Liu Bang

Liu Bang, known as Emperor Gaozu of Han (256 or 247 to 195 BCE), was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty. Born to a peasant family in Pei County in the state of Chu, he served as a minor law enforcement officer under the Qin dynasty before becoming a rebel leader in the chaos that followed the death of Qin Shi Huang. He outmaneuvered his rival Xiang Yu to enter the Qin heartland, where the last Qin ruler Ziying surrendered to him in 206 BCE. After the Chu-Han Contention he won at the Battle of Gaixia in 202 BCE and established the Han dynasty with himself as emperor. As emperor he reduced taxes and corvee labour, promoted Confucianism, suppressed revolts by vassal rulers outside his own clan and began the heqin policy of marriage alliances with the Xiongnu. He died in 195 BCE and was succeeded by his son Liu Ying.