Han Wudi
Han Wudi, born Liu Che, was the emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BCE and is renowned for his military conquests and expansionist policies. He initiated an ambitious campaign against the nomadic Xiongnu tribe, aiming to secure the northern borders of his empire. Beginning in 139 BCE, he sent the envoy Zhang Qian to Central Asia to establish alliances against the Xiongnu. This effort paved the way for significant military engagements, including a decisive victory in 119 BCE that pushed Xiongnu forces further from Han territories. Under Wudi’s reign, the Han dynasty expanded its influence beyond its traditional borders, conquering southern China, northern Vietnam, Manchuria, and parts of Korea. Despite these military successes, the prolonged conflicts strained the economy, leading Wudi to focus on economic reforms during the last years of his life. His reign marked a significant period in Chinese history, characterized by both territorial expansion and cultural developments, including the introduction of Buddhism to China.
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Han Wudi
- Born: 156 b.c.e.
- Died: March 29, 86 b.c.e.
Also known as: Han Wu-ti; Liu Che (Liu Ch’e)
Principal war: Xiongnu War
Military significance: Han Wudi conducted a number of offensives against the Xiongnu that secured China’s northern borders and paved the way for Chinese expansion into Central Asia.
Born Liu Che, the prince assumed the name Wudi upon becoming Han emperor in 141 b.c.e. As early as 139 b.c.e., Wudi dispatched his envoy Zhang Qian west to Central Asia in hopes of forming a strategic alliance with the Yuezhi (variant Rouzhi) in Bactria against the Xiongnu, a nomadic tribe in what later became Mongolia. Before Zhang returned from his mission in 126 b.c.e., Wudi launched offensives against the Xiongnu. Having escaped the first major attack directed against them by a Han force of 300,000 near Mayi in northern Shanxi in 133 b.c.e., the Xiongnu began a series of raids against the northern agricultural communities of the Han. After several engagements against the Xiongnu starting in 129 b.c.e., the Han general Wei Qing was able to dislodge them from the Henan territory south of the bend of the Yellow River in the Ordos region. In 121 b.c.e., internecine strife among Xiongnu leaders led to Han expansion into present-day Gansu province and, ultimately, to the establishment of Han administrations in places as far west as Dunhuang on the threshold of Chinese Central Asia. The most decisive victory against the Xiongnu was achieved in 119 b.c.e. when Generals Wei Qing and Huo Qubing launched a two-pronged expedition deep into Xiongnu territory in Outer Mongolia, wiping out a large number of Xiongnu troops.
Han Wudi also conquered southern China and northern Vietnam (116 b.c.e.), then Manchuria and Korea (108 b.c.e.). The last three years before his death, Wudi attempted to strengthen the empire’s economy, which had suffered from so much fighting.
Bibliography
Twitchett, Denis, and Michael Loewe, eds. The Ch’in and Han Empires, 221 b.c.-a.d. 220. Vol. 1 in Cambridge History of China. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
Yu Ying-shih. Trade and Expansion in China. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967.