Zhu Hong

Zhu Hong 祩 宏 Chinese Buddhist leader and anti-Jesuit. He was known as the “Master of Yunqi” , after a monastery restored in his honor. He was born in Hangzhou into a family with the surname Shen. Zhu was an excellent student, although he never succeeded along the path of officialdom. His first connection to Buddhism was that of the Pure Land variety. After failure in the official examinations he became a monk at thirty-one despite the existence of his second wife, who later became a nun. Zhu Hong died at the age of eighty-one. Zhu Hong is best remembered for his persistent hostility to Roman Catholicism. Zhu’s writings are a direct rebuttal to the Jesuit Matteo Ricci 利瑪竇. Traditional Buddhist monasticism had declined by Zhu Hong’s age. The English translation of heshang 和尚 as “monk” by the late Ming is perhaps inappropriate. A better rendition might be “priest” as it is often used in Japan to describe those specialist practitioners of funeral rites and memorial services. Zhu Hong himself complained that “Monks are also geomancers, diviners, physiognomists, physicians, gynecologists, potion makers, spirit healers and alchemists. All of the above entail the extreme demise of Buddhism .” The Jesuit entry into sixteenth century China placed them in the middle of such conditions. For Zhu Hong and other Buddhists the Jesuits were an additional headache to a long list of serious problems. Zhu Hong’s rebuttal of Catholicism was the first of a longer and ever-growing response. At the first stage of anti-Catholicism the Buddhists had a weak grasp of the religion. Zhu’s ''Tianshuo'' 天说 appeared in his ''Sanbi'' collection in 1615. Matteo Ricci’s monumental theological work ''Tienzhu shiyi'' 天主實義　　had already appeared in 1596. Zhu Hongs polemic coincided with the political appointment of Shen Que 沈隺 as vice minister of rites in Nanking and his initiation of an anti-Catholic campaign from official circles in 1616. Zhu Hongs collected essays, the ''Zhuzhuang suibi'' was written and published in three sections, the ''Chubi'' 初笔, ''Erbi'' 二笔 and the ''Sanbi'' 三笔, modeled after the classic Song period collection ''Rongzhai suibi''. Zhu Hong’s first collection was published in 1600 at age 70, the second and third at age 81 in 1615.

BOOKS

*Chun-Fang, ''Renewal of Buddhism in China: Chu-Hung & the Late Ming Synthesis'', Columbia University Press, 1981, ISBN 0231049722

ARTICLES

*Carpenter, Bruce, E. 'Buddhism and the Seventeenth Century Anti-Catholic Movement in China,'''Tezukayama University Review'' , no. 54, 1986, pp. 17-26. ISSN 0385-7743
*Yu Chun-fang in Goodrich and Fang ed., ''Dictionary of Ming Biography'', Columbia University Press, New York, 1976, vol. 1, 322-324. ISBN 0-231-03801-1

Yiduan

Yīduàn was a 12th century monk of the school of Buddhism.

Yiduan is notable for the saying "Language is a sham, silence a lie, but beyond language and silence a road goes by" .

Shi Yongxin

Shi Yongxin is the current principle abbot of the Shaolin Temple. He is the thirteenth successor after Buddhist abbot Xue Ting Fu Yu. Yongxin is not a martial abbot, but a clerical one, and his duties are scholarly; martial abbot Shi De Li is responsible for training monks at the Shaolin Temple.

A Dharma gathering was held between August 19 and 20, 1999, in the Shaolin Monastery, , China, for Buddhist Master Shi Yongxin to take office as abbot.

Yongxin wears the robes of the abbot, a yellow robe with a red sash, called a patriarch's robe. It is strictly forbidden to wear if one is not a high ranking monastic, which is applicable in all Chinese Buddhist sects. Though it is not illegal, wearing such a robe without proper training is considered offensive towards the Buddhist community.

Sengyou

Sengyou 445-518AD was a Buddhist monk, hailing from Nanjing, then called Jiankang . He became a monk at 14 at which time he studied and eventually taught the Vinaya. He is the author of the “Collected Records on the Making of the Tripitaka” a history of the early Buddhist texts.

Sanghapala

Sanghapala was a famous - monk who travelled to Southern and Northern Dynasties China to translate a lot of scriptures to .

Muqi Fachang

Muqi Fachang was a Zen Buddhist and renowned who lived in the -, around the end of the Southern Song dynasty. His surname is thought to be Xue; Muqi was a '''' or pseudonym, and Fachang a monastic name. Muqi was perhaps from the city of Kaifeng in Hunan Province. Likewise, a possibility is Sichuan. A painting bears the inscription "monk from Shu." He originally studied at the Wan-nian Monastery on Mt. Wutai. Muqi was doubtlessly drawn to the beauty of the West Lake in Hangzhou and refounded the abandoned monastery, Liutong Temple there in 1215. He is said to have been the disciple of Wujun Shifan . The monastery would have its place in the subsequent golden age of Chinese monochrome ink painting inspired by Chan Buddhism. Muqi's masterpiece was the White-robed Guanyin preserved in the temple in Kyoto, Japan. This painting and others were to have a profound influence on the subsequent development of ink painting in Japan itself. Muqi's artwork covered a wide range of subjects, including portraits, s, and still lifes. The aesthetic ideals of Muqi and other Zen Buddhist artists were overshadowed by the emerging litetati ideals of painting.　Yet even in the early Ming period his works were copied as evidenced by the c. 1400s copy of the `White Robed Guanyin` reproduced with this article and now preserved in Japan.

BOOKS

*Toda Tadasuke, ''Mokkei and Gyokkan'', Great Compendium of India Ink Paintings, vol. 3, Kodansha, 1973.

ARTICLES

*Shen Moujian, ''Encyclopedia of Chinese Artists'' , Shanghai, p.540.
*Sickman and Soper, ''The Pelican History of Art, Middlesex'', 1956, pp. 260-3.

*Jane Turner ed., ''The Dictionary of Art'', Macmillan, 1996, vol. 22, pp. 325-6.

Hai Deng

Venerable Hai Deng was a Buddhist monk, martial artist and 32nd abbot of Shaolin Temple during the 20th century. He was born Fan Wubing in Jiangyou County, Sichuan province.

At the age of 19, Fan Wubing was accepted into Sichuan University, but did not attend due to financial difficulties. Instead, he attended Sichuan Police Academy, but later dropped out in pursuit of martial arts training.

Hai Deng was famous for his ''one-finger '', one of the 72 Shaolin Arts where he supposedly supported his entire body weight on one finger.
The video of that act is considered to be fake by most western observers with knowledge of anatomy, gymnastics or power-lifting, as there are many abnormalities, and the video quality is extremely poor, which in turn would allow greater opportunity to conceal the fake. One of the most popular observations of independent observers is the fact that the fingertip during the act does not turn white, as it should invariably do, as the applied pressure would cause blood to leave the fingertip area.

Bodhiruci

A Buddhist monk and esoteric master from North India . He became very active as a teacher following his arrival in China in 508, and produced translations of 39 works in 127 fascicles, including the ''Sutra on the Ten Grounds'' and commentary, and the ''Shorter Sukhāvati Sutra'' with commentary. The former text became the chief object of study for the Ti-Lun 地論 School of which Bodhiruci is regarded as the patriarch.

Zhiyi

Zhiyi is traditionally listed as the fourth patriarch, but actually is the founder of the Tiantai tradition of Buddhism in China. Zhiyi is famous for being the first in the history of Chinese Buddhism to elaborate a complete, critical and systematic classification of the Buddhist teachings, in order to explain the seemingly contradictory doctrines of Buddhism. He is also regarded as the first major figure to make a significant break from the Indian tradition, to form an indigenous Chinese system.

Born with the Chen in Huarong, Jing Prefecture , Zhiyi left home to become a monk at eighteen, after the loss of his parents and his hometown Jiangling that fell to the Western Wei army when Zhiyi was seventeen. At 23, he received his most important influences from his first teacher, Nanyue Huisi , a meditation master who would later be listed as Zhiyi's predecessor in the Tiantai lineage. After a period of study with Huisi, he spent some time working in the southern capital of Jinling . Then in 575 he went to Tiantai mountain for intensive study and practice with a group of disciples. Here he worked on adapting the Indian meditation practice of ''zhiguan'' into a complex system of self-cultivation practice that also incorporated devotional rituals and confession/repentance rites. Then in 585 he returned to Jinling, where he completed his monumental commentarial works on the Lotus Sutra, the Fahua wenzhu , and the Fahua xuanyi .

Among his many important works are the ''Mohe zhiguan'', ''Liumiao famen'', ''Fahua wenzhu'', and ''Fahua xuanyi''. Of the works attributed to him , about thirty are extant.

holds that Chih-i: "...provided a religious framework which seemed suited to adapt to other cultures, to evolve new practices, and to universalize Buddhism."

Chih-i and Bodhidharma were contemporaneous, though Chih-i had royal patronage whilst Bodhidharma did not.

Four Samadhi

Chih-i developed a curriculum of practice which was distilled into the 'Four Samadhi' . These Four Samadhi were expounded in Zhiyi's 'Mo-ho chi-kuan' . The ''Mo-ho chi-kuan'' is the magnum opus of Zhiyi's maturity and is held to be a "grand summary" of the Buddhist Tradition according to his experience and understanding at that time. The text of the ''Mo-ho chi-kuan'' was refined from lectures Chih-i gave in 594 in the capital city of Chin-ling and was the sum of his experience at Mount T’ien-t’ai c.585 and inquiry thus far. Parsing the title, 'chih' holds the semantic field of "ch’an meditation and the concentrated and quiescent state attained thereby" and 'kuan' holds the semantic field of "contemplation and the wisdom attained thereby" . Swanson reports that Chih-i held that there are two modes of 'chih-kuan': that of sitting in meditation 坐, and that of “responding to objects in accordance with conditions” 歴縁対境, which is further refined as abiding in the natural state of a calm and insightful mind under any and all activities and conditions.

Swanson in linking "chih" with ''?amatha'' and "kuan" with ''vipa?yanā'', states that Chih-i in the ''Mo-ho chi-kuan'':

...is critical of an unbalanced emphasis on “meditation alone,” portraying it as a possible “extreme” view and practice, and offering instead the binome chih-kuan 止観 as a more comprehensive term for Buddhist practice.


The 'Samadhi of One Practice' which is also known as the 'samadhi of oneness' or the "calmness in which one realizes that all dharmas are the same" , is one of the ''Four Samadhi'' that both refine, mark the passage to, and qualify the state of perfect enlightenment expounded in the ''Mo-ho chi-kuan''. The 'Samadhi of Oneness' was also developed further by Tao-hsin 道.

The Four Samadhi:
*'Samadhi of Constant Sitting' or 'One Round Samadhi' ;
*'Pratyutpanna-samadhi' or 'Prolonged Samadhi' or 'Samadhi of Constant Walking' ;
*'Samadhi of Half Walking and Half Sitting'
*'Samadhi at Free Will' or 'Samadhi of Non-walking and Non-sitting'

Print

* ; Heisig, James W. & Knitter, Paul . ''Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 1: India and China''. World Wisdom. ISBN-13: 978-0-941532-89-1
* Donner, Neal & Daniel B. Stevenson . ''The Great Calming and Contemplation''. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press.
* Hurvitz, Leon . ''Chih-i : An Introduction to the Life and Ideas of a Chinese Buddhist Monk''. Mélanges Chinois et Couddhiques XII, Bruxelles: Institut Belge des Hautes ?tudes Chinoises.

Electronic

* Chappell, David W. . 'Is Tendai Buddhism Relevant to the Modern World?' in ''Japanese Journal of Religious Studies'' 1987 14/2-3. Source: ; accessed: Saturday August 16, 2008
* Dumoulin, Heinrich . "Early Chinese Zen Reexamined ~ A Supplement to 'Zen Buddhism: A History'" in ''Japanese Journal of Religious Studies'' 1993 20/1. Source:
* Swanson, Paul L. . ''Ch’an and Chih-kuan: T’ien-t’ai Chih-i’s View of “Zen” and the Practice of the Lotus Sutra''. Presented at the International Lotus Sutra Conference on the theme “The Lotus Sutra and Zen”, 11-16 July 2002. Source:
* Sheng-Yen, Master . ''Tso-Ch'an''. Source: ;

Yang Xuanzhi

Yang Xuanzhi was a writer and translator of Mahayana Buddhist texts into the Chinese language, during the 6th century, under the Northern Wei Dynasty.

