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Chen Youliang (陳友諒; 1320 – 3 October 1363For those cross-referencing the Mingshi, in the old Chinese calendar 至正二十三年 refers to the year 1363 CE, 七月二十日 refers to 8月29日 or 29 August, and 八月二十六日 refers to 10月3日 or 3 October.) was the founder and first
emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...
of the dynastic state of Chen Han in
Chinese history The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the ''Book of Documents'' (early chapter ...
. He was one of the military leaders and heroes of the people's revolution at the end of the Yuan dynasty.


Biography

Chen was born to a fishing family in Mianyang (沔陽) in present-day
Hubei 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 p ...
. Some say he was born with surname Chen (陳), while others say he was born with surname Xie (謝). Vietnamese records say that Chen Youliang was the son of Chen Yiji (陳益稷) or Trần Ích Tắc, a
Trần dynasty The Trần dynasty, ( Vietnamese: Nhà Trần, chữ Nôm: 茹陳)also known as the House of Trần, was a Vietnamese dynasty that ruled over the Kingdom of Đại Việt from 1225 to 1400. The dynasty was founded when emperor Trần Thá ...
leader who settled in the
Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...
. In his childhood, he grew up poor, and he and his family were relatively unsuccessful fishermen. Chen once served as a district official before becoming a general under
Ni Wenjun Ni Wenjun (; died 1357) was a Chinese general of the Red Turban Rebellions who fought against the Yuan dynasty in the 1360s. He served under General Xu Shouhui. One of Ni's famous subordinates was Chen Youliang Chen Youliang (陳友諒; 1 ...
during the
Red Turban Rebellion The Red Turban Rebellions () were uprisings against the Yuan dynasty between 1351 and 1368, eventually leading to its collapse. Remnants of the Yuan imperial court retreated northwards and is thereafter known as the Northern Yuan in historiog ...
. Ni Wenjun planned to assassinate
Xu Shouhui Xu Shouhui () (1320–1360) was a 14th-century Chinese rebel leader who proclaimed himself emperor of the Tianwan dynasty (天完) during the late Yuan dynasty period of China. He was also known as Xu Zhenyi (徐真一 or 徐真逸, romanized i ...
, the Red Turban rebels' leader, but Chen Youliang killed Ni Wenjun before Ni could kill Xu. At this time, Chen Youliang took over Fujian and Jiangxi. Upon hearing that Jiangxi had been captured, Xu Shouhui wished to move the capital there, but Chen Youliang feared that Xu Shouhui would threaten him there and sent an envoy to stop him. Still Xu and his troops arrived in Jiangxi, so he later turned on Xu Shouhui and assassinated him. In 1357, Chen proclaimed himself "King of Han" in Jiangzhou (江州; present-day
Jiujiang Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
,
Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
), and emperor the next year after Xu Shouhui died. His era name, as well as his empire's name, was '' Da Han'' (大漢; literally "Great Han"). Chen Youliang appointed Zou Pusheng ( 邹普胜) as
Grand Preceptor Grand Preceptor, also referred to as Grand Master, Section Cp2:192 C was the senior-most of the top three civil positions of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. The other two were Grand Tutor (太傅) and Grand Protector (太保), respectively. These three ...
and Zhang Bixian (张必先) as prime minister ( 丞相). From 1359 to 1363 Chen's fleet was the strongest on the upper
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...
. His power was at least as great as that of another rebel state, Wu, led by Zhu Yuanzhang, founder of the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
. In 1360 the Han fleet and army began a long war against Wu forces. At that time, the Wu forces were based in Jiqing (present-day
Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and t ...
). The Wu was later renamed "
Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han pe ...
" in 1368. An attack on the Wu capital was defeated thanks to excellent Wu intelligence (likely due to the defection of part of the Han fleet earlier in the year). The war continued until the climactic
Battle of Lake Poyang The Battle of Lake Poyang () was a naval conflict which took place (30 August – 4 October 1363) between the rebel forces of Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang during the Red Turban Rebellion which led to the fall of the Yuan dynasty. Chen Youlia ...
where the Wu fleet narrowly defeated the larger fleet of Han after three days of fighting. A month after the battle at Lake Poyang, the Han fleet tried to break out from Lake Poyang. During the resulting ship battles Chen was killed (he was alleged to have died from an arrow wound in the head). He was 43 years old at the time of his death in October 3, 1363. As his crown prince Chen Shan (陳善) had been captured, Chen Youliang was succeeded by his second son, Chen Li, who was soon attacked by the fleet and army of Wu. The conquest of Han took an additional two years but by April 1365 the Han empire was gone and all its lands were now part of the Wu power base.


