Emperor An of Jin

Emperor An of Jin
10th Emperor of the Eastern Jin dynasty
Reign7 November 397[1] – 28 January 419
PredecessorEmperor Xiaowu
SuccessorEmperor Gong
Born382
Died28 January 419(419-01-28) (aged 37)
Jiankang, Eastern Jin
Burial
Xiuping ling (休平陵), Nanjing, Jiangsu
ConsortsEmpress Anxi
Full name
Era dates
Longan (隆安): 397 – 402
Yuanxing (元興): 402 – 405
Yixi (義熙): 405 – 419
Posthumous name
Emperor Ān
安皇帝
HouseHouse of Sima
DynastyEastern Jin
FatherEmperor Xiaowu
MotherEmpress Dowager Ande

Emperor An of Jin (simplified Chinese: 晋安帝; traditional Chinese: 晉安帝; pinyin: Jìn Ān Dì; Wade–Giles: Chin An-ti; 382 – 28 January 419[2]), personal name Sima Dezong (司馬德宗), was an emperor of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (266–420) in China. He was described as so developmentally disabled that he was unable to speak, clothe himself, or be able to express whether he was hungry or full. He was created crown prince in 387 and ascended the throne in 397. Because of his disability, the actual power was controlled by his uncle, Sima Daozi, Prince of Kuaiji. During his reign, regents and warlords dominated the Jin regime. Revolts by various governors also ravaged the land. From 398 to 403, there were constant revolts and civil war campaigns. In 403, the Jin regime was usurped by the warlord Huan Xuan, and while Emperor An was restored in 404, the Jin Dynasty was nearing its end. With the warlord Liu Yu as the actual power, Jin destroyed Southern Yan and Later Qin, greatly expanding its territory. However, with Liu Yu up in the north, the renegade governor of Guang Province (廣州, modern Guangdong and Guangxi), Lu Xun, rebelled and threatened the capital city Jiankang, before Liu Yu returned and crushed the revolt. In 419, Emperor An was strangled under the order of Liu Yu and replaced with his brother Emperor Gong, who would be the last emperor of the dynasty, before Liu Yu took the throne and establish the Liu Song Dynasty.

  1. ^ According to Sima Dezong's biography in Book of Jin, he assumed the throne on the xinyou day of the 9th month of the 21st year of the Taiyuan era of his father's reign. This corresponds to 7 Nov 396 on the Julian calendar. [(太元二十一年九月)辛酉,太子即皇帝位] Jin Shu vol. 10.
  2. ^ According to Sima Dezong's biography in Book of Jin, he died aged 37 (by East Asian reckoning) on the wuyin day of the 12th month of the 14th year of the Yixi era of his reign. This corresponds to 28 Jan 419 on the Julian calendar. [(义熙十四年)十二月戊寅,帝崩于东堂,时年三十七。] Jin Shu, vol. 10. Thus by calculation, his birth year should be 383.

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