He wrote "Stories About Buddhist Temples in Luoyang" in 547.

Yang Xuanzhi relates the first introduction of Buddhism to China around :
:''"The establishment of the Baima Temple by Emperor Ming of the Han marked the introduction of Buddhism into China. The temple was located on the south side of the Imperial Drive, three leagues outside the Xiyang Gate. The Emperor dreamt of the golden man sixteen Chinese feet tall, with the aureole of sun and moon radiating from his head and his neck. A "golden god", he was known as Buddha. The emperor dispatched envoys to the Western Regions in search of the god, and, as a result, acquired Buddhist scriptures and images. At the time, because the scriptures were carried into China on the backs of white horses, White Horse was adopted as the name of the temple."'' .

His book also contains the first known account of the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma, founder of Zen, whom he met in Luoyang around 520. He describes him as a man of Central Asian origin, who claims to be 150 years old and to have traveled extensively throughout Buddhist lands. He also wrote that Bodhidharma expressed praise for the beauty of the Buddhist temples in Luoyang, and that he chanted the name of the frequently:

: "''Seeing the golden disks at the top of the monastery's stupa reflecting in the sun, the rays of light illuminating the surface of the clouds, the jewel-bells on the stupa blowing in the wind, the echoes reverberating beyond the heavens, Bodhidharma sang its praises. He exclaimed: "Truly this is the work of spirits." He said: "I am 150 years old, and I have passed through numerous countries. There is virtually no country I have not visited. But even in India there is nothing comparable to the pure beauty of this monastery. Even the distant Buddha realms lack this." He chanted homage and placed his palms together in salutation for days on end.''"
: ...
: "''Hsiu-Fan Monastery had a statue of a fierce thunderbolt bearer guarding the gate. Pigeons and doves would neither fly through the gate nor roost upon it. Bodhidharma said: "That catches its true character!"''"

Tuoba Huang

Tuoba Huang , formally Crown Prince Jingmu , later further formally honored as Emperor Jingmu with the temple name Gongzong by his son , was a crown prince of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. He was the oldest son of , and was created crown prince in 432 at the age of four, and as he grew older, Emperor Taiwu transferred more and more authority to him. However, in 451, he incurred the wrath of his father due to false accusations of the eunuch Zong Ai, and many of his associates were put to death. He himself grew ill in fear, and died that year.

Early life

Tuoba Huang was born in 428, as Emperor Taiwu's oldest son. His mother's name was render as Consort He , but since both the Helan and Helai clans later changed their names to He , it is unclear whether her name was Helan or Helai. She died the year that she gave birth to him, suggesting that she might have died in childbirth, but there is no conclusive evidence that it happened.

In 432, Emperor Taiwu created Tuoba Huang crown prince, at the same time that he created one of his consorts, , empress. He became a highly ranked official in his father's administration that same year, although, at age four, the position was likely nominal. In 433, Emperor Taiwu tried to negotiate a marriage between Crown Prince Huang and one of the daughters of Emperor Wen of Liu Song, but Emperor Wen, while not immediately rejecting the proposal, did not agree either.

In 439, when Emperor Taiwu was on a campaign to conquer Northern Liang, he had Crown Prince Huang assume imperial authority at the capital Pingcheng , assisted by the high-ranking official Qiumuling Shou , to guard against a Rouran attack. However, Qiumuling, not believing that Rouran would actually attack, took little actual precautions, and when Rouran's Chilian Khan Yujiulü Wuti attacked, Pingcheng was caught nearly defenseless. Qiumuling wanted to escort Crown Prince Huang to the hills south of Pingcheng and take up defense position there, but at the opposition of Emperor Taiwu's wet nurse Empress Dowager Dou, Crown Prince Huang remained in Pingcheng, and when Northern Wei forces subsequently defeated Rouran forces, Yujiulü Wuti was forced to withdraw.

By 442, Crown Prince Huang appeared to be already a devout Buddhist, and when his father, at the suggestion of Cui and the Taoist monk Kou Qianzhi, built the very high and difficult-to-construct Jinglun Palace , he tried to oppose on account of cost, but Emperor Taiwu did not agree.

In 443, Crown Prince Huang accompanied his father on a campaign against Rouran, and when theysuddenly encountered Yujiulü Wuti, Crown Prince Huang advised an immediate attack, but Emperor Taiwu hesitated, allowing Yujiulü Wuti to escape. From that point on, Emperor Taiwu began to listen to Crown Prince Huang's advice in earnest, and in winter 443, he authorized Crown Prince Huang to carry out all imperial duties except the most important ones, under assistance from Qiumuling, Cui, Zhang Li , and Tuxi Bi . Crown Prince Huang soon instituted a policy to encourage farming -- by mandatorily requiring those who had extra cattle to loan them to those without, to be animals of burden, with the lease being paid for by those without cattle by tilling the grounds of the cattle owners, increasing the efficiency of the farmlands greatly.

After Emperor Taiwu's partial transfer of authority

In 446, while Emperor Taiwu was attacking the Xiongnu rebel Gai Wu , he found a large number of weapons in Buddhist temples in Chang'an. Believing that the monks were aligned with Gai, he slaughtered the monks in Chang'an. Cui Hao used this opportunity to encourage Emperor Taiwu to slaughter all monks throughout the empire and destroy the temples, statues, and sutras, and notwithstanding Kou Qianzhi's opposition, Emperor Taiwu proceeded to slaughter the monks in Chang'an, destroy the statues, and burn the sutras. He then issued an empire-wide prohibition of Buddhism. Crown Prince Huang, however, used delaying tactics in promulgating the edict, allowing Buddhists to flee or hide, but it was said that not a single Buddhist temple remained standing in Northern Wei. This was the first of the Three Disasters of Wu.

By 450, Crown Prince Huang appeared to be in direct conflict with Cui over administration of the state. When Cui recommended a number of men to be commandery governors, Crown Prince Huang objected strenuously, and yet the men were commissioned over his objection at Cui's insistence. It appeared that Crown Prince Huang had a hand when, later in 450, Cui was put to death with his entire clan, on account of having defamed imperial ancestors, as Crown Prince Huang argued hard to spare one of Cui's staff members, , and during that process, Gao gave some statements regarding Cui that could be viewed either as exculpatory or inculpatory.

In fall of 450, when Liu Song's Emperor Wen sent his general Wang Xuanmo to attack Huatai , Emperor Taiwu personally led an army to relieve Huatai, and subsequently, after defeating Wang, advanced deeply into Liu Song territory, all the way to the Yangtze River. During Emperor Taiwu's campaign against Liu Song, pursuant to his instructions, Crown Prince Huang was on the northern border, defending against a potential Rouran attack.

Death and aftermaths

Crown Prince Huang was described to be high observant, but trusting of his associates and also spending much effort on managing orchards and farms, to earn money from them. Gao Yun tried to advise him against engaging in commercial ventures and in overly delegating authorities, but he did not listen. Rather, in 451, he became embroiled in a conflict with the eunuch Zong Ai, whose corruption he had found out and whom he disliked immensely. Zong, apprehensive that Crown Prince Huang's trusted associates Chouni Daosheng and Ren Pingcheng would accuse him of crimes, acted preemptorily and accused Chouni and Ren of crimes. In anger, Emperor Taiwu executed Chouni and Ren, and many other associates of Crown Prince Huang were entangled in the case and executed as well. In fear, Crown Prince Huang became ill and died.

Emperor Taiwu soon became aware that Crown Prince Huang was not involved in any crimes, and he regretted his actions greatly. Around the new year 451, he created Crown Prince Huang's oldest son the Prince of Gaoyang, but soon removed that title on the account that the crown prince's oldest son should not be a mere imperial prince -- a strong sign that he was intending to create Tuoba Jun crown prince eventually. Zong, in fear that Emperor Taiwu would punish him, assassinated Emperor Taiwu in spring 452, and then seized power, killing a number of officials and Crown Prince Huang's younger brother Tuoba Han the Prince of Dongping, while making another younger brother of Crown Prince Huang's, Tuoba Yu the Prince of Nan'an emperor. Zong controlled the imperial regime, and when Tuoba Yu tried to assert his own power in fall 452, Zong assassinated him as well. Officials led by Yuan He, Baba Kehou , Dugu Ni , and Buliugu Li rose against Zong and killed him, making Tuoba Jun emperor, and Tuoba Jun, after he took the throne as Emperor Wencheng, posthumously honored Tuoba Huang as an emperor.

Personal information

* Father
** Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei
* Mother
** Consort Helai or Helan , posthumously honored as Empress Jing'ai
* Major Concubines
** Consort Yujiulü, sister of Yujiulü Pi the Prince of Hedong , mother of Prince Jun, posthumously honored as Empress Gong
** Consort Yuan, mother of Prince Xincheng
** Consort Weichi, mother of Princes Zitui and Xiaoxincheng
** Consort Yang, mother of Prince Tianci
** Consort Meng, mother of Prince Yun
** Consort Dugu, mother of Princes Zhen and Changshou
** Consort Murong, mother of Prince Tailuo
** Consort Weichi, mother of Prince Hu'er
** Consort Meng, mother of Prince Xiu
* Children
** Tuoba Jun , initially created the Prince of Gaoyang , later Emperor Wencheng of Northern Wei
** Tuoba Xincheng , Prince You of Yangping
** Tuoba Zitui , Prince Kang of Jingzhao
** Tuoba Xiaoxincheng , the Prince of Huaiyin
** Tuoba Tianci , Prince Ling of Ruiyin
** Tuoba Wanshou , Prince Li of Lelang
** Tuoba Luohou , Prince Shang of Guangping
** Tuoba Yun , Prince Kang of Rencheng
** Tuoba Zhen , Prince Hui of Nan'an
** Tuoba Changshou , Prince Kang of Chengyang
** Tuoba Tailuo , Prince Jing of Zhangwu
** Tuoba Hu'er , Prince Kang of Leling
** Tuoba Xiu , Prince Jing of Anding
** Tuoba Shen , the Prince of Zhao, died early
** Princess Anle
** Princess Boling

Gao Yun (Northern Wei)

Gao Yun , courtesy name Bogong , formally Duke Wen of Xianyang , was an official during the reigns of five emperors of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei.

Service under Emperor Taiwu and Tuoba Yu

Gao Yun was born in 390, while his home commandery of Bohai was under Later Yan rule, and his father Gao Tao served as a low-level official in the administration of Later Yan's founding emperor Murong Chui. After Northern Wei's seized most of Later Yan territory in 397, he commissioned Gao Tao as an official, but Gao Tao soon died. Gao Yun took the caskets of his grandfather Gao Tai and his father Gao Tao back to Bohai Commandery and, after giving his inheritance to his two younger brothers, briefly became a Buddhist monk with the name Fajing , but soon thereafter gave up the monastical lifestyle. He studied astronomy and astrology, as well as the ''Spring and Autumn Annals''. He served as a commandery official as well.

In 430, when he was already 40, Gao Yun served on the staff of 's uncle Duguhun Chao the Prince of Yangping, and he became known for his honesty in judging criminal matters. In 431, he was summoned to the capital Pingcheng , and he then served successively on the staffs of Emperor Taiwu's brothers Tuoba Fan the Prince of Le'an and Tuoba Pi the Prince of Leping. It was after assisting Tuoba Pi in a campaign that he was created the Baron of Wenyang. Around 440, the powerful prime minister Cui Hao added Gao to his staff, as he began to compile a history of the Northern Wei state. It was also around this time that he had a debate about astrology with Cui, and while Cui, himself an astrology scholar, initially disagreed with Gao's opinions, he eventually came to accept Gao's opinions.

