinese dynasty founders who emerged from the peasant class. The other was Han Gao Zu of the Han Dynasty. Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping are the two other peasant revolutionaries to have ruled the world's most populous nation.

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Early Life

Zhu Yuanzhang worked as a cowherd in his youth, and, according to legend, was fired after roasting and eating a cattle with other young cowherds; it was more likely that he was forced to enter a Buddhist monastery later on, where he learned to read, because of a plague that took the lives of his parents and brothers. He was forced to leave the monastery after it received insufficient funds and he had to go around China to beg. Later, he joined a gang of rebels, where because of his natural leadership talents he was made leader. Soon, as a strong-willed rebel leader, he came into contact with well-educated Confucian scholars and gentry, from whom he received an education in state affairs. He acquired training in the Red Turban Movement, a dissident religious sect combining cultural and religious traditions of Buddhism, Taoism, and other religions. No longer a Buddhist, he positioned himself as a defender of Confucianism and neo-Confucian conventions, rather than as a mere popular rebel. Despite his humble origins, he emerged as a national leader against the collapsing Yuan Dynasty. His charisma attracted talents from all over China, and one of his advisors, Zhu Sheng, proposed the theory of 'Build high walls, stock up rations, and don't be too quick to call yourself a king.' Instead of attacking the Mongols, he decided to absorb the smaller, weaker rebels leaders in Southern China before turning against his main enemy. In 1368, he finally proclaimed himself the Ming emperor in Nanjing and adopted "Hongwu" as the title of his reign. He used the motto 'Exiling the Mongols and Restoring Hua' as a call to rouse the Han Chinese into supporting him, and after capturing Dadu, China was unified again under Ming.

