The fate of the prince The difference in the fate of the prince in ancient times and the reasons behind it
We usually use:"Born with a golden spoon in his mouth"to describe a person's good background, and in the ancient imperial society, the emperor's son can simply be called"Born with a golden spoon in his mouth", generally wait until there is a major mistake or wrong period before you will be sentenced to life imprisonment! However, the son of Liu Bang, the founding emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, was not so lucky, and the reason was actually very simple, that is, the empress of the Han Dynasty, Empress Lu"Relentless"。
It can be said that the tragedy of the first half of her life made Empress Lu an extremely insecure woman. Once such a woman has power, it is enough"Ruthless", the consequences are unimaginable. Because of this insecurity, Empress Lu wanted to strictly control everything in her own hands all her life, which made her very hungry for power, and her ultimate goal was only to protect her son's throne and the happiness of the Lu family.
When Liu Ying was still the crown prince, Lü Pheasant did not hesitate to kill the heroes in order to let his son inherit the throne, and forced Liu Bang's princes to marry Lü Pheasant's daughter as the queen. After the death of Emperor Liu Ying of the Han Dynasty, he did not leave a son, and Lü Pheasant pointed the finger at the princes and kings who threatened the throne, so Liu Bang's sons began an unhappy life.
Liu Bang had eight sons in his life, most of whom were unfortunate, let's take a look at them one by one:
1, Liu Fei, the eldest son of King Qi: sacrificing a generation of land to save his life. Although Liu Fei is Liu Bang's eldest son, his birth did not pose a great threat to Lu Qiang and Emperor Hui Liu Ying, plus Liu Fei has never been inconspicuous, so Empress Lu did not kill him at first. In October of the second year of Emperor Hui (193 BC), Emperor Hui hosted a banquet to entertain Liu Fei, the king of Qi who had entered the Beijing Dynasty to see Emperor Hui. Liu Fei's brother Liu Ying asked Liu Fei to sit in the front row of the banquet for the sake of family etiquette, and Liu Fei was almost killed at the banquet. In order to survive, Liu Fei, at the suggestion of the local historian, dedicated Chengyang County to Princess Lu Yuan, the daughter of Empress Lu, and renamed it Tang Muyi, honoring Princess Lu Yuan as the queen mother. Liu Fei's suggestion was on the one hand to win the favor of Empress Lu, and on the other hand, to honor Princess Lu Yuan as the empress dowager and humiliate her status as the nephew of Emperor Hui Liu Ying. Therefore, Empress Lü gave up the killing of Liu Fei, and even held a banquet to entertain Liu Fei and sent him back to the fiefdom.
Liu Ying, the second son of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty: died of fright and depression. Liu Ying was the only son of Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, and Lü Pheasant, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty. Due to her father's irresponsibility, Liu Ying was raised by Empress Lu when she was a teenager. In the Battle of Pengcheng, when Liu Bang was defeated and fled for his life, he also threw Liu Ying and his sister out of the carriage several times. In February of the fifth year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (202 BC), Liu Bang succeeded to the throne of the Western Han Dynasty in Dingtao, and Liu Ying was made the crown prince. However, Liu Bang's personality made him want to depose Liu Ying in his later years, but Liu Ying retained the position of crown prince under the maintenance of Empress Lu and the efforts of the ministers. In April of the twelfth year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (195 BC), Liu Bang died and Liu Ying ascended the throne. Lu Hou immediately began to purge Mrs. Qi's mother and son, first imprisoned Mrs. Qi, tortured her, and then poisoned Liu Ruyi, and ordered someone to turn Mrs. Qi into her"Human"。Emperor Hui took Liu Ying to visit him'Artifact', Liu Ying was deeply shocked"。Liu Ying was hit hard by this, couldn't afford to get sick, and ignored the government. He drank every day to drown his sorrows, and his health deteriorated, and finally he died of depression in the seventh year of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty (188 BC) at the age of 24.
3.Liu Ru, the third son of King Zhao (formerly known as Daiwang): was poisoned by Empress Lu. Liu Ru is the son of Mrs. Qi and Liu Bang, and was originally named acting king. Zhang Ao, the king of Zhao, was demoted to the Marquis of Xuanping, and Liu Ru was named the king of Zhao. Liu Yu competed with Liu Ying for the crown prince and became the first prince to be purged after Liu Bang's death. As soon as Empress Lu came to power, he ordered Mrs. Qi to be imprisoned in Yongxiang and severely tortured. She sent someone to summon Liu Ru to Beijing, but was neutralized by Zhao Xiang and Jianping Marquis Zhou Chang three times, so Empress Lu sent someone to recall Zhou Chang back to the palace, and then ordered to summon Liu Ru, who had no one to protect him, into Beijing. Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty Liu Ying knew that Empress Lu hated Liu Ruyi to the core, so he personally rushed to Bashang, welcomed Liu Ruyi into the palace, guarded it day and night, and did not let Empress Lu have the opportunity to kill him. However, Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty Liu Ying went hunting early in the morning, Liu Ruyi was still sleeping in the palace, and Empress Lu sent someone to pour poisoned wine on Liu Ruyi, and when Liu Ying returned to the palace, Liu Ruyi was already dead.
