Liu Pengli (), Prince of Jidong (), was a 2nd-century BC
Han prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...
.
Family
Liu Pengli was the grandson of
Emperor Wen (r. 180-157 BCE) and the nephew of Emperor Jing (r. 157-141 BCE).
Liu Pengli was the third son of
Liu Wu, Prince of Liang
Liu Wu (刘武) (–144 BC), posthumously named Prince Xiao of Liang, was a Han prince. He was a son of Emperor Wen and Empress Xiaowen, and a younger brother of Emperor Jing. He played a prominent role in the suppression of the R ...
, and the nephew of the
Emperor Jing. Liu Wu's other sons included (in order)
Liu Mai,
Liu Ming,
Liu Ding
Liu Ding (; born 1976, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province) is a Chinese artist and curator based in Beijing. Liu’s artistic practices range from installation, painting, photography, and theatre set design and production, whereas his professional skills ...
, and
Liu Bushi.
Biography
Liu was Prince of Jidong in the sixth year of the middle era of the
Emperor Jing of Han (144 BC), the year of
his father, Liu Wu's
banishment
Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
from the
capital and death. The
empress dowager Xiaowen grieved greatly for her younger son and, to placate her (and weaken the powerful
fief
A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...
of
Liang), Emperor Jing divided Liang in five and granted a part to each of Liu Wu's sons.
Sima Qian's ''
Records of the Grand Historian
''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...
'' relates that, "At the age of twenty-nine, he was arrogant and cruel and would go out on marauding expeditions with tens of slaves or young men who were in hiding from the law, murdering people and seizing their belongings for sheer sport. Apparently, Liu Pengli recruited 20-30 individuals with similar predilections to accompany him in the search for victims to rob and kill.
Confirmed victims exceeded 100, and these murders were known across the kingdom, so people were afraid of leaving their homes at night. Eventually, the son of one of his victims made an accusation to the Emperor, and the officials of the court requested that Liu Pengli be executed; however, the Emperor could not bear to have his own nephew killed, and Liu Pengli was made a commoner and banished to the county of Shangyong (now
Zhushan in
Hubei Province
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
). In 116 BC, his sovereignty was abolished and his land was reclaimed
Book of Han
The ''Book of Han'' or ''History of the Former Han'' (Qián Hàn Shū,《前汉书》) is a history of China finished in 111AD, covering the Western, or Former Han dynasty from the first emperor in 206 BCE to the fall of Wang Mang in 23 CE. ...
. by the Emperor Jing".
See also
*
List of serial killers by country
This is a list of notable serial killers, by the country where most of the killings occurred.
Convicted serial killers by country Afghanistan
*Abdullah Shah: killed at least 20 travelers on the road from Kabul to Jalalabad while serving under ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Pengli
2nd-century BC people
Chinese serial killers
Han dynasty imperial princes
Male serial killers