Emperor of China

After defeating rival national leaders, Zhu proclaimed himself emperor in 1368. The capital was established at Nanjing, and "Hongwu" was adopted as the title of his reign.
Under Hongwu, the Mongol bureaucrats who had dominated the government for nearly a century under the Yuan Dynasty were replaced by Chinese. He revamped the traditional Confucian examination system, which selected state bureaucrats or civil servants on the basis of merit and knowledge of literature and philosophy. Candidates for posts in the civil service, or in the officer corps of the 80,000-man army, once again had to pass the traditional competitive examinations, as required by the Classics. The Confucian scholar gentry, marginalized under the Yuan for nearly a century, once again assumed their predominant role in the Chinese state.
Historians consider Hongwu to be one of the greatest Emperors of China. From the beginning, great care was taken by Hongwu to distribute land to small farmers. It seems to have been his policy to favor the poor, whom he tried to help to support themselves and their families. For instance, in 1370 an order was given that some land in Hunan and Anhui should be distributed to young farmers who had reached manhood. This order was made in part to preclude the absorption of this land by unscrupulous landlords, and as part of this decree it was announced that the title to the land would not be transferable. During the middle part of his reign an edict was published to the effect that those who brought fallow land under cultivation could keep it as their property without it ever being taxed. The people responded enthusiastically to this policy, and in 1393 cultivated land rose to 8,804,623 ching and 68 mou, a greater achievement than any other Chinese dynasty.
Having come from a peasant family, Hongwu knew only too well how much the farmers suffered from the gentry and the wealthy. Many of the latter, relying on their influence with the magistrates, not only encroached unscrupulously on the land of farmers, but even contrived through bribing lower officials to transfer the burden of taxation to the small farmers they had wronged. To prevent such abuses Hongwu instituted two very important systems: "Yellow Records" and "Fish Scale Records". These systems served to guarantee both the government's income from land taxes and the people's enjoyment of their property.
In 1372, Hongwu ordered the general release of all innocent people who had been enslaved during the anxious days at the end of the Mongol reign. Fourteen years later he ordered his officials to buy back children in the Huinan province who had been sold as slaves by their parents because of famine.
Despite having fought off the calamities of the Mongol invasion, Hongwu realized that the Mongols still posed a real threat to China. He decided that the orthodox Confucian view of the military as an inferior class to the scholar bureaucracy should be reassessed. Maintaining a strong military was essential. Hongwu kept a powerful army organized on a military system known as the Wei-so system, which was similar to the Fu-ping system of the Tang dynasty. According to Ming Shih Gao, the political intention of the founder of the Ming dynasty, in establishing the Wei-so system, was to maintain a strong army while avoiding the forming of personal bonds between commanding officers and the soldiers.
Soldier training also was conducted within the soldiers' own military districts. In time of war, troops were mobilized from all over the Empire on the orders of a Board of War, and commanders were chosen from Wu chin tu-tu fu to lead them. As soon as the war was over, all of the troops returned to their respective districts and the commanders lost their military commands. This system largely avoided troubles of the kind which so often had been caused, under the Tang and Song dynasties, by military commanders who had great numbers of soldiers directly under their personal control. The Wei-so system was a great success in the early Ming because of the Tun-tien system. Hongwu, well aware of the difficulties of supplying such a number of men, adopted this method of military organization, to assure that the empire had a strong military force without burdening the people heavily for its support.
Hongwu also noted the destructive role of court eunuchs under the previous dynasties and drastically reduced their numbers, forbidding them to handle documents, insisting that they remained illiterate, and liquidating those who commented on state affairs. Hongwu had a strong aversion to the imperial eunuchs, a court of castrated servants of the emperor, epitomized by a tablet in his palace stipulating: "Eunuchs must have nothing to do with the administration." However, this aversion to eunuchs' being in the employ of an emperor was not popular with Hongwu's successors, and eunuchs soon returned to the emperors' courts after Hongwu. In addition to Hongwu's aversion to eunuchs, he never consented to any of his imperial relatives becoming court officials. This policy was fairly well-maintained by later emperors, and no serious trouble was caused by the empresses or their relatives.
The legal code drawn up in the time of the Hongwu emperor was considered one of the great achievements of the era. The Ming Shih mentions that as early as 1364 the monarchy had started to draft a code of laws. This code was known as Ta-Ming Lu. The emperor devoted great personal care to the whole project, and in his instruction to the ministers told them that the code of laws should be comprehensive and intelligible, so as not to leave any loophole for lower officials to misinterpret the law through twisting its language. The Ming code laid much emphasis on family relations. The code was a great improvement on the code of the earlier Tang dynasty in regards to the treatment of slaves. Under the Tang code, slaves were treated as a species of domestic animal; if they were killed by a free citizen the law imposed no sanction on the killer. Under the Ming dynasty, however, the law protected both slaves and free citizens.
Hongwu attempted to, and largely succeeded in, consolidating control over all aspects of government, so that no other group could gain enough power to overthrow him. He also buttressed the country's defenses against the Mongols. As emperor, Hongwu increasingly concentrated power in his own hands. He abolished the prime minister's post, which had been head of the main central administrative body under past dynasties, by suppressing a plot for which he had blamed his chief minister. Many argue that the Hongwu emperor, wishing to concentrate absolute authority in his own hands and having abolished the office of prime minister, removed the only insurance against incompetent emperors. However Hongwu's actions were not entirely one-sided since he did create a new post, called "Grand Secretary", to take the place of the abolished prime minister. Ray Huang argued that Grand-Secretaries, outwardly powerless, could exercise considerable positive influence from behind the throne. Because of their prestige and the public trust which they enjoyed, they could act as intermediaries between the emperor and the ministerial officials, and thus provide a stabilizing force in the court.
Backed by the Confucian scholar-gentry, Hongwu accepted the Confucian viewpoint that merchants were solely parasitic. Hongwu felt that agriculture should be the country's source of wealth and that trade was ignoble and parasitic. Perhaps this view was the result of his having been a peasant himself. As a result, the Ming economic system emphasized agriculture, unlike the economic system of the Song Dynasty, which had preceded the Mongols and had relied on traders and merchant for revenues. Also as a result of this aversion to trade, Hongwu supported the creation of self-supporting agricultural communities.
However Hongwu's prejudice against the merchants did not diminish the numbers of traders. On the contrary, commerce increased significantly under Hong Wu due to the growth of industry throughout the empire. This growth in trade was due in part to poor soil conditions and overpopulation of certain areas, during the dynasty, which forced many people to leave their homes and seek their fortunes in trade. A book entitled, Tu Pien Hsin Shu, written during the Ming dynasty, gives a very detailed description about the activities of merchants at that time. So trade did not decline at all during Hongwu's reign.
Although Hongwu's rule saw the introduction of paper currency, capitalist development would be stifled from the beginning. Not understanding inflation, Hongwu gave out so much paper money as rewards that by 1425 the state was forced to reintroduce copper coins because the paper currency had sunk to only 1/70 of its original value.
During Hongwu's reign, however, the early Ming Dynasty was characterized by rapid and dramatic population growth, largely due to the increased food supply and Hongwu's agricultural reforms. The population rose by perhaps as much as 50 percent by the end of the Ming Dynasty. This rise was stimulated by major improvements in agricultural technology, promoted by the pro-agrarian state which came to power in the midst of a pro-Confucian peasant's rebellion. Under his tutelage, living standards greatly improved.
Hongwu increasingly feared rebellions and coups. He even made it a capital offence for any of his advisors to criticize him. A story goes that a Confucian scholar who was fed up with Hongwu's policies decided to go to the capital and berate the emperor. When he gained an audience with the emperor, he brought his own coffin along with him. After delivering his speech he climbed into the coffin, expecting the emperor to execute him. Instead, the Emperor was so impressed by his bravery that he spared his life.
Hongwu died after a reign of 30 years.
He had 24 sons, all of whom became princes:

