User:GuoXia/The Fall of the Han Dynasty

= The Fall of the Han Dynasty =

The Han Dynasty was, during its reign, one of the most sucessful in Chinese imperial history. It was preceded only by the Qin dynasty, the first to unite China as an empire, and the rulers of the Han perfected the socio-political balance necessary for the typical ancient autocracy. It was interrupted only briefly by rebellion, but had the durability to maintain order even in such turbulent times. Many have hypothesized that this strength came from the religious pervasiveness of the Emperor, whose influence was felt in all aspects Chinese ritual and even daily existence. And it is quite feasible that this central theme of authority, once established, and a lack of natural disasters, attributed to the Dynasty's success.

Yet as a firm central government and lack of natural calamity may attribute to the success of the Han, the corruption of its administration and a series of natural disasters may be said to have been the cause of its downfall. Like most history, there is no single catalyst for the passing of the Han, rather an accumulation of misfortune. According to the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" by Luo Guanzhong, written in the 1400's, the Emperor Ling Di relied heavily on the advice of corrupt, imperial eunuchs, who used the fact that they had helped his predecessor Huan Di into power to persuade the Emperor. Slowly, and against all advice, the Emperor gave in to most of their whims. They used the court for personal gain, led by their most influential member, Zhang Rang.