Fu Deng

Biography

Family Background and Early Life

Fu Deng belonged to the Former Qin imperial clan. His father Fu Chang served under Emperor Jingming Fu Jian as Marshal to the Grand Commandant, Governor of Longdong, and General Establishing Credentials, and was enfeoffed as Prince of Yingchuan. In 357, the third year of Shouguang, Fu Sheng killed Fu Chang. That same year Fu Jian seized the throne in a coup, posthumously appointed Fu Chang General of the Right and Inspector of Liangzhou, and allowed Fu Deng's elder brother Fu Tongcheng to inherit his office and title.

As a young man Fu Deng was brave, physically powerful, and high-spirited, but he was coarse in manner and paid little attention to details, so Fu Jian did not value him highly. After reaching adulthood Fu Deng changed his behavior, became respectful and sincere, and read extensively. Early in the Jianyuan era, around 365, he was enfeoffed as Duke of Nankang and successively served as Palace General, Director of the Feathered Forest Guard, General Who Displays Martial Might, and magistrate of Chang'an. He was later demoted for an unspecified matter to chief of Didao.

Flight to Hezhou and Raising Troops

After the Battle of Fei River, Guanzhong descended into disorder. Fu Deng left Didao and went to Hezhou, where his elder brother Fu Tongcheng was located. Mao Xing was then stationed at Shanggui, and Fu Tongcheng recommended Fu Deng to Mao as a Marshal. Fu Deng possessed unusual ability and enjoyed devising unconventional strategies. Mao admired him but was also wary of him and therefore did not entrust him with major authority.

In 386, the second year of Taian, Mao Xing had long been locked in conflict with Yao Shuode and was also fighting Former Qin Governor of Yizhou Wang Guang and Governor of Qinzhou Wang Tong. He was eventually killed by war-weary Di soldiers. Before dying, Mao Xing told Fu Tongcheng that he deeply regretted failing after years of fighting the “rebellious Qiang,” and that future affairs should be entrusted to Tongcheng's younger brother, the Marshal, because Fu Deng was the man who would destroy Yao Shuode. In the seventh lunar month, the Di communities at Fuhan judged the aged Inspector of Hezhou Wei Ping unfit and decided to remove him. They acclaimed Fu Deng as Bearer of Credentials, commander of military affairs in Longyou, Great General Who Pacifies the Army, Governor of Yongzhou and Hezhou, and Duke of Lüeyang. Fu Deng led fifty thousand followers east and captured Nan'an Commandery. He immediately sent an envoy to Former Qin emperor Fu Pi requesting formal appointment. Fu Pi confirmed the offices Fu Deng had requested, additionally appointing him General Who Conquers the West and enfeoffing him as Prince of Nan'an.

Accession as Emperor

In the tenth lunar month of 386, the second year of Taian, Fu Pi was killed by Eastern Jin forces while attacking Luoyang. In the eleventh lunar month, Fu Pi's Minister Kou Yi arrived from Xingcheng with Fu Pi's sons Fu Yi, Prince of Bohai, and Fu Chang, Prince of Jibei. Fu Deng held mourning rites for Fu Pi, and the entire army donned white mourning garments. Fu Deng initially asked that Fu Yi be established as ruler, but his followers argued that in a state of disorder an adult ruler was needed and strongly urged Fu Deng to take the throne. He therefore proclaimed himself emperor, issued a general amnesty, and inaugurated the Taichu era.

Fu Deng placed Fu Jian's spirit tablet within the army, carrying it on a covered wagon beneath feathered ornaments and a green canopy with yellow banners, guarded by three hundred elite warriors. Before every battle he first reported to the spirit tablet, and before every major action he presented a formal petition. Fu Deng wept before Fu Jian's spirit, and the soldiers were all moved to grief. They carved the characters for “death” and “rest” on their spears and armor to show their determination to fight to the death. In battle Fu Deng formed large square and circular formations using long lances with hooked blades, so that every soldier fought independently and the formations seemed irresistible.

