History
Background
Shi Le was a minor chieftain in Shangdang Commandery in Bing province. In 303, a famine broke out in Bing, displacing many of the Jie and other tribal people in the area. The provincial inspector, Sima Teng, had these people captured and sold into slavery to fund his army for the War of the Eight Princes. Shi Le was sold to a wealthy family in Shandong, but soon attained his freedom.
By 305, Shi Le had made a name for himself by becoming a bandit, and raised a personal army with his friend, Ji Sang. Taking advantage of growing resentment against the Jin government, the two joined the rebel general Gongshi Fan to avenge the Prince of Chengdu, Sima Ying and later took leadership after Fan’s death, going as far as to sacking the city of Ye in 307. After their defeat, Shi Le led his forces to join the Xiongnu-led Han state in Bing province.
Under Han, Shi Le quickly rose through the ranks. Like many rebel generals who joined the state, he had full control over his army as the Han court had little actual power to assert their authority. With his peers, he raided the North China Plain, plundering the local counties and commanderies although never capturing them and staying there for long. In 311, he massacred the 100,000 strong Jin imperial army in the Battle of Ningping, allowing Han forces to capture Luoyang in the Disaster of Yongjia.
Shortly after, Shi Le assassinated his rival peer, Wang Mi, and absorbed his army. The Han court, fearing that he would rebel, could only reprimand and appease him. With Wang Mi’s death, Shi Le essentially controlled the eastern parts of the empire, with the exception of Shandong. In 312, Shi Le departed from his practice of leading a roving army to cultivate a base in Xiangguo. He also expanded his territory by defeating the Jin governors, Wang Jun and Liu Kun. In 318, he joined forces with the prince, Liu Yao, in quelling the coup of Jin Zhun, who massacred the emperor and imperial family in Pingyang.
Reign of Shi Le
During the campaign, Liu Yao was instated as emperor, so Shi Le sent an envoy to congratulate him. However, Liu Yao suspected him of planning to rebel, and had the envoy killed. Angered, Shi Le declared independence as Liu Yao moved the capital to his base in Chang’an, splitting the empire into two. In 319, Shi Le proclaimed himself the King of Zhao, a title he was supposed to receive before his envoy was killed. Prior to that, Liu Yao had also renamed the state from Han to Zhao. To distinguish the two states, historiographers refer to Liu Yao’s state as Former Zhao and Shi Le’s state as Later Zhao.
In his early reign, Shi Le expanded eastwards while Liu Yao dealt with matters in the west. By 323, he defeated Duan Pidi, one of the last remaining Jin powers in the north and conquered Shandong from the warlord, Cao Ni. War between the two Zhaos only broke out in 324, and in 328, Shi Le and Liu Yao led their armies to face each other in the pivotal Battle of Luoyang. Liu Yao was captured during the battle and later executed, while the remaining Former Zhao forces was destroyed in 329. Thus, the Later Zhao became a hegemonic power in northern China, though some areas were still out of their control; the Former Liang, Dai and Duan-Liaoxi states partially retained their independence through vassalage, while the Xianbei Murong tribe in Liaodong remained loyal to the Eastern Jin dynasty.
To consolidate his rule, Shi Le enacted several policies with the help of Han Chinese ministers such as Zhang Bin. Among others, he re-introduced the Nine Ranks System, promoted agriculture and emphasized education. He also continued the separate governance system between the Han Chinese and “Hu” people from the Han-Zhao dynasty. He adopted the Grand Chanyu title, tasked with managing the tribes, while also introducing new offices that specifically dealt with litigations and population movements of the tribes. He banned the word “hu” (胡; barbarian), opting to use “guoren” (國人; countryman) instead, and forbid the tribes from oppressing the Han Chinese scholar-officials.
Shi Le actively relocated people of various ethnic group from conquered places to live around his capital, as to better control them and restore agricultural output after many years of war and famines in the north. The relocated Han Chinese gentry clans were made to live in a designated region in Xiangguo, where they were governed by a supervisor. Shi Le was also an important proponent of Buddhism, as he gave the Kuchean monk, Fotu Cheng, a high-ranking position within his court.