What Cui did not accept Gao's opinions on was how Cui was approaching his relationship with Emperor Taiwu's crown prince Tuoba Huang, as Cui, against Crown Prince Huang's opinion, was recommending a large number of people to be commandery governors, over those that Crown Prince Huang believed should be promoted. When Gao heard this, he stated, "It will be difficult for Cui Hao to avoid disaster. How will he be able to afford to oppose those more powerful than he, just to satisfy his own desires?"

Further, In 450, at the suggestion of his staff members Min Dan and Chi Biao , Cui carved the text of the histories that he was the lead editor of onto stone tablets, and erected the tablets next to the altars to Heaven outside of Pingcheng. The tablets were said to have revealed much about Emperor Taiwu's ancestors, and the Xianbei were very angry, accusing Cui of revealing the ancestors' faults and damaging the image of the state. Emperor Taiwu, in anger, arrested Cui.

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Huang, wanting to spare Gao, brought him into the palace, and asked Gao to blame all of the writing on Cui. Gao, instead, ascribed the authorship of the various parts of histories as such:

* The biography of Emperor Daowu was written by Deng Yuan.
* The biographies of Emperor Mingyuan and Emperor Taiwu were written jointly by Cui and Gao, but Gao said that he actually wrote about two thirds.

Emperor Taiwu was initially going to put Gao to death as well, but then was said to be impressed by Gao's admission and spared him, also at Crown Prince Huang's urging. He then summoned Cui, and Cui was said to be so fearful that he was not able to respond. Emperor Taiwu then ordered Gao to draft an edict for him, ordering that Cui and Cui's staff -- 128 men in total -- be executed, along with five family branches each. Gao refused -- stating that not even Cui should be executed. Emperor Taiwu, in anger, was going to put Gao to death as well, but Crown Prince Huang again pleaded for Gao, and Gao was again spared, and in fact, Emperor Taiwu reduced the number of people to be executed. However, Emperor Taiwu still ordered a great slaughter of people related to Cui. Cui's staff members themselves were executed, although not their families.

After Cui's death, Gao continued to serve in the imperial administration, and he appeared to serve on Crown Prince Huang's staff. Crown Prince Huang was described to be high observant, but trusting of his associates and also spending much effort on managing orchards and farms, to earn money from them. Gao Yun tried to advise him against engaging in commercial ventures and in overly delegating authorities, but he did not listen. Rather, in 451, he became embroiled in a conflict with the eunuch Zong Ai, whose corruption he had found out and whom he disliked immensely. Zong, apprehensive that Crown Prince Huang's trusted associates Chouni Daosheng and Ren Pingcheng would accuse him of crimes, acted preemptorily and accused Chouni and Ren of crimes. In anger, Emperor Taiwu executed Chouni and Ren, and many other associates of Crown Prince Huang were entangled in the case and executed as well. In fear, Crown Prince Huang became ill and died. Gao became greatly saddened, and when he met with Emperor Taiwu, he could say nothing but wept. In 452, after Emperor Taiwu began to regret the events leading to Crown Prince Huang's death, Zong became apprehensive and assassinated Emperor Taiwu, making Emperor Taiwu's youngest son Tuoba Yu the Prince of Nan'an emperor. Later that year, however, he assassinated Tuoba Yu as well, and then was overthrown and killed by the officials Dugu Ni , Yuan He, Baba Kehou , and Buliugu Li, who made Tuoba Huang's son emperor . It was said that Gao was involved in their plot as well, but unlike the others, his role was hidden and he went unrewarded, and he did not reveal his role during his lifetime, either.

Service under Emperor Wencheng

During Emperor Wencheng's reign, Gao Yun appeared to gradually gain power, and one characteristic that Emperor Wencheng stated that he appreciated Gao for was that he often counseled Emperor Wencheng -- sometimes harshly -- in private, and Emperor Wencheng said that by counseling in private, he avoided embarrassing the emperor while giving the emperor good advice. In 458, after successfully persuading Emperor Wencheng to stop palace construction projects that Emperor Wencheng's attendant Guo Shanming had encouraged the emperor to carry out, Gao was promoted to the high level position of ''Zhongshuling'' , and after Buliugu Li alerted Emperor Wencheng to the fact that Gao's household was poor , gave Gao a large stipend. Further, honoring Gao's position as a senior official, Emperor Wencheng referred to him as "Lord Ling" rather than by name.

Service under Emperor Xianwen

After Emperor Wencheng's death in 465, his son became emperor, but the power was controlled by the dictatorial official Yifu Hun, who killed a large number of other officials. In 466, Emperor Wencheng's wife staged a coup and overthrew Yifu, taking over herself as regent. She engaged Gao Yun, along with Gao Lü and Jia Xiu to be part of her decision-making circle. Later that year, based on the proposal of Gao Yun and Li Xin , schools began to be set up at the commandery level to promote learning.

Emperor Xianwen assumed full imperial powers in 467, at the age of 13. Gao continued to be in an honored position, and in 471, when Emperor Xianwen considered yielding the throne to his uncle Tuoba Zitui the Prince of Jingzhao, Gao was one of the officials whose opinions he consulted, and contrary to the other officials, who used harsh words in opposing the idea and instead proposing the idea of Emperor Xianwen yielding the throne to his son and crown prince , Gao spoke in more philosophical terms:

:''I dare not speak more, but I bless Your Imperial Majesty in this way: consider the important responsibilities that the ancestors gave you, and also consider the precedence of the Duke of Zhou assisting the young King Cheng of Zhou.''

Emperor Xianwen took this to be a suggestion to pass the throne to his son as well, and accepted it. The four-year-old Crown Prince Hong became emperor , although Emperor Xianwen continued to be control of the government as ''Taishang Huang'' .

Service under Emperor Xiaowen

After Emperor Xiaowen took the throne, Gao Yun resumed the work on Northern Wei's history that Cui Hao had started, although he did not expend his full effort on the matter. He later recommended Gao Lü to succeed him in the matter. Meanwhile, for his contributions, he was created the Duke of Xianyang and made the governor of Huai Province . He requested to be retired in 478, but briefly he was recalled back to the capital Pingcheng, where he was given the special privilege of being allowed to ride a wagon into the palace and not having to bow to the emperor due to his old age. As of 479, he was said to be still of clear mind and was involved in a major reorganization of the laws. Because Emperor Xiaowen felt that Gao was poor materially and had little entertainment, he sent the imperial musicians to Gao's house every five days to entertain him, and supplied Gao with food and clothing. Whenever Gao would meet with the emperor, the emperor also prepared a cane and a small table to help him. Gao was said to have been healthy throughout his life, and in 487, after a very brief illness, he died. It was said that the imperial awards given at his death were unprecedented.

Empress Yuan Humo

Empress Yuan Humo was an empress of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Zhou .

Yuan Humo was the fifth daughter of Emperor Wen of Western Wei, and she carried the title Princess Jin'an during the reigns of her father and her brothers Emperor Fei of Western Wei and Emperor Gong of Western Wei. Sometime after Yuwen Jue, the son and heir of then-paramount general Yuwen Tai, was created the Duke of Lüeyang in 550, she married Yuwen Jue as his duchess. After Yuwen Tai died in 556, Yuwen Jue inherited his titles, under the guardianship of Yuwen Tai's nephew Yuwen Hu. In spring 557, Yuwen Hu forced Duchess Yuan's brother Emperor Gong to yield the throne to Yuwen Jue, ending Western Wei and establishing Northern Zhou. Emperor Xiaomin, then carrying the title of Heavenly Prince, created her as his princess.

Later in 557, Emperor Xiaomin, unhappy about Yuwen Hu's hold on power, tried to have him killed. The news of the plot leaked, and Yuwen Hu deposed Emperor Xiaomin and replaced him with another son of Yuwen Tai, . Soon, he had Yuwen Jue put to death. He also forced Princess Yuan to become a Buddhist nun. After another brother of Emperor Xiaomin, killed Yuwen Hu in 572, he posthumously honored Emperor Xiaomin as emperor and honored her as empress, housing her at Chongyi Palace . She left the palace after Northern Zhou's throne was seized by Emperor Wen of Sui in 581 and lived in a private residence. She died in 616, during the reign of Emperor Wen's son Emperor Yang of Sui.

Empress Yifu

Empress Yifu , formally Empress Wen , was an empress of the /Xianbei state Western Wei -- a branch successor state of Northern Wei. Her husband was .

Background

Her ancestors were ancestral chiefs of a branch tribe of Tuyuhun, and later became vassals of Northern Wei. After Northern Wei conquered Northern Liang in 439, her great-great-grandfather Yifu Mogui led his tribe into Northern Wei and became a Northern Wei general. For three generations following his, the Yifus married Northern Wei princesses, and their daughters often married Northern Wei imperial princes. Her father Yifu Yuan was a provincial governor, and her mother was the Princess Huaiyang, a daughter of .

In 525, when she was 15, she married Yuan Baoju, who was then 21 and a general under his cousin , but who carried no noble title because his father Yuan Yu the Prince of Jingzhao had had his title stripped posthumously after dying in a rebellion. In 535, after Northern Wei had split into Eastern Wei and Western Wei, he was made emperor by the general Yuwen Tai after the death of his cousin . He created her empress and created her son crown prince.

As empress

As empress, Empress Yifu was said to be frugal, avoiding extravagant clothing, jewelry, and food, often eating just vegetables. She was also said to be kind and tolerant and never jealous, and Emperor Wen respected her greatly. She bore him 12 children, although only Yuan Qin and Yuan Wu the Prince of Wudu survived infancy.

In 538, with Western Wei occupied with wars against Eastern Wei and unable to fend itself against attacks by Rouran, Yuwen Tai wanted to further relationships with Rouran through an imperial marriage. He first had Emperor Wen create the daughter of the official Yuan Yi as the Princess Huazheng and marry her to the Rouran Chiliantoubingdoufa Khan Yujiulü Anagui's brother Yujiulü Tahan , and then further asked Emperor Wen to marry . Emperor Wen was forced to agree. He deposed Empress Yifu and made her become a Buddhist nun, and he created Yujiulü Anagui's daughter empress.

Death

Even though Empress Yifu had been deposed and made a nun, however, Empress Yujiulü was still jealous of her. To avoid conflict, in 540, Emperor Wen made Yuan Wu the governor of Qin Province , and had Empress Yifu accompany Yuan Wu to his post. Emperor Wen, still harboring love for her in his heart, secretly requested that she start keeping her hair uncut so that he could eventually welcome her back to the palace. Unfortunately, around the same time, Rouran launched a major attack against Western Wei, and a number of officials believed that the Rouran attack was made on behalf of Empress Yujiulü. Emperor Wen, with the officials pressuring him, sent his eunuch Cao Chong to Qin Province to order Empress Yifu to commit suicide. She made the comment to Cao:

:''May it be that His Imperial majesty live for a thousand years, and the empire is happy and calm. I do not have regrets about death.''

She then committed suicide, and was buried with honors due an empress, albeit not near the capital Chang'an, but instead at the Maiji Cliffs , near Shanggui the capital of Qin Province. It was not until later, when Yuan Qin was emperor, that she was reburied with Emperor Wen.

Empress Ruogan

Empress Ruogan was an empress of the /Xianbei state Western Wei -- a branch successor state of Northern Wei. Her husband was , the final emperor of the state.

She was the daughter of the general Ruogan Hui . She was said to be beautiful, and when Yuan Kuo was the Prince of Qi, he married her as his princess. In 554, after the paramount general Yuwen Tai deposed his brother , Yuwen made him emperor, and he created her empress. In 556, after Yuwen Tai's death, Yuwen Tai's nephew Yuwen Hu forced Emperor Gong to yield the throne to Yuwen Tai's son , ending Western Wei and starting Northern Zhou. The former emperor was killed in 557, and the former empress became a Buddhist nun. She died while still being a nun, although historical records did not mention when she died. For reasons unknown, Northern Zhou did not award her a posthumous name.

Empress Li Zu'e

Empress Li Zu'e was an empress of the dynasty Northern Qi, known at times semi-formally as Empress Zhaoxin . Her husband was .