Family

*Grand-ancestors: Chen Qianyi (陈千一) *Father: Chen Pucai ( 陳普才) became Marquis of Cheng'en (承恩侯) by Zhu Yuanzhang after the downfall of Han *Mother: from the Wu clan (吴氏) *Brothers: **Chen Youfu (陈友富) would be promoted to the title Marquis of Guiren (归仁伯) by Zhu Yuanzhang **Chen Youzhi (陈友直) would be promoted to the title Marquis of Huaien (怀恩伯) by Zhu Yuanzhang **Chen Youren (陳友仁), KIA in the Battle of Poyang Lake **Chen Yougui (陳友貴), KIA in the Battle of Poyang Lake *Spouses: Chen Youliang had several concubines respectively surnamed Yang (杨), Lou (娄), Tao (陶) and Du (阇). Consort Du was captured along with Chen Shan. Concubines Yang and Lou predeceased Chen Youliang. *Children: **Chen Shan (陈善), Crown Prince, joined Ming army ** Chen Li, his successor, started Yangsan Jin clan of Korea *Grandchildren **
Chen Mingshan Chen may refer to: People * Chen (surname) (陳 / 陈), a common Chinese surname * Chen (singer) (born 1992), member of the South Korean-Chinese boy band EXO * Chen Chen (born 1989), Chinese-American poet * (), a Hebrew first name or surname: ...
( 陈明善), a descendant in Korea


Controversial relationship with Trần Ích Tắc

Vietnamese historical annals such as
Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư The ''Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'' ( vi-hantu, 大越史記全書; ; ''Complete Annals of Đại Việt'') is the official national chronicle of the Vietnamese state, that was originally compiled by the royal historian Ngô Sĩ Liên under ...
recorded that Chen Youliang sent a diplomatic delegate to Đại Việt to ask for alliance, claiming that he had biological relationship with
Trần Dynasty The Trần dynasty, ( Vietnamese: Nhà Trần, chữ Nôm: 茹陳)also known as the House of Trần, was a Vietnamese dynasty that ruled over the Kingdom of Đại Việt from 1225 to 1400. The dynasty was founded when emperor Trần Thá ...
(Trần is the Vietnamese pronunciation of Chen 陳). Chen claimed to be the biological son of Trần Ích Tắc, a Trần royal member who defected to the Yuan forces during the second invasion of Vietnam. However, Chinese history annals did not record any such relationship, instead claimed that Chen Youliang's ancestor originally have the family name as "Xia", later was married into a certain Chen clan and changed his name to the maternal family. Chen Youliang also descended from a fishermen family in Hubei, meanwhile Trần Ích Tắc was appointed as a court magistrate in Huguang, hence it was unlikely that a high-rank magistrate like Ích Tắc had a fishermen son. It is suspected that Chen Youliang pretended to be a Vietnamese royal family to earn support from Đại Việt.Hậu duệ nhà Trần của Đại Việt trở thành Hoàng đế Trung Hoa?
Văn Hiến Plus, 08/04/2019
The Trần dynasty, however, did not to respond to Chen's request. Trần Ích Tắc was considered a traitor and was legally removed from the Trần royal family, it is unlikely for Đại Việt to ally with a traitor's descendant. Đại Việt also had no reason to intervene into the affairs of her northern neighbor.


