Lü Long (; died 416),
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 ...
Yongji (永基), was the last
emperor
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 the
Di-led Chinese
Later Liang dynasty. He was the nephew of the founding emperor
Lü Guang
Lü Guang (; 337–400), courtesy name Shiming (世明), formally Emperor Yiwu of (Later) Liang ((後)涼懿武帝), was the founding emperor of the Di-led Chinese Later Liang dynasty (although during most of his reign, he used the title "Heaven ...
(Emperor Yiwu), and he took the throne after his brother Lü Chao (呂超) assassinated the emperor
Lü Zuan
Lü Zuan (; died 401), courtesy name Yongxu (永緒), formally Emperor Ling of (Later) Liang ((後)涼靈帝), was an emperor of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. He was the oldest son of the founding emperor Lü Guang (Emperor Yiwu), b ...
(Emperor Ling) in 401 and offered the throne to him. During his reign, Later Liang was under constant attacks by
Northern Liang and
Southern Liang and reduced largely to its capital Guzang (姑臧, in modern
Wuwei,
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 Tibet ...
). In 403, Lü Long decided to end the state by surrendering Guzang to
Later Qin
The Later Qin (; 384–417), also known as Yao Qin (), was a state ruled by the Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (266–420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the W ...
's emperor
Yao Xing
Yao Xing (; 366–416), courtesy name Zilüe (子略), formally Emperor Wenhuan of (Later) Qin ((後)秦文桓帝), was an emperor of the Qiang-led Chinese Later Qin dynasty. He was the son of the founding emperor Yao Chang (Emperor Wucheng). Fo ...
. He became a Later Qin official, but after aligning himself with Yao Xing's son Yao Bi (姚弼), who made unsuccessful attempts to seize the
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...
position from
Yao Hong
Yao Hong (; 388–417), courtesy name Yuanzi (), was the last emperor of the Qiang-led Later Qin dynasty of China. He was the oldest son and heir of Yao Xing (Emperor Wenzhao), who was already regarded as kind but weak during his father's reign, ...
, was executed by Yao Hong after Yao Xing's death in 416.
Early life
Not much is known about Lü Long's early life, and his birthdate is not known, and virtually nothing is known about his father Lü Bao. He was described as handsome and skilled at
horsemanship and
archery
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...
. Late in the reign of his uncle
Lü Guang
Lü Guang (; 337–400), courtesy name Shiming (世明), formally Emperor Yiwu of (Later) Liang ((後)涼懿武帝), was the founding emperor of the Di-led Chinese Later Liang dynasty (although during most of his reign, he used the title "Heaven ...
(Emperor Yiwu) he served as a general, but he did not have the same prominence that his younger brother
Lü Chao
Lü Chao (March 9, 1890 July 20, 1951), born in Xuzhou Fu, Yibin County, Sichuan, was a military and political figure in the early Republic of China's Warlord Era, active in his home province of Sichuan. He is known for fighting against Liu C ...
(呂超) had.
In 401, Lü Chao assassinated Lü Guang's son
Lü Zuan
Lü Zuan (; died 401), courtesy name Yongxu (永緒), formally Emperor Ling of (Later) Liang ((後)涼靈帝), was an emperor of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. He was the oldest son of the founding emperor Lü Guang (Emperor Yiwu), b ...
(Emperor Ling) and killed Lü Zuan's brother Lü Wei (呂緯) the Duke of Longxi, and then offered the throne to Lü Long. Initially, Lü Long was hesitant to accept, but Lü Chao compared this to riding a dragon up to heaven and not being able to get off, and Lü Long accepted, using the title "Heavenly Prince" (''
Tian Wang
Heavenly King or Tian Wang () is a Chinese title for various religious deities and divine leaders throughout history, as well as an alternate form of the term '' Son of Heaven'', referring to the emperor. The Chinese term for Heavenly King consi ...
''), roughly equivalent to emperor. He honored his mother Lady Wei as
empress dowager
Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother) () is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese emperor in the Chinese cultural sphere.
The title was also g ...
, and created his wife
Lady Yang as
empress
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), ...
. He created Lü Chao the Duke of Anding and entrusted most governmental and military affairs to him.
