This is Yan Liben, a famous painter from the Tang Dynasty, who painted a painting of thirteen emperors from the Western Han and Eastern Han dynasties to the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern dynasties, as well as the Sui dynasty over a period of more than 700 years. These include Liu Bei and Sun Quan, who were in a separatist regime. However, there was one dynasty where an emperor was overlooked and looked down upon, which was the new emperor Wang Mang. The New Dynasty, established between the Western Han Dynasty and the Eastern Han Dynasty, only existed for fourteen years and was a short-lived dynasty in Chinese history. However, people’s neglect of the New Dynasty was not due to its short period of enjoying the country, as compared to the New Dynasty, the Qin Dynasty was only fifteen years old. In history, the New Dynasty was clearly incomparable to the Qin Dynasty, and its emperor Wang Mang was fixed as a traitor to the usurper of the Han Dynasty by the later Eastern Han historian Ban. This view was almost adopted by all historians in later generations, and people did not want to call this period the New Dynasty but the New Mang. It was not until nearly two thousand years later that people re examined this New Dynasty emperor, and some modern scholars such as Hu Shi began to agree with Wang Mang. What kind of person was Wang Mang and what kind of political power was the new dynasty he established, based on the three major policies of land nationalization, equal ownership, and abolition of slavery in the Mang Reform.
The old city of Daming County is located in the eastern part of present-day Daming County, Hebei Province. Wang Mang was born here in 45 BC. Perhaps due to the historical positioning of Wang Mang’s usurpation, what sets this place apart from other imperial hometowns is that it does not have a temple or a statue for this emperor. Only a small amount of written records about Wang Mang can be found in the local chronicles of Daming County. There are one or two thousand copies of the “Daming County Annals” collected in the past few years.
In the “Annals of Daming County”, the family history of Wang Mang is recorded. Wang Mang came from a very prestigious family. The Wang family he belonged to was a powerful and influential family at that time, with nine people appointed as marquises and five serving as Grand Marshals. Many of the members of the family lived extravagantly and had arrogant spirits. Only Wang Mang, who had lost his father in his early years, was poor, courteous, and frugal, and became known as the Rupei County at that time. Chen Can studied the “Book of Rites”, just like an ordinary Confucian scholar. At that time, Wang Mang’s good character was praised by many people, which laid the foundation for his success in public opinion. General Wang Feng was… Wang Mang’s uncle carefully took care of him when he fell ill. He remained undressed for several months, leaving his head and face disheveled, which deeply moved Wang Feng. Wang Feng was a high-ranking official of the dynasty and recommended Wang Mang to the emperor before his death.
In 22 BC, at the age of 24, Wang Mang was appointed as the Yellow Gate Attendant. He was an official who served the emperor and conveyed orders. There is not much record of Wang Mang serving as the Yellow Gate Attendant in history, but this period was very important for Wang Mang. It was during his tenure that he met Liu Xin, who was also an official in the Tianlu Pavilion, managing books. Since childhood, Liu Xin followed his father Liu Xiang to organize and collate the royal collection of books, and came into contact with a large number of newly discovered scriptures written in pre Qin ancient script, which were not officially established in official schools. He deeply felt that these scriptures had the same likes and dislikes as the sages, and could correct the shortcomings of the gradually rigid and mythological modern classics. These scriptures were ancient texts.
In the Han Dynasty, the classics were divided into Jinwen Jing Xue and Guwen Jing Xue. Jinwen Jing Xue was a school of classics that was recognized by the imperial court and was appointed as an official. Guwen Jing Xue, on the other hand, was a school of classics that had unclear inheritance and was either hidden in secret places or popular among the people without being appointed as an official. In the late Western Han Dynasty, some scholars began to oppose the monopoly of modern Confucian classics on official schools, believing that modern Confucian classics had strict sects, suppressed and excluded other schools of thought, and were transforming into tools for vested interests. Moreover, modern Confucian classics arbitrarily distorted the meaning of scriptures, making them subservient to real politics, leading to confusion in people’s minds.
