Liu Meng (died February or March 272) was a leader of the

Southern Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 209& ...

Bing province Bingzhou, or Bing Province, was a location in ancient China. According to legend, when Yu the Great (–2100 BC) tamed the flood, he divided the land of China into the Nine Provinces. Historical texts such as the ''Rites of Zhou'', and "Treatise ...

during the

Jin dynasty Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...

. In 271, he led a rebellion against the Jin but was defeated and killed the following year.

Life

According to the ''

Book of Wei The ''Book of Wei'', also known by its Chinese name as the ''Wei Shu'', is a classic Chinese historical text compiled by Wei Shou from 551 to 554, and is an important text describing the history of the Northern Wei and Eastern Wei from 386 to 5 ...

'', Liu Meng was the son

Qubei Qubei (; pinyin: Qùbēi, 195–216) was a leader of the Southern Xiongnu and supervisor of the Five Divisions who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. An uncle to the last ''chanyu'' of the Southern Xiongnu, Huchuquan, Qubei ...

, a member of the imperial

Luandi The Luandi (; alternatively written as Xulianti ) was the ruling clan of the Xiongnu that flourished from the 3rd century BCE to 4th century CE. The form Luandi comes from the '' Book of Han'', while the form Xulianti comes from the '' Book of Lat ...

clan of the

who was appointed by the Chinese court to supervise the Five Divisions of Xiongnu in

. However, a much later and dubious account from the ''

New Book of Tang The ''New Book of Tang'', generally translated as the "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History", is a work of official history covering the Tang dynasty in ten volumes and 225 chapters. The work was compiled by a team of scholars of the So ...

'' instead claim that he was Qubei's brother. A memorial sent by the

Cao Wei Wei () was one of the major Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic states in China during the Three Kingdoms period. The state was established in 220 by Cao Pi based upon the foundations laid by his father Cao Cao during the end of the Han dy ...

general,

Deng Ai Deng Ai (197 – late March 264Vol.04 of ''Sanguozhi'' and vol.02 of ''Jin Shu'' both indicated that Deng Ai was arrested in the 1st month of the 1st year of the ''Xianxi'' era. The month corresponds to 15 Feb to 14 Mar 264 in the Julian calendar ...

in the 250s indicates that after Qubei's death, his son was not allowed to inherit his domain. To curb the growing power of the Xiongnu leader,

Liu Bao Liu Bao ( 195–279) was a leader of the Five Divisions who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. His son, Liu Yuan, founded the Han-Zhao dynasty during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. Life According to ...

, Deng recommended for Qubei's son to be given a title and garrisoned at

Yanmen Pass Yanmen Pass, also known by its Chinese name Yanmenguan and as Xixingguan, is a mountain pass which includes three fortified gatehouses along the Great Wall of China. The area was a strategic choke point in ancient and medieval China, con ...

. Liu Meng did possess a title during the Jin dynasty, but there are contradicting accounts on what exactly that title was. According to different volumes in the ''

Book of Jin The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty (266–420), Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, ...

'', he was either the Leader of the Xiongnu (匈奴帥), the Leader of the Central Tribe (中部帥), the Right Virtuous King (右賢王), or the ''Chanyu'' (單于), although the last title is likely a mistake, as it was abolished at the end of Huchuquan's reign in 216. Additionally, the ''Book of Wei'' also states that he was the Leader of the Northern Tribe (北部帥). In 271, Liu Meng began a rebellion against the Jin. He went beyond the

Great Wall The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand Li (unit), ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection agains ...

and established a base in Kongxie city. At the end of the year, he led his forces to invade Bing province but suffered defeat to the provincial inspector, Liu Qin. In early 272, the Army Supervisor, He Zhen, campaigned against Liu Meng and defeated him multiple times. In the end, the Commander of the Left Tribe, Li Ke, was bribed into defecting to the Jin and had Liu Meng assassinated, ending his rebellion. When Liu Meng died, his son, Liu Fulun fled to the

Tuoba The Tuoba (Chinese language, Chinese) or Tabgatch (, ''Tabγač''), also known by #Names, other names, was an influential Xianbei clan in early imperial China. During the Sixteen Kingdoms after the fall of Han and the Three Kingdoms, the Tuoba e ...

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were an ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. The Xianbei were likely not of a single ethnicity, but rather a multiling ...

tribe, where he and his descendants intermarried with the ruling Tuoba clan and became known as the Dugu tribe. Meanwhile, Liu Meng's followers were taken over by his brother, Liu Gaoshengyuan. These people later became the

Tiefu Xia (), known in historiography as Hu Xia (胡夏), Northern Xia (北夏), Helian Xia (赫連夏) or the Great Xia (大夏), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Helian clan of Tiefu-Xiongnu ethnicity during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. ...

tribe after Gaoshengyuan's son, Liu Hu, came to power in 309.(鐵弗劉虎...猛死，子副崙來奔。虎父誥升爰代領部落...誥升爰死，虎代焉。) ''Wei Shu'', vol.95

References

Sources

* Wei, Shou (554). ''

'' (''Wei Shu''). * Fang, Xuanling (ed.) (648). ''

'' (''Jin Shu''). * Ouyang, Xiu (1060). ''

'' (''Xin Tang Shu''). {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Meng Xia (Sixteen Kingdoms) people Xiongnu Jin dynasty (266–420) rebels Year of birth unknown People of the Three Kingdoms 272 deaths