Zheng Zhong

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Zheng Zhong ( Chinese  鄭 眾  /  郑 众 , Pinyin Zhèng Zhòng ), court name Jìchǎn ( 季 產 ; † 107 ), was a eunuch of the Chinese Han dynasty . He was the first representative of his faction to exert influence on the rule.

Zheng Zhong came from the Nanyang headquarters (roughly today's Nanyang , Henan ), from which the imperial family also came. He is said to have been prudent, active and a profound thinker. At first he served in the household of Emperor Zhang , when he was still Crown Prince of his father Emperor Ming . After Emperor Zhang had ascended the throne in 75, he entrusted Zheng Zhong with the post of Imperial Overseer ( Chinese  中 常侍 ).

After Emperor Zhang's death (88), his widow, Empress mother Dou , took over the reign of the young successor He . At that time, Zheng Zhong served as the head of the Imperial Gardens ( Chinese  鉤 盾 令 ). He was one of the few eunuchs who did not curry favor with the Dou clan. In 92, Emperor He was finally tired of the domination of the Empress mother and her brother Dou Xian , and he conspired against the Dou clan with his brother Liu Qing ( 劉慶 ) and Zheng Zhong. After the successful coup, the Emperor rewarded Zheng Zhong with the post of head of the Imperial Palace ( 大 長 秋 ). Zheng Zhong accepted this honor, but refused to accept financial rewards. The emperor was impressed by the modesty of the eunuch and from then on consulted him again and again on important state matters. This began the influence of the eunuchs on the politics of the Han Empire.

When the Emperor Zheng Zhong appointed Marquis of Chaoxiang in 102, he broke with a tradition of the dynasty. Such a post as a reward for special merits was not common and would not be repeated until a human life later under Emperor Huan .

Zheng Zhong became a confidante of Empress Deng Sui . So he retained his influence even after the death of the emperor (106), when the empress took over the reign for his successors Shang and An . For his support, she rewarded Zheng Zhong 107 with an additional 300 households for his mark . The eunuch died that same year.

Zheng Zhong was the first eunuch of the Later Han Dynasty to be awarded the title of marquise. (Under the Earlier Han Dynasty , the eunuch Xu Guanghan ( 許廣漢 ) received this honor, but only because his daughter Xu Pingjun was made empress by the Emperor Xuan .)