Wang Mang is a highly controversial figure in Chinese history.
He was a relative of the Han dynasty and had the ideal of reviving the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, usurped the throne of the Han family through acting skills and means, and established a new dynasty.
During his reign, he implemented a series of social reform policies, which could not be successfully implemented in the social context of the time. This led to the loss of the interests of the aristocracy, the suffering of the common people, social unrest, and finally the demise of the new dynasty.
After the fall of the New Dynasty, Wang Mang was killed, and his head was kept in the collection for 272 years.
Wang Mang can be called a generation of heroes, and among the usurpers in history, it is rare for his head to be treated by a century-old collection. But this special treatment, not without reason, hides some stories about strange people and strange things, about imperial power...
Wang Mang was born in the Han family, his grandfather Wang Feng and father Wang Gu both served as the Great Sima and were important ministers of the Han Dynasty. He received an excellent education since he was a child, he was well-read, proficient in scripture and history, and had great talents.
He also had the ideal of reviving the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, believing that the Han dynasty had declined and needed change.
Wang Mang's opportunity to seize power came from the internal strife and decay of the Han family.
After the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the Han Dynasty had a situation of dictatorship of foreign relatives and eunuchs interfering in politics, the authority of the emperor continued to decline, and the government became increasingly corrupt.
During the reign of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, Wang Mang's grandfather Wang Feng and father Wang Gu both assisted the emperor, and the status of the Wang family reached its peak. However, during the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Han Dynasty and Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty, the Wang family was suspicious and suppressed by the emperor, and Wang Mang was also demoted to a commoner.
After the death of Emperor Cheng of Han, his nephew Liu Xin inherited the throne as Emperor Ai of Han. Emperor Han Ai did not have a biological son, and his relatives, the Wang family, wanted to return to the government, so Wang Mang was recalled to the court and served as the Great Sima, becoming the chief auxiliary minister of Emperor Han Ai.
Wang Mang was loyal and obedient on the surface, but in fact secretly plotted, he took advantage of the trust of Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty to gradually grasp the power of the court, weaken the power of eunuchs and other relatives, and at the same time in the name of benevolence and righteousness, relief the people, established the image of a saint, and won the hearts and prestige of the people.
After the death of Emperor Han Ai, his nephew Liu Ying inherited the throne as Emperor Ping of Han. Emperor Hanping was young and ignorant, and Wang Mang took the opportunity to strengthen his power, first he refused Emperor Hanping's reward, saying that he wanted to retire, and then accepted Emperor Hanping's plea, returned to the court, served as regent, and effectively became the supreme ruler.
Wang Mang borrowed various signs from astronomy, geography, history, etc., and announced that the Han Dynasty had lost the mandate of heaven, and he was the new monarch who was ordered by heavenSo he forced Emperor Ping of Han to give in, officially replace the Han family, establish a new dynasty, and proclaim himself emperor.
After Wang Mang established a new dynasty, he tried to carry out a series of reforms in society according to his own idealsAnd his reform measures can be said to be highly idealistic and far-sighted.
He tried to implement some systems that transcended feudal society in order to achieve his ideal society, and his reform measures have also been affirmed by modern historiansSome even called him "China's first socialist".
Some of his tools and systems are of modern technology, such as the vernier caliper, a modern measuring instrument that is said to have been invented by the Frenchman Jonier Bill in the 17th century.
However, in the Western Han Dynasty, where social technology was low, Wang Mang was able to easily create such an instrument, which was more than a thousand years earlier than in the West.
Because of this series of phenomena, modern people once suspected that he was a "traverser".
Wang Mang's reform, although it was based on his ideals and vision, was a disaster and tragedy, and his reform not only did not bring stability and prosperity to the new dynasty, but brought about destruction.
Wang Mang's reforms led to the internal and external aggression of the new dynasty, the rebellion of the people of the new dynasty, and the isolation of the emperor of the new dynasty.