As modern literary classics become increasingly outdated and conservative, the unofficial ancient literary classics have shown great vitality. It was during this period that ancient literary classics closely linked Wang Mang and Liu Xin together.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: In the late Western Han Dynasty, Liu Xin and Wang Mang found a connection in this area. They were of similar age and hobbies, and their ideas and approaches to social governance were also consistent. Therefore, the two of them began to explore new ways of social governance from ancient Chinese classics.)
Wang Mang and Liu Xin were staunch supporters of the study of classical Chinese literature, both of whom had lofty ideals. They were extremely disappointed with the chaotic social order and broken state system of the late Western Han Dynasty, and detested the compromise of modern classical Chinese literature on politics. So, based on the study of ancient texts and classics, they began to plan their ideal political blueprint in a consistent manner. Liu Xin is a designer, and Wang Mang will become a practitioner.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: Liu Xin can be said to be a theorist of Wang Mang. He has done a lot of work on the organization of Confucian classics, especially the books and theories of ancient texts and classics. Wang Mang is a practitioner of this new theory of ancient texts and classics. He is a politician, a combination of a theorist and a politician.)
Wang Mang began to receive more and more support. Due to his virtuous and humble abilities, his status and reputation were rapidly improving. His uncle Wang Shang wrote a letter willing to give up a part of his fiefdom to Wang Mang, which received widespread support from the court and the public. Wang Mang was eventually transferred to serve as a cavalry captain and a high-ranking official.
In 16 BC, Wang Mang was appointed as the Marquis of Xindu. Despite his high status, he continued to respect the wise and the virtuous, often distributing his salary to his disciples and commoners, and even selling his chariots, horses, and clothes to help the poor. He was deeply loved by both the people and the court. In 8 BC, Wang Mang was appointed as the Grand Marshal at the age of 38. At this time, Wang Mang was both the leader of the foreign court and the leader of the academic community. Together with Liu Xin, he began to promote the study of ancient literature and classics to become an official school, which would lead to a significant change in the overall social order. However, only a year later, Emperor Cheng of Han passed away, Emperor Ai of Han succeeded to the throne, and the relatives of Ding and Fu took power. The Wang family suffered a heavy blow, and Wang Mang was dismissed from his position and moved to Xindu (now Xinye, Henan), where he defended himself.
At this time, Liu Xin also faced stubborn resistance from traditional forces. Da Sikong Shidan and others slandered Liu Xin for changing the old regulations and not destroying the previous emperor’s establishment. Due to Wang Mang’s dismissal, Liu Xin lost his most powerful alliance and was almost killed. Liu Xin had no choice but to leave the capital and was dismissed from his official position a few years later due to illness.
(Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: After the end of the Western Han Dynasty, the study of classics was monopolized by a small number of people who held the official discourse power and did not enter this group, nor did they obtain the legitimacy of this interpretation of classics. These intellectuals did not have a high social status, and even like Liu Xin, although he was the manager of the royal archives, it was difficult for him to enter the core of this political group of study of classics.)
Although Wang Mang was dismissed and returned home, he did not leave people’s sight and remained the Marquis of Xindu. The occurrence of an incident once again made Wang Mang the center of attention. One day, Wang Mang’s second son killed a servant, which was not a big deal in the eyes of the literati at that time. At that time, the status of servants was like private property and could be bought and sold as tools. However, Wang Mang himself was more serious. He believed that the life of a servant was no different from that of an ordinary person, and killing someone had to pay for it. Therefore, he forced his second son to commit suicide. This incident quickly improved Wang Mang’s reputation among scholars, and hundreds of officials petitioned Wang Mang for justice, hoping that he would return to the court.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Wang Qifa: Wang Mang’s son killed a slave, and then he paid his life for it. This actually shows his kind of righteousness and family destruction, in order to achieve his ideals and practice one of his moral standards.)
At this time, Wang Mang was not only a moral model, but more importantly, people saw hope in his actions to reorganize the country and revive society.