Repeated Campaigns against Later Qin

In 387, the second year of Taichu, Fu Deng appointed Xu Song General Who Pacifies the Army and Inspector of Yongzhou, and Hu Kong General Assisting the State and Intendant of Jingzhao. He also reburied Fu Jian with imperial rites. That same year he sent envoys to appoint Fu Zuan Bearer of Credentials, Palace Attendant, commander of military affairs inside and outside the court, Grand Preceptor, and concurrent Grand Marshal, and promoted him to Prince of Lu. Fu Zuan initially resented Fu Deng's self-proclamation but, after persuasion by Chief Clerk Wang Lü, accepted the appointment. Fu Zuan commanded more than one hundred thousand followers and responded to Fu Deng's call. He defeated Yao Shuode at Jingyang, while Dou Chong captured Qian and Yong. Later, however, Fu Zuan was killed after Fu Shinu failed to persuade him to proclaim himself emperor. Fu Shinu then set himself up as Duke of Qin but was eventually defeated by Yao Chang.

In the second lunar month of 388, the third year of Taichu, Fu Deng descended from the Long region into Chaona while Yao Chang camped at Wudu. The two sides fought repeatedly, with victories and defeats on both sides. Former Qin suffered a food shortage and Fu Deng's troops gathered mulberries for food. In the tenth lunar month Yao Chang withdrew to Anding. Fu Deng moved to Xinping to obtain provisions and led more than ten thousand men to surround Yao Chang's camp. His troops wailed loudly on all sides, but Yao Chang ordered his own soldiers to answer with equal cries. Seeing that the tactic had failed, Fu Deng withdrew.

In 389, the fourth year of Taichu, Fu Deng left his baggage at Dajie and personally led light cavalry to attack Anding, defeating the Qiang leader Mizaobao and Later Qin general Wu Zhong. Yao Chang, however, attacked Dajie by night, killed Empress Mao and several of Fu Deng's sons, and carried off more than fifty thousand people. Fu Deng withdrew to Hukong Fort. In 391, the sixth year of Taichu, Fu Deng attacked Later Qin with internal support from Gou Yao, defeated Yao Chang, and killed Later Qin general Wu Zhong, but Yao Chang then counterattacked and inflicted a major defeat, forcing Fu Deng back to Mei County. That same year Fu Deng attacked Xinping and Anding but was defeated by Yao Chang in both places. Di leader Qiang Jinchui, Qiang leader Lei Edi, General of Agile Cavalry Moyigan, and others successively defected to Later Qin, weakening Fu Deng's power.

In 392, the seventh year of Taichu, Fu Deng took advantage of Yao Chang's illness and advanced against Anding, but Yao Chang's forces attacked him ninety li from the city and forced him to withdraw. Yao Chang secretly sent troops around Fu Deng's flank at night. When Fu Deng heard that Yao Chang's camp had suddenly become empty, he exclaimed in fear that he could never understand what kind of man Yao Chang was: he did not know when Yao left and did not notice when he arrived; people said Yao was about to die, yet he suddenly appeared again. Fu Deng lamented that it was simply his misfortune to live in the same age as this Qiang adversary.

Defeat and Death

In 394, the ninth year of Taichu, Fu Deng was delighted to learn that Yao Chang had died and committed his full army to attacking Later Qin. In summer he attacked Feiqiao in order to seize the water supply, but Later Qin general Yin Wei blocked him and some of Fu Deng's soldiers died of thirst. Fu Deng launched a hurried assault on Yin Wei but suffered a major defeat and his army collapsed. He fled alone on horseback back to Yongcheng, only to discover that his younger brother Fu Guang had abandoned the city and that Crown Prince Fu Chong had also abandoned Hukong Fort. With nowhere left to establish himself, Fu Deng fled to Pingliang, gathered surviving followers, and occupied Mount Mimao. He requested assistance from Qifu Gangui, who ordered Qifu Yizhou to lead troops to his aid. In the seventh lunar month, while Fu Deng marched to meet Qifu Yizhou, he encountered Later Qin forces, was captured alive, and was executed at the age of fifty-two. His son Fu Chong proclaimed himself emperor at Huangzhong and posthumously titled Fu Deng Emperor Gao with temple name Taizong.