4.Liu Heng, the fourth son of the acting king: low-key and obedient to save his life. Liu Heng is the son of Liu Bang and Bo Ji. After Liu Bang put down the rebellion of Chen Xuan, Liu Heng was named acting king. Bo Ji was not favored in the harem, so after Liu Bang's death, she was able to live with her family in Daidi. It is said that Liu Heng's cautious and calm personality is the greatest wealth that saved his life. Although the existing historical materials do not mention the origin and name of Queen Liu Heng, judging from the situation at the time, she is likely to be the daughter of Empress Lu. Liu Heng's humility made Empress Lu lose her awe of him. In addition, from"The Zhulu Rebellion"Before and after the outbreak to Liu Heng's official proclamation as emperor, the sons born to him and Empress Dai all died of abnormal diseases, and Empress Dai had already died, and Liu Heng did not posthumously honor Empress Dai when he became emperor, which may have made Empress Dai a member of the Lu family.
5, Liu Chou, the fifth son of King Zhao (former King of Liang): martyred because his beloved wife was killed. Liu Chou's mother is unknown. In the eleventh year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (196 BC), the king of Liang, Peng Yue, was killed, and Liu Cang was named the king of Liang. In the seventh year of the reign of Lü (181 BC), Liu Chou's half-brother Liu You, the king of the nest, was imprisoned and starved to death. Before marrying Empress Lu, Empress Lu already had a favorite concubine. After she became the queen, she was supported by Empress Lu and took charge of the inner palace. She didn't care about Liu Chuan's life or death, not only did she take strict care of him, but also didn't allow him to approach other women. Liu Che didn't dare to approach the queen, so he had to meet secretly with his favorite concubine, and the matter was finally revealed. After Liu Cang was poisoned, on the one hand, out of grief for his concubine, and on the other hand, out of despair and fear of his own situation, he finally committed suicide four months later. When Empress Lu learned that Liu Che had committed suicide for a woman, she dissolved his country and took away his inheritance.
6.Liu You, the sixth son of King Zhao (formerly King of Huaiyang): starved to death in prison. Liu You's biological mother is also unknown. In the eleventh year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (196 BC), Peng Yue, the king of Liang, was assassinated, and Liu You ascended the throne as the king of Huaiyang, abolished Yingchuan County, and assigned part of its territory to Huaiyang County. In December of the first year of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty (194 BC), Liu Ru, the king of Liang, was poisoned and died, and Liu You was renamed King of Zhao. Like the other princes and kings of the Liu family, the queen of King Liu You is the daughter of Queen Lu, but King Liu You does not like Queen Lu and avoids her, only likes other concubines. The queen was very jealous, and left home to return to Beijing in a fit of anger, slandering Liu You in front of the queen and accusing him"King Riro! "Historical Records - Empress Benji of Han Gao", "Book of Han - Biography of King Gao Wushi"). When Empress Lu heard this, she was furious and summoned Liu You, the king of Zhao, to Beijing. In the first month of the seventh year of the reign of Lü (181 BC), Liu You came to the capital. Empress Lü did not receive him at all, but directly ordered him to live in seclusion in his official residence, and sent troops to besiege him, forbidding him to send food to Empress Lü. Those who secretly brought him food were arrested and ordered to be punished. On the eighteenth day of the first month of this year, Liu You finally starved to death.
7.Liu Jian, the seventh son of King Yan: his son was killed and his heir disappeared. In the eleventh year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (196 BC), the king of Yan Lu Ben Xiongnu, and Liu Jian was named the king of Yan. There are few historical records of Liu Jian, except that he died in September of the seventh year after Henkel (181 BC). Liu Jian had a concubine, but Empress Lü killed him for unknown reasons, causing the bloodline of Liu Jian, the king of Yan, to become extinct and the fief to disappear.
The eighth son, Liu Chang, the king of Huainan: died of starvation when Emperor Wen. The Book of Han - Huainan Hengshan Biography clearly records that Liu Chang is the youngest son of Han Gaozu, and his mother is Zhang Ao, the former king of Zhao, who is very beautiful. In the ninth year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (198 BC), Zhao Ji, who was favored by Liu Bang, was imprisoned because Zhao Xiangwang Guangao framed her for conspiring with Zhang Ao, the king of Zhao, to murder Liu Bang. After Zhao Ji gave birth to Liu Chang in prison, she committed suicide in anger. Liu Chang lost his mother when he was a child and was raised by Empress Lu. Later, Yingbu, the king of Huainan, was killed for rebellion, and Liu Chang was named the king of Huaiyang. Due to Empress Lü's nurturing grace, among all the sons of Liu Bang, except for Liu Ying, Liu Chang was the most favored by Emperor Hui of Han, so during the reign of Empress Lü, Liu Chang was treated much better than his brothers. After the death of Empress Lü, Emperor Wen of Han ascended the throne. Liu Chang's personality caused him to commit many rebellions, and finally in the sixth year of Emperor Xiaowen of the Han Dynasty (174 years ago), he was stripped of his title for rebellion, exiled to Shu (the author has reservations about the authenticity of Liu Chang's rebellion), and starved to death on the way to Shu (the author has reservations about the credibility of Liu Chang's rebellion).
In short, among the eight sons of Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, except for Liu Fei, the king of Qi, and Liu Heng, the acting king, barely survived, the other four died or perished because of Empress Lu. Liu Ying, the second son of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty, was so frightened by Empress Lu's methods that he fell ill and finally died of depression; Liu Chang, the king of Huainan, was the youngest son of Emperor Wen of Han, and although he was treated better as the adopted son of Empress Lü during the reign of Empress Lü, he still died at the hands of Emperor Wen of Han.