Reign of Shi Hu
Shi Hu was a distant cousin and adoptive brother of Shi Le, as well as a prestigious commander who contributed in the rise of Later Zhao. In 333, Shi Le died and was succeeded by his son, Shi Hong. Immediately, Shi Hu led a coup and took over the government, facing very little to no resistance from the gentry and military. Through purges and campaigns, he exterminated Shi Le’s family members and retainers. In 334, he also killed Shi Hong and took the throne, initially taking the title of Regnant Heavenly Prince, then Heavenly Prince in 337, and finally Emperor in 350. In 335, he moved the capital to his base in Ye.
Records describe Shi Hu as an exceptionally brutal tyrant, indiscriminate in his killing and indulgent in womanizing and alcohol. Most notably, he took on several grand building projects in Ye and greatly expanded his harem, which heavily burdened the common people. On the other hand, the empire remained mostly intact throughout his reign, with minor revolts being quickly dealt with. He reaffirmed Buddhism by continuing to revere Fotu Cheng and promoting religious freedom. He also continued Shi Le's policy of relocating people to live around the capital, such as the Di and Qiang people from Guanzhong.
Shi Hu had ambitions to expand the state and heavily conscripted his subjects, but his campaigns yielded very minimal success. In 338, he carried out a joint campaign with the Murong-led Former Yan to conquer the Duan-Liaoxi. After the campaign, he turned on Yan but was defeated in the Battle of Jicheng. In 339, provoked by Eastern Jin movements along the border, he sent his generals to launch an early attack, capturing a few cities before withdrawing. In 346, he invaded the Former Liang but was repelled, although he captured their territory south of the Yellow River.
His reign was also troubled by a succession crisis that would lead to the empire's downfall. On two occasions, his crown princes attempted to kill him and usurp the throne, which led to him executing them in brutal fashion. In 349, shortly before his death, Shi Hu chose his 10-year-old son, Shi Shi to be the new Crown Prince, much to the displeasure of his other sons. Many of Later Zhao’s military generals were also unpleased with his choice of heir.
Ran Min disturbance and fall
After Shi Shi ascended the throne, his half-brother, Shi Zun conspired with the military generals to depose him. Among these generals was Shi Hu's adopted Han Chinese grandson, Shi Min. Both Shi Le and Shi Hu had the unusual practice of heavily adopting people into their clans; Shi Min's father was originally named Ran Zhan before his adoption to Shi Hu. Shi Min was well-loved by Shi Hu and was made into a powerful commander. To convince him into joining the plot, Shi Zun promised to make Shi Min his Crown Prince. Just a month into his reign, Shi Zun's forces overthrew Shi Shi, his regent and the empress dowager.
However, after ascending the throne, Shi Zun reneged on his promise and made his son the Crown Prince. Sensing Shi Min's anger, he planned to assassinate him, but the plan leaked, which led to Shi Min deposing him through a coup. Shi Min installed Shi Zun's half-brother, Shi Jian to the throne, but real power in Ye was held by himself and his ally, Li Nong. In the old capital, Xiangguo, another son of Shi Hu, Shi Zhi, began rallying a coalition to overthrow Shi Min.
While controlling Shi Jian, Shi Min survived three attempts on his life, which made him deeply wary of his followers. Seeing that the Jie and other tribespeople in Ye refused to submit, he decreed an infamous culling order, calling on his Han Chinese subjects to kill any "barbarian" person they find. Shi Min personally led his army to massacre the tribes in Ye, while also ordering his generals to purge their armies of tribespeople. The Jie and "barbarians" were identified by their high noses and full beards, but many of the people killed were also mistakenly-identified Han Chinese. In total, around 200,000 people were killed.
Shi Min killed Shi Jian and declared himself Emperor of Wei in 350, changing his name to Ran Min. In response, Shi Zhi proclaimed himself the new Emperor of Zhao. At this point, the Later Zhao was on the verge of collapse. The Di general, Fu Hong led his forces west to occupy the Guanzhong, where his son Fu Jiàn founded the Former Qin dynasty in 351. The Xianbei general, Duan Kan, also founded his short-lived state of Duan Qi in Shandong. From the northeast, the Former Yan began an invasion to establish themselves on the Central Plains, while the Eastern Jin launched a series of northern expeditions to reclaim lost territory from the south.
For most of his reign, Shi Zhi was besieged at Xiangguo by Ran Min's army. He was forced to make an alliance with the Former Yan and demoted his own title to King of Zhao. Despite eventually lifting the siege, he and his family were soon betrayed and slaughtered by his general, Liu Xian in 351. The last member of the Shi clan, Shi Kun fled to the Eastern Jin at Jiankang, where he was put to death.
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