Lü Shao (; died 400),

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 ...

Yongye (永業), formally Prince Yin of (Later) Liang ((後)涼隱王), was briefly an

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), ...

(with the title of "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 consist ...

'')) of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. He was a son 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), but not his oldest son. Rather, he was considered Lü Guang's rightful heir because he was born of Lü Guang's wife. (His mother is therefore likely

Princess Shi Princess Shi (; personal name unknown), who might have taken the title Empress Shi () at one point, was the wife of Lü Guang (Emperor Yiwu), the founder of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. Very little is known about her. What is known i ...

, although he could also be born of an even earlier wife.) His birth year is unknown, but he referred to himself as not yet 19 when he took the throne briefly in 400.

During Lü Guang's reign

When Lü Guang founded Later Liang in 386 (after he had taken over Liang Province (涼州, modern central and western

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 ...

after a return for a military campaign in central Asia on

Former Qin The Former Qin, also called Fu Qin (苻秦), (351–394) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in Chinese history ruled by the Di ethnicity. Founded by Fu Jian (posthumously Emperor Jingming) who originally served under the Later ...

's behalf), Lü Shao and Lü Guang's wife Lady Shi were not with him—they had remained in the Former 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 ...

during Lü Guang's campaign, and had fled to

Chouchi Chouchi (), or Qiuchi (), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Yang clan of Di ethnicity in modern-day Gansu Province. Its existence spanned both the Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern and Southern dynasties periods, but it is not listed among ...

when Chang'an subsequently fell to

Western Yan Yan, known in historiography as the Western Yan (; 384–394) was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xianbei ethnicity. The dynasty existed during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms, but it is not counted among the 16. It was founded by Murong Hong i ...

in 385. In 389, they, along with Lü Guang's brother Lü Deshi (呂德世), arrived in Later Liang territory. Lü Guang, then with the title Prince of Sanhe, created Lü Shao his

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

. In 396, after Lü Guang claimed the title of "Heavenly Prince" (''

'', roughly equivalent to emperor), he created Lü Shao

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 ...

. Lü Shao, however, was not Lü Guang's oldest son—he had at least two older brothers,

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), but ...

the Duke of Taiyuan and Lü Hong (呂弘) the Duke of Changshan, both of whom were regarded for their military abilities. Lü Shao was considered weak and untalented, and Later Liang's enemies (including Southern Liang and

Northern Liang The Northern Liang (; 397–439) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in China. It was ruled by the Juqu family of Lushuihu origin (a branch of the Xiongnu). Although Duan Ye of Han ethnicity was initially enthroned as the Northern Liang ...

) took this into account when they attacked Later Liang. The only military campaign that Lü Shao was recorded to have commanded was one in summer 399, when he and Lü Zuan attacked Northern Liang's prince

Duan Ye Duan Ye (; died 401) was the first king of Northern Liang of the Sixteen Kingdoms period in Chinese history. He was of Han ethnicity, and was originally a commandery governor of Later Liang, but after Xiongnu generals Juqu Mengxun and Juqu Nanc ...

. After Duan Ye sought aid from Southern Liang's prince

Tufa Wugu Tufa Wugu (; died 399), formally Prince Wu of Wuwei (武威武王), was the founding prince of the Xianbei-led Southern Liang dynasty of China. He was initially a vassal of Later Liang's emperor Lü Guang, but seeing how Lü Guang was misruling ...

, and Tufa Wugu's brother

Tufa Lilugu Tufa Lilugu (; died April or May 402Volume 112 of ''Zizhi Tongjian'' recorded that Tufa Lilugu died in the 3rd month of the 1st year of the ''Yuanxing'' era of Sima Dezong's reign. This corresponds to 18 Apr to 17 May 402 on the Julian calendar.), ...

arrived to assist Duan Ye, Lü Shao and Lü Zuan were forced to withdraw. Around the new year 400, Lü Guang grew seriously ill. He ordered Lü Shao to take the throne as Heavenly Prince, while he himself claimed the title of

retired emperor Retired Emperor, Grand Emperor, or Emperor Emeritus is a title occasionally used by the monarchical regimes in the Sinosphere for former emperors who had (at least in name) abdicated voluntarily to another member of the same clan, usually their s ...

. Lü Zuan was put in charge of the military forces, and Lü Hong the government. Lü Guang told the three to be united, and that Lü Shao should trust his brothers. He also told Lü Zuan and Lü Hong that Lü Shao might not be talented, but was the rightful heir, and that they should assist him faithfully. Lü Guang died later that day.

Coup and death

Initially, Lü Shao was not going to immediately announce Lü Guang's death, in fear that it might draw enemy attacks, but Lü Zuan broke down the door and forcibly entered the palace and mourned. Lü Shao became fearful and offered the throne to Lü Zuan, but Lü Zuan refused. Lü Shao's cousin

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 ...

(呂超) then secretly suggested to Lü Shao that Lü Zuan be arrested and executed, but Lü Shao refused. However, soon thereafter (either that day or at most several days after), Lü Hong sent his assistant Jiang Ji (姜紀) to encourage Lü Zuan to seize the throne. At night, then, Lü Zuan led his personal guards to attack the palace. Lü Hong joined him. Lü Shao's guards initially resisted, and one of them, Qi Cong (齊從), hit Lü Zuan in the head with a sword but could not kill him. Lü Chao also tried to assist Lü Shao, but their forces were fearful of Lü Zuan and collapsed. Lü Shao fled to a secondary palace and committed suicide. Lü Zuan took the throne, and when he gave Lü Shao a

posthumous name A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments or ...

, he only referred to Lü Shao as prince, not emperor.

Personal information

* Father **

(Emperor Yiwu) * Mother ** Princess/Empress Shi * Wife ** Lady Zhang

References

* ''

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 ...

'', vol. 122. * ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

'', vols.

108 108 may refer to: * 108 (number) * AD 108, a year * 108 BC, a year * 108 (artist) (born 1978), Italian street artist * 108 (band), an American hardcore band * 108 (emergency telephone number), an emergency telephone number in several states in Ind ...

, 109, 111. * ''

Spring and Autumn Annals of the Sixteen Kingdoms The ''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Sixteen Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese title ''Shiliuguo Chunqiu'' () is a Chinese biographical historical work of the Sixteen Kingdoms compiled by the Northern Wei official Cui Hong between 501 and 52 ...

'', vol. 10. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lu, Shao Later Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms) emperors 400 deaths Former Qin people 4th-century Chinese monarchs Year of birth unknown Suicides in Later Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms)