Topic summary
Emperor Xuan of Han
Emperor Xuan of Han (Chinese: 漢宣帝; 91 BC – 10 January 48 BC), born Liu Bingyi (劉病已) and later renamed Liu Xun (劉詢), was the tenth emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning from 74 to 48 BC. During his reign, the Han dynasty recovered economically from the prior attritions of the costly Han–Xiongnu War and militarily dominated the Far East and Central Asia to become the regional superpower, thus establishing the first period of Pax Sinica. As a result, Emperor Xuan was one of the only four Western Han emperors to be posthumously honored with a temple name, along with Emperor Gaozu (who founded the Han dynasty), Emperor Wen (who ended the Lü Clan disturbance and started the prosperous Rule of Wen and Jing) and Emperor Wu (who greatly expanded the Han Empire's territory and sphere of influence).
Emperor Xuan's life was a "riches-to-rags-to-riches" story. He was born a prince as the eldest great-grandson of Emperor Wu and the only grandchild of crown princeLiu Ju, making him then the third heir to the Han throne in the primogenitalline of succession. His grandfather was the firstborn son of Emperor Wu with Empress Wei Zifu and the heir apparent of the Han Empire, who also had served as the prince regent for near two decades, but was framed for witchcraft practice against Emperor Wu and committed suicide after being forced into a failed uprising to purge the conspirators in 91 BC. His father Liu Jin (劉進) was also killed in that political turmoil, along with the rest of his family. The orphaned Liu Bingyi was then only a month-old infant who was thrown into prison as kin punishment and only survived due to the protective custody of a sympathetic prison warden named Bing Ji, and he lived his youth away from the palaces like a commoner after being pardoned by a nationwide amnesty from Emperor Wu in 87 BC. After the death of the childless Emperor Zhao and subsequently Liu He's short 27-day reign in 74 BC, the 17-year-old Liu Bingyi was selected by the statesmanHuo Guang (the half-brother of Liu Bingyi's great-cousin Huo Qubing) for the throne, inheriting the crown that ironically would have been his anyway if his grandfather's rebellion in 91 BC hadn't happened or had succeeded.
The early years of Emperor Xuan's reign was a continuation of that of his predecessor Emperor Zhao, where imperial politics was dominated by Huo Guang as the administrative oligarch, and Emperor Xuan was described as being constantly cautious of Huo's political authority "like sitting on a pin cushion". After Huo Guang's death in 68 BC, Emperor Xuan consolidated political power by eliminating corrupt officials, particularly the purging of the Huo family, who had exerted considerable political influence since the death of Emperor Wu. However, the familial extermination of the entire Huo clan later drew heavy criticism from historians (such as Sima Guang in his Zizhi Tongjian) for being "ungrateful" to the late Huo Guang, despite the fact that the purge was the result of a series of treasons that had been committed for years by members of the Huo family behind Huo Guang's back.
Emperor Xuan has been considered a wise, hardworking and brilliantly effective ruler by historians. Because he grew up among commoners, he thoroughly understood the struggles of the grassroot population, and lowered taxes, liberalized the government and employed capable bureaucrats into the civil services. He was open to advices and criticisms, and was a good judge of characters. He was said by Liu Xiang to have been fond of reading the works of Shen Buhai. Using Xing-Ming to control his subordinates, and devoting much time to legal cases, he was known for justice and clemency according to the Hanshu. His reign, along with that of his great-uncle and predecessor Emperor Zhao, are known by historians as the Zhao–Xuan Resurgence (昭宣中興) for the significant economic recovery and geopolitical prominence, which was considered by many to be thepeak period of the entire Han dynasty. Emperor Xuan was succeeded by his son Emperor Yuan after his death in 48 BC.