Fàn Zhi () ( 911
– 5 November 964
), formally the Duke of Lu (), was a civil official who served under 12
emperors
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
of 6 dynasties during
imperial China
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 chapte ...
's
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...
and the subsequent
Song Dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
. He was the
Later Zhou
Zhou, known as the Later Zhou (; ) in historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty and the last of the Five Dynasties that controlled most of northern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Founded by Guo Wei (E ...
chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
from 951 until 960, and the Song Dynasty chancellor from 960 until 964, not long before his death. A strict adherent to legal guidelines, he had influenced Later Zhou and Song rulers to rely more on civil administration in an age dominated by the military. Fàn was a member of the elite
Fàn family.
Early life
Growing up, Fàn Zhi's father
Fàn Shouyu (范守遇) was a staff supervisor () serving the
Later Liang. Biographer
Jack Dull
Jack L. Dull (January 2, 1930 – January 18, 1995) was an American scholar of the history of Han China and a professor at the University of Washington.
Biography
Born in 1930, Dull began his lifelong association with the University of Washington ...
considers Fàn Zhi a representative of the rise of "new families" which were gradually replacing the exclusive
aristocracy
Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'.
At t ...
of the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
.
At age eight, Fàn Zhi was able to write essays, and by 12 he already mastered and began teaching the voluminous classic ''
Book of Documents
The ''Book of Documents'' (''Shūjīng'', earlier ''Shu King'') or ''Classic of History'', also known as the ''Shangshu'' (“Venerated Documents”), is one of the Five Classics of ancient Chinese literature. It is a collection of rhetorica ...
''.
Career under Later Tang
Later Liang was replaced by the
Later Tang
Tang, known in historiography as the Later Tang, was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China and the second of the Five Dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period in Chinese history.
The first three of the Later Tang's four e ...
in 926, and Fàn passed the
imperial examination
The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...
in 933. The chief examination administrator He Ning () reportedly liked Fàn's writing the most that he intentionally assigned Fàn 13th place, which was the placing he himself got back in the day. Fàn became a prefectural judge () for the Zhongwu Commandery (忠武軍; roughly governing today's central
Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
), and was later promoted to the post of
subprefect
A subprefect is a high government official in several countries, such as Brazil and France.
In Brazil, a subprefect (''subprefeito'') is the highest official of a subprefecture, which is a subdivision of certain large municipalities (São Paulo, ...
of
Fengqiu
Fengqiu County () is a county in the north of Henan province, located on the north (left) bank of the Yellow River. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Xinxiang.
In ancient times, Pingqiu County () was located to the ea ...
which he served until Later Tang was overthrown in 936.
Career under Later Jin
Under the new
Later Jin Later Jin may refer to two states in imperial China:
* Later Jin (Five Dynasties) (後晉; 936–947), one of the Five Dynasties
* Later Jin (1616–1636) (後金; 1616–1636), precursor to the Qing dynasty
See also
* Jin (disambiguation)
Jin ...
, Fàn's essays caught the eyes of
chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
Sang Weihan
Sang Weihan (桑維翰) (898''Old History of the Five Dynasties'', vol. 89. – January 12, 947''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 285.[prefecture
A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...]
s and eventually back as the chancellor, Fàn followed him along the way. In 943, Fàn Zhi was promoted to the post of assistant division chief of the Department of Hospitality () and auxiliary official of the Institute of History (). A year later, he became a Hanlin Academician and division chief () of the Department of Accounting, Ministry of Finance (), as well as special drafting of the Secretariat ().
Career under the Liao Dynasty
Career under Later Han
Career under Later Zhou
Guo Wei
Guo Wei () (10 September 904 – 22 February 954According to Guo Wei's biography in "Old Histories of the Five Dynasties", he died between 9am and 11 am on the ''renchen'' day of the 1st month of the 1st year of the ''Xiande'' era of his reign ...
(), a Later Han general, had been impressed by the timeliness and the contents of the imperial orders he received while fighting rebellions away from the
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
. Once he asked the messenger who wrote the orders. "Fàn Zhi" was the reply, and Guo remarked, "Definitely fit to be chancellor."
In the winter months of early 951,
Guo Wei
Guo Wei () (10 September 904 – 22 February 954According to Guo Wei's biography in "Old Histories of the Five Dynasties", he died between 9am and 11 am on the ''renchen'' day of the 1st month of the 1st year of the ''Xiande'' era of his reign ...
rebelled against the Later Han emperor
Liu Chengyou
Liu Chengyou () (28 March 931Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter – 2 January 951), also known by his posthumous name Emperor Yin (), was the second and last emperor of imperial China's short-lived Later Han dynasty, during t ...
and his army swiftly conquered the capital
Kaifeng
Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the Nort ...
. Amidst the chaos after Liu's fleeing from the city, Guo remembered the name Fàn Zhi and asked for his whereabouts. When Fàn – who was living with other commoners – was located, Guo paid him a personal visit in heavy snow and during the conversation, removed his own robe to put on Fàn for warmth. As a token of his friendship to Guo, Fàn wrote several imperial orders for Guo, helping him to transition the state as Guo declared himself the emperor of the new
Later Zhou Dynasty
Zhou, known as the Later Zhou (; ) in historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty and the last of the Five Dynasties that controlled most of northern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Founded by Guo Wei (E ...
.
Career under Song
One day in 960, Fàn was dining in his own residence when general
Zhao Kuangyin
Emperor Taizu of Song (21 March 927 – 14 November 976), personal name Zhao Kuangyin, courtesy name Yuanlang, was the founder and first emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 960 until his death in 976. Formerly a distinguish ...
, who was supposed to be on the way to resist the
Liao Dynasty
The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...
invasion, stormed in. In tears, Zhao explained to Fàn that he was forced to become the emperor and return to the capital by his subordinates. Stunned and not sure what to suggest, Fàn was confronted by Zhao's attendant Luo Yangui (), who raised his sword to threaten Fàn into accepting the usurpation. When Fàn realized that everything was nothing but acting, he came down the stairs and bowed to Zhao, who became the first emperor of the
Song Dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
.
Notes and references
Sources
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{{Authority control
Later Zhou chancellors
Later Han (Five Dynasties) politicians
Song dynasty chancellors
964 deaths
910s births
Later Tang politicians
Later Jin (Five Dynasties) politicians
Later Zhou historians
Chinese jurists
Song dynasty historians
Politicians from Xingtai
Historians from Hebei
10th-century Chinese historians
Song dynasty politicians from Hebei
Song dynasty essayists