The Western Han Dynasty began to govern the country from the founding emperor Liu Bang. After the rule of Wen and Jing, the diligent efforts of Emperor Wu of Han, and the revival of Emperor Zhaoxuan, the Western Han Dynasty began to decline. Yuan, Cheng, Ai, and Ping, the four emperors gradually ruined the prosperous situation, causing the people to struggle and suffering. Social conflicts became increasingly acute, and due to the rotation of relatives in power, eunuchs were also favored and manipulated. Many wise officials were dismissed, and those who stayed in the court were mostly corrupt officials. The court was even darker, and local officials were able to make friends with powerful officials without restraint, exacerbating the plundering and exploitation of the people. The rapid increase in population and frequent disasters are also exacerbating social conflicts. According to historical records, the population in the early Western Han Dynasty was only over 13 million, but by the time of Emperor Ping of the Western Han Dynasty, it had reached over 60 million. In some densely populated areas of Kanto and Guanzhong, the average number of people per kilometer was over a thousand. In the era of no revolution in production methods and rapid population growth, the same amount of land was already overwhelmed and could not provide enough food to meet the needs of hunger.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: Social unrest, increasing refugees, famine, and various problems are very common, and social contradictions are also very prominent. Traditional modern Confucian classics cannot find solutions to these problems. At that time, some promising intellectuals like Liu Xin and Wang Mang began to search for some theories that can support social and political governance from other classics, rather than ancient Confucian classics, and to find some methods of social governance from these theories. Perhaps on the road of jointly finding a new theoretical fulcrum and new legal measures, Liu Xin and Wang Mang came together.)
In 2 BC, under the strong call of many officials, Wang Mang returned to the capital once again. One year later, Emperor Ai of Han passed away, and Wang Mang was appointed as the Grand Marshal again, gaining real power in domestic and foreign affairs. At his suggestion, the nine year old Emperor Ping of Han ascended to the throne. In the year 3 AD, Wang Mang’s daughter became the empress, and Wang Mang’s position in power was further consolidated. He believed that the opportunity to change the ideology of the dynasty was ripe, and Wang Mang quickly formed a skilled team. Of course, Wang Mang would not forget Liu Xin, who shared the same aspirations. He transferred Liu Xin from the local government to the central government and specially appointed him as Xihe. The original meaning of this newly created official name was the legendary sun god. At this time, it became the official of the Confucian scholars, historians, and diviners, and Liu Xin became the highest leader in ideology and academic culture at that time.
A large-scale campaign to promote the study of ancient texts and classics swept across the country. Liu Xin and Wang Mang worked together under the pretext of Wang Luo’s loss and coexistence, and established “Zuo Zhuan”, “Mao Shi”, “Yi Li”, and “Gu Wen Shang Shu” as official texts, becoming part of the country’s orthodox doctrine. This means that many Confucian scholars who have been suppressed for a long time will have the opportunity to enter the formal organization of the country and realize their aspirations. Later, Wang Mang also established the “Book of Music” and increased the number of scholars in each of the “Poetry”, “Book”, “Rites”, “Yi”, “Spring and Autumn”, and “Book of Music” to five, with a total of 30 scholars in each of the six classics. Each scholar led 360 disciples, with a total of 10800 disciples. In addition, he also widely summoned thousands of knowledgeable scholars to the capital, hoping to gain talents from all over the world and make the study of ancient literature and classics prosperous throughout the world.
For this reason, Wang Mang began to build 10000 residential buildings for scholars in Chang’an, vigorously promoting the education of ritual and music. Under Wang Mang’s inspiration, Confucian students and the people devoted themselves to voluntary labor. After 100000 people’s hard work and assault, all 10000 residential buildings were completed in 20 days. Not only that, Wang Mang’s kindness also affected more ordinary people. He built five li in Chang’an City, with 200 residential areas for refugees to live in. At this time, Wang Mang hoped to build a society that could benefit the largest number of people. Wang Mang once wrote in a letter that in ancient times, the city was priceless, officials had no prison lawsuits, the city had no thieves, and the countryside. The ultimate ideal of Wang Mang is to proclaim the ancient system to the world and let his subjects abide by it, as there are no hungry people, no missing paths, and different paths between men and women. He wants to follow the Tang and Yu principles followed by the three ancient dynasties, The ideal of building a moderately prosperous society that praises the prosperity of the people not only captivates Confucian scholars throughout the world, but also inspires people from all walks of life,
(Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Wang Qifa: The relationship between Wang Mang and ancient Chinese classics mainly lies in proposing the use of the theory and system of the Zhou Li as a basis for reform, establishing a core theoretical and institutional basis for the new Mang regime, and also a continuation of the political development of the Western Han Dynasty’s classics.)
