Liu Cong (died 31 August 318), courtesy name Xuanming, nickname Zai, also known by his posthumous name as the Emperor Zhaowu of Han (Zhao), was an emperor of the Xiongnu-led Chinese Han-Zhao dynasty. During his reign, the Han-Zhao brought about the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, leading to its re-establishment in the south as the Eastern Jin dynasty at Jiankang in 318. His forces conquered the ancient Chinese capitals of Luoyang and Chang'an. He also captured Emperor Huai of Jin and Emperor Min of Jin, who he both had executed after forcing them to act as cupbearers.
Liu Cong's reign was filled with contradictions. He was a ruler who was considered intelligent and capable of logical reasoning, and during his father Liu Yuan's reign, he was a capable general. On the other hand, as his reign progressed, he became increasingly cruel, unstable, extravagant, and unable to listen to proper advice. Faced with opposition from his own ministers, he greatly empowered his eunuchs and consort kin, leading to political instability which ended in a bloody purge of the Han court. Meanwhile, the Han expanded from a small state occupying modern southern Shanxi to encompassing nearly all of modern Shanxi, Shaanxi, eastern Gansu, and significant portions of Shandong, Hebei, and Henan–although the eastern half of the empire was under the control of the warlord Shi Le, who Liu Cong had little to no power to restrain. After his death, his successor and family members in the capital were slaughtered by a consort kin, Jin Zhun, and not long after, the empire was split into two between his cousin, Liu Yao in the west and Shi Le in the east.
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Early life and career
Liu Cong was Liu Yuan's fourth son, by his concubine Consort Zhang. When he was young, he was considered both intelligent and strong, and when he studied in the Jin capital Luoyang, his knowledge was said to have impressed the Jin officials Le Guang and Zhang Hua. Eventually, he was invited by the ambitious Sima Yong, the Prince of Hejian, to be on his staff, but he was concerned that, since his father was on the staff of Sima Ying, the crown prince, he would be considered to have divided loyalties. He therefore fled to Sima Ying and served as a junior officer.
After Liu Yuan declared himself the Prince of Han –thus establishing Han-Zhao– in 304, he made Liu Cong one of his key generals and made him the Prince of Chu. In 309, in conjunction with Shi Le, he had a major victory over the Jin general Wang Kuang at Changping (in modern Jincheng, Shanxi). Upon the victory, however, he prematurely tried to advance on Luoyang and was defeated by the Jin general Huan Yan, who tricked him by pretending to surrender. However, several months later, he tried again to capture Luoyang in conjunction with Wang Mi, but as he besieged the city, the Jin regent Sima Yue, the Prince of Donghai made surprise attacks from inside the city, and Liu Cong suffered several repeated attacks. Liu Yuan then recalled him back to the capital Pingyang (in modern Linfen, Shanxi).
In mid 310, Liu Yuan grew ill. He made Liu Cong's older brother Liu He (by Empress Huyan) crown prince, and commissioned his other sons Liu Yu the Prince of Qi, Liu Long the Prince of Lu, and Liu Ai the Prince of Beihai with substantial troops at the capital, in addition to the large army that Liu Cong already had, with intent that they assist Liu He with governance and military matters. A group of officials, both Xiongnu and Han, were given various responsibilities in assisting Liu He. However, three officials were left out–Liu He's uncle Huyan You, Liu Cheng –who had prior grudges with Liu Cong– and Liu Rui, the Prince of Xichang. They were disgruntled, and persuaded the already suspicious Liu He that he could not be safe if his brothers maintained large forces in or near the capital. Three days after Liu Yuan's death, under Liu He's orders, these officials commenced surprise attacks on Liu He's four brothers–Liu Rui against Liu Chong, Huyan You against Liu Yu, Liu Cheng against Liu Long, and Tian Mi and Liu Gui against Liu Ai. When Tian and Liu Gui got on the way, however, they did not attack Liu Ai and instead escorted him to alert Liu Cong, who then prepared for the confrontation. Liu Rui withdrew his troops. Over the next two days, Liu Yu and Liu Long were defeated and killed. Two days later, Liu Cong besieged the palace and killed Liu He, Liu Cheng, Liu Rui, and Huyan. After initially offering the throne to Liu Ai, Liu Cong assumed the throne himself.
Early reign
After Liu Cong took the throne, he made his brother Liu Ai crown prince, promising to eventually give Liu Ai the throne. He made his wife Princess Huyan empress, and made her son Liu Can the Prince of Jin, putting him in charge of much of his troops, along with his cousin Liu Yao, the Prince of Shi'an. Both Liu Yuan's empress Empress Shan and Liu Cong's own mother Consort Zhang were honored as empresses dowager.
In 310, Crown Prince Ai's mother, Empress Shan died–said to be from shame after her affair with Liu Cong was discovered by her son Liu Ai. After she died, Liu Cong's favor for his brother quickly waned, although he was said to still be keeping him as crown prince because of his love for her. Empress Huyan, however, began to try to persuade him to make Liu Can crown prince instead, and he began to consider the matter.
