Liu Zixun
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Liu Zixun (劉å­å‹›) (456 – 19 September 466According to Emperor Ming's biography in ''Book of Song'', Liu Zixun was forced to commit suicide on the ''jimao'' day of the 8th month of the 2nd year of the ''Taishi'' era of Emperor Ming's reign. This corresponds to 19 Sep 466 in the Julian calendar. ( ³°å§‹äºŒå¹´…«æœˆå·±å¯...。晋安王å­å‹‹ã€å®‰é™†çŽ‹å­ç»¥ã€ä¸´æµ·çŽ‹å­é¡¼ã€é‚µé™µçŽ‹å­å…ƒå¹¶èµæ­»ï¼ŒåŒå…šçš†ä¼è¯›.) ''Song Shu'', vol.08),
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 ...
Xiaode (å­å¾·), was an imperial prince and
pretender A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...
to the throne of the
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
dynasty
Liu Song Song, known as Liu Song (), Former Song (å‰å®‹) or Song of (the) Southern Dynasty (å—æœå®‹) in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the first of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. ...
, who received claims of allegiance from most provinces of the state during the year 466 after his staff made a claim to the throne on his behalf, rivalling that of his uncle Emperor Ming, following the assassination of his brother Emperor Qianfei in 465. The inability of his troops to defeat the outnumbered troops of Emperor Ming, however, eventually led to the collapse of his regime, and Emperor Ming's general
Shen Youzhi Shen Youzhi (沈攸之) (died 478), courtesy name Zhongda (仲é”), was a general during the Chinese dynasty Liu Song, who, in the final moments of the dynasty, made a final failed attempt to prevent Xiao Daocheng from seizing the throne. Servic ...
captured and executed him at the age of 10.


Background

Liu Zixun was born in 456, as Emperor Xiaowu's third son. His mother Consort Chen carried the rank ''Shuyuan'' (), the fifth rank for imperial consorts. He was Emperor Xiaowu's third son. In 460, at age four, Emperor Xiaowu created him the Prince of Jin'an, and starting in 463, he started to be rotated as a provincial governor, with staff members in actual charge of the administration of the provinces. He was said to be unfavored by Emperor Xiaowu because he had an eye illness. In 464, Emperor Xiaowu died and was succeeded by Liu Zixun's violent and impulsive older brother Liu Ziyi (as Emperor Qianfei). Emperor Qianfei, apprehensive of actual or potential threats to his authority, soon slaughtered a number of high level officials as well as his main former rival as his father's heir, his brother Liu Ziluan () the Prince of Xin'an. He then saw that both his grandfather Emperor Wen and his father Emperor Xiaowu were third-born sons, and he became alarmed at that fact, and he became even more alarmed when his uncle and brother-in-law He Mai () made a failed attempt to overthrow him and put Liu Zixun on the throne. In 465, he sent poison with his attendant Zhu Jingyun () to Liu Zixun's post at Jiang Province (江州, modern
Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
and
Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...
), to force Liu Zixun to commit suicide. However, as Zhu approached the capital of Jiang Province, Xunyang (尋陽, in modern
Jiujiang Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city ...
,
Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
), he intentionally slowed down, and upon hearing this, Liu Zixun's staff, led by his chief of staff Deng Wan (), declared a rebellion in Liu Zixun's name and sought support from other provinces. Quickly, his brother Liu Zisui () the Prince of Anlu, then the governor of Ying Province (郢州, modern eastern
Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
), declared for him. 10 days later, around the new year 466, however, Emperor Qianfei was assassinated by his attendants, and the officials supported his uncle Liu Yu the Prince of Xiangdong as emperor (as Emperor Ming).