Evaluations

Through his established empire Chen Han, Chen Youliang is remembered as a revolutionary, even hero, who helped resist Yuan rule and pave the way for the new Ming dynasty. * Liu Ji: "Friends trust forgiveness and trust, and cross Jing and Xiang, the second half of a few days. Honest, self-controlled, and worry-free. Friends dare to rob the Lord, whose name is incorrect, and whose land is high-class. Their hearts forget themselves every day, so it is advisable to map them first. When Chen is destroyed, Zhang is lonely and can be determined in one fell swoop." * Zhu Yuanzhang: "Friends will die, and the world is not difficult to decide." "If you trust your friends to be arrogant and sincere, it will cause trouble if you are arrogant, but if you are small, there will be no distant picture." * Yang Jing: "Those who are like Chen and Zhang, steal from Wu and Chu, build boats to plug rivers, accumulate grain over mountains, and force soldiers to be invincible. However, in the First World War in Poyang, friends trusted be beheaded, and the teacher turned to the east to beg, while Zhang was bound. This is not manpower, but it is also a destiny. " * Rao Hanxiang: "Han River First a Hero, Third Chu is magnificent." (“江汉先英、三楚雄风。”) Quote is essentially saying Chen was a great hero to the Han people. * "Zhu Yuanzhang's Year to Record": "To the country of 600,000 to try the river flow, Mu Ye, Kunyang, Chibi, Lishui, and ancient emperors can use their heroes, but they have not heard of it." * Cai Dongfan: "I said that friends have a way to lose themselves. Jiangzhou has lost, and the fundamental place has gone. It is appropriate to gather troops and save their strength. Xu Tu can't wait to raise another one. He can't wait, put all your eggs in one basket, lose his children, lose his love, or even die, and laugh for the world. It is obvious that the rise and fall of the country is really related to people's plans, not like Xiang Yu's first Wujiang River." * Historian Wu Han: "Although Chen Youliang failed, he was, after all, a hero who opposed the rule of the Mongolian and Han landlord classes in the Yuan dynasty. He played a role in history. At that time, people sympathized with him and missed him. His grave is still preserved under the newly built Yangzi River Bridge for visitors to mourn."


Memorial

Also see Tomb of Chen Youliang ( 陈友谅墓), a cenotaph (衣冠冢).


Tomb

On October 3, 1363, after Chen Youliang died in the Battle of Poyang Lake, his real remains disappeared. His clothes were taken back by his subordinates in a boat and sent to the south slope of Sheshan, approaching the Wuchang Bridge Head (武昌桥头) of Yangtze River Bridge in
Wuhan City Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the ninth-most populous Chinese city an ...
,
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 ...
(next to the Yellow Crane Tower, a famous scenic spot in Wuhan, Hubei Province) for burial. It faces south, has a rectangle with rounded corners and a height of 2.2 meters. The tomb base is 12 meters long. The tomb is built on the mountain. Here is There is a hexagonal unknown pavilion nearby, and the pillars of the pavilion are engraved with handwriting. In the Qing Dynasty, this place became a part of the garden "Naiyuan" (乃园) of Hubei Provincial Bureau of Supervision, and few people visited it. In 1908, Wan Yaohuang and Geng Zhongzhao discovered this tomb in the thirty-fourth year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty. In 1912, Hubei Provincial Department of Internal Affairs requested renovation, and built a 16-step tomb road and a tall archway in front of the tomb (between the archway and the tomb). On the forehead of the memorial archway, "Jiang Han Xian Ying" ("江汉先英”), and on the back, "Three Chu Xiongfeng" (“三楚雄风"), a monument was erected in front of the tomb, "Da Han Chen Youliang Tomb", and Rao Hanxiang of Guangji made an inscription. There is also a tablet pavilion on each side of the tomb. In 1913, the cemetery was renovated and surrounded by pines and cypresses. In 1923 (after the Revolution of 1911), the Republic of China rebuilt it. In 1949, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, it was slightly repaired. In 1956, the tomb was listed as a cultural relic protection unit in Hubei Province. It was destroyed during the
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...
. In 1981, the local government of the Communist Party of China allocated funds to restore it. In June, 1998, it was completely renovated, with brick cement tomb walls and the monument of "Rebuilding Dahan Chen Youliang Tomb".