Reign
Lü Long, however, instead of correcting Lü Zuan's rule (which was considered violent and arbitrary), continued the violence by slaughtering many strong clans within his state for the purpose of showing his authority, and the people were further alienated. After hearing this, in summer 401, the
Later Qin
The Later Qin (; 384–417), also known as Yao Qin (), was a state ruled by the Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (266–420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the W ...
emperor
Yao Xing
Yao Xing (; 366–416), courtesy name Zilüe (子略), formally Emperor Wenhuan of (Later) Qin ((後)秦文桓帝), was an emperor of the Qiang-led Chinese Later Qin dynasty. He was the son of the founding emperor Yao Chang (Emperor Wucheng). Fo ...
sent his uncle Yao Shuode (姚碩德) to launch a major attack on Later Liang. The Later Qin army quickly reached Guzang and put it under siege. Many of the non-natives in Guzang planned a rebellion to give the city to Later Qin, but were discovered, and Lü Long slaughtered them, but with Yao Shuode's pressure, Lü Chao suggested nominal submission to Later Qin, which Lü Long agreed with, sending his nephews and some 50 clans to the Later Qin capital
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 ...
as hostages to guarantee his faithfulness. Per Yao Shuode's recommendation, Yao Xing created him the Duke of Jiankang, although Lü Long continued to internally use the title of Heavenly Prince. Yao Shuode then withdrew.
However, Lü Long continued to be under constant attack by both
Southern Liang and
Northern Liang, and just a few months after Yao Shuode's withdrawal Lü Chao suffered a major defeat at the hands of the Southern Liang general
Tufa Rutan
Tufa Rutan or Tufa Nutan (; 365–415), formally Prince Jing of (Southern) Liang) ((南)涼景王), was the last prince of the Xianbei-led Chinese Southern Liang dynasty. As he was the son that his father, the Xianbei chief Tufa Sifujian (禿髮 ...
. Due to the wars, there was a severe famine, so much so that more than 100,000 people were starved. Every day, hundreds of the residents of Guzang pleaded to exit the city, even knowing that they would be captured to be slaves. Lü Long was angry at these behaviors, believing that this damaged his regime's image, and therefore executed these people. Lü Long tried to make peace with both Southern Liang and Northern Liang, and in 402 had a brief peace with both, even obtaining some famine relief from Northern Liang's prince
Juqu Mengxun
Juqu Mengxun (; 368–433) was a king of the Xiongnu-led Chinese Northern Liang dynasty, and the first from the Juqu clan. His cousin Juqu Nancheng (沮渠男成) and he initially supported Duan Ye as prince of Northern Liang in 397 after rebelli ...
, but the peace did not last, nor did Later Qin military assistance stop the attacks.
By 403, Lü Long was desperate. Meanwhile, Later Qin officials advised Yao Xing to take control of Later Liang territory directly, believing that if Lü Long somehow survived this crisis, he would no longer be a vassal. Yao Xing therefore summoned Lü Chao to Chang'an, intending to use his absence to force Lü Long to submit. When Lü Long received the order, he decided to end the state of siege altogether by offering his territory—now not much more than Guzang itself—to Later Qin. Yao Xing sent his general Qi Nan (齊難) with a large force to protect and escort Lü Long to Chang'an. Lü Long welcomed him and then, after saying farewell to Lü Guang's temple, left for Chang'an. Later Qin took over the city, and Later Liang was no more.
Under Later Qin rule
Lü Long was made a Later Qin official, and he used his Later Qin-bestowed title of Duke of Jiankang. Little is known about most of the duration that he spent under Later Qin rule. However, late in Yao Xing's reign, he became involved in the plot by Yao Xing's son Yao Bi (姚弼) the Duke of Guangping to seize the position of
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...
from his brother
Yao Hong
Yao Hong (; 388–417), courtesy name Yuanzi (), was the last emperor of the Qiang-led Later Qin dynasty of China. He was the oldest son and heir of Yao Xing (Emperor Wenzhao), who was already regarded as kind but weak during his father's reign, ...
, and in 416, after a failed attempt by Yao Bi's associates to seize power in a coup, Yao Bi was forced to commit suicide, and Lü Long, along with other co-conspirators, were arrested. He was executed by Yao Hong shortly after Yao Xing then died the next day, as was his brother Lü Chao.
Family
* Father
** Lü Bao (呂寶), posthumously honored Emperor Wen, brother of
Lü Guang
Lü Guang (; 337–400), courtesy name Shiming (世明), formally Emperor Yiwu of (Later) Liang ((後)涼懿武帝), was the founding emperor of the Di-led Chinese Later Liang dynasty (although during most of his reign, he used the title "Heaven ...
(Emperor Yiwu)
* Mother
**
Lady Wei
* Wife
**
Empress Yang
* Brother
** Lü Chao
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lu, Long
Later Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms) emperors
416 deaths
Later Qin generals
5th-century Chinese monarchs
Year of birth unknown