Emperor Houshao of Han

Who was Emperor Houshao of Han?

Emperor Houshao of Han, personal name Liu Hong, was the fourth emperor of the Han Dynasty in China. He was a son of Emperor Hui, likely by a concubine -- although there is some controversy on the subject—and adopted by Emperor Hui's wife, Empress Zhang Yan. At the instigation of his grandmother, Empress Dowager Lü, Empress Zhang had Emperor Houshao's mother put to death.

Very little about Emperor Houshao's life and personality is known. There are only a few major important events in his life that are documented. In 188 BC, his father Emperor Hui died, and his brother Liu Gong succeeded to the throne as Emperor Qianshao. In 187 BC, he was created the Marquess of Xiangcheng. In 186 BC, after his brother Liu Buyi, the Prince of Hengshan, died, he was created the Prince of Hengshan, and his name was changed to Liu Yi, likely because it was considered inappropriate to have one's name share characters with one's titles.

Sometime in or before 184 BC, Emperor Qianshao discovered that he was not in fact now-Empress Dowager Zhang's son and that his mother, like Prince Hong's mother, had been put to death. Emperor Qianshao made the mistake of remarking that when he grew up, Empress Dowager Zhang would pay for this. Grand Empress Dowager Lü, once she heard of this, had him secretly imprisoned within the palace and publicly announced that he was severely ill and unable to receive anyone. After some time, she told the officials that he continued to be ill and incapable of governing, and that he had also suffered a psychosis. She proposed that he be deposed and replaced. The officials complied with her wishes, and he was deposed and put to death. Prince Hong then succeeded his brother to the throne as Emperor Houshao—and as Grand Empress Dowager Lü's puppet. Because Grand Empress Dowager Lü was actually the ruling figure, one thing that is normally done when a new emperor succeeds to the throne—reset the calendar year to one—was not done; rather, the calendar continued from the start of Emperor Qianshao's reign.