Emperor Gaozu of Han
Emperor Gaozu of Han, personal name Liu Bang, was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty.
Liu Bang was among the few dynastic founders to have been born in a peasant family. He initially entered the Qin dynasty bureaucracy as a minor law enforcement officer in his hometown in Pei County, within the conquered state of Chu. During the political chaos following the death of Qin Shi Huang, who had been the first emperor in Chinese history, Liu Bang renounced his civil service position and became a rebel leader, taking up arms against the Qin dynasty. He outmanoeuvred rival rebel leader Xiang Yu to invade the Qin heartland and forced the surrender of the Qin ruler Ziying in 206 BC.
After the fall of the Qin dynasty, Xiang Yu, as the de facto chief of the rebels, divided the former Qin Empire into the Eighteen Kingdoms, with Liu Bang forced to accept control of the poor and remote region of Bashu, and assuming the title "King of Han". Within the year, Liu Bang broke out with his army and conquered the Three Qins, starting the Chu–Han Contention, a civil war among various forces seeking to inherit the Qin dynasty's former territory.
In 202 BC, Liu Bang emerged victorious following the Battle of Gaixia, took control over much of the territory previously ruled by Qin, and established the Han dynasty with himself as the emperor. During his reign, Liu Bang reduced taxes and corvée labour, promoted Confucianism, and suppressed revolts by the rulers of vassal states not from his own clan, among many other actions. He also initiated the policy of heqin, a system of arranged marriages, to maintain peace between the Han Empire and the Xiongnu following the Han defeat at the Battle of Baideng in 200 BC. He died in 195 BC and was succeeded by his son Liu Ying.
Birth and early life
According to the Han dynasty's imperial mythology, Liu Bang's ancestors were the mythical Emperor Yao and the Yellow Emperor. Many ancient Chinese noble families claimed descent from the Yellow Emperor to justify their right to rule.His place of birth was Zhongyang District, Feng Town, Pei County in the state of Chu during the later years of the Warring States period; Liu Bang's parents are only remembered as "Liu Taigong" and "Liu Ao". According to legend, Liu Bang was conceived after Liu Ao encountered a jiaolong during a rainstorm.
According to records, the young Liu was outspoken, charismatic, generous and forbearing, but showed little interest in education or work and frequently ran into trouble with the law; he was dependent on his brother for subsistence and his father called him a "little rascal". Later, he became good friends with Zhang Er, the magistrate of the nearby Waihuang County and former retainer of Lord Xinling. During the conquest of Wei by Qin, Liu Bang lived with Zhang Er for several months.
When Liu returned to Pei County, his close friends at the county office, Xiao He and Cao Shen, often covered up his delinquent behaviour and helped him get an appointment as the local sheriff of Sishui Village. Liu also forged close relationships with most of the local county bureaucrats, and earned a small reputation in the county. While performing corvée labour in the Qin capital at Xianyang, he witnessed Qin Shi Huang undertaking an inspection tour; the royal procession impressed him.
Liu's wife, Lü Zhi, was the daughter of Lü Wen, a wealthy and influential gentry from Shanfu County. After moving to Pei County, Lü held a feast for the local elite. Xiao He, who helped to collect gifts from the guests, declared that a seat inside the hall required gifts worth at least a thousand coins. Liu attended the feast without money, and made an offer of ten thousand coins which Xiao He realised was not serious. Nonetheless, Lü had Liu seated beside him based on appearance alone. Lü, further impressed by Liu in conversation, offered his daughter in marriage. Liu and Lü Zhi were married and had two children: Liu Ying and a daughter.
Insurrection against the Qin dynasty
Liu was responsible for escorting a group of penal labourers to the construction site of Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum at Mount Li. During the journey, some prisoners escaped; under Qin law, allowing prisoners to escape was punishable by death. Rather than face punishment, Liu freed the remaining prisoners, some of whom willingly acknowledged him as their leader and joined him on the run from the law. At around the same time, Qin Shi Huang, upon hearing rumours of qi of the Son of Heaven appearing in the southeast, embarked on his fifth and final tour of the country. As outlaws, Liu Bang and his men took over an abandoned stronghold on Mount Mangdang.According to the legend known as the "Uprising of the Slaying of the White Serpent", Liu's ascension to rulership was prophesied after he became an outlaw. In the legend, his followers encountered a gigantic white serpent which killed some of them with its poisonous breath. That night, while he was drunk, Liu drew his sword and slew the serpent. The next morning, the outlaws encountered a crying old woman along the road. When they asked her why she was crying, she replied, "My child, the White Emperor's son, has been slain by the son of the Red Emperor." After that, she mysteriously disappeared. As this legend spread, Liu's reputation grew among his followers, who became convinced of his destiny.