Li Zu'e was the daughter of Li Xizong , and she was from Zhao Commandery . She was ethnically . The date that she married Gao Yang, the second son of Eastern Wei's paramount general Gao Huan, is not known, but it is known that at that time, he was the Duke of Taiyuan during the reign of his brother-in-law, Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei -- and she carried the title of Duchess of Taiyuan. She bore him two sons, , and Gao Shaode . In 549, Gao Yang took over the regency of Eastern Wei after his older brother, Gao Cheng, was assassinated by the servant Lan Jing . In 550, he forced Emperor Xiaojing to yield the throne to him, ending Eastern Wei and establishing Northern Qi .

Emperor Wenxuan, before he became emperor, also had another key consort -- his concubine Lady Duan, the sister of his cousin and the powerful official Duan Shao . The officials Gao Longzhi and Gao Dezheng , wanting to ingratiate themselves with Duan Shao, suggested that a Han woman should not be allowed to be empress. Emperor Wenxuan rejected their suggestion and created Li Zu'e empress, and only created Lady Duan an imperial consort. Emperor Wenxuan also created Empress Li's son Gao Yin crown prince. Emperor Wenxuan was violent and capricious in his behavior, fueled by his alcoholism. Once, when visiting Empress Li's household, he fired an arrow at Empress Li's mother, stating, 'When I am drunk, I do not even recognize my own mother. Who do you think you are?" However, despite Emperor Wenxuan's violent behavior -- which included battering his concubines and sometimes even killing them -- he remained respectful of Empress Li herself. In 559, he also began to have her referred to as both ''Kehedun'' and empress.

Emperor Wenxuan died in 559, and Gao Yin succeeded to the throne as Emperor Fei. Empress Li became empress dowager. However, the political climate of the time was uncertain, as there were suspicions that Emperor Wenxuan's mother, , would encourage her sons the Prince of Changshan or the Prince of Changguang to seize the throne. The prime minister Yang Yin, believing that the young Emperor Fei was being endangered, discussed a plan with Empress Dowager Li to gradually strip Gao Yan and Gao Dan of power. Empress Li discussed the plan with her lady-in-waiting Li Changyi , who subsequently revealed the plan to Grand Empress Dowager Lou, who in turn relayed the news to Gao Yan and Gao Dan. The two princes responded by arresting and executing Yang and his associates Kezhuhun Daoyuan , Song Qindao , and Yan Zixian . Gao Yan and Gao Dan took over the reins of government, and Empress Dowager Li lost her remaining authority. Six months later, by Grand Empress Dowager Lou's decree, Emperor Fei was deposed, and Gao Yan became emperor . Empress Dowager Li lost her empress dowager title, and became known as Empress Zhaoxin, because she resided at Zhaoxin Palace. In 561, Emperor Xiaozhao killed her son Gao Yin the former emperor.

Emperor Xiaozhao died in 561, and Gao Dan became emperor . Some time after Emperor Wucheng's taking the throne, he began to force Empress Li to have a sexual relationship with him -- threatening her that he would kill her son Gao Shaode if she did not agree. Eventually, she became pregnant, and in shame, she began to refuse seeing Gao Shaode. Gao Shaode found out that she was pregnant and became indignant. In shame, when she bore a daughter in 562, she threw the infant away, causing the child's death. When Emperor Wucheng found out, he became angry, and he stated, "Because you killed my daughter, I will kill your son." He summoned Gao Shaode and, in her presence, beat him to death with the hilt of a sword. She cried bitterly, and Emperor Wucheng, in anger, stripped her and pounded her. She suffered severe injuries, but eventually recovered, and Emperor Wucheng expelled her from the palace to be a Buddhist nun.

In 577, Northern Qi was destroyed by its rival, Northern Zhou. Empress Li followed the Emperor Wucheng's son Gao Wei, the penultimate emperor, to the Northern Zhou capital Chang'an, where the members of Northern Qi's imperial Gao clan were slaughtered later that year. After Northern Zhou's own destruction in 581, Emperor Wen of Sui permitted her to leave Chang'an, and she returned to her home in Zhao Commandery. Nothing further is known about her, including the date of her death.

Empress Gao (Xuanwu)

Empress Gao was an empress of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. She was the second empress of .

She was the daughter of Gao Yan , a younger brother of Emperor Xuanwu's mother Consort Gao , making them cousins. It is not clear when she became his concubine, but it was likely after he already had his first empress, , in 501. Once she became a consort, she was said to have gotten his favor, and with her uncle Gao Zhao being a powerful official, it was believed, when Empress Yu died in 507, and Empress Yu's son Yuan Chang died in 508, that she and/or Gao Zhao was involved, although there is no conclusive evidence. She was created empress in 508 to replace Empress Yu. She was said to be extremely jealous, and few imperial consorts were able to have sexual relations with the emperor. She herself bore him a son who died early, and a daughter, later created the Princess Jiande. In 510, however, Emperor Xuanwu's concubine bore him a son, Yuan Xu , and because Emperor Xuanwu had apparently lost sons before in addition to Yuan Chang and Empress Gao's son, he decided to raise his son by choosing wet nurses who had experience raising many of their own children, and refused to let either Empress Gao or Consort Hu near the child. In 512, Emperor Xuanwu created Yuan Xu crown prince.

In 515, Emperor Xuanwu grew ill, and died just three days later. He was succeeded by Crown Prince Xu , who was then only five. In the aftermaths of Emperor Xuanwu's death, Empress Gao wanted to put Consort Hu to death, but Consort Hu was protected by the eunuchs Liu Teng and Hou Gang and the officials Yu Zhong and Cui Guang and avoided being killed. The officials were largely opposed to having Gao Zhao, who was then prime minister but was commanding an army in attacking rival Liang Dynasty's Yi Province , be regent, and forced Empress Gao to instead authorize Emperor Xuanwu's uncles Yuan Yong the Prince of Gaoyang and Yuan Cheng the Prince of Rencheng serve as regents. She was honored as empress dowager. Once Gao Zhao arrived back at the capital, however, he was quickly arrested and killed by the imperial princes, and Empress Dowager Gao was stripped of her title and forced to Yaoguang Temple to be a Buddhist nun. She was not allowed into the palace except for major festivals. Subsequently, Emperor Xiaoming's mother Consort Hu was honored as empress dowager and assumed regency.

In 518, there was an occasion where the former Empress Dowager Gao was visiting her mother, the Lady Wuyi. At that time, there were astronomical anomalies that court astrologers believed to correspond to ill fortune for the empress dowager. Empress Dowager Hu decided that she could deflect the ill fortune onto Empress Dowager Gao, and therefore had her murdered—but the method of the murder is lost to history. She was buried with ceremony due a Buddhist nun, although the high level officials attended the ceremony.

Empress Feng Run

Empress Feng Run , formally Empress You was an empress of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. She was the second empress of .

Feng Run was a daughter of Feng Xi the Prince of Changli, who was a brother of the powerful , the wife of and regent over his son and grandson Emperor Xiaowen. Her mother was Feng Xi's concubine Lady Chang. When she was 13, Grand Empress Dowager Feng selected her and a sister of hers to be Emperor Xiaowen's concubines. Both were favored by Emperor Xiaowen, but her sister soon died of an illness, and she herself grew ill and was sent back to her home. She subsequently became a Buddhist nun, but was said to have been sexually immoral during this timespan as well.

In 493, Feng Run's younger sister by a different mother , , became Emperor Xiaowen's empress. Subsequently, Emperor Xiaowen, perhaps through Feng Qing, found out that Feng Run had recovered from her illness, and took her back into the palace as an imperial consort, with the title ''Zhaoyi'' . She became Emperor Xiaowen's favorite again. Because Feng Run was Emperor Xiaowen's concubine earlier and was an older sister, she refused to submit to Feng Qing and tried to undermine Feng Qing's position as an empress, including accusing Feng Qing of disobeying Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization regime. In 496, Emperor Xiaowen deposed Feng Qing, and in 497, he created Feng Run empress.

Because Emperor Xiaowen often spent his time on the frontlines battling rival Southern Qi, he was not often at the palace in the capital Luoyang. Empress Feng therefore carried on an affair with her attendant Gao Pusa . With the eunuch Shuang Meng protecting her, few knew or dared to say anything about the affair, and when her attendant Ju Peng tried to counsel her to stop the affair, she would not, and Ju died in fear and anger. At the same time, however, Empress Feng tried to force Emperor Xiaowen's sister Princess Pengcheng (who had been widowed after the death of her husband Liu Chengxu , to marry her brother Feng Su . Emperor Xiaowen approved of the marriage, Princess Pengcheng was unwilling to marry Feng Su, so she fled out of Luoyang and sought out Emperor Xiaowen on the frontline, revealing to him Empress Feng's affair with Gao. Emperor Xiaowen was initially unwilling to believe the accusation and kept it secret, but Empress Feng became nervous and, along with her mother Lady Chang, engaged witches to try to curse Emperor Xiaowen, who was already ill by this time, to death.

However, Emperor Xiaowen did not die, and after he returned to Luoyang in 499, he interrogated Gao and Shuang, and both admitted. He then summoned Empress Feng and confronted her with Gao and Shuang's testimony—at an interrogation that no one else other than himself was at. After he finished the interrogation, he then summoned his brothers Yuan Xie the Prince of Pengcheng and Yuan Xiang the Prince of Beihai, stating to them, "She used to be your sister-in-law, but treat her now as a passerby, and you need not avoid her." Emperor Xiaowen then stated, "This woman wanted to stick a knife in my ribs. Because she is a daughter of Empress Dowager Wenming's clan, I cannot depose her, but I hope that one day she will find her conscience and kill herself. Do not believe that I have any remaining feelings for her." After the two princes exited, Emperor Xiaowen gave her a final goodbye, indicating that he would not see her again. The concubines still greeted her as empress, but Emperor Xiaowen ordered his crown prince not to see her again as well. When Emperor Xiaowen sent eunuchs to give her instructions on certain matters, she rebuked the eunuchs, stating that she was an empress and would not take instructions from eunuchs. In anger, Emperor Xiaowen sent a cane to her mother Lady Chang, and Lady Chang was forced to cane Empress Feng herself as punishment.

Later that year, Emperor Xiaowen grew seriously ill, and he left instructions to Yuan Xie to force Empress Feng to commit suicide after his own death, but to bury her with imperial honors still to avoid shame to the Feng clan. He then died, and Yuan Xie sent the palace official Bai Zheng to give her poison. Empress Feng refused to drink the poison, stating, "My husband did not make such an order! It is the princess who wants to kill me." Bai seized her physically and forced poisonous peppers into her mouth, and she died. She was buried with imperial honors with her husband.

Empress Feng Qing

Empress Feng Qing was an empress of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. She was 's first empress.

Feng Qing was a daughter of Feng Xi the Prince of Changli, who was a brother of the powerful , the wife of and regent over his son and grandson Emperor Xiaowen. Her mother was probably Feng Xi's wife Princess Boling. She had two older sisters who were concubines of Emperor Xiaowen -- and an unnamed sister, but the unnamed sister died early, and after Feng Run had a major illness, she left the palace and became a Buddhist nun.

In 493, Emperor Xiaowen took Feng Qing as his empress. She initially was much favored. However, after Emperor Xiaowen found out that Feng Run had recovered, he took Feng Run back as a concubine. Feng Run, because she was Emperor Xiaowen's concubine earlier and an older sister, refused to submit to Feng Qing, and tried to undermine Feng Qing's position as an empress, including accusing her of being against Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization program. In 496, Emperor Xiaowen deposed Feng Qing. Because Feng Qing was virtuous and much interested in Buddhism, she became a Buddhist nun and remained one for the rest of her life.


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Empress Erzhu Ying'e

Empress Erzhu Ying'e was an empress of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. She was the wife of and a daughter of the paramount general Erzhu Rong. She later became a concubine of Northern Wei and Eastern Wei's paramount general Gao Huan.

