 | Xiongnu: Encyclopedia II - Xiongnu - Tributary relations with the Han
Xiongnu - Tributary relations with the Han
In 53 BC Huyanye decided to enter into tributary relations with Han China. The original terms insisted on by the Han court were that, first, the chanyu or his representatives should come to the capital to pay homage; secondly, the chanyu should send a hostage prince; and thirdly, the chanyu should present tribute to the Han emperor. The political status of the Xiongnu in the Chinese world order was reduced from that of a "brotherly state" to that of an "outer vassal" (外臣). During this period, however, the Xiongnu maintained political sovereignty and full territorial integrity. The Great Wall continued to serve as the line of demarcation between Han and Xiongnu.
Huyanye sent his son, the "wise king of the right" Shuloujutang, to the Han court as hostage. In 51 BC he personally visited Chang'an to pay homage to the emperor on the Chinese New Year. On the financial side, Huhanye was amply rewarded in large quantities of gold, cash, clothes, silk, horses and grain for his participation. Huhanye made two more homage trips, in 49 BC and 33 BC; with each one the imperial gifts were increased. On the last trip, Huhanye took the opportunity to ask to be allowed to become an imperial son-in-law. As a sign of the decline in the political status of the Xiongnu, Emperor Yuan refused, giving him instead five ladies-in-waiting. One of them was Wang Zhaojun, famed in Chinese folklore as one of the Four Beauties.
When Zhizhi learned of his brother's submission, he also sent a son to the Han court as hostage in 53 BC. Then twice, in 51 BC and 50 BC, he sent envoys to the Han court with tribute. But having failed to pay homage personally, he was never admitted to the tributary system. In 33 BC, a junior officer named Chen Tang, with the help of Gan Yanshou, protector-general of the Western Regions, assembled an expeditionary force that defeated Zhizhi and sent his head as a trophy to Chang'an.
Tributary relations were discontinued during the reign of Huduershi (AD 18-48), corresponding to the political upheavals of the Xin Dynasty in China. The Xiongnu took the opportunity to regain control of the Western Regions, as well as neighbouring peoples such as the Wuhuan. In AD 24, Hudershi even talked seriously about reversing the tributary system.
Other related archives114 BC, 119 BC, 121 BC, 127 BC, 129 BC, 134 BC, 135 BC, 14, 158 BC, 166 BC, 174 BC, 18, 192 BC, 198 BC, 1st century BC, 200 BC, 209 BC, 215 BC, 24, 304, 31 BC, 33 BC, 3rd century, 3rd century BC, 48, 49 BC, 50, 50 BC, 51 BC, 53 BC, 54 BC, 57 BC, 58 BC, 60 BC, 94, Cantonese, Cao Cao, Caucasus, Central Asia, Chang'an, China, Chinese, Chinese New Year, Dingling, Dong Zhuo, Emperor Gao, Emperor Guangwu, Emperor Wen, Emperor Wu, Emperor Yuan, Europe, Former Qin, Four Beauties, Gansu, Gobi Desert, Great Wall, Han Dynasty, Han Zhao, Hanyu Pinyin, Hebei, Huns, Huo Qubing, Inner Mongolia, Jie, Jin, Later Zhao, Liu Yao, Liu Yuan, Lop Nor, Luoyang, Manchuria, Meng Tian, Mongolia, Mulan, Northern Wei, Ordos, Qin, Shanxi, Shi Le, Siberia, Sima Qian, Sogdian, Son of Heaven, Taiyuan, Tiefu, Tuoba, Turkic, Wade-Giles, Walt Disney, Wang Mang, Wang Zhaojun, Wei Qing, Western Regions, Wu Hu, Wuhuan, Xia Dynasty, Xianbei, Xin Dynasty, Xinjiang, Ye, Yellow River, Yeniseian, Yuezhi, chanyu, heqin, liquor, regionalism, rice, silk, state of Dai, steppe
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Tributary relations with the Han", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki |
