He was the second son of . It was during Emperor Ming's reign that Buddhism began to spread into China. One night, he is said to have dreamed of a golden man or golden men. The next day he told his ministers, and the minister Zhong Hu explained to him that he probably dreamed of in India. The emperor then sent a delegation of 18 headed by Cai Yin, Qin Jing and Wang Zun to seek Buddhism. They returned from Afghanistan with an image of Gautama Buddha, 42 sutras and two eminent monks. The next year, the emperor ordered the construction of White Horse Temple three ''li'' west of the capital Luoyang, to remember the horse that carried back the sutras. It was China's first Buddhist temple. Emperor Ming's brother Liu Ying, the Prince of Chu, became the first well-known Buddhist.
Emperor Ming was a hard-working, able administrator of the empire who showed integrity and demanded integrity from his officials. However, a major downside to his personality was his overeagerness to punish. When his brothers Liu Ying the Prince of Chu and Liu Yan the Prince of Huaiyang were accused of plotting against him, he pursued the matters so harshly that several tens of thousands of people were executed as part of the plot, even though the vast majority of those people were in all likelihood innocent. Later in his reign, this tendency was moderated by the influences of his wife, .
Emperor Ming also established the control of the Chinese Empire on the Tarim Basin and eradicated the Xiongnu influence there, through the conquests of his general Ban Chao.
The reigns of Emperor Ming and his son were typically considered the golden age of the Eastern Han Emperor and known as the Rule of Ming and Zhang.
Family background
Then-Liu Yang was born in 28 to and his first love, . Emperor Guangwu, then still an official under , had married Yin in 23 and, after he became emperor in 25, had wanted to create her empress, but she declined because she had no sons at that point. Instead, she endorsed , who had already had a son , and Emperor Guangwu created Consort Guo empress and Prince Jiang crown prince in 26. However, Prince Yang's birth in 28 was still considered a major event.
As Duke/Prince of Donghai and crown prince
In 39, Emperor Guangwu created all of his sons, other than Crown Prince Jiang, dukes, and Prince Yang was created the Duke of Donghai. He quickly became known for his intelligence even in his young age, and he often made quick judgments of situations that turned out to be correct. Emperor Guangwu became very impressed with him.
By 41, Empress Guo, having lost favor, was constantly complaining about that fact, which angered Emperor Guangwu. In 41, he deposed her and created Duke Yang's mother Consort Yin empress instead. All of the imperial dukes were promoted to princes to accommodate Emperor Guangwu's new title for Empress Guo -- Princess Dowager of Zhongshan , and Duke Yang was created the Prince of Donghai.
After Empress Guo was deposed, her son, Crown Prince Jiang, became apprehensive about remaining crown prince, and repeatedly requested to be replaced. Emperor Guangwu was initially hesitant to depose both mother and son, but in 43, he resolved to swap Princes Jiang's and Yang's positions. He created Prince Jiang the Prince of Donghai, and created Prince Yang crown prince. At this time, he also changed Prince Yang's name to Zhuang, perhaps because Yang is such a commonly used character that the law of naming taboo would cause the people too much trouble.
In 51, the woman who would eventually become his empress -- , the youngest daughter of famed general -- would become a consort of his. She was 12, and he was 23. She would become a favorite of his, but never bore a son. Her niece , Consort Jia, also a consort of Crown Prince Zhuang, did give birth to a child -- Liu Da . At Crown Prince Zhuang's direction, Consort Ma adopted Consort Jia's son as her own.
As crown prince, Crown Prince Zhuang was often requested by Emperor Guangwu to render opinions in important matters. In 51, he was involved in making a major correct decision in Han's relationship with Xiongnu. By that point, Xiongnu had a civil war and divided into two -- with North Xiongnu ruled by Chanyu Punu and South Xiongnu ruled by Chanyu Bi . Han had become allied with South Xiongnu, and in response, Chanyu Punu, also wanting peace with Han, requested a ''heqin'' marriage. Prince Zhuang suggested that Emperor Guangwu refuse the proposal, reasoning that North Xiongnu had only made the proposal to alienate South Xiongnu from Han. Emperor Guangwu agreed.
In 57, Emperor Guangwu died, and Crown Prince Zhuang succeeded to the throne as Emperor Ming.
Early reign
Emperor Ming quickly established himself as a diligent and capable administrator of the empire. He did many things to try to stamp out corrupt officials, often putting them to death if they were discovered.
One thing traditional historians praised him for was his fair treatment of his brothers by the deposed Empress Guo, treating them as if they were also born of his mother Empress Dowager Yin. In 58, when his older brother, Prince Jiang of Donghai died, he ordered that the princes and major officials to attend Prince Jiang's funeral -- a highly unusual honor -- at Lucheng , the capital of Donghai.
In 59, at the suggestion of his brother Liu Cang the Prince of Dongping, Emperor Ming instituted a number of Confucian rituals, in which the emperor personally honored the officials who had helped him, to show humility.
In 60, he created his favorite Consort Ma empress, and created her adopted son Prince Da crown prince.
The same year, to honour the generals and officials who had assisted his father Emperor Guangwu in reestablishing the Han Dynasty, Emperor Ming, perhaps echoing what had done, had the portraits of 28 of them drawn on a palace tower. Later, four more portraits were added. However, Ma Yuan, because he was the father of the empress, did not receive this honor.
During the early part of his reign, North Xiongnu continued to be a constant threat to both Han and her ally South Xiongnu. Emperor Ming engaged in a variety of military and economic tactics to try to maintain peace with North Xiongnu and was largely successful. In 65, he established a permanent border defense force, known as the Duliao Army , in charge of protecting the northern boundaries and South Xiongnu, and also to prevent the people of South Xiongnu from defecting to North Xiongnu.