Background

Erzhu Ying'e's father Erzhu Rong had been a hereditary chief of the Qihu tribe, a branch of the Xiongnu, located at Xiurong , and during the agrarian rebellions during 's reign had become increasingly powerful as a military general. Sometime during Emperor Xiaoming's reign, she became Emperor Xiaoming's concubine with the rank of ''Pin'' . She was described to be capable as a soldier, and she was able to use the bow well.

In 528, Emperor Xiaoming, in a dispute with his mother over her overly favoring her lover Zheng Yan and Zheng's associate Xu Ge , conspired with Erzhu Rong to have him advance south toward the capital Luoyang to force Empress Dowager Hu to remove Zheng and Xu. When Empress Dowager Hu discovered this, she poisoned Emperor Xiaoming to death. Erzhu Rong refused to recognize the young emperor Yuan Zhao that she put on the throne, instead advancing on Luoyang, capturing it and throwing Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Zhao into the Yellow River to drown. He also slaughtered a large number of imperial officials and made Emperor Xiaoming's father 's cousin Yuan Ziyou emperor .

As empress

Erzhu Rong was in control of the military at this point, although Emperor Xiaozhuang retained substantial powers, and Erzhu Rong wanted Emperor Xiaozhuang to marry Erzhu Ying'e as empress to cement the relationship. Emperor Xiaozhuang initially hesitated, as pursuant to Confucian regulations he would be committing incest if he did. However, the official Zu Ying convinced him that the union would be advantageous, and so he agreed. Empress Erzhu was described to be jealous and did not tolerate Emperor Xiaozhuang's other consorts. Emperor Xiaozhuang once asked her father's cousin Erzhu Shilong to persuade her to be less jealous. Instead, she told Erzhu Shilong that Emperor Xiaozhuang depended on the Erzhus for his throne and that things could still change; Erzhu Shilong agreed with her.

Worried about the hold that Erzhu Rong had on the military and how he had been willing to slaughter imperial officials , Emperor Xiaozhuang, during Empress Erzhu's pregnancy in 530, tricked him into entering the palace with his close associate Yuan Tianmu the Prince of Shangdang and his son Erzhu Puti and killing them by falsely telling them that Empress Erzhu had given birth. This precipitated a war between the imperial forces and the Erzhus' forces, which lasted for two months, during which Empress Erzhu gave birth to a son. Eventually, the Erzhu forces, under the command of Empress Erzhu's cousin Erzhu Zhao, captured Luoyang and deposed Emperor Xiaozhuang, making his distant relative Yuan Ye the Prince of Changguang, and then later his cousin the Prince of Guangling emperor. Erzhu Zhao also put Emperor Xiaozhuang's and Empress Erzhu's infant son to death.

As Gao Huan's concubine

The Erzhus controlled the empire for a while, but in 531, the general Gao Huan, a former subordinate of Erzhu Rong's, rose against them, and by 532 Gao had defeated the Erzhus, becoming the paramount general for Northern Wei . Shortly after Gao's defeating of the Erzhus, she became a concubine of Gao's. She and another consort that Gao took, the Princess Ruru , were renowned for their military demonstrations, and Gao once commented that these two concubines of his were capable of defeating bandits. In 535, when Gao Huan was angry with his son Gao Cheng for having had an affair with Gao Huan's concubine Lady Zheng, he considered replacing his wife , Gao Cheng's mother, with Erzhu Ying'e, but ultimately did not do so. Erzhu Ying'e bore him two sons, Gao You in 533 and Gao Ning . In spring 545, Erzhu Ying'e's brother Erzhu Wenchang and Zheng Zhongli , the brother of Gao Huan's other favorite concubine Zheng Dache , along with Ren Zhou , conspired to assassinate Gao Huan and support Erzhu Wenchang as leader, but the conspiracy was discovered, and the conspirators were put to death, along with their families. However, because of Gao Huan's favors for Erzhu Ying'e and Zheng Dache, he spared their brothers. However, she later became a Buddhist nun, even while Gao Huan was still alive, for reasons lost to history; Gao Huan built a temple for her.

After Gao Huan's death

After Gao Huan's death in 547 and his son 's abolition of Eastern Wei and establishment of Northern Qi as its Emperor Wenxuan, Erzhu Ying'e carried the title of Princess Dowager of Pengcheng. In 556, Emperor Wenxuan, while drunk, wanted to have sexual relations with her, and she refused. He killed her by his own hand.

Empress Dowager Hu

Empress Dowager Hu , formally Empress Ling , was an empress dowager of the dynasty Northern Wei. She was a concubine of , and she became regent and empress dowager after her son became emperor after Emperor Xuanwu's death in 515. She was considered to be intelligent but overly lenient, and during her regency , many agrarian rebellions occurred while corruption raged among imperial officials. In 528, she was believed to have poisoned her son Emperor Xiaoming after he tried to have her lover Zheng Yan executed. This caused the general Erzhu Rong to attack and capture the capital Luoyang. Erzhu threw her into the Yellow River to drown.

As Emperor Xuanwu's concubine

It is not known when the future Empress Dowager Hu was born. Her father Hu Guozhen was the hereditary Earl of Wushi, but appeared to carry no imperial offices initially after he inherited the title in 491. Hu Guozhen's sister was a well-known Buddhist nun, and she often preached inside the palace of , himself an avid Buddhist. On one of these lecture stints, which lasted several days, she told Emperor Xuanwu's attendants of her niece's beauty. When Emperor Xuanwu heard of this, he decided to take Hu Guozhen's daughter as a concubine -- as an imperial consort of the rank ''Chonghua'' . Because Consort Hu's aunt was a Buddhist nun, she also became well-versed in Buddhism. She was also said to be literate and capable of making quick decisions.

Because of Northern Wei's tradition that when a crown prince is created, his mother must be put to death, the imperial consorts often prayed that they only wished to give birth to princes who would not be crown prince or princesses, not the crown prince. However, Consort Hu prayed differently -- particularly because Emperor Xuanwu lacked a son at this point -- that because she did not want to see the empire without a crown prince, she was willing to do so. Eventually, she became pregnant, and her friends inside the palace suggested that she have an abortion. She refused, saying that she would rather die if she could be the mother of the crown prince. in 510, she gave birth to a son, . Because Emperor Xuanwu had lost several sons by this point, he carefully selected experienced mothers to be Yuan Xu's wet nurses, and prohibited, for a while, either Consort Hu or his wife from seeing him. In 512, Emperor Xuanwu created Yuan Xu crown prince, but, abolishing the custom of putting the crown prince's mother to death, spared Consort Hu.

In 515, Emperor Xuanwu died suddenly, and Yuan Xu succeeded him . He initially honored Empress Gao as empress dowager, and gave Consort Hu the title of Consort Dowager. Empress Dowager Gao wanted to put Consort Hu to death, but she was protected by the officials Yu Zhong and Cui Guang , the general Hou Gang , and the eunuch Liu Teng . Yu and the imperial princes Yuan Yong the Prince of Gaoyang and Yuan Cheng the Prince of Rencheng soon seized power from Empress Gao and, after ambushing and killing Empress Gao's powerful uncle Gao Zhao, replaced Empress Gao as empress dowager with Consort Hu. Empress Dowager Hu became regent over the five-year-old emperor.

First regency

Empress Dowager Hu was considered intelligent, capable of understanding many things quickly, but she was also overly lenient and tolerant of corruption. For example, in winter 515, the corrupt governor of Qi Province , Yuan Mi the Prince of Zhao, provoked a popular uprising when he killed several people without reason, and while he was relieved from his post, as soon as he returned to the capital Luoyang, Empress Dowager Hu made him a minister because his wife was her niece. In Yuan Xu's childhood, Empress Dowager Hu's power, during these few years, were unchallenged, and while she tolerated -- and, in certain circumstances, encouraged -- criticism, including rewarding such officials as Yuan Kuang the Prince of Dongping and Zhang Puhui for their blunt words, she was slow to implement suggestions that would curb corruption. Empress Dowager Hu was a devout Buddhist, and during this part of the regency, she built magnificent temples in Luoyang. One she built, dedicated to her father Hu Guozhen, whom she had created the Duke of Qin, after his death in 518, was particularly beautiful. Because of her influence, Emperor Xiaoming also became a dedicated Buddhist.

In 519, a serious riot occurred in Luoyang, after the official Zhang Zhongyu proposed that the civil service regulations be changed to disallow soldiers to become civilian officials. The soldiers became angry and stormed both the ministry of civil service and the mansion of Zhang Zhongyu's father, Zhang Yi , killing Zhang Yi and serious injuring Zhang Zhongyu and his brother Zhang Shijun . Empress Dowager Hu arrested eight leaders of the riot and executed them, but pardoned the rest, to quell the unrest. She also rejected the proposal to change the civil service regulations. This event is often seen as the turning point and the start of the unrest that would eventually tear Northern Wei apart. Despite these events, Empress Dowager Hu continued to tolerate corruption, and she often gave exuberant awards to officials, draining the treasury; the pressure on the treasury and the burden on the people were further increased by her orders that each province is to build a tower dedicated to Buddhas.

Sometime before 520, Empress Dowager had forced Emperor Xiaoming's uncle Yuan Yi the Prince of Qinghe, who was popular with the people and the officials because of his abilities and humility, to have an affair with her. Yuan Yi thereafter became the effective leader of government, and he tried to reorganize the administration to decrease corruption. He particularly tried to curb the powers of Empress Dowager Hu's brother-in-law Yuan Cha and the eunuch Liu Teng. Yuan Cha therefore falsely accused him of treason, but he was cleared after an investigation. Fearful of reprisals, Yuan Cha and Liu convinced Emperor Xiaoming that Yuan Yi was trying to poison him and carried out a coup against Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Yi, killing Yuan Yi and putting Empress Dowager Hu under house arrest. Yuan Yong became titular regent, but Yuan Cha became the actual power.

House arrest by Yuan Cha

Yuan Cha was not particularly able as a regent, and he and Liu multiplied their corruption once they were in power. Yuan Cha himself was not dedicated at all to the affairs of state, but spent much of his time on feasting, drinking, and women. He put his father Yuan Ji and his brothers into positions of power, and they were just as corrupt. Yuan Cha's incompetence and corruption, together with the level of corruption that Empress Dowager Hu herself tolerated while in power, led to popular dissatisfaction with the regime and many agrarian revolts, although the first revolt was by a non-agrarian -- Yuan Xi the Prince of Zhongshan, who was friendly with both Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Yi -- in fall 520, trying to avenge Yuan Yi and restore Empress Dowager Hu. Yuan Cha quickly had Yuan Xi's rebellion suppressed.

In spring 521, the general Xi Kangsheng made an attempt to restore Empress Dowager Hu, but failed. Yuan Cha had him put to death.

In 523, the official Li Chong saw that the people of the six northern military garrisons, largely ethnic Xianbei, who had for generations been forced to stay at those garrisons to defend against Rouran attacks, were stirring with discontent, and he suggested to Yuan Cha and Emperor Xiaoming that the garrisons be converted into provinces and that the people be given the rights of the people of other provinces. Yuan Cha refused. Later that year, the people of Huaihuang and Woye Garrisons rebelled -- rebellions that Northern Wei forces could not quickly quell, and the rebellions soon spread throughout not only the six garrisons but throughout virtually the entire empire.In 525, Yuan Faseng , the governor of Xu Province , who had been a close associate of Yuan Cha, believing that Yuan Cha would soon fall, rebelled as well, declaring himself emperor. After some initial defeats at the hands of Northern Wei forces sent against him, he surrendered his post of Pengcheng to Northern Wei's southern rival Liang Dynasty.

By this point, Yuan Cha's precautions against Empress Dowager Hu had been greatly relaxed, particularly after Liu Teng's death in 523, as he no longer saw her as a threat. Empress Dowager Hu, Emperor Xiaoming, and Yuan Yong therefore took the chance to conspire against Yuan Cha. Empress Dowager Hu first threw Yuan Cha's guard off by often discussing about his overly trusting of Yuan Faseng, which caused Yuan Cha to be an apologetic mood. Then, with his agreement, she relieved him of his command of the imperial guards, replacing him with Hou Gang, who had become close to him. In summer 525, she took sudden action and declared herself regent again, killing most of Yuan Cha's and Liu's associates and putting Yuan Cha under house arrest. However, she was initially hesitant to take further action against Yuan Cha, because of her relationship with her sister. Eventually, however, with popular opinion favoring Yuan Cha's death, she forced him and his brother Yuan Gua to commit suicide, but still posthumously awarded him much honor.