Family, Early Years, and His Suppressed Years in Mao Xing's Army

Fu Deng, styled Wengao, was a clansman's descendant of Fu Jian. His father Fu Chang had been grand commandant's marshal, governor of Longdong and general establishing discipline under Fu Jian the founder, "and was afterwards killed by Fu Sheng"; Fu Jian posthumously made him general of the right and governor of Liangzhou, and Fu Deng's elder brother Fu Tongcheng inherited. The histories say that Fu Deng "was brave and spirited when young, with a bold air, rough and careless of small conduct, so that Jian did not think him remarkable; grown older, he changed to careful and honest ways and read a good deal." He was first made general of the palace, then promoted through the imperial guard, general of martial display and magistrate of Chang'an, and was later "deposed for a fault to be the chief of Didao"; when Guanzhong fell into disorder he left his county and joined Mao Xing. Fu Tongcheng recommended him to Mao Xing as marshal, to be always in the camp; but Fu Deng, "of no common measure and fond of strange plans," was often warned by his brother: "You have heard that one who is not in the office does not plan its business; do not meddle with the times so often, or men of wide knowledge will not allow it. I do not dislike you; I fear only that men may dislike others' meddling. You should stop; when you hold power you may do as you please." And "men of the day, hearing Tongcheng's words, mostly thought he envied and curbed his brother," so that Fu Deng withdrew and made no casual friendships. Mao Xing would summon him when there was business and say in jest that "the little marshal may sit and judge the matter," and "Deng's words always hit the truth of the case, so that Xing admired him inwardly, yet stood in awe of him and could not give him a charge." When Yao Chang rebelled and sent his brother Yao Shuode against Mao Xing, and the standoff dragged on, Mao Xing, dying, told Fu Tongcheng: "These years I have fought the rebel Qiang with you and never succeeded — how deep the regret! You may leave what remains to your little brother the marshal; the man who will destroy Shuode is surely he. You may take over the marshal's duties in his place" — that deathbed charge being the beginning of Fu Deng's rising.

Made Chief, Taking the Throne, and the Tablet of Fu Jian in the Camp

The Di of Fuhan, holding that the aged Wei Ping could not bring success, discussed deposing him but feared his strong clan and could not decide for days. The Di Dan Qing told the generals that "great matters should be settled in time, or change will come; do you but ask Duke Wei for an assembly and watch what I do." At the great feast of the seventh night Dan Qing drew his sword and came forward: "The empire is now in chaos and we share one fortune; without a worthy lord the great work cannot be done. Duke Wei is old and should retire to make way for the worthy. The chief of Didao, Fu Deng, though a distant kinsman of the royal house, is great in purpose and clear in strategy; let us set him up together and go to the imperial camp. Any of you who disagrees, speak your dissent at once!" and he "raised his sword and bared his arm to kill the dissenters," and "all followed him, none daring to look up." So they made Fu Deng commissioner with the staff of authority, commander of the military affairs of Longyou, general of the pacifying army, governor of Yong and He and duke of Lüeyang, and with fifty thousand men he went east down Long and took Nan'an, sending word in haste for the Qin emperor's mandate. With Nan'an taken, "the Yi and the Xia who came over to him were more than thirty thousand households," and he attacked Yao Shuode in Qinzhou, whereupon the lord of Later Qin, Yao Chang, came in person to the rescue; and at Hunufu Fu Deng "broke him heavily, taking more than twenty thousand heads," while the general Dan Qing shot Yao Chang, who "was gravely wounded and fled to hold Shanggui, Yao Shuode taking command of his troops."