He violated the interests of the remnants of the Han family, the local powerful forces, the minority forces in the frontiers, and the broad masses of peasants, all of whom were dissatisfied with Wang Mang's reforms.
They confronted Wang Mang one after another, or colluded with foreign enemies, or united with internal strife, or responded with the rebels, or joined with the uprising, they formed one anti-new dynasty force after another, and they launched one war after another against the new dynasty.
Although Wang Mang replaced the Han family, the bloodline of the Han family was not completely severed, and there were some descendants and relatives of the Han family, hiding in various places, waiting for the opportunity to revive the Han family.
They did not recognize Wang Mang's legitimacy, secretly liaison, and openly rebelled, trying to overthrow Wang Mang and restore the Han dynasty.
The most famous of them are Liu Xiu and Liu Xuan, who are the descendants of Emperor Xuan of Han and Emperor Cheng of Han respectively, and they are both the legitimate heirs of the Han Dynasty.
Wang Mang's reforms have seriously harmed the interests of the local powerful forces. They were unwilling to give up their land and property, unwilling to accept Wang Mang's distribution and expropriation, unwilling to submit to Wang Mang's jurisdiction and supervision, and they openly disobeyed orders.
Wang Mang's reform was still too advanced for the people of that era. It was difficult for the ancients to accept his ideas, from the monarchs and ministers to the common people, no one understood him and supported him.
Reforms that have no support are doomed to failure. With the failure of the reforms, the new dynasty fell, and Wang Mang was executed.
After Wang Mang was killed, his head was captured by Liu Xiu's general, Feng Yi.
Feng Yi gave Wang Mang's head to Liu Xiu, who made Wang Mang's head out of copper into a bronze human head, and then placed this bronze human head in the Taiji Hall in Chang'an as a trophy and souvenir to show his victory and contempt for Wang Mang.
This bronze head, the first form of Wang Mang's head, was preserved for 72 years until 95 AD, after the death of Emperor He of the Eastern Han Dynasty, his relatives of the Dou family staged a coup d'état in an attempt to control the government.
They sent people into the Taiji Hall and stole Wang Mang's bronze head, wanting to borrow the power of Wang Mang's head to achieve their own goals.
After Wang Mang's bronze head was stolen by the Dou family, they took it to their mansion and placed it in their ancestral hall as a token to show their awe of Wang Mang.
It was preserved for 200 years until 295 AD, after the death of Emperor Hui of the Western Jin Dynasty, his relatives of the Yang family staged a coup d'état, they snatched Wang Mang's bronze head, and it was preserved for less than a year.
In 296 AD, Sima Hao of the Western Jin Dynasty launched a counter-coup d'état and successfully quelled the rebellion of the Yang familyThis head has been passed down bag by bag.
There is a folk saying that it is because the emperor learned from the mouth of the Xiangshi that Wang Mang is a strange man, and if he is not killed, he will be immortal.
For the ancient emperors, what was immortality?
So they scrambled to collect Wang Mang's head, hoping to get some secrets about "immortality" from it.
But this statement is just a legend, so what is immortality?
Later came a more convincing reason.
In fact, Wang Mang's head has been collected for 272 years, which is not an accidental phenomenon, but an intentional arrangement.
Wang Mang's head was collected to warn the emperor and remind the monarch not to let his relatives and important ministers take power too much, otherwise Wang Mang's tragedy would be repeated.
It is also to warn them, let them understand the fate of usurping the throne and plotting the dynasty, let them know the responsibility of loyalty and duty, let them respect the majesty of law and discipline, let them obey the obligations of the king, let them follow the morality of abiding by the law, and let them serve the country and the people.
His head was kept in the collection for 272 years, and this special treatment was not without reason.
Wang Mang's head became a symbol of warning to the emperor, reminding the monarch not to allow his relatives and important ministers to take too much power. His head also alerted all the **, so that they understood the fate of the usurpation plot.
Wang Mang can be called a generation of heroes, and among the usurpers in history, it is rare for his head to be treated by a century-old collection.