One of the major events of Wang Mang’s retro “Zhou Li” was the construction of the Mingtang and the establishment of the Biyong. The Mingtang was the place where the emperor of the Zhou Dynasty received the feudal lords and nobles, and it was also a symbol of Zhou Li. There is a bronze mirror from the Wang Mang period in the Shanghai Museum, and the text on it confirms this period of history. This is a bronze mirror from the Wang Mang period.
(Zhou Ya, Director of the Bronze Ware Research Department of the Shanghai Museum: The significance of this bronze mirror lies in the inscription on the inner circle of the mirror. The main sentence of this inscription is the newly emerged Bi Yong Jianming Hall. He implemented a retro policy at that time, which aimed to restore the system in the “Zhou Li”, with the important points of building Bi Yong and Ming Hall. These few sentences are consistent with the record in our literature that Wang Mang built Bi Yong in his retro policy.)
Shanghai Museum of Bronze Mirrors during Wang Mang’s reign
In January of the 5th year AD, thousands of princes and descendants of the royal family held a grand ceremony at the newly built Piyongming Hall. The scene was grand and solemn, and the light of ideals filled everyone’s hearts. Wang Mang was becoming a saint in their hearts. Therefore, 900 officials and ministers requested the court to bestow Wang Mang with the Nine Life Tin, which symbolized the supreme courtesy. This marked the beginning of the grand drama of changing dynasties.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: Jiuxi was a special contribution made by ancient kings to these feudal lords. It represents a commendation for the contributions you have made in the past. Anyone who received Jiuxi later became a usurper. Wang Mang was granted the title of Jiuxi and eventually replaced Han.)
In the year 6 AD, Emperor Hanping died suddenly, and Liu Ying, who was only two years old, succeeded to the throne. The Empress Dowager ordered Wang Mang to temporarily act as regent for the emperor. At this time, although Wang Mang was a fake emperor (acting as a proxy), his power was almost equivalent to that of the emperor, which caused a rebellion by the opposition forces mainly led by the Liu family. After successfully removing these obstacles, Wang Mang may further realize that his opportunity to become the emperor is approaching. Even if he does not want to usurp the throne, if he wants to carry out radical reforms in the system and achieve his grand ideals, he must control the highest power of the country on his own.
So he worked even harder to create an atmosphere, which was the atmosphere where heaven intended to bestow the dynasty upon Wang Mang, and it was reflected in various auspicious signs. During the regency of Wang Mang, various auspicious symbols came in droves, and people from all walks of life advised Wang Mang to proclaim himself emperor and change dynasties in different ways. Ai Zhang, a native of Zitong who was studying in Chang’an, simply made a copper niche and wrote in the niche that Wang Mang was the true emperor. The Empress Dowager had to comply with the fate and even wrote the names of Wang Mang’s eight ministers, his fabricated people, and eleven of her own. At dusk, Ai Zhang wore yellow clothes and carried the niche to Gao Zu Temple to hand it over to the officials on duty. Upon learning of this, Wang Mang chose a day to go to Gao Temple to welcome the copper niche to the front hall of Weiyang Palace.
Du Weiming, Dean of the Institute of Advanced Humanities at Peking University: Wang Mang, through his own efforts, is a young person who has great academic achievements and is able to treat people with respect and affinity. Therefore, he cannot be said to rely solely on his political power, but in fact, he has won over a large number of people through his personal charm. Moreover, there are a considerable number of Confucian students who accept his concept and are willing to let him change. This is because public opinion is also quite strong, and it is in this situation that he can use his own way to establish a country in the style of the Book of Rites.
