Lu Kang (126–195),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

Jining, was a Chinese politician 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 ...

of China.

Life

Lu Kang was from

Wu County Wu County or Wuxian (; 221 B.C. – December 2000) is a former county and city located in modern Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. Its name refers to its former status as the capital of the state of Wu during the Spring and Autumn period. Histo ...

Wu Commandery Wu Commandery was a commandery of imperial China. It covers parts of the contemporary Northern Zhejiang and Southern Jiangsu. The capital of Wu commandery was Wu (today's Suzhou). Major counties of Wu commandery include Wu (county), Yuhang county, ...

, which is in present-day

Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...

. His grandfather, Lu Xu (), served as a minor officer in a commandery in the early

. When the prince Liu Ying plotted to overthrow Emperor Ming, Lu Xu was implicated, arrested and tortured. Emperor Ming eventually pardoned Lu Xu but placed him under permanent

house arrest In justice and law, house arrest (also called home confinement, home detention, or, in modern times, electronic monitoring) is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to their residence. Travel is usually restricted, if all ...

. Lu Xu died of old age. Lu Kang's father, Lu Bao (), had a reputation for his morally upright character. The Han government repeatedly asked Lu Bao to join the civil service but he refused. Lu Kang was already known for being virtuous and diligent at a young age. He was nominated by Wu Commandery's Administrator, Li Su (), as a ''

xiaolian Xiaolian (; literally "filial and incorrupt"), was the standard of nominating civil officers started by Emperor Wu of Han in 134 BC. It lasted until its replacement by the imperial examination system during the Sui Dynasty. In Confucian philosophy ...

'' (civil service candidate), and was appointed as a minor officer in Wu Commandery. After Li Su was executed for committing some offence(s), Lu Kang collected Li's body, brought back to Li's home in

Yingchuan Commandery Yingchuan Commandery ( zh, 潁川郡) was a Chinese commandery from the Warring States period to Tang dynasty, located in modern central Henan province. The name referred to the Ying River, which flowed through its territory. The commandery was es ...

() for burial, and mourned Li's death. Zang Min (), the Inspector of

Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', ''Erya'' and ''Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of the ...

, nominated him as a ''maocai'' (), so Lu Kang was appointed as the Prefect () of Gaocheng County (高成縣; around present-day

Yanshan County, Hebei Yanshan County () is a county in the east of Hebei province, China, bordering Shandong to the south and east. It is under the administration of Cangzhou City, and it has a population of 410,000 residing in an area of . China National Highway 205 ...

). Gaocheng County was very remote and its security was poor. Every household in the county was armed with bows and arrows. When the previous Prefects entered office, they made the locals build and repair the city walls. After arriving in Gaocheng County, Lu Kang freed the labourers and governed the county so well that the people were very pleased with him and even criminal activity ceased in the county. The commandery office reported Lu Kang's achievements to the Han imperial court. In 178, during the reign of Emperor Ling, Lu Kang was promoted to serve as the Administrator () of Wuling Commandery (武陵郡; around present-day

Changde Changde ( ) is a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Hunan province, People's Republic of China. In addition to the urban districts, Changde also administers the county-level city of Jinshi City, Jinshi and six counties. Changde is adjacent ...

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...

). Later, he was reassigned to be the Administrator of Guiyang (桂陽; around present-day

Chenzhou Chenzhou () is a prefecture-level city located in the south of Hunan province, China, bordering the provinces of Jiangxi to the east and Guangdong to the south. Its administrative area covers , 9.2% of the provincial area, and its total populatio ...

, Hunan) and

Le'an Le'an County () is a county of central Jiangxi province, People's Republic of China. It is under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is ...

(樂安; around present-day

Zibo Zibo (, ) is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, China. It borders the provincial capital Jinan to the west, Tai'an to the southwest, Linyi to the south, Weifang to the east, Dongying to the northeast, and Binzhou to the nor ...

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

) commanderies. He governed his jurisdictions well. Around the time, Emperor Ling wanted to build bronze statues but realised that the imperial treasury was unable to support his spending, so he issued a decree to increase taxes and recruit labour from the masses. Lu Kang observed that the people were already suffering from natural disasters such as floods and droughts, so he wrote a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

to Emperor Ling, advising him against constructing the bronze statues and urging him to relieve the people's burdens. The

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 millennium ...

s (Emperor Ling's close aides) accused Lu Kang of defaming the emperor and showing disrespect in the memorial, so Lu was arrested and brought to the office of the Minister of Justice () for questioning.

Liu Dai Liu Dai (died 192), courtesy name Gongshan, was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Life Liu Dai was from Mouping County (牟平縣), Donglai Commandery (東萊郡), which is in present-day Muping Distri ...

, an Imperial Clerk (), carefully examined Lu Kang's case and wrote to the imperial court to explain matters for Lu and clear his name. Lu Kang was released but was dismissed from office and sent home. However, not long later, he was recalled back to the court to serve as a Consultant (). Around 180, Huang Rang (), a bandit chief from Lujiang Commandery (廬江; around present-day

Lu'an Lu'an (), is a prefecture-level city in western Anhui province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan to the northwest and Hubei to the southwest. As of the 2020 census, it had a total population of 4,393,699 inhabitants whom 1,752,537 liv ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

), allied with tribals from

Jiangxia Commandery Jiangxia Commandery ( zh, 江夏郡) was a Chinese commandery that existed from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty. Its territories were located in present-day eastern Hubei province. History Jiangxia Commandery was established during the reign of Empero ...

