Liu Penzi (; 10 AD - after 27 AD) was a puppet emperor placed on 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 ...

throne temporarily by the

Red Eyebrows The Red Eyebrows () was one of the two major peasant rebellion movements against Wang Mang's short-lived Xin dynasty, the other being Lülin. It was so named because the rebels painted their eyebrows red. The rebellion, initially active in the ...

(Chimei) rebels after the collapse of the

Xin dynasty The Xin dynasty (; ), also known as Xin Mang () in Chinese historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty which lasted from 9 to 23 AD, established by the Han dynasty consort kin Wang Mang, who usurped the throne of the Emperor Ping o ...

, from 25 to 27 AD. Liu Penzi and his two brothers were forced into the Red Eyebrows as child soldiers. When the Red Eyebrows submitted to the new

Gengshi Emperor The Gengshi Emperor (; died AD 25), born Liu Xuan (), was an emperor of the Han dynasty restored after the fall of Wang Mang's Xin dynasty brought on by the Lülin. He was also known by his courtesy name Shenggong () and as the King or Prince of H ...

, his older brother Liu Gong fled to support the new emperor. Later, the Red Eyebrows rose again in rebellion and chose Liu Penzi as emperor. When they took Chang'an, Liu Penzi was officially Emperor of China, but he never had actual powers. When

Liu Xiu The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

definitively defeated the Red Eyebrows, he spared the 17-year-old puppet emperor.

Family background

Liu Penzi was a descendant of the Western Han prince Liu Zhang, Prince Jing of Chengyang, from whose principality many Chimei men came. The people of the principality had long worshipped Prince Jing as a god. Penzi's grandfather Liu Xian (劉憲) was created the Marquess of Shi by Emperor Yuan, and Penzi's father Liu Meng (劉萌) inherited the march after Marquess Xian's death. When

Wang Mang Wang Mang () (c. 45 – 6 October 23 CE), courtesy name Jujun (), was the founder and the only Emperor of China, emperor of the short-lived Chinese Xin dynasty. He was originally an official and consort kin of the Han dynasty and later ...

usurped the Han throne and established the Xin Dynasty in 8, the march was abolished. Penzi was the youngest of three brothers. His older brothers were Liu Gong (劉恭) and Liu Mao (劉茂). As Chimei forces rose late during the Xin Dynasty, the Liu brothers were forced into the Chimei to be child soldiers. Later, when the Chimei general

Fan Chong Fan commonly refers to: * Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling ** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling * Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...

(樊崇) temporarily submitted to

's authority after Gengshi Emperor overthrew Wang Mang, Liu Gong accompanied Fan to the capital,

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

, and was created the Marquess of Shi to inherit his father's title. He did not accompany Fan when Fan later fled from Luoyang back to the Chimei stronghold of Puyang (濮陽, in modern

Puyang Puyang is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Henan province, People's Republic of China. Located on the northern shore of the Yellow River, it borders Anyang in the west, Xinxiang in the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Hebei ...

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

), but remained a follower of Gengshi Emperor. Mao and Penzi remained in the Chimei forces and were made cattlemen.

Being made emperor

As Chimei forces were on their way to overthrow the temporary Han emperor

in 25, they became convinced that they should find a descendant of Prince Zhang and make him emperor to inherit the Han throne. They found some 70 descendants of Liu Zhang, but only three were from the main line—the brothers Mao and Penzi, and another Liu Xiao (劉孝), the former Marquess of Xi'an. After drawing lots, Penzi was declared emperor. The 14-year-old Penzi was greatly scared when he saw all of the generals bow down to him, and he tried to destroy the lot he drew by chewing it in his mouth, but it was in vain; he was selected. Even after his selection, however, he had no power and remained a cattleman until the Chimei forces defeated Gengshi Emperor and entered the 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 ...

later that year.

As emperor

The Chimei generals were as inept at ruling as they were capable in the battlefield. Initially, the people of the Guanzhong (關中, modern central Shaanxi) region submitted and offered tributes, but were surprised when the Chimei soldiers continuously robbed them on the way to Chang'an. The locals soon resumed maintaining and defending their outposts. In 26, Liu Gong, seeing the dangers of the situation for his brother the emperor, decided to make one attempt to either put the situation under control or disengage his brother from the mess. At the New Year's Day imperial gathering, Liu Gong first spoke and asked that Emperor Penzi be allowed to yield the throne, and Emperor Penzi jumped off the throne, took the imperial seal off himself, and spoke while crying: :"Now there is an emperor, but everyone continues to act as robbers. The people hate us and do not trust us. This is because you chose the wrong

Son of Heaven Son of Heaven, or ''Tianzi'' (), was the sacred monarchical title of the Chinese sovereign. It originated with the Zhou dynasty and was founded on the political and spiritual doctrine of the Mandate of Heaven. Since the Qin dynasty, the secula ...

. Please return my body to me. But if you want to kill me to divert blame, then I must die." Fan and the other leaders were ashamed, and they left their seats and bowed down to Emperor Penzi, apologizing for their failures. They physically forced Emperor Penzi back onto the throne and put the imperial seal back onto him. For weeks after the incident, the generals restrained their soldiers from unlawful acts, and the people praised Emperor Penzi as a merciful and brilliant emperor. However, after some time elapsed, the lawlessness returned. Soon, the food supplies were completely depleted, and the Chimei forces burned many Chang'an palaces and other buildings and pillaged the city, then marched west into the modern eastern Gansu region. Soon, the Chimei were repelled by the local warlord Wei Xiao (隗囂) and forced to retreat east. After battles of attrition against

(Emperor Guangwu)'s forces, they were completely drained, and they surrendered to him in spring 27. Emperor Penzi yielded his title, and Emperor Guangwu, aware that he did not have any actual powers, spared him.

Post-surrender and death

Emperor Guangwu made Penzi an assistant to his uncle Liu Liang (劉良), the Prince of Zhao. Later, Liu Penzi suffered an illness that blinded him, and Liu Xiu gave him a large swath of farmland, allowing him to survive on the rent from the farms for the rest of his life. He died after 27 AD, but the exact date of his death is currently unknown.

References

* *

Era name

* ''Jianshi'' (建始), 25–27 {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Penzi AD 10 births Han dynasty emperors Year of death missing 1st-century Chinese monarchs