Liu Bei, Chinese emperor (b. 161)

Liu Bei (Chinese: 劉備, pronunciation ; Mandarin pronunciation: [ljǒu pêi]; 161 – Summer 223), courtesy name Xuande (玄德), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Though he was a distant relative of the Han imperial family, Liu Bei's father died when he was a child and left his family impoverished. To help his mother, he sold shoes and straw mats. When he reached the age of fifteen, his mother sent him to study under scholar and official, Lu Zhi. In his youth, Liu Bei was known as ambitious and charismatic. He gathered a militia army to fight the Yellow Turbans. Liu Bei fought bravely in many battles and grew famous for his exploits. Rather than join the coalition against Dong Zhuo, he joined his childhood friend Gongsun Zan and fought under him against Yuan Shao many times.

Later he was sent to help Tao Qian against Cao Cao. Thanks to the support of the influential Mi and Chen families along with the provisions in Tao Qian's last will, Liu Bei inherited the Xu Province. After his defeat against Cao Cao, Lü Bu joined him. However, Lü Bu took advantage of Liu Bei being away fighting Yuan Shu and seized Xu Province. Later Liu Bei joined Cao Cao and they defeated Lü Bu at the Battle of Xiapi. Although he was treated well by Cao Cao, Liu Bei received a secret edict from the emperor to kill Cao Cao. So, he rebelled against Cao Cao taking back Xu province. After a brief alliance with Yuan Shao, Liu Bei was quickly defeated by Cao Cao and had to flee to join Yuan Shao in the north. He was sent by Yuan Shao to create uprisings behind Cao Cao's main base, but he was ultimately defeated by Cao Cao and joined his kinsman Liu Biao. Liu Biao doubted Liu Bei's loyalty, so he sent him to Xinye to serve as a shield against Cao Cao. After Liu Biao's death, Liu Bei and his supporters joined Liu Qi in Xiakou where they allied with Sun Quan. Together they opposed Cao Cao at the Battle of Red Cliffs.

After Cao Cao's defeat, Liu Bei quickly took control of the majority of Jing Province. He then married Sun Quan's sister. Sun Quan then recognised the legitimacy of Liu Bei's control of the Jing Province and agreed to "lend" him Nan Commandery. Liu Bei later led his army to join another kinsman, Liu Zhang, in his war against the warlord Zhang Lu. Based on the advice of his advisors, Liu Bei betrayed Liu Zhang and seized the Yi Province from him. After engaging in a series of conflicts with Sun Quan and seeing Cao Cao's coming closer to the Yi province, Liu Bei agreed to yield half of the Jing province to Sun Quan and led his army against Xiahou Yuan at Hanzhong and seized it. Liu Bei then declared himself "King of Hanzhong" and set up his headquarters in Chengdu. However soon after his senior general Guan Yu was killed by Liu Bei's "ally" Sun Quan who took the rest of Jing province in return for having "lent" Liu Bei the Nan Commandery. Liu Bei was furious and after declaring himself emperor to challenge Cao Pi's authority, he led his army against his former ally. Though some early success, his army was soon forced into a stalemate against Sun Quan general Lu Xun and was subsequently defeated. Ashamed by his failure, he never returned to Chengdu and settled in Baidicheng where he lived until his death one year later. Urging his heir, eldest son, Liu Shan not to emulate him and rather be as virtuous as possible, before he died Liu Bei appointed Zhuge Liang to advise his son on domestic matters with Li Yan to advise him on the military matters.

Despite early failings and lacking both the material resources and social status his rivals commanded, he gathered support among disheartened Han loyalists who opposed Cao Cao, the warlord who controlled the Han central government and the figurehead Emperor Xian and led a popular movement to restore the Han dynasty. Liu Bei overcame a number of setbacks to carve out his own realm, which at its peak spanned present-day Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunan, and parts of Hubei and Gansu.

Culturally, due to the popularity of the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Liu Bei is widely regarded as the ideal benevolent and humane ruler who cared for his people and selected good advisers for his government. His fictional counterpart in the novel was a salutary example of a ruler who adhered to the Confucian set of moral values, such as loyalty and compassion. Historically, Liu Bei, like many Han rulers, was greatly influenced by Laozi. He was a brilliant politician and leader whose skill was a remarkable demonstration of "Confucian in appearance but Legalist in substance".