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Wang Mang
Han consort-clan regent who took the throne in 9 AD as founder of the Xin dynasty, attempted sweeping land and currency reforms, and was killed when rebels took Chang'an in 23 AD
Mural of the event “Wang Mang's Xin Coup”, which this person took part in.
At the end of the Western Han, consort kin held power, the bureaucracy was corrupt, and land annexation reached the limit of popular endurance. Society broadly yearned for a Confucian-orthodox sage to cleanse the long-standing illnesses of the court.
Also known as Zi Jujun
Wang Mang, courtesy name Jujun, came from Yuancheng in Wei commandery and was a nephew of Wang Zhengjun, empress of Emperor Yuan. Made Marquis of Xindu in 16 BC and grand marshal in 8 BC, he withdrew to his fief under Emperor Ai. Back in power under Emperor Ping as Duke Who Secures the Han, he installed the infant Ruzi Ying after Ping's death and ruled as acting emperor. In January 9 AD he took the throne, naming his dynasty Xin and reigning under the eras Shijianguo, Tianfeng and Dihuang. His reforms declared all farmland royal land, banned the sale of slaves, set up state market controls, changed the coinage several times and downgraded the titles of the Xiongnu and other neighbours. In 23 AD troops of the Gengshi regime stormed Chang'an and he was killed on the Jian Terrace. He received no temple or posthumous name, and Ban Gu placed his biography at the end of the Book of Han (Hanshu).
Life and times
Dates 45 BCE–23 CE
- 9Wang Mang's Xin CoupTook partage 53
- 9Wang Mang's Archaic Reformsage 53
- 23Liu Xiu Triumphs at Kunyangage 67
- 25Restoration of GuangwuPrecursor