Ma Midi (died 194),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

Wengshu, was an official who lived during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

of China.

Life

Ma Midi was from Maoling County (茂陵縣),

Youfufeng Fufeng ( zh, 扶風), also known as You Fufeng ( zh, 右扶風), was a historical region located in modern western Shaanxi. In early Han dynasty, the administrator of the capital Chang'an and its vicinities was known as ''You Neishi'' (右內史) ...

Commandery (右扶風郡), which is located northeast of present-day

Xingping Xingping () is a city located in the center part of Shaanxi province, China. It has been a city since 1993, with a total area of 496 square kilometers and a population of 620,000. The annual average temperature is and its annual precipitation o ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...

. He was a relative of

Ma Rong Ma Rong (; 79–166), courtesy name Jichang (), was a Chinese poet and politician of the Eastern Han dynasty. He was born in Youfufeng () in the former Han capital region, in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi Province. His father Ma Yan (马严) was a s ...

, an influential Confucian scholar and government official. Ma Midi studied under Ma Rong's tutelage in his younger days and later joined the government service as a Counsellor Remonstrant (諫議大夫). During this time, he and his colleagues

Lu Zhi Lu Zhi or Lu Chih may refer to: *Empress Lü (呂雉), first empress of the Han dynasty *Lu Zhi (Han dynasty) (盧植), minister of the Eastern Han dynasty **Lu Zhi (卢志), great-grandson of the Eastern Han minister and confidant/strategist of Si ...

Cai Yong Cai Yong (Chinese: ; 132–192), courtesy name Bojie, was Chinese astronomer, calligrapher, historian, mathematician, musician, politician, and writer of the Eastern Han dynasty. He was well-versed in calligraphy, music, mathematics and astrono ...

Yang Biao Yang may refer to: * Yang, in yin and yang, one half of the two symbolic polarities in Chinese philosophy * Korean yang, former unit of currency of Korea from 1892 to 1902 * YANG, a data modeling language for the NETCONF network configuration p ...

(楊彪) and others proofread, edited and annotated the official copies of the

Four Books and Five Classics The Four Books and Five Classics () are the authoritative books of Confucianism, written in China before 300 BCE. The Four Books and the Five Classics are the most important classics of Chinese Confucianism. Four Books The Four Books () are C ...

and ''Dongguan Han Ji'' (東觀漢記) stored in the imperial library. Later, he was reassigned to be a Household Counsellor (光祿大夫). In 191, during the reign of

Emperor Xian Emperor Xian of Han (2 April 181 – 21 April 234), personal name Liu Xie (劉協), courtesy name Bohe, was the 14th and last emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty in China. He reigned from 28 September 189 until 11 December 220. Liu Xie was a so ...

( 189–220), Ma Midi was promoted to Grand Commandant (太尉) by

Dong Zhuo Dong Zhuo () (died 22 May 192), courtesy name Zhongying, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty. At the end of the reign of the Eastern Han, Dong Zhuo was a general and powerful minist ...

, the warlord who controlled the Han central government and the figurehead Emperor Xian from 189 to 192. In 192, Dong Zhuo was assassinated in

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

Lü Bu Lü Bu () (died 7 February 199), courtesy name Fengxian, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of Imperial China. Originally a subordinate of a minor warlord Ding Yuan, he betray ...

and Wang Yun, who became the new head of the central government. When Cai Yong allegedly expressed grief at Dong Zhuo's death, Wang Yun had him imprisoned and sentenced to death. Ma Midi and other officials pleaded for leniency on Cai Yong's behalf, but Wang Yun refused and had Cai Yong executed. Ma Midi became disappointed with Wang Yun and predicted that he would not remain in power for long. He was proven right: Later in 192, Dong Zhuo's followers, led by Li Jue and

Guo Si Guo Si () (died 197), also known as Guo Duo, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord serving under the warlord Dong Zhuo during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He assisted Dong Zhuo in his many campaigns and served as a su ...

, seized power from Wang Yun, killed him, and subsequently took control of the central government with Emperor Xian as a puppet ruler. Li Jue and Guo Si appointed Ma Midi as Grand Tutor (太傅) and Manager of the Affairs of the Masters of Writing (錄尚書事). One month later, Ma Midi and Zhao Qi were each granted a '' fu'' (a tally symbolising imperial authority) and ordered to pay official visits to high-ranking regional officials as representatives of the central government. Ma Midi was also tasked with conferring the appointment "General of the Left" (左將軍) and the noble title "Marquis of Yangzhai" (陽翟侯) on the warlord

Yuan Shu Yuan Shu () (died July or August 199), courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189 ...

in Shouchun (壽春; present-day

Shou County Shou County or Shouxian () is a county in the north-central part of Anhui Province, China, and is located on the southern (right) bank of the Huai River. It is the southernmost county-level division of the prefecture-level city A prefectur ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

). When Ma Midi visited Yuan Shu, the latter treated him rudely, seized the ''fu'' from him and used it to consolidate his own power base in the

Huai River The Huai River (), Postal Map Romanization, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in China. It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...

region. Ma Midi, feeling ashamed of losing the ''fu'', attempted to leave Shouchun, but Yuan Shu stopped him and tried to force him to be his adviser. Feeling frustrated and humiliated, Ma Midi vomited blood and died in Shouchun in 194.

References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * Fan, Ye (5th century). ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...

'' (''Houhanshu''). {{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Midi 2nd-century births 194 deaths Dong Zhuo and associates Yuan Shu and associates Han dynasty politicians

Life

See also

References