The Restoration of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty

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Liu Xiu was the ninth in descent from Liu Bang.By overthrowing Wang Mang’s short-lived Xin Dynasty（AD 8-23），he restored the Han Dynasty which was known as the Later Han or Eastern Han（AD 25-220）in chinese history.Reigning for 33 years（AD 25-57），he was called reverently Guangwu after death.

Liu Xiu（6 BC-AD 57）of the Han nationality，who styled himself Wenshu，was born in Caiyang County of Nanyang Prefecture（present Zaoyang in Hubei Province）.Liu Bang’s descendant in the ninth generation，he set up the Eastern Han Dynasty and reigned for 33 years（AD 25-57）.

Launching an Armed Revolt

In the last years of the Western Han Dynasty，Empress Wang Zhengjun（70 BC-AD 13）monopolized the favor of Emperor Yuan（named Liu Shi，76-33 BC）.With the influence of Wang’s relatives mounting gradually，the authority of the royal family was slipping away.

In 16 BC, the empress’s nephew Wang Mang was granted the title of Marquis of Xindu. He arrogated all power to himself, and after poisoning Emperor Ping(named Liu Kan,9 BC-AD 6) he usurped the throne in the year AD 8 and set up the Xin Dynasty(AD 8-23), thus putting an end to the Western Han.

Starting from the next year, Wang Mang introduced institutional reforms including changing the monetary system several times. For instance, he gave orders to resume the circulation of the spade-and knife-shaped coins made in the Warring States Period. Rather than relieve social unrest, his new policies that were subjected to frequent changes had plunged the country into an even more turbulent and volatile situation. As a result,a storm of armed revolt swept across the entire nation.

During the period of Tianfeng(AD 14-19)a great famine broke out in many regions. In the year AD 17, some refugees rose up in open rebellion in Jingzhou of Hubei. They entrenched themselves in the densely wooded Lulin Mountain(present Dahong Mountain in Hubei) and were thus called the Lulin Army. Later on they were divided into three branches: the Xinshi Army led by Wang Kuang and Wang Feng, the Xiajiang Army led by Wang Chang and Cheng Dan, and the Pinglin Army led by Chen Mu.

Portrait of Wang Mang(45 BC-AD23)

A native of Yuancheng in the Wei prefecture(present Daming County of Hebei Province) and the In AD 18, Fan Chong led the refugees to revolt in Juxian of Shandong. The rebels dyed their eyebrows red to distinguish themselves from the government troops, hence the name of Chimei(Red Eyebrows) Army.

In AD 22, Liu xiu and his brother Liu Yan staged an uprising in Chongling(in present Zaoyang), and organized a force of seven to eight thousand men. The following year, the Liu brothers allied themselves with the Lulin Army and defeated Wang Mang’s more than 100 thousand troops in the Bi River(in present Biyang County of Henan Province). Soon afterwards the united army vanquished the government troops once again in Yuyang (northeast of present Xinye County of Henan), and jointly crowned Liu Xuan–a scion of the Han imperial family –emperor. Liu Xuan restored the dynasty title of Han, and took Gengshi as his reign title.

As Wancheng(present Nanyang City of Henan), Kunyang(present She County of Henan) and Dingling(north of present Wuyang of Henan) fell into the hands of the insurrectionary army, Wang Mang assembled all his forces in an attempt to wipe out the newly-emerging Gengshi regime.