This is the site of the Weiyang Palace in Chang’an City, Han Dynasty. On January 15th, AD 9, it was here that Wang Mang accepted the last emperor of the Western Han Dynasty. Emperor Liu Yingchan abdicated and proclaimed himself emperor, changing from a fake emperor to a real emperor and changing the country name to a new one. In Chinese history, most people do not consider this to be a dynastic succession, but rather regard Wang Mang’s actions as a political disorder and usurpation of the throne. However, there are also people who believe that Wang Mang must ascend to the throne in order to achieve his ideals, which is a last resort. From this point on, the Western Han Dynasty, which lasted for more than 210 years, came to an end, and Wang Mang’s era truly began. Wang Mang stood on behalf of Han, pioneering the use of Fu Ming Chan to make emperors in Chinese history.
(Du Weiming, Dean of the Institute of Higher Humanities at Peking University: He did indeed strive for the right to speak. The right to speak itself is power, and the power of this right to speak is closely related to the political development of that time.)
(Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Wang Qifa: Traditionally, it is believed that he was still a person who forced the Han Dynasty. For example, when the child was very young, he gave up his power to him. However, from the current historical records, it seems that there are no powerful figures in the Liu regime who came to compete with him for this right.)
Wang Mang received the widest support from both the court and the public, taking over power through peaceful means. The Western Han Dynasty disappeared in tranquility, and a new dynasty called the New Dynasty was born in tranquility. At the time of the handover of the two major dynasties, there was almost no bloodshed. After becoming emperor, Wang Mang ambitiously aimed to achieve his ideals nationwide. In terms of politics, he changed the names of many government agencies and official positions based on Confucianism, especially according to the Book of Rites.
In addition, he also changed the title of Zhilu based on ancient texts, and conferred the title of Fifth Class Marquis according to the legendary Zhou system. If political reforms are all formal changes, then Wang Mang’s economic reforms are more comprehensive and profound, but also face greater risks. In order to eliminate the common problem of land consolidation in the late Western Han Dynasty, Wang Mang implemented the Wangtian system nationwide, which restored the well field system similar to the Zhou Dynasty. The national land was nationalized and not allowed for self buying and selling. The original intention of the Wangtian system was good. To suppress land consolidation, it was necessary to provide land for a large number of national tax bearers and registered farmers to cultivate, rebuild the economic order that was destroyed by the merger, where the strong regulated the land for thousands and the weak had no permanent residences.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: After the land is concentrated in the hands of these big bureaucrats, landlords, and businessmen, a large number of civilians are displaced and become refugees due to the lack of land. This society will not be very stable. Wang Mang adopted Wang Tian, saying that all the land belongs to the state, so I can evenly distribute it. If you take over the land of these big landowners, you have not violated their interests, have you?)
While implementing the Wangtian system, Wang Mang also renamed slaves as private and prohibited their trade, which changed the status of slaves and horses in the same pen and prevented a large number of farmers from becoming slaves. However, this policy also encountered difficulties during implementation, and the final result was unpopular.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: Abolition of slaves means rescuing slaves from the hands of landowners. On the one hand, it aims to weaken the power of these groups of landowners. On the other hand, it also allows the country to obtain more labor force, and it is also because the policy is not thorough enough.)
The policy of “Five Equals and Six Governors” has also begun to be fully implemented, with the government unifying prices to balance market supply. Wang Mang established Five Equals officials in the six major cities of Chang’an, Luoyang, Handan, Linzi, Wan, and Chengdu to control price drops and prevent merchants from manipulating the market. However, due to the lack of support from bureaucratic groups, Wang Mang could only rely on wealthy merchants to implement it, which instead formed a more harmful government business monopoly group. Liuguan refers to the direct takeover of six important economic undertakings by the state, including alcohol, salt, and iron, which are monopolized by the state, minted by the central government, and the management of resources in mountains, rivers, and water. The state is required to collect taxes, and the true result of this policy is that it enriches the officials in charge. The national finance does not increase income, but the burden on the people is heavier. As for legitimate merchants and artisans, they no longer have a foothold in the official business system.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: The idea is very good, including many measures such as “five averages and six governance”. However, in the process of practice, he encountered many problems, including the specific bureaucrats and social classes involved in this execution. The government requires one set, and he creates another set.)