From then on "Deng, having taken Wei Ping's place, held the conduct of campaigns alone." It was a year of drought and famine with "the dead lying along the roads," and Fu Deng called every killing in battle a "cooked meal," telling his men that "if you fight in the morning you shall be full of meat by evening — what fear of famine?" and they followed him, "eating the flesh of the dead and so being full and strong in battle"; Yao Chang, hearing of it, urgently called Yao Shuode, saying that "if you do not come, you will surely be eaten up by Fu Deng," and Shuode went down Long to join him. When Fu Pi was defeated, his secretary Kou Yi brought Fu Pi's sons, the prince of Bohai, Fu Yi, and the prince of Jibei, Fu Chang, from Xingcheng to Fu Deng, who "set out the news of Pi's death," went into mourning and dressed the three armies in white, and asked that Fu Yi be set up; but the others said that "the prince of Bohai, though the late emperor's son, is young and cannot bear these many troubles; to set up the elder in a disordered state is the meaning of the Spring and Autumn... you should rise like a dragon, rescue the old capital and put the altars and temple of Qin first." So in 386 Fu Deng took the imperial throne, proclaimed an amnesty and changed the era to Taichu. He then "set up a tablet of Jian in the army, carried in a curtained carriage with a feather canopy of green and a yellow banner on the carriage, with three hundred braves of the tiger guards to guard it; before battle he always reported to it, and whatever he meant to do he did after reporting to the tablet," and before marching east he announced to it that "your great-great-grandson and servant, the emperor Deng, has reverently ascended the throne by the spirit of the great emperor. In the calamity of the Five Generals the rebel Qiang did violence to your sacred person, and it was truly Deng's fault... that I may repay above the deep wrong done the emperor and below wipe away your servant's great shame. Let the spirit of the emperor descend and oversee my sincerity," and with that "he sobbed and wept," and "the officers and men all grieved aloud, and cut the words 'death' and 'rest' on their lances and armour to show that they meant to die in battle." In every battle he "formed a square-and-circle array with long lances hooked at the edge, knowing where it was thick and thin and distributing officers and men accordingly, so that each fought for himself and nothing could stand before them." Earlier, when Chang'an was about to fall, Fu Jian's general of the central ramparts, Xu Song, and the colonel of the garrison cavalry, Hu Kong, had each raised five thousand men, fortified strongpoints and taken Yao Chang's titles; and when Yao Chang killed Fu Jian, "Song and the others buried Jian between the two forts with the rites of a king," and now they came over to Fu Deng with their men, who made Xu Song general of the garrison and governor of Yongzhou, and Hu Kong general of the state's support and governor of Jingzhao, "reburied Jian with imperial rites," made his wife Lady Mao empress and his brother Fu Yi heir-apparent's uncle.

The Long Struggle with Later Qin and His Destruction

After taking the throne Fu Deng sent envoys to make Fu Zuan commissioner with the staff of authority, attendant, commander of military affairs at home and abroad, grand tutor and grand marshal, prince of Lu, and Fu Zuan's brother Fu Shinu general of the pacifying army, governor of Bingzhou and duke of Shuofang; but Fu Zuan said in anger to the envoy: "The prince of Bohai is the great-grandson of Shizu and son of the late emperor — why has the prince of Nan'an not set him up but made himself emperor?" His secretary Wang Lü advised that "the prince of Nan'an is already enthroned and there is no reason to change midway; with the rebels unsubdued, the imperial clan must not be at enmity within itself; may the prince follow Guangwu's precedent in exalting the sage," and Fu Zuan accepted. Thereupon the chiefs of Erxian, Peng Peigu, the Tuge Dong Cheng and Zhang Longshi and the Qiang of Xinping, Lei Edi, all answered him, "more than a hundred thousand in all." In the second month of 388 Fu Deng marched down Long into Chaona, and Yao Chang held Wudu against him, "each winning and losing in many battles"; and with famine in the army, "Deng gathered mulberries to feed his soldiers." When Yao Chang withdrew to Anding, Fu Deng "went to Xinfeng to feed", left his main army at Hukong fort, and with more than ten thousand horse surrounded Yao Chang's camp, "wailing on four sides with a sound that moved men"; Yao Chang, disgusted, ordered his three armies to wail in answer, and Fu Deng drew off. Because Fu Deng won so often, Yao Chang, thinking Fu Jian's spirit had power, also set up a tablet of him to pray for fortune; and Fu Deng, advancing, climbed a tower and mocked him: "From of old, who has killed his lord and then set up his image to seek blessing, hoping for profit?" and shouted: "Yao Chang, murderer of your lord, come out and settle it with me, and do not harm the innocent!" and Yao Chang "feared him and did not answer"; and since setting up the image "brought him no advantage in battle, and the camp was terrified every night," he "beat the drums and had the image beheaded and sent to Deng."

