Liu Ruyi (208 – January 194BCAccording to volume 12 of ''Zizhi Tongjian'', Liu Ruyi was poisoned in the 12th month of the 1st year of Emperor Hui's reign. This corresponds to 31 Dec 195 BCE - 28 Jan 194 BCE in the proleptic Julian calendar.), posthumously known as the "Suffering King of Zhao" (趙隱王, ''Zhào Yǐnwáng''), was the only son of the first Han emperor

Liu Bang Emperor Gaozu of Han (2561 June 195 BC), also known by his given name Liu Bang, was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning from 202 to 195 BC. He is considered by traditional Chinese historiography to be one o ...

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

Consort Qi. He was a favorite of the emperor and appointed king or prince of Dai and Zhao, but loathed by his stepmother, the

Empress Lü Lü Zhi (241 BC – 18 August 180 BC), courtesy name E'xu (娥姁) and commonly known as Empress Lü () and formally Empress Gao of Han (), was the empress consort of Emperor Gaozu of Han, Gaozu, the founding emperor of the Han dynasty. They h ...

Zhi, as consort Qi had attempted to persuade Liu Bang to have Liu Ruyi replace Liu Ying (Lü's son) as crown prince. Despite his half-brother Emperor Hui's protection, she finally succeeded in killing him in 194BC.

Life

Liu Ruyi was the third son of

, the founder of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

who became posthumously known as Emperor Gaozu ("High Ancestor"). He was the only son of the

Consort Qi. As a boy, after his uncle Liu Zhong abandoned his post during a

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of Nomad, nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese historiography, Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, t ...

invasion, Liu Ruyi was created prince or king of Dai in 200BC. After Zhang Ao was falsely accused of conspiring against the throne, Ruyi replaced him as prince or king of Zhao in 198BC. The next year, he received Chen Xi as his chancellor of the realm but Chen soon launched a rebellion at Julu (within present-day

Pingxiang County Pingxiang County () is a county under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Xingtai, in the south of Hebei province, China, located about from downtown Xingtai. It has a population of 280,000 residing in an area of . In the Han dynas ...

Hebei Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...

); he was defeated in battle but remained at large for several years. When Liu Bang fell ill in early 195BC, he found that

Zhi was plotting to kill Ruyi in order to eliminate a rival claimant to the imperial throne; Liu Bang at one point had considered making Liu Ruyi crown prince, but eventually did not do so after advice from various officials, including

Shusun Tong Shusun Tong (; died ca 188 BCE) was a Chinese politician and writer who served the Qin and Western Han courts. He is known for organization of the first court worship for the Emperor Gaozu of Han (202 BCE), as well as for the custody over the yo ...

, Liu Ying's teacher. The emperor then appointed Zhou Chang as

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

in Zhao to protect the prince from his stepmother. The emperor died later that year, and the new emperor Liu Ying—posthumously known as "Huidi" or "Benevolent Emperor"—continued to protect his half-brother from his mother's numerous attempts on the boy's life. Lü Zhi was finally able to accomplish her task in January 194BC; she also had Consort Qi brutally tortured to death in the same year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Ruyi 208 BC births 194 BC deaths Emperor Gaozu of Han Child murder in China Murdered Chinese royalty Chinese royalty who died as children