Second regency

Empress Dowager Hu, after resumption of her regency over Emperor Xiaoming, allowed her lover Zheng Yan to assume great power, and while Yuan Yong and Yuan Lüe the Prince of Dongping were trusted and had high ranks, Zheng and Zheng's associate Xu Ge were more powerful than they were. The agrarian and other revolts continued, and during these years, the more chief rebels included:

* Xianyu Xiuli , with his rebellion centering Ding Province (定州, roughly modern Baoding, Hebei. After Xianyu's death, his general Ge Rong took over and became very strong, proclaiming himself the Emperor of Qi
* Xiao Baoyin, son of Emperor Ming of Southern Qi, who sought to reestablish Southern Qi, with his rebellion centering Chang'an
* Xing Gao , with his rebellion centering Beihai
* Moqi Chounu , with his rebellion centering Gaoping

Empress Dowager Hu sent a number of generals against these rebels without much success, and while Xiao Baoyin was defeated by his own subordinates and forced to flee to Moqi, no other major rebels were defeated by Northern Wei generals. Exacerbating the situation was the fact that Empress Dowager Hu did not like to hear about news of rebel successes, and therefore her attendants often made up good news, causing her to often refuse generals' requests for reinforcements. Several times, Emperor Xiaoming publicly declared that he would personally lead armies against the rebels, but each time he failed to actually do so. Meanwhile, during these internal troubles that Northern Wei, Liang took advantage by capturing a number of border cities, including the important city Shouyang.

The only real military success that Northern Wei had during this time happened in late 525, when it was able to recapture Pengcheng from Liang -- and the success was fortuitous, as the Liang prince Xiao Zong , the son of Emperor Wu of Liang and his concubine Consort Wu, who was previously the concubine of Southern Qi emperor Xiao Baojuan, became convinced that he was actually Xiao Baojuan's posthumous son, and surrendered to Northern Wei, causing his own army to collapse and allowing Northern Wei to reenter Pengcheng.

Sometime during this second regency, Empress Dowager Hu, in order to further enhance her clan's prestige, married a daughter of her cousin Hu Sheng to Emperor Xiaoming, to be his . However, Emperor Xiaoming favored his concubine Consort Pan, and Empress Hu and the other concubines did not receive much favor from him. in 528, Consort Pan bore him a daughter. However, Empress Dowager Hu falsely declared that Consort Pan's child was a son, and ordered a general pardon.

By this time, Emperor Xiaoming, aged 18, was tired of the hold that his mother had on his administration, and he further despised Zheng Yan and Xu Ge. He therefore sent secret messengers to the general Erzhu Rong, who controlled the region around Bing Province , ordering him to advance on Luoyang to force Empress Dowager Hu to remove Zheng and Xu. After Erzhu advanced to Shangdang , Emperor Xiaoming suddenly changed his mind and sent messengers to stop him, but the news leaked. Zheng and Xu therefore advised Empress Dowager Hu to have Emperor Xiaoming poisoned. She did so, and after initially announcing that Emperor Xiaoming's "son" by Consort Pan would succeed him, admitted that the "son" was actually a daughter, and instead selected Yuan Zhao the son of Yuan Baohui the Prince of Lintao, two-years in age, to succeed Emperor Xiaoming.

Death

Erzhu Rong refused to recognize Yuan Zhao as emperor. With support from his associate Yuan Tianmu , he issued a harshly worded statement accusing Zheng and Xu of poisoning Emperor Xiaoming. Empress Dowager Hu sent Erzhu Rong's cousin Erzhu Shilong to try to persuade him to change his mind, but Erzhu Shilong instead encouraged him to continue his resistance. He therefore prepared to advance south, and meanwhile sent messengers to persuade Emperor Xuanwu's well-regarded cousin the Prince of Changle to accept the throne as a competing claimant to the throne. Yuan Ziyou agreed, and as Erzhu Rong approached Luoyang, Yuan Ziyou and his brothers Yuan Shao the Prince of Pengcheng and Yuan Zizheng the Duke of Bacheng secretly left Luoyang to join Erzhu's army. Erzhu declared him emperor . As soon as news of Emperor Xiaozhuang's ascension reached Luoyang, Luoyang's defenses collapsed, and Zheng and Xu, abandoning Empress Dowager Hu, fled, while the generals Zheng Xianhu and Fei Mu surrendered to Erzhu Rong.

Upon hearing the bad news, Empress Dowager Hu ordered all of Emperor Xiaoming's consorts to become nuns. She herself took tonsure as well, but did not declare herself a nun. Erzhu ordered the imperial officials to welcome Emperor Xiaozhuang into the capital, and the officials complied. Erzhu then sent cavalry soldiers to arrest Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Zhao and deliver them to his camp at Heyin . Once Empress Dowager Hu met Erzhu, she tried to repeatedly explain and defend her actions. Erzhu became impatient of her explanations, and he left abruptly and ordered that Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Zhao be thrown into the Yellow River to drown.

Shortly after Empress Dowager Hu's death by drowning, her body was recovered. Her sister, the Lady of Fengyi, took her body and stored it at the Shuangling Temple . In 533, during the reign of , she was buried with honors due an empress and given a posthumous name, albeit an unflattering one .

Emperor Xuanwu of Northern Wei

Tuoba Ke , later Yuan Ke was known as Emperor Xuanwu of Northern Wei during the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei.

During Xuanwu's reign, Northern Wei appeared, outwardly, to be at its prime, but there was much political infighting and corruption, particularly by Xuanwu's uncle Gao Zhao.

Xuanwu was an avid Buddhist, and during his reign Buddhism effectively became the state religion, as Xuanwu himself often personally lectured on the Buddhist sutras.

Background

Tuoba Ke was born in 483, as the second son of . His mother was Xiaowen's concubine Consort Gao. Little is known about his childhood, including whether he was raised by his mother Gao or not. In 496, Xiaowen changed the name of the imperial clan from Tuoba to Yuan, and thereafter he would be known as Yuan Ke.

In fall 496, Yuan Xun, who was then crown prince, but who could not endure the hot weather of the capital Luoyang after Xiaowen moved the capital there from Pingcheng in 494, plotted to flee back to Pingcheng with his followers, but his plot was discovered. Xiaowen deposed him, and in 497 created Yuan Ke crown prince to replace Yuan Xun. Later that year, Gao, who was in Pingcheng, travelled south to rejoin her son in Luoyang, but she died on the way. Historians generally believe that she was murdered by Xiaowen's wife, Empress Feng Run, who wanted to raise Yuan Ke herself. Whether she was actually able to do so is unclear, but after she was discovered to have carried on an affair with her attendant Gao Pusa in 499, she was put under house arrest, and Xiaowen ordered Yuan Ke to have no more contact with her.

Later in 499, Xiaowen, while on a campaign against rival Southern Qi, grew ill and died. Xiaowen's brother Yuan Xie the Prince of Pengcheng was put into command of the withdrawing army on an emergency basis, and Yuan Xie kept Xiaowen's death a secret while summoning Yuan Ke to join the army. Yuan Ke's attendants largely suspected Yuan Xie of wanting to take the throne himself, but Yuan Xie, once he met Yuan Ke, showed great deference to Yuan Ke, convincing Yuan Ke of his loyalty. Yuan Ke, at age 16, then took the throne as Xuanwu at Luyang , before the army could return to Luoyang.

Early reign

Xuanwu initially wanted to make Yuan Xie, who was popular and well-regarded, prime minister, but Yuan Xie refused, and was made a provincial governor instead. The governmental affairs were largely in the hands of six officials: Xiaowen's brothers Yuan Xi the Prince of Xianyang and Yuan Xiang the Prince of Beihai, Xiaowen's cousin Yuan Cheng the Prince of Rencheng, Xiaowen's distant uncle Yuan Jia the Prince of Guangyang, and the officials Wang Su and Song Bian , although Yuan Cheng was soon stripped of his post because he falsely arrested Wang on suspicion of treason. By 500, Xuanwu recalled Yuan Xie to be prime minister.

Xuanwu, once he returned to Luoyang, posthumously honored his mother Gao as an empress, and he created his maternal uncles Gao Zhao and Gao Xian , as well as his cousin Gao Meng , none of wom he had previously met, dukes. Gao Zhao, in particular, became increasingly powerful during Xuanwu's reign.

In 500, with Southern Qi in disarray because of the tyrannical rule of its emperor Xiao Baojuan, Northern Wei annexed the important city of Shouyang when the Southern Qi general Pei Shuye surrendered the city to Northern Wei in fear of adverse actions by Xiao Baojuan. However, Northern Wei did not take further actions when Southern Qi was subsequently thrown into civil war during the rebellions of the generals Cui Huijing and .

In 501, the general Yu Lie and Yuan Xiang warned Xuanwu that Yuan Xi was growing corrupt and Yuan Xie was growing too popular, and suggested that they be relieved of their posts. Xuanwu did so, and formally personally took over governmental matters, but at his age, he could not actually properly handle governmental affairs himself, so his trusted attendants and Gao Zhao began to become growingly powerful and corrupt. Traditional historians generally regard this as the starting point of Northern Wei's decline. Late in 501, Yuan Xi, displeased that his power wa being stripped and fearful that he would be killed, plotted a rebellion to secede with the provinces south of the Yellow River. His plot was discovered, however, and he was executed. From this point on, Xuanwu grew increasingly suspicious of members of the imperial clan.

Later in 501, Xuanwu created Yu Lie's niece, , empress.

Later that year, with Xiao Yan's forces crushing Xiao Baojuan's, Xuanwu's general Yuan Ying suggested that a major attack be launched against Southern Qi to take advantage of Southern Qi's civil war. However, Xuanwu only authorized small scale attacks, which were generally fruitless. Xiao Yan soon defeated Xiao Baojuan and by 502 had overthrown Southern Qi and established Liang Dynasty as its Emperor Wu. The Liang general Chen Bozhi subsequently tried to surrender Jiang Province to Northern Wei, but Liang forces defeated both Chen and the Northern Wei forces sent to reinforce him, and Chen fled to Northern Wei. For the next few years, however, there would continually be war between the two rivals, particularly with Northern Wei creating Southern Qi's prince Xiao Baoyin, who fled Southern Qi as Xiao Yan was beginning to kill members of the Southern Qi imperial clan, as the Prince of Qi and announcing that it would help him reestablish Southern Qi.

In 504, Xuan Xiang, who had taken over Yuan Xi's posts, was accused by Gao Zhao of corruption. He was demoted to commoner rank, and died soon thereafter. At Gao's suggestion and despite Yuan Xie's opposition, Xuanwu subsequently put the imperial princes under heavy guard, effectively putting them under house arrest.

Meanwhile, the wars with Liang continued, and while both sides had gains and losses, Northern Wei made a substantial gain in 505 when the Liang general Xiaohou Daoqian surrendered Nanzheng , as well as the surrounding region, to Northern Wei, which further annexed the semi-independent state Chouchi in spring 506. In winter 505, Liang launched a major counterattack on the eastern part of the border, commanded by Emperor Wu's brother Xiao Hong the Prince of Linchuan, but with Xiao Hong being an incompetent general, who mishandled a night terror situation in summer 506, while his army was at Luokou , the Liang forces collapsed by themselves without engaging Northern Wei forces. Yuan Ying and Xiao Baoyin followed up by attacking the Liang fortress Zhongli , but were dealt a crushing defeat by the Liang general Wei Rui in spring 507. The two states largely stopped their military activities against each other after that point.

In winter 507, Empress Yu died suddenly, and in early 508, her young son Yuan Chang , Xuanwu's only son by that point, died suddenly as well. Because Gao Zhao was exceeding powerful by that point, and his niece was Xuanwu's favorite concubine, it was largely suspected that Gao Zhao and Gao murdered them, but there was no conclusive proof. In 508, Xuanwu created Gao empress to replace Yu, despite opposition by Yuan Xie, and from this point on Gao Zhao became resentful of Yuan Xie.

