Uprising of the Five Barbarians

Uprising of the Five Barbarians (五胡亂華)
Date 304 – 316 Location Northern China Result rebel victory; Fall of the Western Jin dynasty; Formation of the Eastern Jin dynasty
Belligerents
rebels of various ethnicities including the Five Barbarians	Jin dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Liu Yuan, Liu Cong, Shi Le and other tribal chieftains	Sima Yue, Wang Yan
Strength
c.100,000	100,000-200,000
Casualties and losses
Unknown	unknown

The Uprising of the Five Barbarians (simplified Chinese: 五胡乱华; traditional Chinese: 五胡亂華; pinyin: Wǔhú luànhuá; literally: "Five Barbarians throw China into disorder") refers to a series of uprisings between 304 and 316 by non-Han Chinese peoples living in North China against the Jin dynasty (265–420). The uprisings helped topple Emperor Huai of Jin in Luoyang and ended the Western Jin dynasty. Rulers from five minority ethnic groups, the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Jie, Qiang and Di, then established a series of independent kingdoms in northern China. This period of Chinese history, known as the Sixteen Kingdoms, (五胡十六國, 'sixteen kingdoms of the five barbarians'), lasted until the Northern Wei dynasty united northern China in the 5th century.

The southward migration of nomadic tribes into the lands around the Yellow River had been ongoing since the Eastern Han dynasty, due to several reasons. Military and diplomatic successes provided an incentive for nomads to move into closer contact with China, while the wars of the later Three Kingdoms period led also to an incentive to encourage this immigration, in order to repopulate previously devastated areas and provide military power and labour.

By the end of the 4th century, the nomadic tribes had moved into the Guanzhong area as well as the watersheds of the Wei and Xing rivers, practically surrounding the Jin capital in Luoyang. At the same time, the accession of Emperor Hui of Jin, who was possibly developmentally disabled, led to a struggle between the princes of the ruling Sima family to control him, sparking off the War of the Eight Princes.

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