(江夏; around present-day

Xinzhou District, Wuhan Xinzhou () is one of 13 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, China, covering part of the city's northeastern suburbs and situated on the northern (left) bank of the Yangtze River. It is also the ea ...

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 prov ...

) and formed an army of over 100,000 men. They attacked and conquered four counties in the region. After Lu Kang assumed office as the Administrator of Lujiang Commandery, he was tasked with suppressing Huang Rang's rebellion. While in office, he upheld law and order and succeeded in defeating Huang Rang and forcing Huang's forces into surrender. He received praise from the imperial court for his achievement. By the time

Emperor Xian Emperor Xian of Han (2 April 181 – 21 April 234), personal name Liu Xie (劉協), courtesy name Bohe, was the 14th and last emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty in China. He reigned from 28 September 189 until 11 December 220. Liu Xie was a so ...

came to the throne in the 190s, the Han Empire was already in a state of chaos as the central government was weak and various warlords were fighting for power. Lu Kang was aware of the high risks involved in paying tribute to the emperor, because his convoy might be attacked and robbed along the way to the capital. In spite of this, he ordered his men to escort the tribute to the capital and they succeeded. Emperor Xian issued a decree to praise Lu Kang, promote him to General of Loyalty and Righteousness (), and increase his income to 2,000 ''dan'' (). Around the time, the warlord

Yuan Shu Yuan Shu () (died July or August 199), courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189 ...

had garrisoned his forces in Shouchun (壽春; present-day

Shou County Shou County or Shouxian () is a county in the north-central part of Anhui Province, China, and is located on the southern (right) bank of the Huai River. It is the southernmost county-level division of the prefecture-level city A prefectur ...

) and was planning to attack

Xu Province Xuzhou as a historical toponym refers to varied area in different eras. Ordinarily, it was a reference to the one of the Nine Provinces which modern Xuzhou inherited. History Pre-Qin era Xuzhou or Xu Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ...

. When he realised he was running short of supplies, he sent a messenger to Lujiang Commandery to request 30,000 ''hu'' () of grain from Lu Kang. Lu Kang saw Yuan Shu as a traitor and refused to have any contact with him. He also fortified Lujiang's defences and prepared for war. Yuan Shu was angered and he sent

Sun Ce Sun Ce () () (175–200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang w ...

to lead an army to attack Lujiang Commandery. Sun Ce had a personal vendetta against Lu Kang because he once visited Lu, but Lu refused to meet him in person, and instead sent a Registrar () to meet him. Sun Ce's forces besieged Lujiang Commandery but Lu Kang's troops held their ground. Some of Lu Kang's subordinates and soldiers who were on leave returned to Lujiang Commandery and made their way back into the city under the cover of night to help Lu Kang defend the city. Lujiang Commandery fell to Sun Ce's forces after a siege that lasted two years. Lu Kang died of illness at the age of 70 (by

East Asian age reckoning Countries in the East Asian cultural sphere (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and their diasporas) have traditionally used specific methods of reckoning a person's numerical age based not on their birthday but the calendar year, and what age one is ...

) during the siege.

Family and relatives

Lu Kang's family and kin comprised some 100 members. Over half of them died of starvation or in war during the chaos towards the

end of the Han dynasty The end of the Han dynasty was the period of Chinese history from 189 to 220 CE, roughly coinciding with the tumultuous reign of the Han dynasty's last ruler, Emperor Xian. During this period, the country was thrown into turmoil by the Yellow ...

. Lu Kang had two known sons. The elder one, Lu Jun (), was appointed as a Gentleman () by the Han imperial court in recognition of Lu Kang's unwavering loyalty to the Han Empire during the siege of Lujiang. The younger one, Lu Ji, was a scholar who came to serve under the warlord

Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime es ...

as the Administrator of

Yulin Commandery Yulin Commandery () was a Chinese commandery that existed from Qin dynasty to Tang dynasty in the modern region of Guangxi. History Yulin Commandery was established as Guilin Commandery (桂林郡) in 214 BC, when the Qin dynasty conquered Lingnan. ...

(). Lu Ji was also one of the 24 Filial Exemplars. Lu Kang also had a daughter who married

Gu Yong Gu Yong (168 – November or December 243), courtesy name Yuantan, was a minister and the second Imperial Chancellor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty in the Jiangdong r ...

. One of Lu Kang's grandsons, Lu Shang (), was also appointed as a Gentleman () by the Han court in recognition of Lu Kang's success in suppressing Huang Rang's rebellion. Lu Kang was a granduncle of

Lu Xun Zhou Shuren (25 September 1881 – 19 October 1936), better known by his pen name Lu Xun (or Lu Sun; ; Wade–Giles: Lu Hsün), was a Chinese writer, essayist, poet, and literary critic. He was a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. W ...

. He raised Lu Xun, who was orphaned at a young age. When

's forces (led by

) were about to attack Lujiang, Lu Kang sent Lu Xun and his family members back to their home in

for their safety. After Lu Kang's death, Lu Xun became the new head of the family because he was much older than Lu Kang's son Lu Ji,(遜少孤，隨從祖廬江太守康在官。袁術與康有隙，將攻康，康遣遜及親戚還吳。遜年長於康子績數歲，為之綱紀門戶。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. even though Lu Ji was one generation older than him.

Notes

References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

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– ...

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * Fan, Ye (5th century). ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...

'' (''Houhanshu''). * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

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 ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). {{DEFAULTSORT:Lu, Kang 126 births 195 deaths Han dynasty politicians from Jiangsu Political office-holders in Anhui Politicians from Suzhou

Life

Family and relatives

See also

Notes

References