Huan Wen
Huan Wen | |||||||||
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Born | 312 | ||||||||
Died | 18 August 373 (aged 61) | ||||||||
Spouse | Sima Xingnan, Princess Nankang | ||||||||
Issue | Huan Xuan | ||||||||
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Father | Huan Yi |
Huan Wen (桓溫) (312
Early life and career
Huan Wen was born in 312. His father Huan Yi (桓彝) was a commandery governor. When he was young (less than a year old), his father once received a visit from Wen Jiao, who saw the boy and thought that the child was special. Huan Yi, because Wen had a high opinion of the child, thus named his son Wen, after Wen Jiao's family name.[3]
In c.August 328,), even though some other imperial officials had misgivings about Huan's ambitions and independence.
Campaign against Cheng-Han
Soon after taking over for Yu, the ambitious Huan turned his attention west, wanting to destroy Cheng-Han, whose emperor Li Shi had mismanaged his state and lost the trust of his people. Most generals had concerns about the geographic barriers that isolated Cheng-Han (which occupied modern Sichuan and Chongqing) from Jin, and that Later Zhao might make a surprise attack if it realized that Jin's forces were attacking Cheng-Han. Late in 346, he launched the campaign. Li Shi sent his uncle Li Fu (李福), cousin Li Quan (李權), and Zan Jian (昝堅) to lead his forces to resist Huan, but Huan defeated Li Fu and then, abandoning most of his supplies and traveling light, quickly arrived in the vicinity of Cheng-Han's capital Chengdu. Zan Jian's forces, in fear, collapsed, instead of being able to regroup to try to save Chengdu.
However, Li Shi gathered the remaining troops and mounted a counterattack that was initially successful. Huan, in fear, ordered retreat—but his signal officer, in panic, beat his drums (signifying attack) rather than his gong (signifying retreat). The Jin forces attacked harder and defeated Cheng-Han forces, allowing Huan to march upon Chengdu's gates. Li Shi fled, but soon had a messenger submit a humble surrender petition to Huan. He then surrendered in person after binding himself and bringing a coffin—signifying readiness to be executed. Huan released him and escorted him to the Jin capital Jiankang, where Emperor Mu pardoned him and created him a marquess. To reward Huan, Emperor Mu created him the Duke of Linhe.
Mutual suspicion with imperial officials
The victory over Cheng-Han, however, brought fear in imperial officials that the ambitious Huan intended to control the government. Emperor Mu's granduncle
Over the next few years, as Later Zhao collapsed in the midst of internecine wars between the emperor Shi Hu's sons and adoptive grandson Shi Min after Shi Hu's death in 349, Huan repeatedly requested the imperial government to authorize him to advance north to try to recover northern China for Jin, but he was repeatedly rebuffed, even after a campaign by Emperor Mu's maternal grandfather Chu Pou (褚裒) ended badly. Around the new year 352, Huan, upset that his requests were being repeatedly denied, mobilized his troops and gestured as if he were about to attack the capital. Yin was shocked, and initially considered either resigning or send the imperial banner of peace (Zouyu Fan, 騶虞幡) to order Huan to stop. After advice from Wang Biaozhi (王彪之), however, he instead asked Sima Yu to write a carefully worded letter to Huan, persuading Huan to stop.
Yin, meanwhile, was preparing his own campaigns, and he launched one campaign in the middle of 352 and one late in 352—the second one being thoroughly disastrous, as he offended and intimidated the general Yao Xiang (姚襄) into rebellion, and was ambushed by Yao at great loss of life and materials. The people despised Yin for his military losses, and Huan submitted a petition demanding Yin's ouster. The imperial government was compelled to demote Yin to commoner status and exile him. From that point on, the imperial government largely no longer dared to deny Huan's requests.
Northern campaigns
Against Former Qin
With Yin out of the picture, Huan launched a major attack against one of Later Zhao's successor states,
Against Yao Xiang
In 356, Huan submitted a petition requesting that the capital be moved back to
Against Former Yan
For the next few years, Huan largely spent his effort in securing his power, as he invited many capable people to join his staff, including
In 365, Murong Ke attacked Luoyang, and initially, Huan and Sima Yu were planning a counterattack to relieve Luoyang, but the plan was cancelled after Emperor Ai died in spring 365. Soon, Luoyang fell.
Late in 365, the Jin general Sima Xun, the governor of Liang Province (梁州, modern southern Shaanxi), who had participated in many campaigns, rebelled, and Huan commissioned one of his generals, Zhu Xu, to attack Sima. Sima was soon captured and killed.
