Emperor An of Han

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Emperor An of Han (Chinese: 漢安帝; pinyin: Hàn Āndì; Wade–Giles: Han An-ti; 94 – 30 April 125)^[3] was an Emperor of the Han dynasty and the sixth emperor of the Eastern Han, ruling from 106 to 125. He was a grandson of Emperor Zhang and cousin to Emperor Shang of Han, who died while Deng Sui, the empress dowager, served as regent.

When her infant stepson Emperor Shang succeeded to the throne in February 106, Empress Dowager Deng kept the then-12-year-old Crown Prince Liu Hu in the capital Luoyang as insurance against the infant emperor's death and the successor to the throne. Prince Hu ascended the throne and became emperor when Emperor Shang died in September 106. However, Empress Dowager Deng still remained as regent until her death in April 121. Thereafter, Emperor An removed many of her relatives from government and many of them committed suicide, probably under duress.

Emperor An did little to revive the withering dynasty. He began to indulge himself in women and heavy drinking and paid little attention to affairs of state, instead leaving matters to corrupt eunuchs. In this way, he effectively became the first emperor in Han history to encourage corruption. He also trusted his wife Empress Yan Ji and her family deeply, despite their obvious corruption. At the same time, droughts ravaged the country while peasants rose up in arms. In April 125, Emperor An died while travelling to Nanyang. He was only 31.^[4]