In Wang Mang’s hometown of Daming County, many people now collect coins from the Wang Mang era. These currencies have a wide variety of types, and only true collectors can distinguish their face values at that time.
(During the reign of Wang Mang in Daming County, Hebei Province: This was the five zhu coin used by Wang Mang before the reform, along with the other five zhu coins of Da Quan 50, Bing Qian, and Huo Quan. There were more Huo Quan coins, and the remaining five zhu coins were also quite a few. “Wang Mang frequently reformed the currency system, and after ascending to the throne, he carried out four currency reforms, issuing dozens of different currencies, and each time he exchanged coins, he replaced high-quality old coins with newly minted inferior ones. Due to the lack of credibility of these currencies, prices skyrocketed and the economy became chaotic during the currency reform period.)
(Sun Xiao, a researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Just like other policies of Wang Mang, it is constantly changing. When new coins come, they change before the people are familiar with them, so it brings more social problems.)
A huge gap is emerging between ideals and reality, motivation and effectiveness. Wang Mang’s reform faced numerous obstacles and difficulties, and the surge in population was not only a difficult problem in the late Western Han Dynasty, but also a challenge that Wang Mang had to face. In order to control the resistance and the constantly rising number of refugees, Wang Mang stipulated that every unemployed wanderer would be fined one piece of cloth and silk per year. Those who were unable to pay would be forced to labor by the government. During the labor period, the government would provide food and clothing. This policy was also well intentioned and idealistic, but it was very difficult to implement. Therefore, Wang Mang turned his attention to the distant Qinghai Lake.
There is an important cultural relic from Wang Mang’s time preserved in the Xihai County Museum of Cultural Books in Haiyan County, Qinghai Province – the Xihai County Tiger Talisman Stone Cabinet. The Tiger Talisman Stone Cabinet is a cabinet for storing military talismans. This is a huge stone token set up by Wang Mang’s special commissioner for expanding his territory to the west by the Qinghai Lake.
(Li Qilu, Director of the West Sea County Museum of Haiyan County Cultural Books: After Wang Mang carved this tiger talisman stone cabinet, it indicates that my regime has already involved our western grasslands.)
The Tiger Talisman Stone Cabinet in Xihai County was unearthed at the Xihai County Site, about 1 kilometer away from the county seat of Haiyan County. According to the ancient book “Four Seas”, Wang Mang coerced the Qiang people to donate land in the Qinghai Lake area. In name, the main purpose was to force immigration and solve the population pressure caused by the population explosion in the late Western Han Dynasty on the Guanzhong and Kanto regions.
Ren Yugui has a detailed understanding of the establishment of Xihai County, and when it comes to the idea of forming the Four Seas, he believes it is just an excuse for Wang Mang to entrust ancient reforms.
(Member of the Qinghai Provincial Philosophy and Social Science Selection Committee – Ren Yugui: At that time, Wang Mang thought of calling this place Qianghai, which is where the Qiang people live. So he sent censors to bribe the Qiang people and took a lot of gold and silver treasures. The Qiang people were very happy when they saw it, so they went to the west of Qinghai Lake and gave this place to the Han Dynasty, establishing Xihai County in this place.)
The ancient city ruins of Xihai County are currently well preserved, with a length of 650 meters from east to west and a width of 600 meters from north to south. The remaining height of the city walls reaches 4 meters, and the four city gate sites are well preserved. Within the city, three square or rectangular communities composed of raised walls can also be vaguely seen.
