The Yuan family has accumulated political capital for the family through several generations of efforts, making it a powerful political force in the late Han Dynasty, and had a significant impact on the society and politics at that time, which is also the strong family social background formed by the Yuan Shao warlord group.
From the Yellow Turban Uprising to the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao experienced the final defeat from the secession of one side. As a representative of the family, Yuan Shao had the strong political influence of his class that led to his rapid rise, but also because of the limitations of his class, which ultimately led to his defeat.
[The rise of Yuan Shao's warlord clique
The Yellow Turban Uprising at the end of the Han Dynasty prompted a major change in society, due to the weak power of the late Han Dynasty, it was unable to suppress the Yellow Turban Army, and only enabled some economic and political forces that have developed to a certain extent of the scholar class, "so the world's elite soldiers, Bo Xuan generals" ("Later Han Shu, Volume 71"), the war made Yuan Shao such a group of administrative ** to warlords.
The fourth generation and fifth duke of the Yuan Shao family, plus the good rangers of the Yuan Shao family, had a wide range of contacts in the late Han Dynasty. "The eighth lieutenant of the West Garden is the strongest military force formed by the Eastern Han Dynasty to suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Yuan Shao is the middle military captain, and his power is only under the captain of the military academy and the eunuch Xiaohuangmen Saishuo. When the eunuch was executed, Yuan Shao became the supreme commander of this military force. With a strong family reputation and extensive connections, Yuan Shao became the leader of the scholars in a relatively short period of time.
1. The beautiful turn of the origin and great change - the elimination of the eunuchs
The struggle between the emperors, eunuchs and relatives of the Eastern Han Dynasty was ostensibly caused by the empress dowager Chang Lijun, but its profound essence was due to the struggle between the imperial power of the Eastern Han Dynasty and the wealthy families. Liu Xiu rebuilt the Han regime under the support of the powerful forces of the family, and his policy towards the wealthy families was to respect their political status, give them high-ranking officials, and invite them to be ministers of the three dukes, but the great power was in the hands of the small officials Shangshu who was left and right by himself, so at the beginning of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a sharp political confrontation between the imperial power and the powerful forces of the wealthy families, and the struggle between the eunuchs and their relatives was in essence the struggle between the imperial power and the wealthy families, and the eunuchs were the representatives of the imperial power.
At that time, the biggest obstacle in the politics of the family was the dictatorship of the eunuchs, the eunuchs were a cancer in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the contradictions between the scholars and the eunuchs who were known for their clear streams were irreconcilable.
In the sixth year of Zhongping (189 AD), the Yuan brothers led troops into the palace, punished the eunuchs, ended the eunuchs' control of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and won the support of feudal landlords and bureaucrats at all levels, Yuan Shao quickly became a hero among the Eastern Han scholars. As a representative of the family, Yuan Shao was a loyal and righteous person of the Kuangfu Han family at this time, had the advanced nature of his class, and represented a certain force of justice. When Yuan Shao was entrusted with the expectations of all levels of society, he became the representative of the interests of the family.
2. Finding the way and staying in the hills - breaking with Dong Zhuo
Soon after Yuan Shao killed the eunuchs in the palace, Dong Zhuo, a wealthy clan in Hexi, led a large army into the capital, abolished the young emperor, forced the queen mother and Wuyang Jun, and monopolized the government, which was far from the political requirements of the family family, and did not conform to the social tradition followed by the family family, and the family family once again competed with Dong Zhuo.
At this time, Yuan Shao, as a representative of the family, once again stepped forward and said, "The only healthy person in the world is Dong Gong" ("Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Volume 74I"). Yuan Shao became the first person who dared to reprimand Dong Zhuo in person, and openly broke with Dong Zhuo, who represented the authoritarian power and threatened the Han family, and opened the prelude to the crusade against Dong Zhuo.