Thereafter the fighting went both ways: Yao Chang "lost battle after battle" and sent his central army under Yao Chong against Dajie, and Fu Deng "brought up his troops to intercept and broke Chong at Anqiu, taking twenty-five thousand prisoners and heads"; but Yao Chang "attacked the camp at Dajie by night with thirty thousand horse and took it," killing Fu Deng's wife Lady Mao and his sons Fu Bian and Fu Shang, "seizing dozens of famous generals and driving off more than fifty thousand men and women." Fu Deng gathered his remnant and fell back on Hukong fort, sending envoys to make Dou Chong grand marshal and general of the flying cavalry and vanguard commander-in-chief, Yang Ding president of the secretariat of the left and grand general, and Yang Bi grand general, marching separately toward Chang'an. Yao Chang again "secretly sent his generals Ren Pen and Zong Du to feign being agents within and sent envoys to Deng, promising to open the gates for him," and Fu Deng believed it, until Lei Edi came at speed to warn that "Yao Chang is full of schemes and skilful in managing men, and will surely contrive some treachery; consider it deeply," and he desisted; and Yao Chang, hearing that Lei Edi had gone to Fu Deng, told his generals that "this Qiang is full of cunning; now that he has gone to Deng, the thing cannot succeed," while Fu Deng, learning that Yao Chang had hung the gate open waiting for him, was greatly alarmed and said: "Lei of the eastern expedition is almost a sage! But for this man I should have been misled by a petty fellow." In this period his general Dou Chong rebelled and styled himself king of Qin, while Guo Zhi of Fengyi rose at Guangxiang in support of Fu Deng and proclaimed to the three districts that "righteousness moves the noble and profit moves the petty... and shall we sit and watch the jackals do violence to our lord and father?", only Gou Yao of Zheng county refusing and raising men for Yao Chang, until Guo Zhi, beaten, went over to him. When Yao Chang lay ill and "saw Fu Jian haunting him," Fu Deng, hearing of it, fed his horses and told the tablet that "now the spirit of the great emperor has sent sickness upon the rebel Qiang... Deng should take the moment of his death to carry out heaven's punishment, recover the coffin and make apology in the temple," proclaimed an amnesty and advanced his officials two grades; but afterwards, contending for wheat with Yao Chong at Qingshui, he "was beaten repeatedly by Chong," and though he pressed on to Anding and came within ninety li of the city, when Yao Chang, somewhat recovered, came against him and sent Yao Xilong against his camp, Fu Deng in fear withdrew, and Yao Chang "by night led his army past Deng's camp for thirty li to follow behind him," so that at dawn the lookouts reported that "the rebel camps are all empty and no one knows where they have gone," and Fu Deng said in amazement: "What manner of man is this, who goes without my knowing it and comes without my feeling it, of whom they said he was dying and who suddenly comes again? That I should live in the same age as this Qiang — how hard my fate!" and he withdrew to Yong. When Yao Chang died he was delighted: "Yao Xing is a child; I shall break a cane to whip him." He proclaimed an amnesty, marched east with all his host, took the two forts of the Tuge Yao Nu and Bo Pu and moved from Ganquan toward Guanzhong; and in the fourth month, with Yao Xing following several tens of li behind, Fu Deng went from Liumo toward the Fei bridge, where Yao Xing's general Yin Wei held the bridge and awaited him — "Deng could not get water and two or three in ten of his men died of thirst," and in the great battle "he was beaten by Yin Wei, and that night his host scattered and Deng fled alone to Yong," to be defeated and killed thereafter.

An Outline of His Life

Fu Deng, whose courtesy name was Wengao, was of the imperial house of the Former Qin and a grandson by a collateral line of Fu Jian, a Di of Linwei in Lueyang. Brave and vigorous from youth and full of high spirit, he was at first employed by Fu Jian as a general of the palace guard. After Fu Jian's defeat and death, when disorder rose in the passes, he went over to Fu Pi, who made him general of the west and governor of Yongzhou; in the eleventh year of Taiyuan Fu Pi was killed, and Fu Deng took the imperial throne at Longdong, changing the era name to Taichu and setting up the spirit tablet of Fu Jian in his army, so that before every battle he first announced it, and the officers and men were moved by his sincerity and strove to repay him with their lives. Thereafter he fought year after year with Yao Chang and Yao Xing of the Later Qin, and repeatedly broke the hosts of Yao Chang. In the nineteenth year of Taiyuan he fought Yao Xing south of the mountains, was defeated and killed, and received the posthumous name Gao, his son Fu Chong succeeding him, and the Former Qin perished soon after.