(Ren Yugui, member of the Philosophy and Social Sciences Selection Committee of Qinghai Province: This project is quite extensive. In addition to the main city, there are facilities in the city, including the Prefect’s Mansion and the Western Captain’s Mansion. In addition to these official offices, there are also some barracks, migrant workers who are building the city, and prisoners who need to build it. This area, like the one at that time, is still very lively, as we can imagine.)
In order to alleviate the increasingly sharp social contradictions in China, Wang Mang has launched multiple wars with the Four Barbarians, with the original intention of enhancing domestic cohesion through external wars. However, in the specific implementation, these wars not only failed to freeze domestic social contradictions, but also intensified domestic conflicts due to forced conscription and extortion. Natural disasters have also accelerated the pace of Wang Mang’s failure. This is the Wang Mang Embankment located in Daming County, Hebei Province, which was built to prevent disasters. In fact, it is a embankment foundation about 40 meters wide and 2 meters high, like a long dragon lying vertically in Daming County, with continuous fragments for 20 kilometers. This is what people call the Han Dynasty Golden Embankment Site. Nowadays, Han bricks from the past can still be found on the embankment.
(Gui Shihui, Deputy Director of the Local Chronicles Office of Daming County: The reason for its formation was that the surface water was relatively high at that time. After it was made into this brick, in order to let it dry, we shoveled the reed mat over there and placed it on top, creating a groove.)
In the year 11 AD, it was in the Wei County section of the Yellow River near Daming County that a breach and diversion occurred, causing a disaster at the Yellow River breach. This breach was not uncommon in the Han Dynasty, but it caused a diversion and a large amount of farmland was destroyed in the densely populated Kanto region.
In the year 22 AD, farmers from all over the country rebelled one after another, causing the world to collapse and facing financial difficulties. Wang Mang had to abolish the prohibitions on Wang Tian, maidservants, and Liu Guan, and all edicts that were inconvenient to the people since ascending the throne were also abolished. This meant the complete collapse of the reform, and Wang Mang himself would also face the greatest difficulties.
(Dean of the Institute of Advanced Humanities at Peking University – Du Weiming: Wang Mang is engaged in this major cultural movement, and he has inherent political significance. Therefore, there are doubts in many places about what he truly agrees with his ideals. The short time has a great relationship, and there are great achievements. When he did not obtain this position, he was a courteous and virtuous person, and gradually showed arrogance.)
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: He rushed things too quickly and launched many policies at the same time in a short period of time. There were many areas where these policies and measures conflicted with each other. Secondly, when faced with resistance, there was no way to implement them, which became difficult to implement and caused greater social chaos.)
The most fatal harm often comes from within, and the internal division of the Confucian reform group centered around Wang Mang was the heaviest blow to him. In the process of Wang Mang replacing Han, Liu Xin played a very important role. However, after Wang Mang became emperor, he believed in himself too much and became suspicious, becoming wary of Liu Xin and abandoning him. Due to the complete failure of Wang Mang’s reform, the original sage Wang Mang almost became a public enemy, and people’s minds were sweating. There were many rumors among the people that Liu surnamed generals would once again proclaim themselves emperor. This great Confucian scholar, who shared the same ideal with Wang Mang, actually participated in the abolition of Wang Mang’s mutiny.
In July of 23 AD, after the failure of the mutiny, Liu Xin, who was already in his seventies, committed suicide. This incident shook the court and dealt a fatal blow to the new emperor Wang Mang.
(Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Sun Xiao: A person with ideals is very lonely, and a person with ideals is also very lonely. Why did Wang Mang feel very destitute all day after Liu Xin’s death? Because his confidant, who was originally in line with his political ideals and practices, died, and eventually became his opponent. Think about Wang Mang in his later years, when his political ideals were shattered and political practices were difficult to implement. His sense of loneliness and solitude was very strong.)
