eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millenni ...
and politician serving under
Liu Shan
Liu Shan () (207–271), courtesy name Gongsi, was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge ...
(), the second and last emperor of the state of
Shu Han
Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...
period (220–280) of China. Highly favoured by Liu Shan, he was commonly blamed for misguiding the latter into surrendering to Shu's rival state,
Huang Hao entered the Shu imperial palace sometime in the 220s as a
eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millenni ...
attending to the Shu emperor
Liu Shan
Liu Shan () (207–271), courtesy name Gongsi, was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge ...
, who favoured him because he was shrewd and full of flattering words. Whenever Huang Hao attempted to interfere in state affairs, Dong Yun, then the head of government, warned Liu Shan about the dangers of flattery and admonished Huang Hao for misleading the emperor. When Dong Yun was still alive, he kept Huang Hao in check and never allowed him to be promoted beyond the position of an Assistant of the Yellow Gate (黃門丞).
Following Dong Yun's death in 246, Chen Zhi replaced him as the head of government and collaborated with Huang Hao to dominate the imperial court and state affairs. During this time, Liu Shan also criticised the late Dong Yun for treating him with contempt; he was believed to have said this under the influence of Huang Hao and Chen Zhi. When Chen Zhi died in 258, Huang Hao became the most influential figure in the Shu central government
Chengdu
Chengdu (, ; simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), alternatively romanized as Chengtu, is a sub-provincial city which serves as the capital of the Chinese provin ...
. Liu Shan also promoted him to the positions of Central Regular Attendant (中常侍) and Commandant of Equippage (奉車都尉).
Huang Hao abused his power by promoting officials who flattered him and demoting those who refused to fawn on him. When
Luo Xian
Luo Xian (died 270), courtesy name Lingze, was a military general of the Jin dynasty of China. He previously served in the state of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period. He is best known for defending his position at Yong'an (present-day Feng ...
refused to associate with him, he had Luo Xian sent out of Chengdu to serve as the Administrator (太守) of Badong Commandery (巴東郡; around present-day
Fengjie County
Fengjie County () is a county of Chongqing Municipality, China. It is on the Yangtze River; located within a couple hundreds kilometers upstream from the Three Gorges Dam, it is within the dam's affected area.
The county's most famous geograp ...
,
Chongqing
Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Co ...
). Yan Yu (閻宇), a close friend of Huang Hao, was appointed as Luo Xian's deputy to watch over him. Fan Jian, the Prefect of the Masters of Writing (尚書令), refused to have any dealings with Huang Hao. Huang Hao disliked
Xi Zheng
Xi Zheng (died 278), courtesy name Lingxian, was a Chinese essayist, poet, and politician of the state of Shu Han during the late Three Kingdoms period of China. He also served as an official in the early years of the Jin dynasty.
Early life
...
, an inner office official who had been near to Huang Hao's dealings for about 30 years, so although he did not harm Xi Zheng, he never allowed Xi Zheng to get promoted. Liu Yong, a younger brother of Liu Shan, hated Huang Hao and was never on good terms with him. After Huang Hao came to power, he slandered and spoke ill of Liu Yong in front of Liu Shan, resulting in Liu Shan refusing to meet Liu Yong for more than 10 years.(初，永憎宦人黃皓，皓既信任用事，譖構永於後主，後主稍疏外永，至不得朝見者十餘年。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 34.
In 262, the Shu general
Jiang Wei
Jiang Wei (202 – 3 March 264), courtesy name Boyue, was a military general of the state of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in Ji County (present-day Gangu County, Gansu), Jiang Wei started his career as a military officer ...
wrote to Liu Shan to urge him to execute Huang Hao. However, Liu Shan refused, said that Huang Hao were merely a servant running errands for him, and told Jiang Wei to not take it too personally. Jiang Wei knew that Huang Hao had many supporters in the imperial court and became worried that he might have gotten himself into trouble when he asked Liu Shan to execute Huang Hao. Later, Liu Shan ordered Huang Hao to apologise to Jiang Wei. Jiang Wei found an excuse to leave Chengdu and move to a military garrison at Tazhong (沓中; northwest of present-day Zhugqu County,
Gansu
Gansu (, ; alternately romanized as Kansu) is a province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province.
The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibe ...
). In the meantime, Huang Hao came up an idea to remove Jiang Wei from his command and replace him with Yan Yu (閻宇), his close friend. When Jiang Wei heard about it, he remained in Tazhong and refused to return to Chengdu as he knew that he would be safe in Tazhong.
In 263, Jiang Wei received news that Zhong Hui, a general from Shu's rival state
Wei
Wei or WEI may refer to:
States
* Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States
* Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...
, was mobilising troops into the
Guanzhong
Guanzhong (, formerly romanised as Kwanchung) region, also known as the Guanzhong Basin, Wei River Basin, or uncommonly as the Shaanzhong region, is a historical region of China corresponding to the crescentic graben basin within present-day ce ...
region, seemingly in preparation for an invasion of Shu. He then wrote to Liu Shan, requesting permission to set up defences against the impending invasion. Huang Hao, who believed in sorcery, got a witch doctor to predict the future. He then told Liu Shan that the witch doctor predicted that the Wei forces would not attack Shu, so there was no need to follow Jiang Wei's plan. Later that year, the Wei 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 ...
led his troops through a shortcut across mountainous terrain, bypassed the Shu defences, and showed up outside Chengdu. Liu Shan surrendered without putting up a fight, thus bringing an end to the Shu regime's existence. After Liu Shan's surrender, Deng Ai heard that Huang Hao was a treacherous person and wanted to execute him, but Huang Hao had already bribed Deng Ai's men to release him and escaped. His eventual fate is unknown.
In Chapter 119 of the 14th-century historical novel ''
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD ...
'', Huang Hao is publicly executed at the order of the Wei regent
Sima Zhao
Sima Zhao () (211 – 6 September 265), courtesy name Zishang, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
Sima Zhao capably maintained control of Wei, which had been ...
when he followed Liu Shan to the Wei capital
Luoyang
Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyan ...
.
See also
*
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms
The following are lists of people significant to the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of Chinese history. Their names in Mandarin pinyin are sorted in alphabetical order.
Fictional characters in the 14th-century historical novel ''Romance of ...
Records of the Three Kingdoms
The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220� ...
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD ...
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...