Rebellion of the Seven Princes
| Rebellion of the Seven States | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Map showing the Rebellion of Seven States during the Han dynasty |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Han Dynasty | Seven Principalities of Wu, Chu, Zhao, Jiaoxi, Jiaodong, Zaichuan, and Jinan | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Emperor Jing of Han, Zhou Yafu, Dou Ying |
Liu Pi | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 360,000 troops | 200,000 Wu troops 300,000 troops from the other states |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | All troops either deserted, or were captured or killed | ||||||
The Rebellion of the Seven States or Revolt of the Seven Kingdoms (simplified Chinese: 七国之乱; traditional Chinese: 七國之亂) took place in 154 BC against China's Han Dynasty by its regional semi-autonomous kings, to resist the emperor's attempt to centralize the government further.
At the beginning of the Han dynasty, Liu Bang--Emperor Gaozu of Han—created princely titles for many of his relatives in certain territories that accounted for between approximately one-third to one-half of the empire. This was an attempt to consolidate Liu family rule over the parts of China that were not ruled directly from the capital under the commandery (simplified Chinese: 郡县; traditional Chinese: 郡縣; pinyin: jùnxiàn) system.
During the reign of Emperor Wen, these princes were still setting their own laws, but in addition they were minting their own coins (albeit with Emperor Wen's approval) and collecting their own taxes. Many princes were effectively ignoring the imperial government's authority within their own principalities. When Emperor Jing became emperor in 157 BC, the rich principality of Wu was especially domineering.
Emperor Jing already had an inimical relationship with his cousin-once-removed Liu Pi, Prince of Wu, the nephew of his grandfather, Han founder Emperor Gaozu. The principality of Wu enjoyed, among other natural resources, abundant copper and salt supplies.
When Emperor Jing was still Crown Prince Qi, Liu Pi's heir apparent Liu Xian (Chinese: 劉賢) had been on an official visit to the capital Chang'an and they competed in a liubo board game. During arguments over the game, Liu Xian offended Crown Prince Qi, who threw the liubo board at him, resulting in his death. Liu Pi hated Emperor Jing for causing the death of Liu Xian.
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