Liu Qing (; 78 – 106), formally Prince Xiao of Qinghe (清河孝王) or Emperor Xiaode (孝德皇), 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

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 ...

under his father Emperor Zhang who lost his position and his mother

Consort Song A consort song was a characteristic English song form of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, for solo voice or voices accompanied by a group of instruments, most commonly viols. Although usually in five parts, some early examples of four-par ...

due to palace intrigue at the hands of his father's wife Empress Dou. He, however, maintained a strong relationship with his brother Emperor He, and was able to avenge himself and his mother in conjunction with his brother. During his lifetime, he saw his son Liu Hu (劉祜) become emperor (as Emperor An) as successor to his nephew Emperor Shang, who died in infancy.

Family background

Liu Qing was born to Emperor Zhang and Consort Song, then one of Emperor Zhang's favourites and also a favourite of Emperor Zhang's mother Empress Dowager Ma, in 78. As Emperor Zhang's wife Empress Dou was sonless, Prince Qing was created crown prince in 79, while still in infancy.

Tragedy in childhood

Empress Dou was not satisfied with the situation, however, and in 79, after another imperial consort,

Consort Liang Consort Liang (梁貴人, personal name unknown) (62(?)-83?), posthumous title Empress Gonghuai (恭懷皇后, literally, "empress of reverent recollection"), was an imperial consort to Emperor Zhang of Han. She gave birth to his son Liu Zhao (劉 ...

, gave birth to a son named Liu Zhao (劉肇), she adopted Prince Zhao and intended to make him crown prince instead. After Empress Dowager Ma died later that year, Consort Song was left without anyone to protect her, and Empress Dou began to plot her destruction. In 82, an opportunity came for Empress Dou. Consort Song had become ill, and in her illness, she craved raw

cuscuta ''Cuscuta'' (), commonly known as dodder or amarbel, is a genus of over 201 species of yellow, orange, or red (rarely green) parasitic plants. Formerly treated as the only genus in the family Cuscutaceae, it now is accepted as belonging in the ...

, and she requested that her family bring them. Empress Dou seized the cuscuta and falsely accused Consort Song of using it for witchcraft. Emperor Zhang was enraged and expelled Crown Prince Qing from the palace. He had Consort Song and her sister, also an imperial consort, arrested and interrogated by the

eunuch A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...

Cai Lun Cai Lun (; courtesy name: Jingzhong (); – 121 CE), formerly romanized as Ts'ai Lun, was a Chinese eunuch court official of the Eastern Han dynasty. He is traditionally regarded as the inventor of paper and the modern papermaking process ...

. Consort Song and her sister saw that they were in deep straits, and they committed suicide by poison. Crown Prince Qing was deposed and created the Prince of Qinghe instead; he was replaced by Prince Zhao as crown prince. Prince Zhao, however, was friendly to his brother, and they often spent time together. In 88, Emperor Zhang died, and Crown Prince Zhao succeeded to the throne as Emperor He. The still-young Prince Qing remained in 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 he and his emperor brother continued to spend great amounts of time together.

As advisor to his brother

During the first part of Emperor He's reign, the clan of Empress Dowager Dou, particularly her brother

Dou Xian Dou Xian (; died August 92) was a Chinese general and consort kin of the Eastern Han Dynasty, famous for destroying the Xiongnu nomadic empire. Early life A native of modern-day Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, he was part of the powerful Dou clan whi ...

, dominated the political scene. That trend continued even as Emperor He grew older and older. Dissatisfied with the autocratic authorities of Dou Xian, Emperor He pondered his options. Apparently encouraged by Prince Qing and the eunuch

Zheng Zhong Zheng Zhong (鄭眾), courtesy name Jichan (季產) (died 107), was the first Han Dynasty eunuch with real power in government, thanks to the trust that Emperor He of Han, Emperor He had in him for his contributions in overthrowing the clan of Emp ...

, Emperor He carried out a coup d'état in 92 and toppled the Dous' power. (Prince Qing's involvement in the plot is not completely clear but apparently major, and it is speculated that his motivation was to avenge himself (for being deposed) and his mother (for being forced to commit suicide).)''

Bo Yang Bo Yang (; 7 March 1920 – 29 April 2008), sometimes also erroneously called Bai Yang, was a Chinese historian, novelist, philosopher, poet, and politician based in Taiwan. He is also regarded as a social critic. According to his own memoir, t ...

Edition'' of the ''

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 ...

'', vol. 13. After Empress Dowager Dou died in 97, it finally became revealed that Emperor He was born of Consort Liang. Only at that time did Prince Qing dare to request his brother to allow him to rebury his own mother Consort Song. Emperor He agreed and further ordered that Prince Qing be supplied with the proper items to worship his mother posthumously. For the rest of Emperor He's reign, Prince Qing remained in the capital and was a close advisor of Emperor He.

After Emperor He's death

When Emperor He died in 106, Prince Qing was so saddened by his brother's death that he vomited blood and became seriously ill. While he would recover, his health would be poor for the rest of his life. The fact that he was required to report to his

Principality of Qinghe Qinghe Commandery ( zh, 清河郡) was a historical commandery of China, located in present-day southern Hebei and western Shandong. The commandery was established during late Qin dynasty. In Western Han dynasty, the commandery administered 14 co ...

(in modern central

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

) after his brother's death probably did not help. However, Emperor He's wife Empress Dowager Deng Sui, because Emperor He's son Emperor Shang was still an infant, ordered that Prince Qing's wife Consort Geng and his son Liu Hu (by his concubine Consort Zuo Xiao'e (左小娥)) remain in the capital to serve as a potential successor. When Emperor Shang died later in 106, instead of making Emperor Shang's older brother Liu Sheng (劉勝) the Prince of Pingyuan emperor, Empress Deng made Prince Hu emperor, as Emperor An, due to her concerns that Prince Sheng would bear a grudge for not having been selected first. Empress Deng sent Consort Geng to Qinghe to join Prince Qing and dominated the government, and there was no sign that Prince Qing had significant input into his son's early reign. Late in 106, Prince Qing died, and at his request was buried next to his mother Consort Song. Later, after Empress Dowager Deng's death in 121, Emperor An posthumously honored him as Emperor Xiaode.

Family

Consorts and Issue: * Princess consort, of the Geng clan (), first cousin * Empress Xiaode, of the Zuo clan () **

Liu Hu Emperor An of Han (; 94 – 30 April 125) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty and the sixth emperor of the Eastern Han, ruling from 106 to 125. He was the grandson of Emperor Zhang. When her infant stepson Emperor Shang succeeded ...

, Emperor Xiao'an (; 94–125), first son * Unknown ** Liu Huwei, Prince Qinghemin () ** Liu Changbao, Prince Guangchuan (; d. 108) ** Princess Nieyang (), personal name Shinan () *** Married Cen Xi, Marquis Wuyang () ** Princess Wuyin (), personal name Biede () *** Married Deng Bao, Marquis Gaomi (), and had issue (two sons) ** Princess Puyang (), personal name Jiuchang () *** Married Geng Liang, Marquis Haozhi (), and had issue (one son) ** Princess Pingshi (), personal name Zhide () *** Married Lai Ding, Marquis Zhengqiang () ** Princess Yincheng (; d. 130), personal name Jiande () *** Married Ban Shi of Fufeng, Marquis Dingyuan (; d. 130)

Ancestry

References

* ''

Book of Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...

'', vol. 55. * ''

'', vols. 46, 48, 49. {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Qing Han dynasty imperial princes 78 births 106 deaths