Emperor Shang of Han

Emperor Shang of Han

Emperor Shang of Han, ch. 漢殤帝, py. Hàn Shāng dì, wg. Han Shang-ti, (early 105 - August or September 106) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty and the fifth emperor of the Chinese Eastern Han Dynasty.

The Empress Dowager Deng placed him on the throne when he was barely over 100 days old, despite his having an older brother, Liu Sheng (劉勝), whose age was unknown but was likely to be young as well.

Empress Dowager Deng also kept Liu Hu (劉祜), the twelve-year old cousin of Shangdi and future Emperor An of Han in the capital Luoyang as insurance against the baby emperor's death. Liu Hu ascended to the throne when Emperor Shang died in August or September 106; however, Dowager Deng still remained as the regent for the teenager Emperor An. A decree by Empress Dowager Deng during this reign shed light on bureaucratic inefficiency.

Family background

Then-Prince Long was born in autumn 105 to Emperor He and a concubine whose identity is unknown. Because Emperor He had, during his reign, frequently lost sons due to illnesses in childhood, according to the superstitutions of the time, both Prince Long and his older brother Prince Sheng were given to foster parents outside the palace to nurture.

When Emperor He died early 106, his wife, Empress Deng Sui, retrieved the young princes back to the palace. Prince Sheng was older but regarded as frequently ill and unfit for the throne, for Empress Deng first created the infant Prince Long crown prince. The same night, he was proclaimed emperor. Empress Deng became empress dowager.

Reign

After Emperor Shang was proclaimed emperor, his brother Prince Sheng was created the Prince of Pingyuan.

Concerned that Emperor Shang might not live long, Empress Dowager Deng also kept Liu Hu, the twelve-year old cousin of Emperor Shang and future Emperor An of Han in the capital Luoyang as insurance against the infant emperor's death. (Prince Hu was the son of Prince Qing of Qinghe -- who was once a crown prince under Emperor He's father Emperor Zhang but was deposed due to machinations of Emperor Zhang's wife Empress Dou. Therefore, he was viewed by some as the rightful heir.)

As Emperor Shang was an infant, actual and formal power were in Empress Deng's hands. Her brother Deng Zhi (鄧騭) became the most powerful official in the imperial government. She issued a general pardon, which benefitted the people who had rights stripped from them for associating with the family of Empress Dou.

Late in 106, Emperor Shang died. The officials had by this time realized that Prince Sheng, his older brother, was not as ill as originally thought, and wanted to make him emperor. However, Empress Dowager Deng was concerned that he might bear a grudge at not being made emperor before his brother, and therefore insisted on making Emperor Shang's cousin Prince Hu emperor instead, and he took the throne as Emperor An.

Emperor Shang, having died as a toddler, was not given a separate tomb, as is customary for emperors. Rather, in order to avoid unnecessary expenses, he was buried in the same tomb complex as his father Emperor He.

Era name

* "Yanping" (延平 py. yán píng) 106

Personal information

* Father
** Emperor He of Han (2nd son of)


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Emperor He of Han — Emperor He of Han, ch. 漢和帝, py. hàn hé dì, wg. Han Ho ti, (79 February 13 105) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty who ruled from 88 to 105. He was the 4th emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty.Emperor He was the son of Emperor Zhang. He… …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Shang — ( zh. 殇帝) is the posthumous name of several Chinese Emperors. The word Shang means premature death . It may refer to: * Emperor Shang of Han (105 106, r. 106) * Emperor Shang of Tang (695 713, r. 710) …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Shun of Han — Emperor Shun of Han, trad. ch. 漢順帝;, sim. ch. 漢顺帝, py. hàn shùn dì, wg. Han Shun ti, (115 144) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty and the seventh emperor of the Eastern Han period. He reigned from 125 AD to 144 AD.Emperor Shun was the only …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor An of Han — Emperor Ān of Hàn, ch. 漢安帝, py. hàn ān dì, wg. Han An ti, (94 125) was an emperor of the Chinese Hàn Dynasty and the sixth emperor of the Eastern Hàn period ruling from 106 to 125. He was the grandson of Emperor Zhang.When her infant stepson… …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Cheng of Han — (51 BC ndash;7 BC) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty ruling from 33 BC until 7 BC.Under Emperor Cheng, the Han dynasty continued its slide into disintegration while the Wang clan continued its slow grip on power and on governmental… …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Ping of Han — Han Pingdi (漢平帝) Family name: Liu (劉 liú) Given name: Kan (衎 py. kàn), né Jizi (箕子, py. Jīzǐ) (changed in 2) Posthumous name: (full) Xiaoping (孝平, xiào píng) filial and peaceful …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Wen of Han — Infobox Chinese Royalty name = Han Wendi native name = 漢文帝 temple name = Taizong (太宗) caption = reign = 180 BC 157 BC predecessor = successor = Qi (劉啟), Crown Prince suc type = spouse = Empress Dou (竇皇后) issue = Qi (劉啟), Crown Prince Wu (劉武),… …   Wikipedia

  • Han Dynasty — 漢朝 ← 206 BCE–220 CE …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Gaozu of Tang — Emperor Gāozǔ of Táng (566 June 25, 635), born Lǐ Yuān (李淵), was the founder of the Tang Dynasty of China, and the first emperor of this dynasty from 618 to 626. Under the Sui dynasty, Li Yuan was the governor in the area of modern day Shanxi,… …   Wikipedia

  • Emperor Ruizong of Tang — (唐睿宗) (June 22, 662 [General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.] ndash; July 13, 716; r. 710 ndash; 712), personal name Lǐ Dàn (李旦), known at times during his life as Li Xulun… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”