Names

Hongwu also is known as Hung-Wu. That name is also applied to the period of years from 1368 to 1398 when Chu Yuan-chang ruled. Other names for him include, his temple name Ming Tàizǔ (明太祖) "Great Ancestor of the Ming", and the "Beggar King," in allusion to his early poverty.
In the West, Hongwu now sometimes is called "the Chinese Napoleon".

Family name: Zhu (朱)
Birth name: Chongba1 (重八)
Given name: Xingzong (興宗); later Yuanzhang2 (元璋)
Courtesy name: Guorui (國瑞)
Dates of reign: Jan. 23 13683- Jun. 24, 1398
Dynasty: Ming (明)
Era name: Hongwu (洪武)
Era dates Jan. 23 1368–Feb. 5, 13994
Temple name: Taizu (太祖)
Posthumous name: (short) Emperor Gao (高皇帝)
Posthumous name: (full) Emperor Kaitian Xingdao Zhaoji Liji Dasheng Zhishen Renwen Yiwu Junde Chenggong Gao (開天行道肇紀立極大聖至神仁文義武俊德成功高皇帝)

Notes

1- Name given by his parents at birth and used only inside the family. This birth name, which means "double eight", was allegedly given to him because the combined age of his parents when he was born was 88 years.
2- Was known as Zhu Xingzong when he became an adult, a name that was changed to Zhu Yuanzhang in 1352 when he started to become famous among the rebelled leaders.
3- Was already in control of Nanjing since 1356, was made Duke of Wu (吳國公) by the rebelled leader Han Lin'er (韓林兒) in 1361, and started autonomous rule as self-proclaimed Prince of Wu (吳王) on February 4, 1364. Was proclaimed emperor on January 23, 1368, establishing the Ming Dynasty that same day.
4- The era was officially re-established on July 30, 1402 when Emperor Jianwen was overthrown, with retroactivity for the 4 years of the Jianwen era, so that 1402 was considered the 35th year of Hongwu. The Honwgu era then ended on January 22, 1403, the next day being the start of the Yongle era.

