1: It Was Not Easy Being a Prince: Violence at Six Dynasties, Sui and Tang Courts

The stereotype of Chinese dynastic succession involves an emperor who designates an heir, usually eldest legitimate son, to accede to the throne in an orderly manner after the father’s death. The reality of the early medieval period was that the ideology of primogeniture normally was manipulated or ignored and dynastic successions involved bloody internecine strife. The potential for succession conflicts was amplified by the custom of polygyny that allowed an emperor one official wife and numerous concubines. Half-brothers, their mothers, their allies and sometimes eunuchs became involved in the struggle to rule directly or place a puppet on the throne. Winners normally killed rivals and their adherents. In the Northern Wei, Sui and Tang, internecine violence was typically confined to the court and females sometimes became the dominant powerholders. In the Southern Dynasties, rivals were more likely to vie for power on the battlefield. After consolidating power, successful rulers used the army and legal system to maintain stability. Collection of taxes and delivery of salaries and rewards to retainers, bureaucrats and soldiers, created respect for the leader’s benevolence and generosity and forestalled palace coups and military rebellions.