Late reign

In fall 508, Xuanwu's younger brother Yuan Yu the Prince of Jingzhao, who had just been demoted by Xuanwu for corruption, became angry at both his demotion and that his favorite consort Lady Li had been severely battered by Empress Yu briefly before Empress Yu's death , declared a rebellion at his provincial post of Xindu and proclaimed himself emperor. Gao Zhao used this opportunity to falsely accuse Yuan Xie of acting in concert with both Yuan Yu and Liang Dynasty. Xuanwu believed Gao, and forced Yuan Xie to commit suicide. The populace and the officials greatly mourned Yuan Xie's death, and grew increasingly resentful of Gao. Soon, Yuan Yu's rebellion was defeated, and while Xuanwu contemplated not putting Yuan Yu to death, Yuan Yu was killed on Gao's orders.

In 510, Xuanwu's concubine gave birth to a son, . Because Xuanwu had lost multiple sons in childhood by that point, he carefully selected several experienced mothers to serve as Yuan Xu's wet nurses, and disallowed both Gao and Hu from seeing him. In winter 512, Xuanwu created Yuan Xu crown prince, and, abolishing the Northern Wei custom that the crown prince's mother must be forced to commit suicide, he did not force Hu to commit suicide.

During these years, Northern Wei and Liang continued to have relatively minor border battles, with each side having gains and losses. In 514, however, Xuanwu commissioned Gao Zhao to launch a major attack against Liang's Yi Province . Soon thereafter, however, in spring 515, he died suddenly, and Yuan Xu succeeded him . Yuan Cheng, Xuanwu's brother Yuan Yong the Prince of Gaoyang, and Yu Lie's son Yu Zhong seized power and, after recalling Gao, put him to death, and Gao was removed. Xiaoming's mother Hu became empress dowager and regent.

Burial

Xuanwu was buried north of Luoyang. His tomb is now open to the public as part of the Luoyang Ancient Tombs Museum.

Era names

* ''Jingming'' 500-503
* ''Zhengshi'' 504-508
* ''Yongping'' 508-512
* ''Yanchang'' 512-515

Personal information

* Father
** Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei
* Mother
** Consort Gao , posthumously honored as Empress Wenzhao
* Wives
** , mother of Prince Chang
** , mother of Princess Jiande and an unnamed son
* Major Concubines
** , mother of Crown Prince Xu
* Children
** Yuan Chang
** Yuan Xu , the Crown Prince , later Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei
** Unnamed son, died early
** Princess Taiyuan
** Princess Jiande
** Princess Yangping

Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei

Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei , personal name Yuan Xu , was an emperor of the /Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. Due to his young age when he ascended the throne at 515, governmental matters were dominated by his mother , whose overly lenient attitude toward officials' corruptions spurred many agrarian rebellions that threw essentially the entire state into war. In 528, Emperor Xiaoming tried to curb his mother's powers and kill her lover Zheng Yan by conspiring with the general Erzhu Rong, and Empress Dowager Hu killed him. Soon, Erzhu overthrew her, and from that point on, Northern Wei emperors no longer had full actual authority.

Background

Yuan Xu was born in 510. He was the only son of to be alive at that point. Yuan Xu's mother was Emperor Xuanwu's concubine . Because Emperor Xuanwu had lost other sons previously, he paid special attention to Yuan Xu's rearing, and he selected several experienced mothers to be Yuan Xu's wet nurses, forbidding his second wife and Consort Hu to be near him, perhaps because popular opinion at the time believed Yuan Chang to have been murdered by Empress Gao's uncle, Gao Zhao.

In winter 512, Emperor Xuanwu created Yuan Xu crown prince. Contrary to Northern Wei's tradition of putting the crown prince's mother to death at the time of creation, Emperor Xuanwu spared Consort Hu.

In 515, Emperor Xuanwu died suddenly, and Yuan Xu succeeded him . The official Yu Zhong and the imperial princes Yuan Yong the Prince of Gaoyang and Yuan Cheng the Prince of Rencheng seized power from Empress Gao and, after ambushing and killing Gao Zhao, replaced Empress Gao as empress dowager with Consort Hu. Empress Dowager Hu became regent over the five-year-old emperor.

First regency of Empress Dowager Hu

Empress Dowager Hu was considered intelligent, capable of understanding many things quickly, but she was also overly lenient and tolerant of corruption. For example, in winter 515, the corrupt governor of Qi Province , Yuan Mi the Prince of Zhao, provoked a popular uprising when he killed several people without reason, and while he was relieved from his post, as soon as he returned to the capital Luoyang, Empress Dowager Hu made him a minister because his wife was her niece. In Yuan Xu's childhood, Empress Dowager Hu's power, during these few years, were unchallenged, and while she tolerated -- and, in certain circumstances, encouraged -- criticism, including rewarding such officials as Yuan Kuang the Prince of Dongping and Zhang Puhui for their blunt words, she was slow to implement suggestions that would curb corruption. Empress Dowager Hu was a fervent Buddhist, and during this part of the regency, she built magnificent temples in Luoyang. One she built, dedicated to her father Hu Guozhen the Duke of Qin, after his death in 518, was particularly beautiful. Because of her influence, Emperor Xiaoming also became a dedicated Buddhist. In his youth, however, he also favored spending time in imperial gardens rather than studies or learning about important affairs of state.

In 519, a serious riot occurred in Luoyang, after the official Zhang Zhongyu proposed that the civil service regulations be changed to disallow soldiers to become civilian officials. The soldiers became angry and stormed both the ministry of civil service and the mansion of Zhang Zhongyu's father, Zhang Yi , killing Zhang Yi and serious injuring Zhang Zhongyu and his brother Zhang Shijun . Empress Dowager Hu arrested eight leaders of the riot and executed them, but pardoned the rest, to quell the unrest. She also rejected the proposal to change the civil service regulations. This event is often seen as the turning point and the start of the unrest that would eventually tear Northern Wei apart. Despite these events, Empress Dowager Hu continued to tolerate corruption, and she often gave exuberant awards to officials, draining the treasury; the pressure on the treasury and the burden on the people were further increased by her orders that each province was to build a tower dedicated to Buddhas.

Sometime before 520, Empress Dowager had forced Emperor Xiaoming's uncle Yuan Yi the Prince of Qinghe, who was popular with the people and the officials because of his abilities and humility, to have an affair with her. Yuan Yi thereafter became the effective leader of government, and he tried to reorganize the administration to decrease corruption. He particularly tried to curb the powers of Empress Dowager Hu's brother-in-law Yuan Cha and the eunuch Liu Teng . Yuan Cha therefore falsely accused him of treason, but he was cleared after an investigation. Fearful of reprisals, Yuan Cha and Liu convinced Emperor Xiaoming that Yuan Yi was trying to poison him and carried out a coup against Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Yi, killing Yuan Yi and putting Empress Dowager Hu under house arrest. Yuan Yong became titular regent, but Yuan Cha became the actual power.

Regency of Yuan Cha

Yuan Cha was not particularly able as a regent, and he and Liu multiplied their corruption once they were in power. Yuan Cha himself was not dedicated at all to the affairs of state, but spent much of his time on feasting, drinking, and women. He put his father Yuan Ji and his brothers into positions of power, and they were just as corrupt. Yuan Cha's incompetence and corruption, together with the level of corruption that Empress Dowager Hu herself tolerated while in power, led to popular dissatisfaction with the regime and many agrarian revolts, although the first revolt was by a non-agrarian -- Yuan Xi the Prince of Zhongshan, who was friendly with both Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Yi -- in fall 520, trying to avenge Yuan Yi and restore Empress Dowager Hu. Yuan Cha quickly had Yuan Xi's rebellion suppressed.

In late 520, Yuan Cha spent much of Northern Wei's energy on trying to restore Rouran's Yujiulü Anagui, who had been overthrown by his cousin Yujiulü Shifa , despite warnings that doing so would either be fruitless or counterproductive. The restoration was successful, but by 523 Yujiulü Anagui had rebelled and an enemy to Northern Wei again.

In spring 521, the general Xi Kangsheng made an attempt to restore Empress Dowager Hu, but failed. Yuan Cha had him put to death.

In 523, the official Li Chong saw that the people of the six northern military garrisons, largely ethnic Xianbei, who had for generations been forced to stay at those garrisons to defend against Rouran attacks, were stirring with discontent, and he suggested to Yuan Cha and Emperor Xiaoming that the garrisons be converted into provinces and that the people be given the rights of the people of other provinces. Yuan Cha refused. Later that year, the people of Huaihuang and Woye Garrisons rebelled -- rebellions that Northern Wei forces could not quickly quell, and the rebellions soon spread throughout not only the six garrisons but throughout virtually the entire empire. The more important rebels included:

* Poliuhan Baling , with his rebellion concentrated around Woye
* Hu Chen , tribal chief, with his rebellion concentrated around Gaoping Garrison
* Mozhe Dati , with his rebellion concentrated around Qin Province , later succeeded by his son Mozhe Niansheng , who declared himself Emperor of Qin

In 525, Yuan Faseng , the governor of Xu Province , who had been a close associate of Yuan Cha, believing that Yuan Cha would soon fall, rebelled as well, declaring himself emperor. After some initial defeats at the hands of Northern Wei forces sent against him, he surrendered his post of Pengcheng to Northern Wei's southern rival Liang Dynasty.

By this point, Yuan Cha's precautions against Empress Dowager Hu had been greatly relaxed, particularly after Liu Teng's death in 523, as he no longer saw her as a threat. Empress Dowager Hu, Emperor Xiaoming, and Yuan Yong therefore took the chance to conspire against Yuan Cha. Empress Dowager Hu first threw Yuan Cha's guard off by often discussing about his overly trusting of Yuan Faseng, which caused Yuan Cha to be an apologetic mood. Then, with his agreement, she relieved him of his command of the imperial guards, replacing him with his associate Hou Gang . In summer 525, she took sudden action and declared herself regent again, killing most of Yuan Cha's and Liu's associates and putting Yuan Cha under house arrest. However, she was initially hesitant to take further action against Yuan Cha, because of her relationship with her sister. Eventually, however, with popular opinion favoring Yuan Cha's death, she forced him and his brother Yuan Gua to commit suicide, but still posthumously awarded him much honor.

Second regency of Empress Dowager Hu

Empress Dowager Hu, after resumption of her regency over Emperor Xiaoming, allowed her lover Zheng Yan to assume great power, and while Yuan Yong and Yuan Lüe the Prince of Dongping were trusted and had high ranks, Zheng and Zheng's associate Xu Ge were more powerful than they were. The agrarian and other revolts continued, and during these years, the more chief rebels included:

* Xianyu Xiuli , with his rebellion centering Ding Province (定州, roughly modern Baoding, Hebei. After Xianyu's death, his general Ge Rong took over and became very strong, proclaiming himself the Emperor of Qi
* Xiao Baoyin, son of Emperor Ming of Southern Qi, who sought to reestablish Southern Qi, with his rebellion centering Chang'an
* Xing Gao , with his rebellion centering Beihai
* Moqi Chounu , who took over Hu Chen's army after Hu was killed by Poliuhan Baling

Empress Dowager Hu sent a number of generals against these rebels without much success, and while Xiao Baoyin was defeated by his own subordinates and forced to flee to Moqi, no other major rebels were defeated by Northern Wei generals. Exacerbating the situation was the fact that Empress Dowager Hu did not like to hear about news of rebel successes, and therefore her attendants often made up good news, causing her to often refuse generals' requests for reinforcements. Several times, Emperor Xiaoming publicly declared that he would personally lead armies against the rebels, but each time he failed to actually do so. Meanwhile, during these internal troubles that Northern Wei, Liang took advantage by capturing a number of border cities, including the important city Shouyang .