Depictions

It is a source of debate among scholars of Chinese history as to the actual likeness of the Hongwu emperor. The official portrait of the emperor, completed during his reign, portrays him as the ideal emperor with regular features and learned expression (SEE Portrait 1, below). However, Qing dynasty paintings (SEE Portrait 3 and Portrait 4, below) are said to portray the nearest similarity of the Hongwu emperor; his family name Zhu, was a homophone of the word pig, which fueled the reference, even in literature and later references of his 'porcine' appearance. Still others take a middle road toward the image of the Hongwu emperor (SEE Portrait 2, below). In the end, it is difficult to determine which of these images is the closest likeness to the actual appearance of the Hongwu emperor.

SEE Portrait 1

SEE Portrait 2

SEE Portrait 3

SEE Portrait 4

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Hou Zhu Emperor of Chen
B5: 後主; GB: 后主; PY: Hòu Zhŭ; BN: Chen Shubao; B5: 陳叔寶; GB: 陈叔宝; PY: Chén Shūbăo (552- 589)-
Eldest son of the Xuandi Emperor of Chen and last emperor of the Chen dynasty. Described as a drunk by many Chinese historians, he left state affairs to the eunuchs and spent most of his time in the palaces enjoying music.
The Northern Zhou had, in the meantime, reunified all of northern China by 581 and the new ruler, Yang Jian, would later become the founder of the Sui dynasty. Before he entered the capital, he distributed 3000,000 copies of a memorandum listing the faults of Hou Zhou to convince the people that their emperor had lost the mandate of Heaven. Upon entering the imperial palace, Jian found Hou Zhu hiding in a well, tied to two concubines. Jian spared his life and those of his family in the interest of the unified empire. Hou Zhu's reign lasted 7 years (583- 589).

Names

Era Names:
Zhide (至德 Zhìdé) 583- 586
Zhenming (禎明 Zhēnmíng) 587- 589

SEE Image

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Huang Di, The Yellow Emperor
B5: 黃帝; GB: 黄帝; PY: Huángdì-
Legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. One of the Five Emperors, the Yellow Emperor is said by tradition to have reigned from 2698 BCE to 2599 BCE.
The legend of his westwards retreat in the war against the eastern Emperor Chi You at the Battle of Zhuolu (涿鹿) is seen as the establishment of the Han Chinese nationality.
Among his other accomplishments, the Yellow Emperor has been credited with the invention of the principles of Traditional Chinese medicine. Nèijīng (内經, The Medical Canon of the Yellow Emperor), was supposedly composed in collaboration with his physician Qi Bó (岐伯). However, modern historiographers generally consider it to have been compiled from ancient sources by a scholar living between the Zhou and Han dynasties, more than 2,000 years later. His interest in natural health and preventing and treating diseases meant he is said to have lived to the age of 111, and to have attained immortality after his physical death.
In the legend, his wife Lúo Zǔ (螺祖) taught the Chinese how to weave the silk from silkworms, and his historian Cāng Jié created the first Chinese characters.
Legend says that the Yellow Emperor invented the compass during a battle against Chi You who used a sandstorm as camouflage to hide his army. Thanks to the compass, the Yellow Emperor found out where Chi You was and defeated him. The swirling chair in his chariot was also a compass so that he would always face south, which the Chinese people consider to be good Feng Shui. He is also said to have played a part in the creation of the Guqin, together with Fuxi and Shennong, and to have invented the earliest form of the Chinese calendar, and its current sexagenary cycles are counted based on his reign.
Huang Di is historically remembered as a dragon because some scholars believe that Huang Di used a snake as his coat of arms. As he defeated enemies he would incorporate their emblems into his own. Huang Di was immortalized as a dragon that looks like his emblem. That explains why the Chinese dragon has the body of a snake; the scales and tail of a fish, the antlers of a deer, the face of a qilin (a deer-like mythical creature with fire all over its body), two pairs of eagle talons, and the eyes of a tiger-lion. Since the Chinese consider Huang Di as their ancestor, they sometimes refer to themselves as "the descendants of the dragon".
The actual existence of the Yellow Emperor is questionable, at best. The period of his reign precedes written history in China by more than a thousand years. Thus, the tales of his exploits might easily be embellished or even altogether apocryphal.