Major Activities

Military Activities

Fu Deng was known above all for military ability, especially in the wars against Later Qin. In 386, the second year of Taian, he led followers to capture Nan'an and then heavily defeated Yao Chang at Hunufu, reportedly beheading more than twenty thousand and wounding Yao Chang with an arrow. Over subsequent years Fu Deng repeatedly attacked Later Qin and at different times recovered Jicheng, Longcheng, Pingliang, Xinping, Hongnong, Lüeyang, Qiancheng, Yongcheng, and other commanderies and counties. He was skilled in warfare and developed large square and circular formations in which soldiers fought individually and advanced with great force. Severe food shortages, however, led his army to eat the corpses of enemy soldiers, referring to them as “cooked provisions.” Although the practice may have sustained morale and supplies, later generations condemned its brutality.

Political Measures

After taking the throne, Fu Deng established a full court bureaucracy and issued a general amnesty. Hundreds of thousands of Hu and Han people reportedly submitted to him. He placed Fu Jian's spirit tablet in the army and invoked loyalty and filial duty to rally support. He also granted titles and offices to imperial clansmen, including appointing Fu Zuan Prince of Lu, in an effort to consolidate the surviving forces of Former Qin. Internal conflicts nevertheless remained severe: Fu Zuan was killed, Fu Shinu declared himself independently, and related struggles weakened Former Qin. Fu Deng also sought military aid from Qifu Gangui, but this could not reverse his defeat.

Travels and Places of Activity

Fu Deng's activities centered on the Guanzhong and Longxi regions, including Nan'an, Qinzhou, Hukong Fort, Chaona, Dajie, and Pingliang. He repeatedly maneuvered around the Long Mountains against Yao Chang and at one point held Hukong Fort, where more than one hundred thousand people reportedly submitted. His campaigns reached Xinping and Hongnong to the east, Hezhou to the west, Mei County to the south, and Anding to the north, demonstrating the breadth of his influence across the Guanzhong-Longxi region.

Relations with Contemporaries

Fu Deng interacted with Mao Xing, Fu Tongcheng, Fu Zuan, Yang Ding, Dou Chong, Xu Song, Hu Kong, and others. Mao Xing entrusted future affairs to him before dying; Fu Tongcheng recommended him; Fu Zuan, though initially dissatisfied, eventually supported him; Yang Ding at one point attacked Later Qin together with him; and Xu Song and Hu Kong joined Fu Deng after conducting Fu Jian's burial with royal honors. Fu Deng's principal enemies were Later Qin figures Yao Chang, Yao Shuode, and Yao Xing, while he maintained a brief political alliance with Qifu Gangui.

An Outline of His Deeds

Fu Deng's deeds lie first in his resistance to the Later Qin: he set the spirit tablet of Fu Jian in his army and carried it in a curtained cart, announcing every battle, and his soldiers, seeing it in his ranks, were none of them but spurred to fury; he stood opposed to Yao Chang for several years, sharpening his weapons and laying up grain, and repeatedly turned the edge of his attack, so that Yao Chang called him a formidable enemy, and soon after Yao Chang died of sickness. Second, in army and government: when the passes were in ruin and the dead lay in the roads, Fu Deng had his army farm, sparing the cost of transport, and the grain in his camps gradually grew plentiful; and he was skilled at soothing and comforting his soldiers, so that though they were straitened the host did not scatter. Third, in his end: drawn up against Yao Xing at the Waste Bridge and Mawei, his grain ran out and his host broke, and he was taken and killed by Yao Xing, and his following dispersed, the line of the Former Qin coming to an end with Fu Chong.

