Liu Xiu restores the Han: the Eastern Han
Liu Xiu, a member of a junior branch of the Han imperial clan, proclaimed himself emperor on 5 August 25 and on 27 November made Luoyang his capital; the restored dynasty, the Eastern or Later Han, ruled China until 220.
- Date
- 25year known
- Place
- Luoyangtoday: Han–Wei city site east of modern Luoyang, Henan, China · East Asia
- Participants
- Han dynasty, Emperor Guangwu of Han
- Threads
- East Asia in the 1st–5th centuries
- Also known as
- Eastern Han; Later Han; Восточная Хань; Поздняя Хань; Jianwu
A sixth-generation descendant of Emperor Jing, Liu Xiu won fame at Kunyang and then, while nominally serving the Gengshi Emperor, built his own power base north of the Yellow River. In the summer of 25 he proclaimed himself emperor and began the Jianwu era; in November he entered Luoyang, 335 km east of the ruined Chang’an, and made it his capital. It took him more than a decade to overcome his rivals: the Red Eyebrows surrendered in 27, and the last great contender, Gongsun Shu, was defeated when Chengdu surrendered in the winter of 36.
Guangwu’s reign was remembered for thrift, efficiency and mild laws; he cut taxes and ordered private slaves to be freed. The dynasty he founded is called the Eastern, or Later, Han — its capital Luoyang lay east of Chang’an — to distinguish it from the Western, or Former, Han, which had ruled from Chang’an.
Connections
Causes and preconditions
- Battle of Kunyangbetween June and July 23 · East AsiaKunyang made Liu Xiu’s name and doomed the Xin
Related events
- Red Eyebrows rebellion17–27 · East AsiaThe Red Eyebrows surrendered to Guangwu in 27
- Trưng sisters’ rebellionMarch 40 – 43 · Southeast Asia and OceaniaGuangwu sent Ma Yuan to put down the rising
- The Xiongnu split into Northern and Southern48 · Central and Northern Asiathe Southern Xiongnu submitted to the Eastern Han emperor Guangwu
- Ban Chao’s campaigns in the Tarim Basin73–102 · Central and Northern Asiathe Eastern Han regained the Western Regions lost after the fall of Wang Mang
Same place
- The Book of Han is writtenc. 54 – 111 · East Asia
- Cai Lun presents papermaking to the Han court105 · East Asia
- Zhang Heng presents the first seismoscope132 · East Asia
- An Shigao begins translating Buddhist texts in Luoyang148 · East Asia
- Envoys from Da Qin (Rome) at the Han court166 · East Asia
- Partisan Prohibitions: purges of scholar-officials166–184 · East Asia
- Lokaksema translates the first Mahayana sutras into Chinese179 · East Asia
Adjacent events in the thread
- Envoys of Na receive a gold seal from Emperor Guangwu57 · East Asia
Meanwhile in the world
Other regions, within a year of this event
Eastern Europe
- Zarubintsy culturec. 200 BC – c. 200
Middle East and Egypt
- Aretas IV and the height of Petra9 BC – AD 40
Africa
- Revolt of Tacfarinas17–24
- Temple of Apedemak at Naqabetween 1 BC and AD 70
- Reign of Juba II in Mauretania25 BC – between 23 and 24
Central and Northern Asia
- Kujula Kadphises founds the Kushan Empirebetween 20 and 50
- The burials of Tillya Tepe (the Bactrian Gold)between 16 and 100
South Asia
- Reign of Gondophares, founder of the Indo-Parthian kingdombetween 19 and 20 – c. 46
- Gandharan art: the first images of the Buddhabetween 30 BC and AD 100
- Heyday of Indo-Roman trade: Muziris and Arikameduc. 30 BC – c. 250
Southeast Asia and Oceania
- Founding of Funan: Kaundinya and Queen Liuyebetween 1 and 100
- Óc Eo, the port of Funanbetween 1 and 100 – between 601 and 700
- Sa Huỳnh culturec. 1000 BC – c. 200
North America
- Hopewell traditionbetween 200 and 100 BC – c. 500
Latin America
- Monte Albán II: the Zapotec state expandsc. 100 BC – c. 200
- Rise of Teotihuacanc. 1 – c. 250
- Nazca culture and the Nazca Linesbetween 200 and 100 BC – between 500 and 800
The same period
Sources
- Wikipedia (English): Emperor Guangwu of Han
- Wikipedia (English): Han dynasty
- Wikipedia (English): Luoyang
- Wikipedia (Russian): Гуанъу-ди
- Wikipedia (Russian): Империя Хань
- Wikipedia (Russian): Лоян
- Bielenstein H. Wang Mang, the Restoration of the Han Dynasty, and Later Han // The Cambridge History of China. Vol. 1. — Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986.