Failed claim to the throne

Emperor Ming initially tried to reward Liu Zixun for his effort to resist Emperor Qianfei by giving him honors, and most members of Liu Zixun's staff wanted to accept Emperor Ming's offer. However, the ambitious Deng Wan, believing in the same coincidence that Emperor Qianfei did regarding Liu Zixun's third-born status, rejected Emperor Ming's promotion order and prepared to resist Emperor Ming, in association with Yuan Yi () the governor of Yong Province (é›å·ž, modern northwestern
Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
and southwestern
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 ...
) and Liu Zisui's chief of staff Xun Bianzhi (). They accused Emperor Ming of being an usurper and having unduly killed, in addition to Emperor Qianfei, their brother Liu Zishang () the Prince of Yuzhang. Jing Province (èŠå·ž, modern central and western
Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
) and
Kuaiji Commandery Kuaiji Commandery ( Chinese:  t , s , p ''KuàijÄ« Jùn''), formerly romanized as K'uai-chi Commandery, was a former commandery of China in the area of Hangzhou Bay. When first established, its capital was at Wu (present- ...
(the southern shore of
Hangzhou Bay Hangzhou Bay, or the Bay of Hangzhou (), is a funnel-shaped inlet of the East China Sea, bordered by the province of Zhejiang and the municipality of Shanghai, which lies north of the Bay. The Bay extends from the East China Sea to its head ...
), governed by Liu Zixun's brothers Liu Zixu () the Prince of Linhai and Liu Zifang () the Prince of Xunyang, also quickly rose in support. In spring 466, Deng Wan, claiming to have received a secret edict from Liu Zixun's grandmother
Empress Dowager Lu Huinan Lu Huinan (; 412 – February 24, 466), formally Empress Dowager Zhao (昭太åŽ, literally "accomplished empress dowager"), semi-formally Empress Dowager Chongxian (崇憲太åŽ), was an empress dowager of the Chinese Liu Song dynasty. She had ...
, declared Liu Zixun emperor. Upon the declaration, nearly the entire empire declared for Liu Zixun, with Emperor Ming only in control of the region immediately around the 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 ...
. However, Liu Zixun's generals proceeded slowly, believing that Jiankang would collapse on its own due to the lack of food supply. Emperor Ming's general Wu Xi () was quickly able to advance east and capture Liu Zifang, taking the commanderies around
Kuaiji Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants. ...
that had declared for Liu Zixun and securing a food supply. The troops of Liu Zixun and Emperor Ming stalemated for months in the
Chaohu Chaohu () is a county-level city of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Hefei. Situated on the northeast and southeast shores of Lake Chao, from which the city was named, Ch ...
region, until Emperor Ming's general Zhang Xingshi () built a defense post at Qianxi (錢溪, in modern
Chizhou Chizhou () is a prefecture-level city in the south of Anhui province, China. It borders Anqing to the northwest, Tongling and Wuhu to the northeast, Xuancheng to the east, Huangshan to the southeast, and the province of Jiangxi to the southwes ...
,
Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
), upstream from Liu Zixun's main troops commanded by Yuan Yi and Liu Hu (), cutting off their food supplies. As Liu Hu then tried to capture Qianxi to reopen food routes, he was defeated by Zhang and
Shen Youzhi Shen Youzhi (沈攸之) (died 478), courtesy name Zhongda (仲é”), was a general during the Chinese dynasty Liu Song, who, in the final moments of the dynasty, made a final failed attempt to prevent Xiao Daocheng from seizing the throne. Servic ...
, and Liu Hu and Yuan then fled, with their troops collapsing. Liu Hu fled back to Xunyang, but then left under guise that he was going to set up perimeter defenses while instead fleeing. Xunyang was left without a defense, and Deng Wan contemplated killing Liu Zixun to save himself, but instead was killed by another staff member Zhang Yue (). Shen then arrived and executed Liu Zixun, ending his rival claim.


Family relations

* Father:
Emperor Xiaowu of Song Emperor Xiaowu of Song (宋å­æ­¦å¸) (19 September 430 – 12 July 464), personal name Liu Jun (劉駿), courtesy name Xiulong (休é¾), childhood name Daomin (é“æ°‘), was an emperor of the Liu Song dynasty of China. He was a son of Emperor Wen ...
* Mother: Consort Chen, with the rank ''Shuyuan'' ()


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Zixun Liu Song emperors 456 births 466 deaths Executed people from Jiangsu Executed Northern and Southern dynasties people People executed by Liu Song Politicians from Nanjing