Personal Relations

• Father: Fu Chang, Prince of Yingchuan of Former Qin, killed by Fu Sheng
• Elder brother: Fu Tongcheng, Prince of Yingchuan, who served as Minister over the Masses and Grand Commandant
• Younger brother: Fu Guang, Prince of Ancheng, who served as Director of the Secretariat and Minister over the Masses
• Wives: Empress Mao, killed by Yao Chang at the Battle of Dajie; Empress Li, who after Fu Deng's death was given by Yao Xing to Yao Huang
• Sons: Fu Chong, last emperor; Fu Bian and Fu Shang, killed together with Empress Mao; Fu Zong, sent as envoy to Qifu Gangui
• Mao Xing: Governor of Hezhou who supported Fu Deng's appointment and entrusted future affairs to him before dying
• Fu Tongcheng: Fu Deng's elder brother, who recommended him as Marshal
• Fu Jian: Emperor Xuanzhao of Former Qin and Fu Deng's elder clansman; Fu Deng fought in the name of avenging him
• Fu Pi: Emperor Aiping of Former Qin; Fu Deng requested appointment from him and later held mourning rites after his death
• Fu Yi: son of Fu Pi; Fu Deng initially wished to make him emperor and later established him as imperial younger brother and heir
• Yao Chang: founder of Later Qin and Fu Deng's principal adversary
• Yao Shuode: younger brother of Yao Chang who repeatedly fought Fu Deng
• Yao Xing: son of Yao Chang whose forces ultimately captured and killed Fu Deng

Historical Assessment

Tang / Early Historical Accounts

• The Book of Jin, “Record of Fu Deng,” describes Fu Deng in youth as brave, powerful, and full of martial spirit, but coarse and inattentive to minor conduct; it later notes that he changed his ways, became cautious and sincere, and read extensively. The text acknowledges his military qualities while condemning the consumption of human flesh by his army.
• The Book of Jin also says Fu Deng possessed exceptional capacity and liked unusual strategies, yet Mao Xing feared him and did not fully entrust him with power, reflecting both his unusual talent and the suspicion it provoked.
• Tang historians viewed Fu Deng as rallying supporters through loyalty and filial duty by installing Fu Jian's spirit tablet, but treated the practice of eating human flesh as a loss of moral virtue that contributed to his ultimate failure.

Song and Yuan Periods

• Sima Guang's Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 106–108, records Fu Deng's career in detail, including the policy of using enemy corpses as “cooked provisions” and the soldiers' “death/rest” slogan. It offers little explicit judgment but presents details that strongly expose the brutality of the practice.
• Hu Sansheng's commentary on the Zizhi Tongjian analyzes Fu Deng's military strategy and reasons for failure, arguing that he relied too heavily on symbolic devotion to Fu Jian's spirit tablet and lacked sufficient practical political skill.
• Song and Yuan writers often regarded Fu Deng as loyal to Former Qin while condemning his cannibalistic wartime practice, judging that although he aspired to restore the state, his brutality lacked benevolence.

Ming and Qing Periods

• Wang Fuzhi, in Reading the Comprehensive Mirror, criticized Fu Deng for adopting “death and rest” as a slogan while eating human flesh, arguing that such behavior was not the Way of a ruler and that disregard for human life brought inevitable defeat.
• Zhao Yi's Notes on the Twenty-Two Histories, while not devoted specifically to Fu Deng, noted the conflicts among Former Qin leaders in its final years and the failure to unite internal forces, which contributed to fragmentation.
• Ming and Qing scholars often emphasized the contradiction between Fu Deng's claims of loyalty and filiality and the brutality of his conduct, treating his eventual failure as inevitable.

Modern Period

• Lü Simian, in History of the Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties, regarded Fu Deng as a mainstay of late Former Qin whose military ability deserved recognition, while treating the consumption of human flesh as evidence of the extreme brutality of the Sixteen Kingdoms period.
• Tian Yuqing, in Aristocratic Politics in the Eastern Jin, discussed the wars between Fu Deng and Yao Chang and attributed Fu Deng's defeat in part to the absence of a secure territorial base and reliable rear support.
• Modern scholars often interpret Fu Deng through the ethnic conflict and extreme violence of the era, arguing that his actions were abhorrent but also products of a broader historical tragedy.