Memorial Palace

At 9:00 on December 18, 2013, the local government opened the "Chen Youliang Memorial Hall" (陈友谅纪念馆) at 90 Pier, Mian Street, Xiantao City, Hubei Province (formerly Mianyang, Hubei Province). This memorial hall has three floors of antique buildings, covering an area of 3,891 square meters, with a total construction area of 1,615 square meters. The first two floors have an exhibition hall of 920 square meters, and the last floor is an office rest area.


Legends

Yuan Mei's "Zi Bu Yu" (袁枚《子不語》), Volume 10, contains an article "Destroying Chen Youliang Temple", which tells the story of the ruined Jingzhou Chen Youliang Temple when Zhao Xili ( 赵锡礼) was appointed as a county magistrate. Zhao only knew that it was an unknown Wangye Temple, and thought it was an obscene temple and destroyed the temple, but he didn't know that the temple was dedicated to Chen Youliang, and he didn't know it until he asked Zhang Tianshi ( 张天师).《子不語·卷十·毀陳友諒廟》,「赵公锡礼,浙之兰溪人,初选竹山令,调繁监利。下车之日,例应谒文庙及城隍神。吏启:“有某庙者,当拈香。”公往视:庙有神像三人,雁行坐,俱王者衣冠,状貌颇庄严。问:“何神?”竟无知者。公欲毁其庙,吏不可,曰:“神素号显赫,历任官参谒颇肃,毁之恐触神怒,祸且不测。”公归搜志、乘,祀典不载此神,乃择日朝吏民于庙,手铁锁系神颈曳之。神像瑰伟,非掊击不能去。公曳之,应手而倒,三像碎于庭中。新其屋宇,改奉关帝。久之,竟无他异。公心终不释,乃行文天师府查之。得报牒云:神係元末偽漢王陳友諒弟兄三人,兵敗,死鄱陽湖,部曲散去,為立廟荊州。建於元至正某年,毀於國朝雍正某年趙大夫之手,合享血食四百年。」


Cultural portrayals


Film and TV

* 1978 Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre《倚天屠龙记》 by Long Tiansheng (龙天生) * 1984 《倚天屠龙记》 by Chen Xiang (陈祥) * 1986 《倚天屠龙记》 何贵林 * 1987 《 大明群英》 刘青云 Liu Qingyun * 1993 《 朱元璋》 张矩 Zhang Ju * 1994 《倚天屠龙记》 郑平君 * 1998 《 乞丐皇帝传奇》 李志希 * 2001 《倚天屠龙记》 陈荣峻 Chen Rongjun * 2003 《倚天屠龙记》 孙斌 * 2004 《武当》 刘旭 Liu Xu * 2006 《 传奇皇帝朱元璋》李庆祥 * 2006 《朱元璋》李明 * 2008 《飞天舞》 沉浮 * 2009 《倚天屠龙记》 周晓滨 * 2009 《 真命天子》 季肖冰 * 2015 《乞丐皇帝与大脚皇后传奇》 季晨 * 2019 《倚天屠龍記》侯瑞祥


Novels

Chen Youliang features as a character in the ''
wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted ...
'' novel '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' by Louis Cha.


See also

* Chen Han *
Chen Li (emperor) Chen Li (; 1351–1408) was the second and the last emperor of the Chinese Chen Han dynasty. Chen Li ruled from 1363–64. Chen Han Chen Li was born in Mianyang ( now Xiantao, Hubei) as the second son of Chen Youliang, the first emperor of ...


Citations


References

*Dreyer, Edward. (1982). Early Ming China: A Political History. Stanford: Stanford University Press. . * The Cambridge History of China Volume 7, pp. 65–89 (this section was written by Dreyer) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Youliang Red Turban rebels Chinese emperors Yuan dynasty people 1320 births 1363 deaths Burials in Wuhan Deified Chinese people Founding monarchs