Chen Yuan (), also referred to as Chen Shen () due to the

naming taboo A naming taboo is a cultural taboo against speaking or writing the given names of exalted persons, notably in China and within the Chinese cultural sphere. It was enforced by several laws throughout Imperial China, but its cultural and possibly r ...

of the

Emperor Gaozu of Tang Emperor Gaozu of Tang (7 April 566 – 25 June 635, born Li Yuan, courtesy name Shude) was the founding emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, reigning from 618 to 626. Under the Sui dynasty, Li Yuan was the governor in the area of modern-day ...

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 ...

Chengyuan (承源), was a

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 ...

of the Chen dynasty of China. Chen Yuan was the fourth son of

Chen Shubao Chen Shubao (, 10 December 553 – 16 December 604), also known as Houzhu of Chen (), posthumous name Duke Yáng of Chángchéng (), courtesy name Yuánxiù (元秀), childhood name Huángnú (黃奴), was the fifth and last emperor of the Chinese ...

, and the oldest son of Chen Shubao's favorite

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

Consort Zhang Lihua Zhang Lihua (; died 589) was an imperial consort of the Chinese Chen dynasty. She was the favorite concubine of Chen's final emperor, Chen Shubao. It is not known when Zhang Lihua was born. She was the daughter of a soldier, but her family was ...

. His exact birth year is not known. At the time of Chen Yuan's birth, Chen Shubao was crown prince under Chen Yuan's grandfather Emperor Xuan. On her account, Chen Shubao also greatly favored Chen Yuan, but at the order of Emperor Xuan, Chen Yuan's older brother Chen Yin, Chen Shubao's oldest son, was designated heir. (Chen Yin was also not born of Chen Shubao's wife Crown Princess Shen Wuhua, but Crown Princess Shen raised him after Chen Yin's mother Consort Sun died in childbirth in 573). Emperor Xuan died in 582, and Chen Shubao, after surviving a coup attempt, became emperor. He created Chen Yin crown prince, and in 583 created many of his sons, including Chen Yuan, imperial princes (in Chen Yuan's case, the Prince of Shi'an). Chen Yuan was said to be composed and intelligent in his youth, and not even his attendants could tell his emotions easily. In 588, Chen Shubao, after believing in accusations against Chen Yin, deposed Chen Yin and created Chen Yuan crown prince instead. In 589,

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...

forces captured the Chen capital

Jiankang Jiankang (), or Jianye (), as it was originally called, was capital city of the Eastern Wu (229–265 and 266–280 CE), the Jin dynasty (317–420 CE) and the Southern Dynasties (420–552), including the Chen dynasty (557–589 CE). Its walls ...

, ending the Chen dynasty and unifying

China proper China proper, Inner China, or the Eighteen Provinces is a term used by some Western writers in reference to the "core" regions of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China. This term is used to express a distinction between the "core" regions popu ...

. When soldiers under the command of the Sui general Han Qinhu () entered the crown prince's palace, Chen Yuan's staff largely fled, but Chen Yuan, said to be then a teenager, himself solemnly sat within his hall to wait for the soldiers to enter, attended only by Kong Boyu (). When the Sui soldiers entered, Chen Yuan greeted them, neither overly arrogantly nor overly self-deprecating, with, "You have marched a long way, and I can see that you are tired." The Sui soldiers, impressed, treated him with respect. Chen Yuan's mother Consort Zhang was executed by the Sui general

Gao Jiong Gāo Jiǒng () (died August 27, 607), courtesy name Zhaoxuan (昭玄), alternative name Min (敏))) known during the Northern Zhou period by the Xianbei name Dugu Jiong (独孤颎/獨孤熲), was a Chinese military general and politician of the Ch ...

, who blamed her for Chen's collapse. Chen Shubao, however, was not harmed, and was taken to the Sui 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 an honored guest of the

Emperor Wen of Sui The Emperor Wen of Sui (; 21 July 541 – 13 August 604), personal name Yang Jian (), Xianbei name Puliuru Jian (), alias Narayana () deriving from Buddhist terms, was the founder and the first emperor of the Chinese Sui dynasty. The ''Book of ...

. Chen Yuan followed his father to Chang'an. During the reign of Emperor Wen's son

Emperor Yang of Sui Emperor Yang of Sui (隋煬帝, 569 – 11 April 618), personal name Yang Guang (), alternative name Ying (), Xianbei name Amo (), also known as Emperor Ming of Sui () during the brief reign of his grandson Yang Tong, was the second emperor of ...

, Chen Yuan was made the governor of Fuhan Commandery (枹罕, roughly modern Linxia,

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 ...

). By the time that Sui fell and was replaced by

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

, however, he was back in Chang'an, and he served as a mid-level official early in the reign of

. He died early in Emperor Gaozu's reign (618-626), but the exact year is not known.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Yuan Chen dynasty imperial princes Sui dynasty government officials Tang dynasty politicians from Jiangsu 7th-century deaths Politicians from Nanjing Year of birth unknown