Liu Cong continued to put up pressure against Jin and its capital Luoyang. His generals Liu Yao, Liu Can, Shi Le, and Wang Mi continued to defeat Jin forces easily, capturing cities and killing Jin officials, but continued to have difficulty holding cities permanently. However, they rendered the Jin heartland stripped and barren. In early 311, Shi Le crushed the remaining major Jin force in central China, previously commanded by Sima Yue, which was trying to head east after his death. Shi had the Jin officials and generals he captured executed and burned Sima Yue's body. Luoyang was left defenseless, and in mid 311, at Liu Cong's orders Wang, Shi, Liu Yao, and Huyan Yan converged on Luoyang and captured it and the Emperor Huai of Jin, taking him to the Han capital Pingyang. This capture of the Jin capital is known as the Disaster of Yongjia. Wang suggested that the capital be moved to Luoyang, but Liu Yao opposed and burned much of Luoyang, and Liu Cong did not seriously consider Wang's suggestion afterwards. In late 311, Shi ambushed Wang at a feast and seized Wang's troops, and afterwards, while continuing to show outward loyalty to Han, became effectively independent. His intent from that point on appeared to be enlarging his own personal dominion.
In early 312, Empress Huyan died. Less than a month later, Liu Cong began to take a large number of his high-level officials' daughters and granddaughters as concubines, including a number of them with the family name Liu–daughters and granddaughters of his official Liu Yin – which Crown Prince Ai opposed due to the general prohibition against endogamy. However, Liu Cong rationalized that these Liu women were ethnically Han, and he himself was ethnically Xiongnu, and therefore could not have come from the same ancestry. From this point on, Liu Cong was said to have spent all his time with these women and rarely spent time to handle government matters.
Late reign
In 314, Liu Cong made his son Liu Can the prime minister, with paramount powers. This scared the crown prince Liu Ai, whose associates, in 315 suggested that he start a coup and overthrow Liu Cong. Liu Ai did not agree to the plot, but news leaked anyway. Liu Cong put Liu Ai under house arrest.
Later in 315, Liu Cong took two of his general Jin Zhun's daughters, Jin Yueguang and Jin Yuehua into his palace, and created three empresses–Jin Yueguang as Upper Empress, Jin Yuehua as Right Empress, and Consort Liu (might have been Liu Yin's granddaughter) Left Empress–against the custom that there should only be one empress for the emperor at one time. Later that year, Chen Yuanda revealed to him that the Upper Empress had been committing adultery, and Liu Cong was compelled to depose her; she committed suicide.
In late 315, Liu Cong, to appease the ever growing power of Shi Le, commissioned Shi with imperial powers in the eastern empire (which Shi controlled in any case).
Around this time, he also became extremely trusting of the eunuchs Wang Chen, Xuan Huai, and the servant Guo Yi, entrusting all government matters to them and cancelling regular meetings with officials, letting Wang, Xuan, and Guo serve as communicators between him and the officials. This led to Wang, Xuan, and Guo becoming free to act at their whim, and they became corrupt, in cooperation with Jin Zhun. A number of officials who spoke out against these men were executed. Both Guo and Jin had prior grudges against Crown Prince Ai, and they convinced Liu Can that Crown Prince Ai would try to depose Liu Cong and kill him, presenting Liu Can with false evidence of such a plot. Liu Can began to plot how to remove his uncle.
In late 316, Liu Cong sent Liu Yao to attack Chang'an, and Liu Yao captured it and the Jin emperor, sending him to Pingyang, thus ending the so-called Western Jin Dynasty. Liu Cong made the former Jin emperor the Marquess of Huai'an, and made Liu Yao the Prince of Qin and put him in charge of the western empire.
Around the start of 317, Shi Le defeated Liu Kun and took over his domain of Jin's Bing Province. While this finally ended a former threat against Han, Shi's power became even stronger and independent of Liu Cong's.
Personal information
Father
Liu Yuan (Emperor Guangwen) (fourth son of)
Mother
Consort Zhang
Wives
Empress Huyan (created 310, d. 312), mother of Crown Prince Can
Empress Zhang Huiguang (created and d. 313)
Empress Liu E (created 313, d. 314)
Multiple empresses after Liu E's death–see Liu Cong's later empresses
Upper Empress Jin Yueguang (靳月光), daughter of Jin Zhun (created and committed suicide 315)
Left Empress Liu, likely Liu E's sister or cousin (created 315)
Right Empress Jin Yuehua (靳月華), daughter of Jin Zhun (created 315)
Upper Empress Fan (created 316)
Left Empress Wang (created 318), adopted daughter of Wang Chen (王沈)
Middle Empress Xuan (created 318), adopted daughter of Xuan Huai (宣懷)
Major Concubines
Consort Liu Ying (劉英), Liu E's sister (d. 312), daughter of Liu Yin (劉殷) the Duke of Dachang, posthumously honored as Empress Wude
Four nieces of Liu E, may include Left Empress Liu, granddaughters of Liu Yin