In 209 BC, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang started the Dazexiang uprising to overthrow the Qin dynasty. The magistrate of Pei County considered joining the rebellion, and – acting on the advice of Xiao He and Cao Shen – invited Liu and his followers back to the county to support him; Fan Kuai, Liu's brother-in-law, delivered the message to the outlaws at Mount Mangdang. However, the magistrate later changed his mind and rescinded the offer; he also ordered Xiao and Cao to be killed lest they open the gates for Liu, but they escaped and joined Liu. On Xiao's advice, Liu wrote to his fellow commoners in Pei County, calling for them to rise up against the Qin dynasty. Copies of Liu's call to action were then delivered by arrows fired into Pei County over the city walls. The people responded to Liu's call by killing the magistrate and welcoming Liu back to Pei County. Now the leader of Pei County's population, Liu became known as the Duke of Pei.
In 208 BC, the Qin Empire faced rebellions that sought to restore the former six states conquered by the Qin during its wars of unification. In Wu County, a rebel group led by Xiang Liang installed Xiong Xin as King Huai II of Chu. Liu led his followers to join that rebel group. After Xiang Liang was killed at the Battle of Dingtao, King Huai II sent Xiang Yu – Xiang Liang's nephew – and minister Song Yi to lead an army to reinforce the Zhao rebel group, which was under attack by Qin forces.
Liu Bang was made Marquis of Wu'an and ordered to lead an army to attack the Guanzhong region, the heartland of the Qin dynasty. King Huai II also promised to make whoever entered Guanzhong first the King of Guanzhong. In 207 BC, Liu won the race against Xiang Yu and arrived at Xianyang, the capital of the Qin dynasty. Ziying, the last Qin emperor, surrendered to Liu without resistance. Liu's occupation policies were informed by Fan Kuai and his strategist Zhang Liang. Troops were forbidden from mistreating the population and looting. The harsh Qin laws were abolished; murder, robbery and burglary remained subject to strict punishments. Order was quickly restored in the city, and Liu won the respect of the Guanzhong population. Xiao He ordered the collection of all legal documents in the Qin palace and government facilities for preservation.
King of Han
Feast at Swan Goose Gate
Xiang Yu disliked losing the race to Guanzhong. Acting on the advice of his adviser Fan Zeng and Cao Wushang, an informer from Liu's camp, Xiang Yu planned to assassinate Liu under the pretext of inviting him to attend a banquet at Swan Goose Gate. However, during the banquet, Xiang Yu was persuaded by his uncle Xiang Bo, who was also a close friend of Liu's adviser Zhang Liang, not to order Liu's assassination. Frustrated by the indecision, Fan Zeng ordered Xiang Yu's cousin Xiang Zhuang to pretend to perform a sword dance and find a chance to assassinate Liu. Yet, Xiang Bo intervened by joining the dance and blocking Xiang Zhuang every time he thrust his sword towards Liu. Meanwhile, Zhang Liang slipped away and summoned Fan Kuai, who arrived at the banquet in full armour and gave a speech chastising Xiang Yu for attempting to assassinate Liu despite the achievements Liu had made in overthrowing the Qin dynasty. Embarrassed by Fan's speech, Xiang Yu ordered the sword dance to stop and rewarded Fan for his bravery. Liu Bang then found a chance to escape Xiang Yu's camp by pretending to go to the latrine, and then led his troops out of Xianyang towards the west. Shortly after that, Xiang Yu led his forces into Xianyang, sacking the former Qin capital and burning the Epang Palace.Enfeoffment at Hanzhong
After occupying Xianyang, Xiang Yu proclaimed himself "Hegemon-King of Western Chu" and split the former Qin Empire into the Eighteen Kingdoms. Although Liu Bang should rightfully become the King of Guanzhong per King Huai II's earlier promise, Xiang Yu gave the Guanzhong region – divided into three kingdoms collectively known as the Three Qins – to three former Qin generals who had surrendered to him after the Battle of Julu. Liu Bang instead received the remote Bashu region as his kingdom, along with the title "King of Han". He awarded Zhang Liang some gold and precious stones, which Zhang Liang then used to bribe Xiang Yu's uncle Xiang Bo to ask Xiang Yu to grant Liu Bang the territory of Hanzhong as well.Liu and his men were then escorted across the Qinling Mountains by a detachment of Xiang Yu's forces into Hanzhong. Acting on Zhang Liang's advice, Liu destroyed the gallery roads leading into the Bashu region for strategic reasons: hinder future attacks from Xiang Yu, and make Xiang Yu believe that he had no intention of leaving Bashu after settling there.