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I

 

J

 

K

Ke, Madam- Nanny of the young Tianqi Emperor (1605-1627), who was Emperor of China (Ming dynasty) from 1620 to 1627. As he was 15 when he became Emperor, and also illiterate, he delegated all duties to Wei Zhongxian, giving the actual power to him and Madam Ke. Both of them were eliminated as soon the Chongzhen Emperor (the last of the Ming dynasty) succeeded his brother to the throne in 1627.

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Khaishan Khan
Wuzong Emperor of Yuan
B5: 武宗; PY: Wǔzōng (1281- 1311)-
  2nd son of Zhen Jin Darmabala and Targi. The 3rd to rule as emperor of the Yuan Dynasty. A military hero from the steppes, he ruled for only three years (1308- 1311). His behavior on the throne was like that of a nomadic chieftain, bestowing honors and titles indiscriminately. His appointments of butchers, actors and clergy as ministers underscored his poor knowledge in affairs of state. His extravagant spending on palaces and temples led him to increase the amount of paper money in the state treasury and selling licenses to state monopolies.

Names

Family name: Borjigin (孛兒只斤)
Given name: Borjigin Qayshan (孛兒只斤海山 Bèiérzhījīn Hǎishān)
Khan name: Qayshan Gülük
Dynasty: Yuan (元)
Temple name: Wuzong (武宗 Wǔzōng)
Era name: Zhida (至大 Zhìdà) 1308- 1311

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Koxinga
B5: 國姓爺; GB: 国姓爷; PY: Gúoxìngyé; TW: Kok-sèng-iâ, Kok-sìn-iâ; PN: Zheng Chenggong; B5: 鄭成功; GB: 郑成功; PY: Zhèng Chénggōng; WG: Cheng Ch'eng-kung; POJ: Tēn Sêng-kong (1624- 1662)-
Military leader at the end of the Chinese Ming Dynasty. He was a prominent leader of the anti-Qing movement opposing the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and a Han Chinese general who recovered Taiwan from Dutch colonial occupation in 1662.

Contents

Childhood

Koxinga was born to Zheng Zhilong, a Chinese merchant and pirate, and Tagawa Matsu, a Japanese woman, in 1624 in Hirado, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. He was raised there until seven and moved to Quanzhou, in the Fujian province of China. He studied at Nanjing Taixue (The Imperial Central College in Ming dynasty of China) when he was young. He is still known in Japan by his birth name as Tei Seīkō, or by his popular name as Kokusen'ya.

Loyalty to the Ming Empire

Beijing fell in 1644 to rebels led by Li Zicheng, and the last emperor Chongzhen hanged himself on a tree at modern-day Jingshan Park in Beijing. Aided by Wu Sangui, Manchurian armies knocked off the rebels with ease and took the city. In the areas below the Yangtze River, there were many anti-Qing people of principle and ambition who wanted to restore descendants of the Ming Dynasty to the Imperial throne. One of these descendants, Prince Tang, was aided to gain power in Fuzhou by Huang Daozhou and Zheng Zhilong, Koxinga's father. When the Qing captured Prince Tang, Koxinga was in Zhangzhou raising soldiers and supplies. He heard the news that his father was preparing to surrender to the Qing court and hurried to Quanzhou to persuade him against this plan, but his father refused to listen and turned himself in.

