Taishang Huang
| Taishang Huang | |||||||||
| Chinese | 太上皇 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Tàishàng huáng |
| Wade–Giles | T'ai4-shang4 Huang2 |
In Chinese history, a Taishang Huang or Taishang Huangdi, is a retired emperor who had, at least in name, abdicated in favour of someone else. Although technically no longer the reigning sovereign, there are instances where the retired emperor continued to exert considerable power, if not more than the reigning emperor.
Styling himself the "Lord Father" (Chinese: 主父), King Wuling of Zhao was one of the first known Chinese sovereigns to retire and abdicate in favour of his son and successor. However, the title "Taishang Huang" was not used until much later.
The title was first used when the First Emperor (Qin Shi Huang) of the Qin dynasty bestowed it upon his deceased father, King Zhuangxiang.
Emperor Gao (Liu Bang) of the Han dynasty had also bestowed this title on his living father, Liu Taigong. He bestowed it onto his father to express filial piety and to preserve the social hierarchy between father and son.
In 301, during the War of the Eight Princes in the Jin dynasty, Sima Lun became the emperor by forcing his puppet Emperor Hui to become the Taishang Huang. The title had always been an honorific before the 301 coup, but it had now become a tool of political infighting between opposing factions.
Emperor Xianwen (454–76) was an emperor of the Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei. After retiring in favour of his son, Emperor Xiaowen, to become Taishang Huang in 471, he continued to hold on to power until his death in 476.
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