In 66, in what would eventually evolve into the first imperial university in Chinese history, Emperor Ming built a Confucian school at the capital Luoyang, for the children of high officials and marquesses. South Xiongnu nobles' children also attended.
Late reign
The Chu and Huaiyang-related mass executions
Emperor Ming was, early in his reign, known for his generosity and affection for his brothers. This, however, apparently caused some of them to engage in behavior that were considered taboo at the time and, ironically, caused them to be severely punished by Emperor Ming, leading also to two major mass executions that blotted Emperor Ming's reign.
The first of these incidents happened in 66-67 and was relatively bloodless. The ambitious Prince Jing of Guanglin wanted to be emperor, and he plotted with people under him to rebel. When he was informed, he confessed, and Emperor Ming initially spared him and permitted him to remain the Prince of Guanglin but stripped his political powers. However, later Prince Jing hired warlocks to curse Emperor Ming. After he was discovered, Emperor Ming initially took no action, but in 67 forced Prince Jing to commit suicide.
The next incident would not be so bloodless. In 70, Prince of Chu -- incidentally, the only son of Emperor Guangwu not born of either of his empresses but of Consort Xu -- hired warlocks to create golden turtles and jade cranes, and carved characters calling for unusual blessings on them -- a major taboo at the time. Further, he was discovered to have written revolutionary writings. Emperor Ming did not put him to death, but deposed him from his principality, exiled him, and made him a commoner . In 71, Prince Ying committed suicide in exile. However, the investigation did not end. By Emperor Ming's orders, Prince Ying's associates were harshly tortured and interrogated, and anyone that they named as a coconspirator was arrested and further tortured and interrogated. The interrogators themselves used this opportunity to falsely accuse many others of conspiracy. Tens of thousands of people died, either of torture or execution, during the investigation. Only after Empress Ma's intercession and persuasive petitions by one of the interrogators, Han Lang , did the interrogations taper off.
A similar incident happened in 73, when Prince Yan of Huaiyang was informed to have hired warlocks to curse Emperor Ming. Several of Prince Yan's associates were executed, and there were also many others who were executed or exiled after Chu-style interrogations were carried out. Prince Yan himself was not executed, but was demoted from his commandery-level principality to be the Prince of Fulin, with only two counties in his principality.
Campaigns against North Xiongnu and reassertion of suzerainty over Xiyu
In 73, annoyed at North Xiongnu's constant incursions against Han, Emperor Ming commissioned his generals Geng Bing and Dou Gu to lead a major expedition against North Xiongnu. They only had minor successes, but it demonstrated to North Xiongnu that Han was now in a position to strike back.
Dou, as part of his campaign, sent his assistant Ban Chao to visit the Xiyu kingdom of Shanshan (on the eastern edge of the Taklamakan Desert. Initially, the king of Shanshan was very pleased and welcomed the Han ambassadors as honored guests, but eventually the welcome faded. Ban realized that it must have been that North Xiongnu ambassadors had also arrived. He found out where the North Xiongnu ambassadors were, and, in a night raid, massacred the Xiongnu ambassadors. The king of Shanshan was shocked but somewhat pleased, and submitted to Han suzerainty once again.
Emperor Ming promoted Ban and commissioned him to next visit Yutian , then the strongest kingdom in southern Xiyu, which had a strong alliance with North Xiongnu. Guangde , the King of Yutian, was trusting of his chief warlock, who demanded Ban's horse. Ban agreed to give him the horse, and then, when the warlock arrived to pick up the horse, immediately executed him, and sent his head back to Guangde. Guangde was impressed and submitted to Han's suzertainty. With Yutian having submitted, the Xiyu kingdoms largely all submitted as well.
In 74, Dou and Geng led a major military expedition against a major remaining ally of North Xiongnu, Cheshi . Cheshi submitted, and at Dou's suggestion, the office of the Protector General of Xiyu was reinstituted. A North Xiongnu expedition in 75 to recapture Cheshi was repelled by Geng Gong , one of the deputiies protector general.
Death
In 75, Emperor Ming died. His will ordered that no temple be built for him, and that he only be worshipped as part of the worship of his mother Empress Dowager Yin. His son Crown Prince Da succeeded to the throne as .
Era name
* ''Yongping'' 58-75
Personal information
* Father
** Emperor Guangwu of Han
* Mother
** Empress Yin Lihua
* Wife
**
* Concubines
** Consort Jia, mother of Emperor Zhang
** Consort Yin, mother of Prince Chang
** Consort Yan, a sister of the court official Yan Zhang
** Consort Yan, another sister of Yan Zhang
* Children
** Crown Prince , , later Emperor Zhang of Han
** Liu Jian , Prince Ai of Qiancheng
** Liu Xian , Prince of Guangping (created 60, later Prince of Xiping , later Prince Jing of Chen
** Liu Gong , Prince of Lingshou , later Prince of Julu , later Prince of Jianglin , later Prince Jing of Pengcheng
** Liu Dang , Prince of Chongxi , later Prince Jing of Lecheng
** Liu Yan , Prince Hui of Xiapei
** Liu Chang , Prince of Runan , later Prince Jie of Liang
** Liu Bing , Prince of Changshan (created 72, later Prince Qing of Huaiyang
** Liu Zhang , Prince Dao of Jiyin
** Liu Ji , the Princess Huojia
** Liu Nu , the Princess Pingyang
** Liu Ying , the Princess Longlü
** Liu Ci , the Princess Pingzhi
** Liu Zhi , the Princess Qinshui
** Liu Xiaoji , the Princess Pinggao
** Liu Zhong , the Princess Junyi
** Liu Hui , the Princess Wu'an
** Liu Chen , the Princess Luyang
** Liu Xiaoying , the Princess Leping
** Liu Xiaomin , the Princess Cheng'an
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