Death of his mother

Not long afterwards the Qing army captured Quanzhou, and Koxinga's mother either committed suicide out of loyalty to the Ming Dynasty or was raped and killed by Qing troops (like many other aspects of Koxinga's life the facts seem to have been obscured by ulterior purposes). When Koxinga heard this news he led an army to attack Quanzhou, forcing the Qing troops back. After giving his mother a proper burial Koxinga went directly to the Confucian temple outside the city. Legend has it, that he then burned his scholarly robes in protest. There he is rumored to have prayed in tears, saying, "In the past I was a good Confucian subject and a good son. Now I am an orphan without an emperor. I have no country and no home. I have sworn that I will fight the Qing army to the end, but my father has surrendered and my only choice is to be an unfilial son. Please forgive me."
He left the Confucian temple and proceeded to assemble a group of comrades with the same goal who together swore an allegiance to the Ming in defiance of the Qing.

Fighting the Qing

He sent forces to attack the Qing forces in the area of Fujian and Guangdong. While defending Zhangzhou and Quanzhou, he once fought all the way to the walls of the city of Nanjing. But in the end, his forces were no match for the Qing. The Qing court sent a huge army to attack him and many of Koxinga's generals had died in battle, which left him no option but retreat.

Taiwan Landing

In 1661, Koxinga led his troops to a landing at Lu'ermen to attack Taiwan. On February 1, 1662 the Dutch Governor of Taiwan, Frederik Coyett, surrendered Fort Zeelandia to Koxinga. This effectively ended 38 years of Dutch occupation. Koxinga then devoted himself to making Taiwan into an effective base for anti-Qing sympathizers who wanted to restore the Ming Dynasty to power.
At the age of 39, Koxinga died of malaria, although speculations said that he died in a sudden fit of madness upon hearing the death of his father under the Qing. His son, Zheng Jing, succeeded as the King of Taiwan.

Legacy

There is a temple dedicated to Koxinga and his mother in Tainan County, Taiwan. The play Kokusen'ya Kassen (国姓爺合戦; formally 国性爺合戦) was written by Chikamatsu Monzaemon in Japan in the 18th century, first performed in Kyoto. A movie with the same title was produced by the PRC and Japan in 2002 in Mandarin Chinese.
In politics, Koxinga is an interesting figure for the fact that conflicting political forces have invoked him as a hero. The historical narratives in which Koxinga is a hero are interesting because of the conflicting views national identities they attribute to Koxinga and his opponents and the different motives which they attribute to Koxinga.
He has been considered a national hero by Chinese nationalists both in Mainland China and on Taiwan because he was a Ming loyalist and an anti-Manchu leader and for his role in expelling the Dutch from Taiwan which Chinese nationalists portray as establishing Chinese rule over the island. During the Japanese rule of Taiwan Koxinga was honored as a bridge between Taiwan and Mainland Japan for his maternal linkage to Japan. Koxinga has been utilized by the Kuomintang too. Chiang Kai-shek invoked Koxinga as fighter who retreated to Taiwan and used it as base to launch counterattacks to Mainland China. Although supporters of Taiwan independence have historically had mixed feelings toward Koxinga, recent Taiwanese Independence historiography presents him in a positive light, portraying him as a native Taiwanese hero seeking to keep Taiwan independent from a mainland Chinese government (i.e. the Manchus).
Some historians have expressed concern at the way that all sides have attempted to co-opt Koxinga for two reasons. The first is that all of the historical narratives tend to simplify a very complex character by focusing on one attribute of the man to the exclusion of others. In doing so they ascribe motives to Koxinga that make sense to people living in the 21st century but which might not have made any sense to people living in the 17th. The second problem is that by seeking to portray Koxinga as a hero, all sides play down the less savory aspects of the character.

Names

Popular name: Koxinga or Coxinga is the Dutch Romanization of his popular name "Lord with the Royal Surname" (國姓爺).
Surname: Zhèng (鄭)
Birth name: Sēn (森)
Japanese name: Tei Seikō (鄭 成功)
Childhood name: Fukumatsu (福松)
Courtesy name: Dàmù (大木)
Royal surname: Zhū (朱) Granted by Prince Tang of Southern Ming
Royal title: Prince of Yánpíng and Zhāotǎo Grand General (延平郡王招討大將軍) Awarded by Prince Gui of Southern Ming

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Kublai Khan
Shizu Emperor of Yuan
B5: 世祖; PY: Shìzŭ (September 23, 1215- February 18, 1294)-
Mongol military leader, "the last of the Great Khans". He was Khagan (1260- 1294) of the Mongol Empire as well as the founder and the first Emperor (1279- 1294) of the Chinese Yuan Dynasty.
Born the second son of Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki and the grandson of Genghis Khan, he succeeded his brother Möngke in 1260. Kublai Khan's brother, Hulagu, conquered Persia and founded the Ilkhanate. Kublai also had a cousin named Kaidu, who died in 1301.

