Cao Shen
Cao Shen / Cao Can | |
---|---|
曹參 | |
Chancellor of State (相國) | |
In office 193–190 BC | |
Monarch | Emperor Hui of Han |
Preceded by | Xiao He |
Personal details | |
Born | Unknown Legalised Chinese religion |
Cao Shen or Cao Can (died 24 September 190 BCE
Early life
Cao Shen was from
Insurrection against the Qin dynasty
Cao Shen defeated the Qin armies led by Xue Guo, Hu Ling and Fang Yu, and was promoted to a high rank by Liu Bang for his contributions. Cao Shen defeated Zhang Han's army and drove Zhang towards Puyang. He returned to help Liu Bang, who was trapped at Yongqiu, and defeated Li You, the Qin general defending Sanchuan. By then, Cao Shen had conquered two fiefs and 122 counties in total. In the following battles against Qin, Cao Shen defeated the Qin generals Wang Li and Zhao Ben and captured the Wu and Yao passes leading to Xianyang (the Qin capital).
Chu–Han Contention
After the fall of the Qin dynasty, Liu Bang received the title of "King of
In 202 BC, Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu at the
As chancellor
While serving as chancellor, Cao Shen sought the help of
In 196 BC, he commanded the Qi forces that assisted
).In 193 BC, the chancellor Xiao He died and was succeeded by Cao Shen. Cao Shen spent his time drinking and feasting, and maintained well Xiao He's system of governance but did not implement any new changes.[4] When Emperor Hui asked him why he did not change the system, Cao Shen replied that he was not as good as Xiao He and did not want to make changes for fear of negatively affecting the system left behind by Xiao. This became the origin of a Chinese idiom, Xiao Gui Cao Sui (萧规曹随; lit. "Cao following Xiao's rules"), which is used to describe the continuation of the work of one's predecessor.
Appraisal
The historian Sima Qian commented in Records of the Grand Historian that he felt that among all of Liu Bang's subjects, Cao Shen's contributions in battle was second only to Han Xin. Commenting on Cao Shen's role as chancellor, Sima Qian mentioned that Cao had done well in preserving Xiao He's system of governance and achieved the peace and stability desired by the people.
Family and descendants
Cao Shen's son, Cao Zhu (曹窋; died 161 BC), inherited his father's marquis title "Marquis of Pingyang". Cao Zhu was in turn succeeded by his son, Cao Qi (曹奇; died 153 BC), who helped
Three Kingdoms warlord Cao Cao claimed to be a descendant of Cao Shen. However this has been rebuked through genetic evidence.[5]
References
Citations
- ^ According to vol. 12 of Zizhi Tongjian, Cao died on the jichou (己丑) day of the 8th month of the 5th year of Emperor Hui's reign. However, that month does not have a jichou day; it does have a yichou (乙丑) day, which corresponds to 24 Sep 190 BCE in the proleptic Julian calendar.
- ^ Autocratic Tradition and Chinese Politics by Zhengyuan Fu, p. 49
- ^ Hung (2011), p. 202.
- ^ Social Power and Legal Culture: Litigation Masters in Late Imperial China by Melissa Ann Macauley, p. 350
- PMID 22189622.
Bibliography
- Ban Gu et al. Book of Han, vol. 39.
- Hung Hing-ming (2011), The Road to the Throne: How Liu Bang Founded China's Han Dynasty, New York: Algora Publishing, ISBN 9780875868387.
- Sima Qian. Records of the Grand Historian, vols. 8, 54.