Liu Chong

Biography

Family Background and Succession to the Principality

Liu Chong belonged to the Eastern Han imperial clan and descended from Liu Xian, Prince Jing of Chen, second son of Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang. Liu Xian, the first king of Chen, was enfeoffed in 88, the second year of Zhanghe, and died in 96, the eighth year of Yongyuan, receiving the posthumous title Jing. The title then passed successively through Prince Si Liu Jun, Prince Huai Liu Song, Prince Qing Liu Chong, and Prince Xiao Liu Cheng. Liu Chong was Liu Cheng’s son. When his father died in 167, the tenth year of Yanxi, he inherited the kingship of Chen and became the sixth king of the polity.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 50, “Biographies of the Eight Princes of Emperor Ming,” states: “When Cheng died, his son Chong, Prince Min, succeeded him.”

The Affair of 173

In 173, the second year of Xiping, Shi Qian, Chancellor of Chen, submitted a memorial accusing the former chancellor Wei Yin and Liu Chong of jointly sacrificing to heavenly deities with unlawful intentions, constituting high treason. The responsible officials requested that investigators be dispatched. Emperor Ling had only recently punished Liu Kui, Prince of Bohai, and was reluctant to inflict another severe penalty on a member of the imperial clan. He ordered Wei Yin and Shi Qian transported in cage carts to the Northern Temple imperial prison, where Palace Attendant Wang Pu, the Director of the Imperial Secretariat, and an Attending Censor interrogated them.

Wei Yin confessed that he and Liu Chong had merely sacrificed to Lord Huang-Lao to pray for longevity and had no other intention. Wang Pu and the other investigators reported that Wei Yin had failed in his duty to correct his king and that Shi Qian had falsely accused his ruler, deceiving him with a charge of impiety. Both men were executed. Emperor Ling issued an edict pardoning Liu Chong and ordered no further investigation.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 50, records that Wang Pu and the others reported Wei Yin’s improper conduct and Shi Qian’s false accusation, after which both were executed and Liu Chong was pardoned without further inquiry.

The Chen Kingdom During the Yellow Turban Rebellion

During the Zhongping era, 184–189, the Yellow Turban Rebellion spread across the empire and officials and troops in many commanderies and counties abandoned their cities. Liu Chong possessed several thousand strong crossbows, recruited troops within his territory, and stationed them at the metropolitan lodge to defend Chen. The people of the kingdom had long heard of his skill in archery and feared his reputation, and therefore did not rebel. Chancellor Luo Jun enjoyed considerable prestige and benevolence. At a time of widespread famine, when many enfeoffed kings and marquises no longer received tax revenues and were themselves repeatedly plundered, some people had to go two days between meals and died by roads and ditches. Chen alone remained relatively prosperous. People from neighboring commanderies came to seek refuge, and Luo Jun exhausted his own resources to provide relief and preserve their lives. The population attached to the kingdom grew to more than one hundred thousand.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 50, states that when the Yellow Turbans rose, many local governments fled their cities; Liu Chong brought out several thousand strong crossbows, the people feared his skill, Chen alone remained intact, and more than one hundred thousand people came to it for protection.

The Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance, vol. 62, likewise records that Liu Chong armed himself to defend the kingdom, that Chancellor Luo Jun possessed prestige and benevolence, and that while many lords elsewhere lacked rents and provisions, Chen remained prosperous and received more than one hundred thousand migrants.

Campaign Against Dong Zhuo and the Title “General-in-Chief Supporting the Han”

In 190, the first year of Chuping, regional governments rose in arms against Dong Zhuo. Liu Chong led his followers to Yangxia and proclaimed himself General-in-Chief Supporting the Han.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 50, records: “At the beginning of Emperor Xian’s reign, when the righteous armies rose, Chong led his followers to Yangxia and styled himself General-in-Chief Supporting the Han.” The Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance, vol. 62, contains the same basic account.

Murder and the End of the Kingdom

In 197, the second year of Jian'an, Yuan Shu had proclaimed himself emperor at Shouchun and requested grain from the Chen kingdom. Chancellor Luo Jun refused. Yuan Shu became enraged and sent his subordinate commander Zhang Kai, who pretended to be passing through Chen on private business, approached Luo Jun, and killed both Luo Jun and Liu Chong by deception. Chen thereafter declined.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 50, records that Yuan Shu sought grain from Chen, Luo Jun refused, and Yuan Shu sent a man who deceitfully killed both Luo Jun and Liu Chong, after which Chen was ruined.

The Book of the Later Han, vol. 9, “Annals of Emperor Xiaoxian,” also states that in 197, amid famine and cannibalism in the Jiang-Huai region, Yuan Shu killed Liu Chong, King of Chen.

The historical sources disagree on the year of Liu Chong’s death. The “Biographies of the Eight Princes of Emperor Ming” in the Book of the Later Han places it in 197, the second year of Jian'an, whereas Pei Songzhi’s annotation to the “Annals of Emperor Wu” in the Records of the Three Kingdoms, quoting the Records of Heroes, gives 195, the second year of Xingping, and attributes the killing to a former subordinate of Dong Zhuo. The present source follows Liu Chong’s biography in the Book of the Later Han and uses 197.

