After Han Wudi, there were no more capable rulers. As a result, Emperor Ping (last ruler of Western Han) was poisoned by Wang Mang who was the nephew of the Empress Dowager. He stole the throne and changed the title of his dynasty to Xin (meaning new) . Although he had a good will to revise the government for the better by introducing strict Confucian principles, they did not turn out well as the country was already in turmoil. Also, he introduced many reforms like the changing of currency, equal distribution of land and harsh laws on merchants which made the lives of people extremely difficult. During his rule, many natural disasters like the flooding of the Yellow river making the problem worse.The merchants and traders eventually got together and secretly plotted a rebellion. Eventually, Wang Mang was killed by the Greenwood rebels and the new emperor, Liu Xiu restored the Han dynasty.
The Eastern Han
The Eastern Han was founded by Liu Xiu, a descendant of the royal family. His self - proclaimed as Guang Wu Di and tried many ways to reduce the suffering of the people. Even though the dynasty was restored, many of the Emperors were still very weak. The Xiong Nu also caused trouble and it was the effort of Ban Chao who managed to unite the other tribes and fought with the Xiong Nu and prevented them from entering the Central Plains. Towards the end of the Eastern Han, many uprisings like the Yellow Turban ( Huang Jin) sprang up and caused chaos in the country. However, Dong Zhuo(a general viceroy) managed to squash the uprisings with the army control in his hands. However, he was killed soon after that and Cao Cao became his successor. Cao Cao was made the Prime Minster by the last Emperor and had power in his hands. This was the beginning of the Three Kingdoms Period. Although the Han dynasty still continued as Shu Han with Liu Bei as the emperor, the Eastern Han dynasty had already being conquered.