After that, in the campaign to eliminate Dong Zhuo, "in the first year of the first peace, Shao Sui raised troops in the Bohai Sea, and from his younger brother to the general, Jizhou Mu Hanfu, Yuzhou Thorn Shi Kong Ling, Yanzhou Thorn Shi Liu Dai, Chen Liutai Shou Zhang Miao, Guangling Taishou Zhang Chao, Hanoi Taishou Wang Kuang, Shanyang Taishou Yuan Yi, Dongjun Taishou Qiao Mao, Jibei Xiang Bao Xin, etc., all at the same time, tens of thousands, in the name of Zhuo. Shao and Wang Kuangtun Hanoi, Lingtun Yingchuan, Futun Ye, Yujun Xiantun sour jujube, about the alliance, and Yao pushed Shao as the leader of the alliance. Shao Zi is a general of the chariot and cavalry, and the commander is subordinate to the school captain" ("Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Volume 74a").
At this time, Yuan Shao was just the Taishou of Bohai County who had served for less than a year, and the other warlords were the ones who raised troops in the state, and the power, strength, and occupied area were stronger than Yuan Shao, and the smaller ones also raised troops in the county, but they jointly promoted Yuan Shao as the leader of the alliance, which was not only related to the prestige that Yuan Shao had established in the elimination of eunuchs, but also had a lot to do with Yuan Shao's family background, and Yuan Shao had become a representative of the family at this time.
The strong connections and strong political appeal of the Yuan family brought strong political capital to Yuan Shao, and the family also released its strong political energy, and these Yuan Shao was the biggest beneficiary, Yuan Shao became the desire of the people, and many scholars began to defect to Yuan Shao.
February** Dynamic Incentive Plan Third, the expectation of crossing the spotlight - occupying Jizhou.
The occupation of Jizhou was an important turning point in the life of Yuan Shao's warlords, as well as the rise and development of Yuan Shao's warlord group.
At that time, Feng Ji offered a plan for Yuan Shao: "The husband is a big event, not according to a state, there is no way to stand on his own, and now the Hebei Department is strong, and Han Fu is mediocre, but the secret Gongsun Zhan generals go south, and Fu Wen will be frightened." and send the defender for Chen Woe and Fortune, and if he is forced to die in a hurry, he will be able to take his position" (Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Volume 74a). Yuan Shao acted according to the plan, Han Fu was really shocked, and finally Han Fu gave Jizhou to Yuan Shao under the pretext of "my Yuan family's former official", "virtue and letting, the ancients are precious" ("Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Volume 74 I").
Yuan Shao didn't spend a soldier to get a land, and it was a territory of "one million with armor and ten years of valley branches", which was not easy, and the reason why Yuan Shao was able to do it was inseparable from his powerful family. After Yuan Shao occupied Jizhou, not only the scholars of the Yingchuan group (Xun Yu, Xu You, etc.) took refuge in him, but also the scholars and natives of the Jizhou group (Fu Zhu, Tian Feng, etc.) also took refuge in him. At the end of the Han Dynasty, scholars chose their masters, and Yuan Shao was the first choice of scholars, regardless of family background, ability, and personal prestige, they were second to none at that time.
Fourth, the vision of looking at the sea from afar - Wang Tu hegemony
After Yuan Shaokai gained a firm foothold in Jizhou, he began to take Jizhou as a base, and continued to expand outward, successively annexing Qing, Merge, and Youdi, becoming a strong force in the separatist forces, and Zitan was the history of Qingzhou Thorn, Zixi was the history of Youzhou Thorn, and his nephew ** was the history of Merge Prefecture, and the Yuan family occupied the land of Sizhou. Within the Eastern Han Dynasty, Yuan Shao established a "country within a country" that belonged to him.
At the time of social turmoil, the northern family represented by Yuan Shao exterminated the eunuchs and drove Dong Zhuo away under the banner of eliminating **. Because the late Han dynasty has developed economically mature, and also has a certain political power, with the weakening of royal power, it has produced a complete break from the royal power, the motive of separating one party, they rely on their strong family influence and extensive connections to break out of the strong political appeal, rapid rise, they have been enough to compete with the ** regime.