Major Activities

Martial Skill and Crossbow Shooting

Liu Chong was famous for shooting skill and was said to hit the same point with all ten of ten shots. The account appears in his biography in the Book of the Later Han and was also adopted by Sima Guang in the Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance. The source interprets such accuracy with a crossbow as evidence of unusual martial skill. It also states that this reputation had practical value during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, because the people of Chen feared his archery and did not rebel.

Preserving the Chen Kingdom

During the Zhongping era, chaos spread widely, local officials abandoned cities, and kings and marquises lost tax revenues and suffered hardship. Liu Chong relied on several thousand strong crossbows and his reputation as an expert archer to station troops at the metropolitan lodge and preserve Chen as one of the few enfeoffed kingdoms to remain intact. Chancellor Luo Jun used his prestige and personal resources to provide relief to refugees, and people from neighboring commanderies flocked to Chen until more than one hundred thousand were attached to it. Against the wider background of famine and people dying in ditches, Chen’s continued prosperity was presented as exceptional.

Participation in the Campaign Against Dong Zhuo

In 190, the first year of Chuping, eastern provincial authorities raised troops against Dong Zhuo. As an imperial prince, Liu Chong stationed his followers at Yangxia and proclaimed himself General-in-Chief Supporting the Han. The act indicated an attempt to use his imperial-clan status to support the Han court during the crisis. The eastern coalition soon fragmented, however, and Liu Chong’s military activity did not produce a larger political result.

Refusal of Yuan Shu’s Demand

In 197, the second year of Jian'an, Yuan Shu, who had proclaimed himself emperor at Shouchun, requested grain from Chen. Chancellor Luo Jun refused. Yuan Shu retaliated by sending his subordinate Zhang Kai disguised as a private traveler. After gaining access to Luo Jun, Zhang Kai killed him and Liu Chong. The source notes that Zhang Kai had previously robbed and killed Cao Cao’s father Cao Song in Xuzhou in 194 and later entered Yuan Shu’s service. The deaths of Liu Chong and Luo Jun directly led to the decline of Chen.

Personal Relations

Family

• Great-great-grandfather: Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang
• Great-grandfather: Liu Xian, Prince Jing of Chen
• Grandfather: Liu Chong, Prince Qing of Chen
• Father: Liu Cheng, Prince Xiao of Chen

Ruler and Subject

• Emperor Ling of Han, Liu Hong: pardoned Liu Chong when he was accused in 173
• Emperor Xian of Han, Liu Xie: Liu Chong nominally upheld Emperor Xian when he styled himself General-in-Chief Supporting the Han in 190

Colleague

• Luo Jun: Chancellor of Chen, a native of Kuaiji known for prestige and benevolence; governed Chen together with Liu Chong and was killed with him by Yuan Shu’s agent

Enemies

• Yuan Shu: requested grain from Chen in 197 and, after refusal, sent an assassin to kill Liu Chong and Luo Jun
• Zhang Kai: subordinate of Yuan Shu who assassinated Liu Chong and Luo Jun by deception; the source also states that he had killed Cao Cao’s father Cao Song in Xuzhou in 194

Namesake

• Liu Chong, courtesy name Zurong: native of Mouping in Donglai and descendant of Liu Fei, Prince Daohui of Qi of the Western Han. He served as Administrator of Kuaiji, was famous for incorrupt government, and was known as the “One-Cash Administrator.” He was not the same person as Liu Chong, King of Chen.

Historical Assessment

Eastern Han / Contemporary and Near-Contemporary

• Fan Ye, Book of the Later Han: “Chong was skilled with the crossbow; ten shots in ten hits, all striking the same place.” — vol. 50, “Biographies of the Eight Princes of Emperor Ming”
• Sima Guang, Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance: “Liu Chong, King of Chen, was courageous and skilled with the crossbow.” — vol. 62
• Historical accounts state that the people of Chen had long heard of the king’s skill and therefore did not dare rebel, indicating that his martial reputation had real deterrent force.

Later Historians

• Ming and Qing scholars studying the Eastern Han often noted Liu Chong’s preservation of his kingdom during the Yellow Turban Rebellion and regarded his ability to maintain local stability as unusual at a time when many imperial princes were impoverished and powerless.
• Later historians generally treated Liu Chong’s assumption of the title General-in-Chief Supporting the Han as an example of an imperial clansman trying both to defend himself and to act politically amid the collapse of central authority, while also noting its limited practical effect.
• Later discussions commonly blamed Yuan Shu’s brutality for Liu Chong’s death, regarding the decision to send an assassin after a refused grain request as evidence of Yuan Shu’s narrow and violent conduct.

Modern Period

• Modern scholars discussing the position of Eastern Han imperial princes often use Liu Chong as an example of how members of the imperial clan, without actual military force, could not protect themselves once central authority declined and regional strongmen rose.
• Accounts of Liu Chong’s shooting skill are used to illustrate a martial side of the Eastern Han imperial clan that differs from the stereotype of royal relatives as merely luxurious and idle.
• The account that Chen alone remained prosperous during the chaos has also been treated as evidence that local social order could still survive in certain regions in the late Eastern Han.