After Murong Ke died in 367, Huan began to plan to attack Former Yan, whose regime was now largely in the hands of Murong Wei's granduncle
Murong Wei and Empress Dowager Kezuhun were panicking and planning to flee back to the old capital Helong (和龍, in modern Jinzhou, Liaoning), but Murong Wei's uncle Murong Chui the Prince of Wu offered to make one last attempt to resist Huan. Murong Chui and his brother Murong De engaged Huan, dealing him minor losses. Meanwhile, the Jin army's food supply was running out (as a supply plan that Huan put Yuan in charge of was failing in light of the failure to build a canal quickly). Huan began to withdraw, and Murong Chui and Murong De set up a trap for Huan's army, nearly annihilating it. Soon, Former Qin forces, from which Former Yan had sought assistance from, also arrived, and Huan was dealt another major defeat. Huan, humiliated at the greatest defeat in his career, deflected blame by accusing Yuan of being unable to supply food and ordered that Yuan be demoted to commoner status. Yuan, instead of submitting, occupied Shouchun (壽春, in modern Lu'an, Anhui) and rebelled, seeking assistance from both Former Yan and Former Qin.
Against Yuan Zhen's clan
With Huan's forces having been severely defeated, Yuan was able to hold Shouchun. He died in spring 370, and was succeeded by his son Yuan Qin. Huan's forces, under his generals Zhu Yao (竺瑤) and Huan Shiqian were able to defeat Former Yan and Former Qin forces sent in aid of Yuan Qin. In fall 370, Huan himself arrived at Shouchun and surrounded it. At that time, Former Yan was under a major attack by Former Qin's prime minister Wang Meng, and Former Yan forces withdrew. After Former Yan fell to Former Qin later that year, Shouchun was in even greater distress. Former Qin relief forces, sent in spring 371, were defeated by Huan. Huan then captured Shouchun and slaughtered Yuan's clan, along with the clan of his supporter Zhu Fu (朱輔).
Removal of Emperor Fei
Huan had long considered seizing the Jin throne, and his original plan had been that if he had been able to destroy Former Yan, he would then return to Jiankang and force the imperial government to confer the nine bestowments on him, and then he could take the throne. Once, he had asked the fortuneteller Du Jiong (杜炅), who had a reputation for accurate prophecies, to see what he could achieve. Du's response was, "Your achievements are as great as the universe, and you will reach the highest rank among imperial subjects." This made Huan rather unhappy, as he hoped to be more than an imperial subject.
After recovering Shouchun, he asked Xi Chao whether the humiliation at the Battle of Fangtou had been removed—and Xi honestly told him that it had not. Instead, they planned an alternate strategy to try to showcase Huan's power—deposing
Hesitation at taking the throne and death
In 372, Emperor Jianwen grew ill, and he issued four successive edits summoning Huan to the capital—a strong indicator that he was willing to yield the throne to Huan—but Huan declined each time, apparently believing that the edicts were a trap. Indeed, Emperor Jianwen initially drafted a will that stated, "The Grand Marshal Huan Wen shall be regent under the precedent of the Duke of Zhou," and "If the child can be assisted, assist him; otherwise, take the throne yourself," mirroring language that Liu Bei, the founding emperor of Shu Han, used when entrusting his son Liu Shan to Zhuge Liang. With Huan not in the capital to affirm it, however, Wang Tanzhi persuaded Emperor Jianwen to tear up the will and rewrite the instructions as, "All major affairs shall be submitted to the Grand Marshal, under the precedents of Zhuge Liang and Wang Dao," greatly reducing any legitimacy Huan might have if he should try to take the throne.
Emperor Jianwen soon died, and was succeeded by his son Sima Yao the
Family
Consorts and issues:
- Sima Xingnan, Princess Nankang (南康公主), daughter of Emperor Ming of Jin
- Concubine Li, of the Li clan (李氏)
- Concubine Ma, of the Ma clan (馬氏)
- Huan Xuan (桓玄), fifth son
- Unknown:
- Huan Xi (桓熙), first son
- Huan Ji (桓濟), second son
- Huan Xin (桓歆 封臨賀公), Duke He of Fenglin, third son
- Huan Wei (桓偉), fourth son
- Lady Huan (桓氏), first daughter
- Lady Huan (桓氏), second daughter
See also
- Shouchun
References
- ^ Huan Wen's biography in Book of Jin indicated that he was 62 (by East Asian reckoning) when he died. (锡文未及成而薨,时年六十二。) Jin Shu, vol.98. Thus by calculation, his birth year should be 312.
- ^ jihai day of the 7th month of the 1st year of the Ningkang era, per Emperor Xiaowu's biography in Book of Jin
- ^ (生未期而太原温峤见之,曰:“此儿有奇骨,可试使啼。”及闻其声,曰:“真英物也!”以峤所赏,故遂名之曰温。峤笑曰:“果尔,后将易吾姓也。”) Jin Shu, vol.98
- ^ 6th month of the 3rd year of the Xian'he era, per Emperor Cheng's biography in Book of Jin; the month corresponds to 24 Jul to 21 Aug 328 in the Julian calendar. Note that while Huan Wen's biography indicated that he was 15 (by East Asian reckoning) when his father died, he was actually already 16, if he was 61 when he died in Aug 373.
- ^ Huan Wen's biography indicated that he was 18 (by East Asian reckoning) when he killed Jiang Bo's sons. There are no other references as to when Jiang Bo died.
- Book of Jin, vol. 98.
- Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103.