THE HAN DYNASTY
The Han Dynasty is broken up into two major sections. The first is the Western (Earlier) Han (202 BC to AD 9) and the second is the Eastern (Later) Han (AD 23-220). Between them was a period of disunity ruled by the Hsin Dynasty from AD 9-23.
Western Han (202 BC to AD 9)
- began with the victor in the wars which followed Qin Shi Huangdi's death - Liu Bang - who took the title of Gao Zu. He continued much of the Qin organisation and consolidated the idea of a unified empire under one leader. Gao Zu died in 195 BC
- Gao Zu was succeeded by his wife who ruled as the Dowager Empress Lu. She only lasted 5 years and one of Gao Zu's sons, born to a concubine, became emperor and took the title Wen Di (Emperor Wen)
- Wen Di was followed by his son Jing Di in 156 BC
- Wu Di, Jing Di's son, became emperor in 141 BC and ruled from 140 - 87 BC. Wu Di was probably the most important emperor of the whole Qin and Han period and more about him can be accessed here. He established Confucianism as the official way the country was to be ruled and to exist. This official system lasted until the 20th century
- Wu Di died in 87 BC (although there is some debate about this date being the end of his reign.. He had been emperor for 54 years and for the last few years, between 91 and 87 BC, it has been suggested that his empress and heir apparent ruled
- On Wu Di's death a young member of the family, 8 year old Zhao Di was made emperor under the regency of Huo Guang, one of Wu Di's most trusted generals. He lasted only 14 years and died in 74 BC
- Zhao Di was followed by another member of the family who lasted only 27 days and was replaced by Xuan Di (the choice of Huo Guang)
- Although Xuan Di was emperor for 26 years he was not a strong emperor and life, power and politics in China drifted on along the guidelines established by Huo Guang. When he died in 48 BC he left the succession to his son, Yuan Di who was 27 years old but who proved to be a hopeless and helpless emperor controlled by court and palace intrigue.
- The next emperor was Ching Di, Yuan Di's son, who took the throne in 32 BC at 19 years old. Although he ruled for 27 years he was more concerned with personal wishes than the administration of China and left it to the palace eunuchs to run
- Ngai Di followed Cheng Di in 6 BC and he was more interested in the company of young boys and men than having anything to do with exercising his authority or making decisions about China
- When Ngai Di was succeeded by Ru Zi in AD 6 , who was only 2 years old, real power fell into the hands of the Great Dowager Empress, wife of Yuan Di who appointed her nephew, Wang Mang, as the child's regent
- Wang Mang, seized power in his own right in AD 9 and founded the new dynasty of Hsin but it was not to last long
- Wang Mang was killed by rebellious peasants in AD 23
Eastern Han (25 AD - 220 AD)
- For 2 years civil war continued but out of it emerged Liu Xiu, a member of the Han royal family, who ruled for 32 years until his death in AD 57. After his death he was given the title Guang Wu Di
- Next came his son, Ming Di who was emperor for 18 years but he was followed by Zhang Di, AD 75 to AD 88 and then He Di, AD 88 to AD 106. He Di, however, was only interested in women and luxury and left the rule of China to the eunuchs and the Dowager Empress
- Between AD 125 and AD 159 He Di's widow, the Dowager Empress, controlled the throne through the weak emperors, Shun Di (AD 125-144) and Huan Di (AD 146 to AD 168). When she died in AD 159, palace intrigue surrounded Huan Di and he was succeeded by his wife as the Empress Dou. She appointed a great, great, grandchild of Zhang Di as the next emperor, Ling Di. However, civil war followed as it was believed by many that the emperors had lost the Mandate of Heaven
- Ling Di died around AD 188 aged 39 and was succeeded by Shao Di who was quickly killed by a rebellious general who appointed a young emperor called Zian Di. When the general was killed Zian Di fled to Chang'an away from the capital of Louyang but was found
- The dynasty struggled on but was finally overthrown in AD 220 with no notable emperors emerging from the chaos and China broke up into 3 separate kingdoms and were not to reunite until AD 280 under the Western Jin