Cao Fang

Cao Fang ( Chinese  曹 芳 , Pinyin Cáo Fāng , W.-G. Ts'ao Fang ; Zì 蘭 卿 , Lánqīng , Lan-ch'ing ; Postum 齊王 , Qí Wáng , Ch'i Wang  - "Prince of Qi" and 邵陵 厲 公 , Shàolíng Lì Gōng , Shao-ling Li Kung  - "Duke Li of Shaoling"; * 231 ; † 274 ) was the adopted son of Cao Rui and the third emperor of the Wei dynasty .

background

Cao Fang was probably born in a royal home of the Wei Empire in 231 and was adopted at a young age by Emperor Cao Rui. His real parents are unknown, but historiography suggests that he was the son of the Prince of Rencheng, Cao Kai, and thus a great-grandson of Cao Cao . He had an adoptive brother, Cao Xun, who was born a year earlier and who was adopted at the same time as Cao Fang. In 235 , both Cao Fang and Cao Xun were made princes by Cao Rui.

When Cao Rui fell ill around the year 239, he appointed Cao Fang to succeed him. His rulers would be Cao Shuang and Sima Yi .

Domination

Cao Fang held the longest tenure in Wei Dynasty history, but never held true authority during that period. During his reign he was first directed by Cao Shuang, then by Sima Yi and his son Sima Shi . When he wanted to free himself from its power, he was deposed.

Cao Shuang's reign

In the beginning, Cao Shuang and Sima Yi shared power, but Cao Shuang soon used sophisticated political maneuvers to bestow numerous honorary degrees on his fellow officer while exercising actual power himself. Sima Yi still had military authority and thus fended off an attack by the Wu, for example .

In 243, Cao Fang married Princess Zhen , his third cousin.

In 244 Cao Shuang sought military command for himself and attacked Han Zhong, a Shu Han border town , without any particular strategy . When supplies to the army failed, he had to withdraw with great losses. Despite this failure, Cao Shuang continued to hold on to power. Sima Yi apparently withdrew from politics, enraged by his actual powerlessness. In 249, in a swift action in league with numerous court officials, he deposed Cao Shuang and took power himself.

Sima Yi's reign

Sima Yi transferred many of Cao Fang's competencies to himself and thus established the violence of the later Jin Dynasty . His greatest achievement was the elimination of the corruption and inefficiency that had spread under Cao Shuang's government. In the same year that Sima Yi took power, the Wei general Wang Ling was planning his overthrow in order to put Cao Cao's son Cao Biao on the throne. When Plan 251 was about to be carried out, Sima Yi found out about it and foiled the conspiracy. He died that same year.

Sima Shi's reign

After Sima Yi's death, Cao Fang was still unable to become self-employed because Sima Shi continued his father's plans. In 252 he led a major campaign against the Wu, whose emperor Sun Quan had died shortly before. The regent of Sun Liang's successor , Zhuge Ke , was able to stop the invasion and repel Sima Shi. A year later, Sima Shi finally managed to defeat and kill Zhuge Ke, confirming his power.

In 254 he further strengthened his power through numerous brutal moves: he destroyed the aspiring ministers Li Feng, Xiahou Xuan and Zhang Ji along with their clans and expelled Cao Fang's wife Zhang (whom he had married after the death of Empress Zhen) to give him and Wang , the daughter of Wang Kui. The embittered Cao Fang and his confidants embarked on a daring plan: to use Sima Zhao's troops against Sima Shi. Although it never came to that, Sima Shi found out about it and deposed him as Emperor of the Wei.

After the deposition

Cao Fang received his previous title "Prince of Qi" back from Sima Shi and retired to his palace in Henei, where he was under house arrest. After the end of the Wei dynasty and the establishment of the Jin dynasty by Sima Yan , he and the other princes were limited to the rank of prince (prince of Shaoling).

Era names

• Zheng Shi (正始 zhèng shĭ) 240 - 249
• Jiaping (嘉 平 jīa píng) 249 - 254

Web links

• Family Trees Cao and Xiahou (English)

predecessor	Office	successor
Cao Rui	Emperor of China (North) 239–254	Cao Mao

Note: This article places the family name before the person's first name. This is the usual order in Chinese. Cao is the family name here, Fang is the first name.