Contents

Early Life

Kublai was the grandson of Genghis Khan. As a youth, he studied Chinese culture and became enamored with it. In 1251, his elder brother Mongke became Khan of the Mongol Empire, and Kublai became the governor of Southern territories of Mongol Empire. During his years as governor, Kublai managed his territory well, boosting the agricultural output of Henan and increasing social welfare spending after receiving Xi'an. These acts received great acclaim from Chinese warlords and were essential to the building of the Yuan Dynasty.
In 1253, Kublai was ordered to attack Yunnan. He eventually attacked and destroyed the Kingdom of Dali. In 1258, Mongke put Kublai in command of the Eastern Army and summoned him to assist with the attacks on Sichuan and Yunnan. Before Kublai could arrive in 1259, words had reached him that Mongke had died. Despite his brother's death, Kublai continued to attack Wuhan. Soon thereafter, Kublai received news that his younger brother had usurped power. Kublai quickly reached a peace agreement with Song troops and rode back north to the Mongolian plains.
Both his brother and Kublai crowned themselves Khan in 1260, and the two brothers battled for three years before Kublai finally won. However, during this civil war, Yizhou governor Li revolted against Mongol rule. The revolt was swiftly crushed by Kublai, but this incident instilled in him a strong distrust of ethnic Hans. After he became emperor, Kublai instituted many anti-Han laws, such as banning the titles of and tithes to Han Chinese warlords.

Mongol Empire

The empire was separated into four khanates, each ruled by a separate khan and overseen by the Great Khan. The Kipchak Khanate (also called the Golden Horde) ruled Russia; the Ilkhanate ruled the Middle East, the Chagatai Khanate ruled over western Asia, and the Great Khanate controlled Mongolia and eventually the whole China. The empire reached its greatest extent under Kublai with his conquest of Song Dynasty which was completed by his final victory in 1279.

Emperor of Yuan

As emperor of Yuan Dynasty, Kublai Khan worked to minimize the influences of regional lords who had held immense power before and during the Song Dynasty. His mistrust of ethnic Han Chinese caused him to hire other ethnic group members as officials more often than Han Chinese.
At the Eighth Year of Zhiyuan (1271), Kublai Khan officially declared the creation of the Yuan Dynasty, and proclaimed the capital to be at Dai Du (Beijing, China) in the following year. To unify China, Kublai Khan began a massive offense against the remnants of Southern Song Dynasty in the 11th year of Zhiyuan, and finally destroyed the Song Dynasty in the 16th year of Zhiyuan, unifying the country at last.
He ruled better than his predecessors, promoting economic growth with the rebuilding of the Grand Canal, repairing public buildings, and extending highways. However, Kublai Khan's domestic policy also included some aspects of the old Mongol living traditions, and as Kublai Khan continued his reign, these traditions would clash more and more frequently with traditional Chinese economical and social culture.
He also introduced paper currency although eventually a lack of fiscal discipline and inflation turned this into an economic disaster. He encouraged Chinese arts and demonstrated religious tolerance, except in regards to Taoism. His capital was at Beijing (then Cambuluc or Dadu 大都 lit. big capital). The empire was visited by several Europeans, notably Marco Polo in the 1270s who may have seen the summer capital in Shangdu (上都 lit. upper capital or Xanadu).
He conquered Dali (Yunnan) and Goryeo (Korea). Under pressure from his Mongolian advisors, Kublai attempted to conquer Japan, Myanmar, Vietnam and Indonesia. The failed attempts, costly expeditions, along with the introduction of paper currency caused inflation. However, Kublai Khan also forced warlords from the Northwest and Northeast to capitulate, ensuring stability for those regions. Kublai Khan died in the 31st year of Zhiyuan (1294).