The only real military success that Northern Wei had during this time happened in late 525, when it was able to recapture Pengcheng from Liang -- and the success was fortuitous, as the Liang prince Xiao Zong , the son of Emperor Wu of Liang and his concubine Consort Wu, who was previously the concubine of Southern Qi emperor Xiao Baojuan, became convinced that he was actually Xiao Baojuan's posthumous son, and surrendered to Northern Wei, causing his own army to collapse and allowing Northern Wei to reenter Pengcheng.

During this period, Emperor Xiaoming, by now a teenager, was said to spend much of his time drinking. He was also said to favor his concubine Consort Pan greatly, to the exclusion of his wife and the other concubines.

Death

in 528, Emperor Xiaoming's favorite concubine Consort Pan bore him a daughter. However, Empress Dowager Hu falsely declared that Consort Pan's child was a son, and ordered a general pardon.

By this time, Emperor Xiaoming, aged 18, was tired of the hold that his mother had on his administration, and he further despised Zheng Yan and Xu Ge. He therefore sent secret messengers to the general Erzhu Rong, who controlled the region around Bing Province , ordering him to advance on Luoyang to force Empress Dowager Hu to remove Zheng and Xu. After Erzhu advanced to Shangdang , Emperor Xiaoming suddenly changed his mind and sent messengers to stop him, but the news leaked. Zheng and Xu therefore advised Empress Dowager Hu to have Emperor Xiaoming poisoned. She did so, and after initially announcing that Emperor Xiaoming's "son" by Consort Pan would succeed him, admitted that the "son" was actually a daughter, and instead selected Yuan Zhao the son of Yuan Baohui the Prince of Lintao, two-years in age, to succeed Emperor Xiaoming. Erzhu Rong refused to recognize this arrangement, and soon arrived at and captured Luoyang, throwing Empress Dowager Hu and Yuan Zhao into the Yellow River to drown.

Era names

* ''Xiping'' 516-518
* ''Shengui'' 518-520
* ''Zhengguang'' 520-525
* ''Xiaochang'' 525-527
* ''Wutai'' 528

Personal information

* Father
** Emperor Xuanwu of Northern Wei
* Mother
**
* Wife
**
* Major Concubines
** Consort Pan, mother of unnamed daughter
** Consort Cui
** Consort Lu
** Consort Li
** , daughter of Erzhu Rong
* Children
** Unnamed daughter , daughter of Consort Pan

Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei

Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei , personal name Yuan Shanjian , was the only emperor of the /Xianbei dynasty Eastern Wei -- a branch successor state to Northern Wei. In 524, Northern Wei's paramount general Gao Huan, after had fled the capital Luoyang to reestablish the imperial government at Chang'an, made Emperor Xiaojing emperor as Emperor Xiaowu's replacement, and moved the capital from Luoyang to , thus dividing Northern Wei into two, and Emperor Xiaojing's state became known as Eastern Wei. Although Gao Huan treated him with respect, real power was in the hands of Gao Huan, and then Gao Huan's sons Gao Cheng and . In 550, Gao Yang forced Emperor Xiaojing to yield the throne to him, ending Eastern Wei and establishing Northern Qi . Around the new year 552, the former Emperor Xiaojing was poisoned to death on the orders of the new emperor.

Background

Yuan Shanjian was born in 524. His father Yuan Dan the Prince of Qinghe was a son of the well-regarded Yuan Yi , also Prince of Qinghe and a son of . His mother Princess Hu was Yuan Dan's wife and was a granddaughter of Hu Zhen , an uncle of 's mother . Yuan Shanjian was Yuan Dan's oldest son, and was his heir apparent.

In 534, , a cousin of Yuan Shanjian's father Yuan Dan, seeking to resist the control of the paramount general Gao Huan, entered into an alliance with independent generals Yuwen Tai and Heba Sheng . When Gao, in response, marched toward the capital Luoyang, Emperor Xiaowu fled to Yuwen's territory. Yuan Dan initially joined Emperor Xiaowu on his flight, but quickly abandoned Emperor Xiaowu and returned to Luoyang. After Gao entered Luoyang, he had Yuan Dan assume acting imperial powers, and Yuan Dan began to become arrogant, viewing himself as the next emperor. Gao, who was in fact looking for a new emperor to replace Emperor Xiaowu, felt that Yuan Dan was inappropriate, and therefore, under the excuse that a cousin should not succeed another, chose Yuan Shanjian and declared him emperor . This formally divided Northern Wei into Eastern Wei and Western Wei .

During Gao Huan's lifetime

Gao Huan, believing that Luoyang was too close to the borders of Western Wei and Liang, moved the capital to , an important city firmly under his control. Viewing Emperor Xiaowu's flight as a blot on his person, Gao publicly showed Emperor Xiaojing the utmost respect for the rest of his life, and Gao's subordinates did not dare not to follow suit, although actual authority rested in the hands of Gao and other officials Gao delegated authority to. Gao also made repeated attempts to conquer Western Wei to reunify Northern Wei, but each time was repelled by Yuwen Tai or other Western Wei generals. Gao mostly remained at his headquarters in Jinyang , but made occasional visits to Yecheng. In 536, Gao put his son, Gao Cheng, in charge of the Eastern Wei government. Late that year, Emperor Xiaojing's father Yuan Dan died, and according to some historians , Gao assassinated him.

Emperor Xiaojing, was he grew, was described to be handsome and strong, capable of jumping over a fence while holding a stone lion. He was also said to be skillful at horseriding, archery, and literature. People compared him to his famed ancestor, Emperor Xiaowen.

In 539, Emperor Xiaojing took Gao Huan's as his empress.

In 544, Gao Cheng, wanting to place a trusted official to keep watch on Emperor Xiaojing, made his associate Cui Jishu Emperor Xiaojing's secretary. However, Emperor Xiaojing had a cordial relationship with Cui, who often revised submissions Gao made to Emperor Xiaojing and edicts Emperor Xiaojing issued to Gao Huan and Gao Cheng, to improve the style and content. Emperor Xiaojing frequently made the comment, "Cui is my wet nurse."

In 545, pursuant to Gao Huan's request, Emperor Xiaojing took the cousin of the khan of Tuyuhun, Murong Kualü , as a concubine, to try to enhance the relationship with Tuyuhun.

In 547, Gao Huan died, and Gao Cheng took over full power of the government.

During Gao Cheng's regency

In light of Gao Huan's death, the general Hou Jing, who did not respect Gao Cheng, first surrendered the 13 provinces he controlled (the region between the Huai River and Yellow River to Western Wei, and then to Liang. Gao Cheng's general Murong Shaozong , however, defeated both Xiao Yuanming -- nephew of Liang's , whom Emperor Wu sent to assist Hou -- and Hou, capturing Xiao Yuanming and forcing Hou to flee to Liang. By 548, all but four provinces were back under Eastern Wei control, and by 549, Eastern Wei had recaptured those provinces as well, after Gao Cheng captured Changshe .

Meanwhile, during the campaign against Hou, a conflict between Gao Cheng and Emperor Xiaojing would erupt. Gao Cheng was not as respectful to Emperor Xiaojing as Gao Huan was, and he ordered Cui Jishu to intensify his surveillance of Emperor Xiaojing. On one occasion, when Gao Cheng was attending a feast, he flashed a cup before Emperor Xiaojing as a toast -- a very disrespectful gesture, as a subordinate, when toasting the emperor, was supposed to kneel. Emperor Xiaojing became angry, and remarked, "There is no such thing as an everlasting empire. ''Zhen'' do not necessarily treasure my life!" Gao Cheng angrily responded, "''Zhen'', ''zhen'', ''zhen''! You are a ''zhen'' with dog feet!" He ordered Cui to punch Emperor Xiaojing three times, and then left abruptly. Emperor Xiaojing thereafter entered into a conspiracy with his teacher Xun Ji , Yuan Jin , Liu Siyi , Yuan Daqi the Prince of Huashan, Yuan Xuanhong the Prince of Huainan, and Yuan Hui the Prince of Jibei to consider overthrowing Gao Cheng. They dug a tunnel from within the palace to the outside of the city, intending to create a secret passage for imperial guards to go through, but the tunnel was discovered, and Gao Cheng entered the palace with his troops, arresting Emperor Xiaojing, putting him under house arrest, and executing the other members of the conspiracy.

In spring 549, Emperor Xiaojing was forced to create Gao Cheng the greater title of Prince of Qi, and give him the honorific office of ''Xiangguo'' , both signifying a move toward Gao's taking of the throne. Gao Cheng formally declined these honors, and further made a formal request for Emperor Xiaojing to create a son as crown prince. Subsequently, in fall 549, Emperor Xiaojing created his son Yuan Zhangren crown prince.

Also in fall 549, Gao Cheng was meeting Chen Yuankang , Yang Yin, and Cui Jishu, to secretly discuss the timeframe in which to take the throne, when his servant Lan Jing -- a son of the Liang general Lan Qin Gao Cheng captured in battle, and whom Gao Cheng had repeatedly threatened to kill -- assassinated Gao Cheng and Chen. Gao Cheng's brother the Duke of Taiyuan, who was also in Yecheng at the time, killed Lan Jing and his associates, and publicly declared only that Gao Cheng had been wounded. Emperor Xiaojing, however, believed that Gao Cheng was dead, and secretly made the remark, "It is heaven's will that the Grand Marshall is dead. The power to rule should return to the imperial clan."

During Gao Yang's regency

Gao Yang, however, quickly moved to consolidate power. He made a quick show of force, marching his personal guards of 8,000 men into the palace, and stating to Emperor Xiaojing that he was going to Jinyang -- where the military headquarters were. Emperor Xiaojing, seeing Gao Yang's intent on keeping power, turned pale and stated, "This man does not appear any more tolerant of me. I do not know when I will die." Gao Yang set up his headquarters in Jinyang, intending to control the military, and in spring 550, Gao Yang had Emperor Xiaojing create him the Prince of Qi Commandery -- a slightly lesser title than the one that his brother declined before his death. Just two months later, Gao Yang's title was changed to Prince of Qi.

Meanwhile, Gao Yang's associate Gao Dezheng was trying to persuade him to seize the throne. In summer 550, Gao Yang agreed, and he started advancing toward Yecheng, while sending Gao Dezheng to Yecheng to try to force the issue. Emperor Xiaojing bestowed Gao Yang the nine bestowments -- the traditional penultimate step before abdication. After Gao Yang arrived in Yecheng, with the officials Pan Le , Zhang Liang , and Zhao Yanshen sent by Gao Yang to request his abdication, Emperor Xiaojing did so, yielding the throne to Gao Yang, who established Northern Qi .

After removal

The new Emperor Wenxuan created the former emperor the Prince of Zhongshan, and gave him the special treatment of not having to declare himself a subject of the new emperor. He created his sister, the former empress, the Princess Taiyuan. The former emperor resided with the princess, and the princess, worried that her brother might do her husband harm, kept close watch on her husband, often tasting his food to make sure that it was not poisoned.

However, Emperor Wenxuan was apprehensive of the former emperor. Around the new year 552, Emperor Wenxuan invited the Princess Taiyuan to a feast inside the palace. As soon as she left her residence, Emperor Wenxuan sent assassins to force the former emperor to drink poisoned wine, and also killed his three sons. Emperor Wenxuan gave the former emperor the posthumous name of Xiaojing, and also buried him with imperial honors. However, at a later time, for reasons unknown, Emperor Wenxuan opened up the tomb and threw Emperor Xiaojing's casket into the Zhang River .

Era names

* ''Tianping'' 534-537
* ''Yuanxiang'' 538-539
* ''Xinghe'' 539-542
* ''Wuding'' 543-550

Personal information

* Father
** Yuan Dan , Prince Wenxuan of Qinghe, son of Yuan Yi Prince Wenxian of Qinghe, son of Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei
* Mother
** Princess Hu, Yuan Dan's wife
* Wife
** , daughter of Gao Huan
* Major Concubines
** Consort Murong, cousin of Tuyuhun's khan Murong Kualü
** Consort Li, later concubine of Emperor Wucheng of Northern Qi
** Consort Pan
* Children
** Yuan Zhangren , the Crown Prince
** Two other sons, also killed by Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi 552