Zichuan Kingdom ( zh, 菑川國, 甾川國, 淄川國) was a kingdom of the
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 ...
, located in what is now northern
Shandong.
Zichuan was separated from the
Qi Kingdom in 165 BC and granted to Liu Xian (劉賢), son of
Liu Fei, King of Qi. Xian was killed in the
Rebellion of the Seven States
The Rebellion of the Seven States or Revolt of the Seven Kingdoms () took place in 154 BC against the Han dynasty of China by its regional semi-autonomous kings, to resist the emperor's attempt to centralize the government further.
Background
...
, and was succeeded by his brother Liu Zhi (劉志). Zhi and his descendants held Zichuan until
Wang Mang
Wang Mang () (c. 45 – 6 October 23 CE), courtesy name Jujun (), was the founder and the only emperor of the short-lived Chinese Xin dynasty. He was originally an official and consort kin of the Han dynasty and later seized the thron ...
's usurpation. After the restoration of
Eastern Han
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 ...
, the kingdom was granted to Liu Zhong (劉終), a follower of the
Emperor Guangwu in the rebellion against Wang Mang. Zhong died in 34 AD, and Zichuan was converted to a
commandery
In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...
. In 37, the commandery was merged into
Beihai.
A total of 10 kings ruled Zichuan:
* Liu Xian (賢), 164–154 BC;
* Liu Zhi (志), King Yi (懿) of Zichuan, 154–130 BC;
* Liu Jian (建), King Jing (靖) of Zichuan, 130–109 BC;
* Liu Yi (遺), King Qing (頃) of Zichuan, 109–74 BC;
* Liu Zhonggu (終古), King Si (思) of Zichuan, 74–46 BC;
* Liu Shang (尚), King Kao (考) of Zichuan, 46–39 BC;
* Liu Heng (橫), King Xiao (孝) of Zichuan, 39–9 BC;
* Liu You (友), King Huai (懷) of Zichuan, 9–2 BC;
* Liu Yong (永), 2 BC – 8 AD;
* Liu Zhong (終), 26–34.
In late Western Han, the kingdom consisted of 3 counties: Ju (劇), Dong'anping (東安平) and Louxiang (樓鄉). In 2 AD, the population was 227,031, or 50,289 households.
['']Book of Han
The ''Book of Han'' or ''History of the Former Han'' (Qián Hàn Shū,《前汉书》) is a history of China finished in 111AD, covering the Western, or Former Han dynasty from the first emperor in 206 BCE to the fall of Wang Mang in 23 CE. ...
'', Chapter 28.
References
{{reflist
Kingdoms of the Han dynasty