Liu Bao ( 190s–200s) was a

Southern Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomads, nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese historiography, Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, ...

chanyu Chanyu () or Shanyu (), short for Chengli Gutu Chanyu (), was the title used by the supreme rulers of Inner Asian nomads for eight centuries until superseded by the title "''Khagan''" in 402 CE. The title was most famously used by the ruling L ...

who lived during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

and

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 Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

period of China. His father was

Yufuluo Chizhi Shizhu Hou (; 150–196; r. 188–195 AD), personal name Yufuluo (於夫羅), was a puppet chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu during the late Han Dynasty. In 188, he was appointed chanyu by the Han court following the murder of his father Qian ...

. His son, Liu Yuan, founded the Han Zhao dynasty during the

Sixteen Kingdoms The Sixteen Kingdoms (), less commonly the Sixteen States, was a chaotic period in Chinese history from AD 304 to 439 when northern China fragmented into a series of short-lived dynastic states. The majority of these states were founded by ...

period. Liu Bao was Yufuluo's heir. When Yufuluo died, his younger brother

Huchuquan Huchuquan was the last chanyu () of the Southern Xiongnu during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a younger brother of the Xiongnu chanyu in exile, Yufuluo. History After his brother died in 195, Huchuqua ...

inherited the position of chanyu in accordance with the lateral succession order and appointed Liu Bao as the

Tuqi King The Tuqi King () was a high office of the Xiongnu, a title also known to the Chinese as "worthy/wise prince/king".Chen (1999), p. 237–277Ma (2005), p. 397–411 In the 6th to 8th centuries, Chinese annalists used the expression 贤王 ''Xian wang ...

(a position for the heir apparent to the chanyu). Liu Bao had five Xiongnu tribes under his command. In 216, Huchuquan travelled to the Han Empire to receive nominal titles from the Han imperial court and remained in Ye (present-day

Handan Handan is a prefecture-level city located in the southwest of Hebei province, China. The southernmost prefecture-level city of the province, it borders Xingtai on the north, and the provinces of Shanxi on the west, Henan on the south and Shando ...

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

). Liu Bao succeeded Huchuquan as the chanyu while his brother

Qubei Qubei (; pinyin: Qùbēi), ( 195–216) was a leader of the Southern Xiongnu who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Life There is uncertainty surrounding Qubei's family background. The ''Book of Wei'' indicates that he was ...

became the Tuqi King.Bichurin N.Ya., ''"Collection of information on peoples in Central Asia in ancient times"'', 1851, vol. 1, p. 147 Liu Bao was one of the longest reigning chanyus among the Southern Xiongnu. During Li Jue's coup in

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

, Liu Bao seized

Cai Wenji Cai Yan ( 178 – post 206; or 170–215; or died 249), courtesy name Wenji, was a Chinese composer, poet, and writer who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. She was the daughter of Cai Yong. Her courtesy name was original ...

as his concubine and had two children with her. He released her when

Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...

paid a ransom for her. When his clan suffered from internal problems,

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 ...

advised him to relinquish some of his power.

References

* Fang, Xuanling (ed.) (648). ''

Book of Jin The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...

'' (''Jin Shu''), Volume 101. {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Bao 3rd-century Chinese people People during the end of the Han dynasty Former Zhao people Chanyus 3rd-century monarchs in Asia

See also

References