Du Weiming, Dean of the Institute of Higher Humanities at Peking University: The re evaluation of Wang Mang is a very important issue in modern history, especially since the founding of the People’s Republic of China. There is a very big distance between completely changing this system. What you completely change is a rupture, and rupture often brings unpredictable adverse consequences. No matter how high your ideals are or how sharp the problems you had to deal with at that time are. If you want to start from a blank sheet of paper, especially during the Han Dynasty, after such a long period of development, so many local forces and accumulated resources, you don’t care about it. I think this is a very important thing, which is to be eager for success and profit. There is no way to sustain it in a short period of time
Liu Xin was of similar age and shared the same aspirations as Wang Mang. At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, when the entire dynasty fell into corruption and corruption, it was Liu Xin and Wang Mang who established the theoretical foundation for the new dynasty and urged Wang Mang to establish it. However, in the difficult situation of Wang Mang’s army breaking through, ministers betraying each other, and having no trust in either side, Liu Xin carried out the most thorough betrayal, which included decades of friendship and common ideals. From then on, Wang Mang lived deeply in the palace. When he was tired of studying, he relied on several cases to sleep. He seemed to have a premonition of his tragic ending. His ideals could not be combined with reality, and its almost dreamy reforms had led him to a cliff. However, he was not willing to be content. He believed himself to have the Confucian aspiration of saving the world. He was diligent and dedicated, and even if there were mistakes, his original intention was good. He used to be so popular. Even now, he still hopes to find a way out and answers from ancient texts, hoping that God will give him a chance to start over. However, God did not favor him again. The internal division of the reform group accelerated the New Mang regime. The downfall of.
Farmers from all over the country rebelled and gradually formed the two strongest rebel armies, Red Eyebrow and Green Forest, while the soldiers of the Gengshi Army pointed straight to the capital.
In the late summer of 23 AD, the flames of war approached Chang’an. On the second day of October, the uprising soldiers attacked the palace gate, and the fire spread. In the Book of Han, there is a purple frog sound with a leap position, which describes Wang Mang’s usurpation of Han as using purple to seize Zhu and the sound of frogs striking. At this moment, Wang Mang put on a purple dress and entrusted his life entirely to heaven. Wang Mang ultimately died in the chaos of the army, and with the triumphant song of the peasant uprising, the new regime declared its demise.
The death of Wang Mang caused the Confucianism to fall from its peak, and their political practice came to a sudden halt, making it difficult for good dreams to come true. However, we should still acknowledge Wang Mang’s rightful position as an ambitious reformer in Chinese history, his insight and courage in carrying out reforms to overcome the social crisis of the late Western Han Dynasty, and his bold attempts to achieve the ideal society envisioned by Confucianism. We can also find some experiences and lessons from the mottled historical memories, the magnificent ideals of Confucianism, and the unsuccessful reform practices, which make us realize that reform must be practical, appropriate measures, effective implementation, and a good start and end. We will recognize the difficulties and difficulties of reform, so that we can draw nourishment from the lessons of history and achieve our own glory.
90 Seconds in History: Battle of Kunyang
In the spring of the 23rd year of the park, the anti Wang Mang coalition in the south grew stronger, and Emperor Gengshi Liu Xuan continued to expand outward under the banner of the Han family. The new emperor Wang Mang was determined to eliminate this uprising coalition. Wang Mang’s 400000 strong army headed south from Luoyang to the military fortress of Kunyang, intending to retreat and protect themselves. The morale was scattered, and the situation was extremely dangerous. At a critical moment in history, Liu Xiu, who was only 29 years old, stepped forward. Liu Xiu first convinced the defenders of Kunyang to unite and defend against the enemy, and then proposed an emergency plan of using a few people to break through and seek help. That night, Liu Xiu led thirteen people on horseback to rush out and successfully broke through the unfamiliar terrain of Wang Mang’s army. Later, Liu Xiu recruited reinforcements nearby and personally led 3000 warriors back to Kunyang, charging into the enemy line. Liu Xiu’s behavior ignited the fighting spirit of the Revolutionary Army, which became completely proactive and miraculously defeated Wang Mang’s army in one fell swoop. The Battle of Kunyang is a classic case in Chinese military history of winning more with less. Liu Xiu became famous as the planner and organizer of this battle. Wang Fuzhi, a scholar from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, commented that the Battle of Kunyang was a magnificent event that shook the world, and the rise of Wang Ye came from this.