Invasions of Japan

Kublai Khan twice attempted to invade Japan in search of gold; however, both times the Samurai resisted greatly and the weather tore the fleets apart. The first attempted invasion was in 1274 with a fleet of 900 ships. The second invasion was in 1281 with a fleet of over 1,170 large war junks, each close to 240 feet long. Japanese were prepared for this invasion and they had built a wall several feet high on the island where Mongols were predicted to land to prevent horses from coming ashore easily. The Campaign was badly synchronized as the Korean fleet reached Japan much ahead of the Chinese fleet. Japanese Samurai fought with great valor and defeated the largely Chinese and Korean army of Mongols. Dr. Kenzo Hayashida, the marine archaeologist who discovered the wreckage of the second invading fleet off the western coast of Takashima, headed their excavation. The findings strongly indicate that Kublai Khan rushed to conquer Japan and attempted to construct his enormous fleet in only one year (a task that should have taken up to 5 years), which forced the Chinese to use any available ships, particularly river boats, as the basis for Khan's fleet in order to achieve readiness on time. Most importantly, the Koreans, then under his control, were forced to build countless ships to contribute to the fleet in both of the invasions. Had Kublai used ocean-going ships, which have a curved keel to prevent capsizing, his navy may have survived the journey to and from Japan and may have even conquered it as originally intended.

John Pearson, author of Kublai Khan (2005), writes,

"The cost of these defeats led the Khan to devalue the central currency, further exacerbating growing inflation. He also increased tax assessments. These economic problems lead to growing resentment of the Mongols, who paid no taxes, among the Chinese populace."

David Nicole, author of The Mongol Conquerors, writes,

"...these disastrous defeats shattered the myth of Mongol invincibility throughout Asia."

and

"Kublai Khan was determined to mount a third invasion, despite the horrendous cost to the economy and to his and Mongol prestige of the first two defeats, and only his death prevented such a third attempt, despite the unanimous agreement of his advisors against such an attempt."

In early 2006, marine archaeologists determined that previous theories that Kublai's fleet was made up entirely of ships that came from river boats was found to be weakened as evidence of keel usage began to show up in recent discoveries. One current theory that has yet to be found false is the idea that the new Mongol technology of explosives (grenade-like weapons) may have backfired, potentially from inexperienced engineering, when an attack on Japan would have begun.

Dai Du

Kublai, a grandson of the Mongol leader Genghis Khan began leading further Mongol advances in the latter years of the 1250s. On 5 May 1260 Kublai was elected Khan at his residence in Shang-tu and he began to organize the country. Zhang Wenqian, who was a friend of Guo and like him was a central government official, was sent by Kublai Khan in 1260 to Daming where unrest had been reported in the local population. Guo accompanied Zhang on his mission. Guo was not only interested in engineering, but he was also an expert astronomer. In particular he was a skilled instrument maker and understood that good astronomical observations depended on expertly made instruments. He now began to construct astronomical instruments, including water clocks for accurate timing and armillary spheres which represent the celestial globe.
Zhang advised Kublai Khan that his friend Guo was a leading expert in hydraulic engineering. Kublai knew the importance of water management, for irrigation, transport of grain, and flood control, and he asked Guo to look at these aspects in the area between Dadu (now Beijing or Peking) and the Yellow River. To provide Dadu with a new supply of water, Guo found the Baifu spring in the Shenshan Mountain and had a 30 km channel built to bring the water to Dadu. He proposed connecting the water supply across different river basins, built new canals with many sluices to control the water level, and achieved great success with the improvements which he was able to make. This pleased Kublai Khan and led to Guo being asked to undert